ConnectWise Automate

Powerful but inexpensive IT service and control platform.

Comments: It's been positive. It is essential for supporting remote workes and in the times that are in it it's gotten more important. There is good functionality around software installs and we actually use it to build up our SOE when we have new machines. Ot deosnlt do anything other similar systems can;t do but it is very fit for purpose for a small IT team.

Pros:

There is a lot that it can do for a quite reasonable cost. IT is more suited for small or medium businesses as I don;t think it;s quite enterprise level but for control, scripting, monitoring and the like it is very good at what it does. It is also cloud based so can be accessed on any device with a browser.

Cons:

It is not very good at monitoring. I can easily find out if computers have issues by selecting them but not really being notified that there may be a probelm. Scripting works well when it works but it's difficult to figure out if it's not worked and why.

Connectwise Automate

Comments: Connectwise Automate is a critical part of my business that I use. I could not work without it and I really enjoy working with this tool!

Pros:

I really like the features that Connectwise Automate offers. The ability to remotely patch servers and endpoint devices is excellent.

Cons:

The only issue we have with this software is the customer support and occasional instability of the software.

Alternatives Considered: TeamViewer Remote, LastPass, GoTo Meeting, LogMeIn Central and Join.Me

Reasons for Switching to ConnectWise Automate: Connectwise offers what all of these tools do with many other additional options!

ConnectWise Automate is great for remote monitoring and management of IT systems.

Pros:

I love how easy it is to automate tasks and manage devices remotely.

Cons:

However, the interface can be overwhelming and takes time to get used to.

ConnectWise Automate helps me keep all my IT systems in check, saving time and hassle.

Pros:

Automated tasks, easy remote monitoring, and powerful scripting capabilities make my job easier.

Cons:

The user interface can be a bit overwhelming at first, and some features are not very intuitive.

So far so good

Pros:

It's a strong suite for Remote Management and helping end users. I can easily assist quickly for them.

Cons:

I haven't ran into issues yet. I'm still going through the trial and testing.

Should be call "Connectwise Autodraft"

Comments: The business is a con. They tell you they have a "guarantee" which they make impossible to obtain. will continue to bill you regardless fo whether the product works or not.

Pros:

The software has its pros (connectwise screenconnect is the only good thing). The automation will automatically restart services or auto-approve and apply windows update on a schedule. When it isn't crashing or causing servers to crash that is.

Cons:

It CONSTANTLY crashes. It will cause servers to crash. Only some automation features work. No support is ever avaaible to resolve issues. The ones that do respond don't know their own product.

Alternatives Considered: TeamViewer Remote, Atera and Pulseway

Reasons for Choosing ConnectWise Automate: Kaskersky partnership forced via DoD Contracts

Switched From: LogMeIn Central

Reasons for Switching to ConnectWise Automate: The sales pitch promised support, working automation, and a cost reduction. All of it was a lie. This product costs more money than it saves and is a terrible investment.

Great tool for an MSP

Comments: We have been able to become much more efficient and organize our work much better.

Pros:

Allows for management of a wide view of devices across a variety of ecosystems. Easy to use and get up and running. Partner community is great.

Cons:

Support leaves a lot to be desired. When can get in touch, takes several attempts to resolve issue.

Alternatives Considered: Datto RMM

Reasons for Switching to ConnectWise Automate: Pricing and trust in the Connectwise system

RMM to the stars

Comments: We used this tool when it was LabTech - and even in those days there was no comparing this to any other RMM platform. For years it had the edge in so many ways. To those willing to learn it this tool was capable of being the entirety of your platform for doing business!

Pros:

The feature set has been astounding from day one. With the big rebrand and integration with ConnectWise Manage the duo are now all that much better, complementing each others previous, non-focused features.

Cons:

Truly forward progress was the main issue. During the time we actively used LabTech/Automate was during the transition years of the name and aesthetic. Things are definitely driving into the right, unified direction for all of their tools and that is exciting to see! Learning the tool, like most ConnectWise products, can be daunting but there are lots of resources to pull from and well worth the investment. Again, I suspect due to the years of bringing the tools together, Automate seemed to somewhat stall/lag on added features for awhile. They certainly had the most initially so it wasn't a drastic fall-behind, but new tools were taking the slow moving to catch up and the market is certainly competitive again.

Alternatives Considered: N-Able Projects Portal

Manage multiple environments with ease

Comments: Companies I have been working for have been leveraging this application for machine management for years.

Pros:

This software provides multiple connectivity options. It can show a lot of information (see least favorite list below) Great organization! Easy integration with Connectwise Control and Manage Lots of option for Scripting and API connectivity to outside applications

Cons:

The interface was changed to a much less intuitive environment about a year ago. I use it and have started to get used to it somewhat, but it still is not what I would call good. There's problems if you don't run the Control Center as an Admin, but it doesn't want to run as admin by default The uninstaller for the client can sometimes not uninstall.

Automate ( formerly Labtech) is a great RMM tool for MSP customers.

Pros:

The ease of setup and installation for customers is substantial when considering this tool for MSP. New customers can be setup with ease, configured and once agents are installed Automate can significantly reduce information gathering for system resources, and discovery of behind the scenes issues. Scripting and Automating are easy to do with the built in examples and wizards, which makes customizing alerts and monitors a breeze.

Cons:

The monitoring will come with lots of defaults right out of the box, so there will be a lot of "noise" to sort through and remove/adjust after initial installation.

Automate is just another piece of software written once and not really maintained

Pros:

Patch management is way easier than using WSUS.

Cons:

User interface is not intuitive. Lots of training required. Very little useful documentation. Connectwise support will not help you understand the scripting features at all. The documentation for scripting is litterally 4 pages of what you can see in the user interface. The scripts debug process is horrid. It takes 50x longer to do a script in automate over doing a powershell and bash script to do the same thing. Change requests, and features are not being answered or added in a timely manor. This software is stale.

Alternatives Considered: N-sight and Atera

Mainstream connect wise reviews

Comments: Its a good experience that helps planning and processing management functions

Pros:

Navigation and automation of process in use

Cons:

Real time sync should be worked on for process management

Alternatives Considered: QDA SOLUTIONS Non-Conformance Management

Reasons for Switching to ConnectWise Automate: Recommendation and features

ConnectWise Automate, a great software

Comments: Labtech, as it was previously known, is currently operating in our offices and infrastructures, operating correctly and providing an optimal service, over time we have applied favorable configurations such as the reproduction of events associated with ConnectWise Manage. Its monitoring offers us remarkable performance by tracking any device that is in the network, from the installed applications to the events presented by an error in the system. Its powerful command system manages to facilitate the deployment of any patch you wish to perform.

Pros:

It has a large interface composed of various options that enhance its use, it works well enough to carry a monitoring on your devices, you will have detailed information of each action that this takes, you can even display any action by means of commands.

Cons:

CW Automate is a fairly complete software, but with a support team that leaves a lot to be desired for certain problems, the resolution of problems is not very complete.

Patch management, Machine access and ease of use

Pros:

Pushing out the remote agent is very simple and you have an executable for machines that are not connecting under group policy. Monitor your clients whole network from one location.

Cons:

Every now and then you may come across an issue, calling into support you need to get past the level 1 tech and go right to the level 2 tech.

The IDEA of this software is awesome, the delivery of that promise is lacking though

Pros:

This software's scripting engine is hands down the best. I recently saw the new interface that is coming to align the product more with Connectwise's main product is really nice looking.

Cons:

Many of the terms do not make sense (blacklist software, means you want to know if it gets installed, meanwhile blacklisted services mean you want to be alerted if it's not working). The old interface was dated but it had the functionality and details all in one place. The current version 11 interface is horrible. Getting support on the product is awful; slow response and frequently being told that whatever you ask about is out-of-scope.

Connectwise Automate, formerly Labtech, works well for the most part.

Pros:

Before Automate/Labtech 12 the best thing about this software was being able to see, at a glance, all the information you needed about a particular managed computer. They are moving back in this direction it appears. The scripting and monitoring systems are robust and allow you to do pretty much anything you can think of.

Cons:

The GUI update that came with version 12 is not good. It uses a bunch of giant squares to present information and you have to drill into each one to find the specific info you are looking for rather than the at-a-glance experience I had before. Support leaves something to be desired. Just starting to chat with someone there can take 45+ minutes, then the person you are chatting with does not have the knowledge to fix the problem so you have to open a ticket anyway. Lots of time wasted there. Furthermore sometimes the inexperienced technician will offer suggestions to resolve the problem that have nothing to do with the problem which underlines the fact that they do not understand the problem.

ConnectWise Automate

Comments: It's been positive, but I would recommend shopping around to get the best tool for your firm.

Pros:

It packs a bunch of features and it's integration with ConnectWise manage is nice. The scripting is powerful.

Cons:

Tool is very complex and even simple tasks can be tricky. Support for Automate is not nearly as good as with Manage. The product is expensive.

The BEST tool for an IT Army of One

Comments: Its a love/hate relationship, but mostly love. I fought to have this at my company and I can not do my job without it.

Pros:

You can access it anywhere. If I am on vacation in Mexico and the office back in the states needs support, I just open up chrome and go to my custom made website that CW gave me and I am in. I can see everything about a persons computer by just scrolling side to side or double clicking. Their customer service is also 24/7 AND they assign you technicians to help with implementation along with connectwise university to ensure you are ready to use their product to the fullest extent!

Cons:

Its sort of difficult to learn. They have the university that helps with that, but some of their classes are outdated and some just sprint through the lesson in the hopes that you might have caught a thing or two that they just taught you. Also, their scripting language is their own(proprietary) and you have to learn it. So if you already know Java, C++, Python, etc, it doesn't matter.

RMM

Comments: This program helps us bring together all of our management abilities without the guessing game. Update and scripts works like a charm, ability to audit end user.

Pros:

This RMM Toll will integrate with nearly every tool available. One pane of glass for management. Great support through implementation and afterward.

Cons:

This can be costly and I would not suggest it for a small company. It takes a 2 to 6 months to be fully deployed depending on what your needs are.

Easy to understand, difficult to master

Pros:

The ability to connect via web portal or application. I can see my items on the fly even when I'm out of the office

Cons:

The application crashes quite a bit when not a very steady connection which makes it difficult to open items

Must have for MSP

Comments: Have been using it for years, love it.. Price is a bit steep for someone just starting out, but otherwise it offers alot of function, and ease of use once everything is setup and you know how to use it.

Pros:

For a small to midsized MSP, connectwise makes a few must-have's. Connectwise Automate makes it easy to monitor, and perform tasks on remote systems, as well as offers a decent out of the box ticketing system, with end user ease.

Cons:

Many Many options, Which is good, but a pain to setup and have working how you want it. Should have more out of box preset configs to get up and running quicker.

ConnectWise Automate

Pros:

Customization. Out of the box it’s ok, but really shines once customized to your environment.

Cons:

Delays with agents, sometimes scripts can take some time to run.

Great RMM Tool

Comments: Love it.

Pros:

It was easy to deploy. Very customizable. A ton of features out of the box. Simple to maintain.

Cons:

IT does take quite a bit of work to setup up the initial configurations and patches.

Connectwise Automate

Comments: Connectwise Automate has great customer support as well as an amazing slack group of other sys admins and developers that are more than willing to help out others and get them going on the right track. I have loved using Automate and I don't think I will ever use anything else.

Pros:

Connectwise automate is by far the best RMM tool on the market, It allows you to create a ton of custom monitoring alerts and the wizard makes it super easy to accomplish.

Cons:

The implementation can be very dry but just hang in there as it is all worth it.

Perfect for MSP

Comments: We save a lot of time by not having to manually check devices as Automate does all the reporting for us.

Pros:

- Can script infinite amount of tasks to save time - Easy to deploy - Full Reporting and Inventory - Patch management to deploy updates when we choose

Cons:

- Loads agent onto machines putting more of a load on the machine - Requires a lot of tweaking and filtering events to not over load the amount of alerts you receive