CASE STUDY
Learn how Solarus, a US-based Managed Service Provider, stayed competitive and brought on new clients during the COVID-19 pandemic using Nerdio Manager for MSP.
About Infoware
Solarus Technologies is a Managed Service Provider (MSP) in the United States that provides outsourced managed services to small and mid-size businesses worldwide. They offer IT services, network architecture, cloud services, and consulting, among other services. Typical clients include nonprofit/NGO, small businesses, and startups. Solarus is available to their clients on a 24/7 basis with IT support for all of their tech-related needs.
The Situation
As businesses shifted from an in-office work environment to work-from-home during the COVID-19 pandemic, Solarus needed to find a way for their customers to access their virtual desktop infrastructure from home.
Solarus Technologies was looking for an efficient way to onboard clients to a full cloud environment. Prior to partnering with Nerdio, clients were unable to work remotely, had outdated servers, and relied on VPN to connect to their network. Fellow MSPs in their network highly recommended Nerdio’s services and referenced the success they were having using Nerdio Manager for MSP for their Azure Virtual Desktop deployment, management, and optimization needs.
“Nerdio enabled us to get into the Azure space and grow our business with Microsoft,” said Matthew Nikravesh, the President of Solarus Technologies
The Solution
Nerdio Manager for MSP allowed Solarus to quickly and easily deploy, manage, and optimize virtual desktop environments in Microsoft Azure for their clients. “Nerdio enabled us to get into the Azure space and grow our business with Microsoft,” said Matthew Nikravesh, the President of Solarus Technologies, adding that the service…
“…gave us the tools and the training to build a practice around Azure Virtual Desktop.”
Prior to working with Nerdio, Solarus had no clients who used Azure and didn’t have the technical know-how to set it up on their own. Since partnering with Nerdio, they’ve onboarded 15 of their clients into the service. Nerdio gave them the ability to automate their services and make their process more efficient. Setting up tasks in Azure can be time-consuming, and Nerdio’s services enable businesses to automate Scripted Actions that can then be replicated at scale with multiple clients. Solarus was able to deploy 50-75 complete virtual desktops , automatically, in under two hours. They can also easily manage all their clients’ environments from a centralized management console without the need for an experienced Azure engineer on-staff – saving them thousands per month.
The Results
Solarus was impressed with Nerdio during their onboarding process. Nerdio gave attentive, detailed support during the first two migrations through their hands-on service, providing “white glove” service that set them apart and ensured Solarus’ success (and the success of their customers). Nerdio’s expert Go Live Engineers went through each step in the process with Solarus, showing them how to use the platform and how to set everything up in their clients’ virtual space.
“We did not consider any other solutions besides Nerdio,” said Nikravesh. They didn’t need to.
It took 45-60 days for Solarus to implement their first client and have since grown to 15 clients on their platform. Solarus has added around 50-75 desktops in that time frame, averaging around 10-25 desktops per client and is in the process of proposing Azure Virtual Desktop, using Nerdio Manager, to more clients.
One trend that came out of the pandemic for Solarus is that several of their clients have moved or closed offices. In response to the pandemic, their clients were looking for a way to develop a centralized network that could be accessed by employees across the country.
One client, who had an office in New Jersey, used Azure Virtual Desktop for four months and decided to close their New Jersey office permanently.
If we didn’t have Nerdio, we probably wouldn’t be doing any business within Azure,” said Nikravesh. “They really helped catapult us.”
To other businesses considering using Nerdio’s services, Nikravesh advises, “Don’t wait. Just do it. Even if you have no experience within Azure.”
Find Nerdio in the Azure Marketplace: nerdio. co/nmm
