Computer Associates last week unveiled a suite of applications designed to address the anti-virus, data backup and PC migration needs of small and remote offices.
CA’s Protection Suites will combine its new Desktop DNA Migrator tool for transferring data and settings between PCs with three other applications: eTrust Antivirus, eTrust Pest Patrol Anti-Spyware and BrightStor ArcServe Backup for PC data backup and restore capabilities.
The bundled application suites include tools to perform anti-virus scans, detect spyware and manage desktops and servers, and the standard and premium editions of Microsoft’s Small Business Server products. Customers can mix and match among the five tools.
CA says it made the software easy to install and maintain. Customers install the software on a server, and the server component distributes software agents to the machines to be managed. The agents then report back to the server with health and performance statistics.
Packaging data backup, desktop migration and security tools should simplify decision making for small offices, analysts say.
“Many SMBs have few or non-existent IT resources and have to approach these tasks in a piecemeal manner. These types of packages that provide a variety of tools bundled together remove the need for small companies to go to various vendors,” says Sanjeev Aggarwal, a senior analyst with The Yankee Group.
Specifically, in the past few years SMBs have been forced to think more about security because of the uptick in spyware, worms and viruses.
“In the past, SMBs didn’t have to mobilize until after they had been hit, but now they understand they need to maintain data integrity and keep their core business up and running,” Aggarwal says.
Industry watchers say CA with its bundled application packages – like competitors EMC, HP and IBM – is looking to tap the fast-growing SMB market, which The Yankee Group estimates includes some 6 million companies with two to 1,000 employees.
The Protection Suites are the first products to come out of CA’s newly designed SMB business unit.
David Luft, a CA senior vice president, who oversees the Small-to-Medium-sized Business Program Office, is charged with the development and packaging of CA products for the SMB marketplace. He says the suites have been in place in Europe since the spring and the company now is releasing them in the U.S.
“We are trying to provide smaller companies with the ability to protect, secure and move their desktops and servers without having to be IT experts,” Luft says. “One of the nightmares these companies are facing is around compliance if they want to do business with large companies and governments.”
The five Protection Suites are set to be available in July. CA says the company will be planning more product upgrades for the fall, and North American customers purchasing Version 1.5 of the suites will be upgraded to Version 2.0 at no cost. Pricing ranges between $300 and $1,100, depending on the suite purchased and the customer network.
