Resource Center
Welcome to the Auvik family, MetaGeek!
We got to know the MetaGeek team well over the past months and I can’t extend a warm enough welcome to their team. What resonated with me was their mission: “Your Wi-Fi should be Awesome”. The team developed a comprehensive set of products,…
Top SysAdmin Tools (That Aren’t Software!)
This might not be quite as fun as making things run DOOM, but it’s probably just as important. Here’s my list of non-software tools…
What is an MSP SLA? Everything You Need to Know
As a managed service provider, your success depends largely on the satisfaction of your customers. If they’re happy, they’ll…
Stress Management Tips for IT Business Owners
Being an IT business owner can be rewarding but, if you don't set rules, it can be very stressful. So how can you grow your IT business…
Networking 101: What is a VLAN?
Do you really want all of these devices on the same LAN— all having equal access to the same set of resources? Should the IoT devices…
Improve Your Employee Utilization Rates & Boost Your MSP’s Bottom Line
For MSP business owners, figuring out how to improve your bottom line is an ongoing game of tug of war. Do you raise your rates, or do…
IT Project Management Like a Pro
At some point in your IT career, you’re going to be involved in a project. Whether you’re planning it or executing it, a project…
Using the NIST Cybersecurity Framework to Assess Your Clients’ Network Security
The NIST Cybersecurity Framework was intended to be used by internal IT teams, but its five major themes—identify, protect, detect,…
Help Desk vs Service Desk: How to Choose the Right One
An IT help desk is meant to be a single point of contact (SPOC) that employees and customers can use to get support from your business.…
Think You’re a Proactive MSP? Think Again! Getting Proactive with TruMethods’ Gary Pica
MSPs generate more MRR (monthly recurring revenue) when they’re able to reduce reactive noise and dedicate their resources to more…
Agent vs Agentless Monitoring: Which is Best?
Agent-based and agentless monitoring are the two main approaches network monitoring tools use to capture and report data from network…
Going Online Like it’s 1989: Using an Atari Portfolio as a Terminal Emulator
Oops! You messed up. Big time. You’re working on a network device, making some major configuration changes. As soon as you hit enter,…
Proactive Healthcare Network Monitoring: The Importance of Early Detection
Healthcare IT is simultaneously one of the most complex and sensitive networking systems there are. Aside from the wealth of confidential…
Network Redundancy and Why It Matters
Complexity is an enemy to reliability. The more complex something is, the harder it is to understand, the greater the chance of human…
Embracing Shadow IT (Video)
Shadow IT. Many IT pros shudder at the term. For those who may not be familiar, shadow IT refers to the devices, systems, and…
Regex 101 for Network Admins
Regex—short for regular expressions—is a way to describe a search pattern. They can be used to find a text pattern or string…
Network Basics: What Is SNMP and How Does It Work?
While the SNMP architecture is simple, the data hierarchy the protocol uses can seem complicated if you’re not familiar with it.…
The Auvik Network Device Buyer’s Guide
Buying the right network devices is an essential part of network design, and can have an impact throughout the network lifecycle. Get it…
Network Configuration Management: The Benefits & Importance
Configuration management is one of those network management topics people often neglect. It’s not very exciting—but it’s incredibly…
When End Users Attack: Tips for Fixing a Hostile Work Environment
Hostile work environments are a real problem in tech and can be a significant driver of IT job stress. This is particularly true for IT…
What is ITAM? Guide to IT Asset Management
In the business world, information technology (IT) is everything. Without it, companies would struggle to keep track of their data and…
Network Basics: Spanning Tree Protocol
For new networkers, Spanning Tree Protocol can be intimidating. But don’t worry! In this easy-to-understand intro, Ethan Banks walks…
Is it Time to Retire Your VPN?
Back to the question at hand: Is it time to move on from VPN? For an enterprise-wide greenfield deployment or network refresh? Sure,…
How to Draw Effective Network Diagrams (Infographic)
A network diagram is, simply put, a schematic or map of your existing network that illustrates the nodes and their connections. Network…
Find and Fix Network Loops
Network loops are one of those things that can have you tearing your hair out for days, burning through billable hours while your client…
Identify Vulnerable Devices From Vendor Recalls and Security Notices
When network hardware vendors issue device recalls, field notices, or security alerts, the implication can be massive for MSPs. But Auvik…
How to Troubleshoot a Broadcast Storm
Broadcast storms are a major pain point for network administrators. Learn more about what they are, what causes them, and what steps you…
What is RMM? The Importance of Network Management
Remote monitoring and management (RMM) is software with a pretty simple mission: save IT pros time and effort. How? Instead of waiting…
How to Troubleshoot Routing Problems
Routing problems tend to emerge when you're first setting up a new piece of network equipment, and when something has failed. Usually…
The 5 Levels of MSP Operational Maturity
In this interview with Paul Dippell of Service Leadership Inc., we walk through the levels of operational maturity for MSPs, how those…
Are We In a New Age of MSPs?
As automation, cloud, data, and integration continue to affect every industry, the value and capabilities of MSPs are shifting as well.…
What is ITIL? IT Infrastructure Library Guide
What is ITIL? The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a framework of best practices for providing various information…
From Baud to Awed: The History of the Modem
While not nearly as sexy as the handset of a rotary phone plugged into an acoustic coupler, it can be argued that there are actually more…
Better Network Visibility Can Add Thousands to Your MSP Bottom Line. Here’s How.
Better visibility, control & automation of network infrastructure can add up to thousands of dollars in monthly savings and revenue for…
When Small Gets Big in a Hurry: How to Manage Fast-Growing Networks
Fast-growing networks need scalable systems or they’ll explode out of your control. Engineer Keith Tokash shares his hard-won tips for…
Financial Networking From the Edge
Networks that power financial services are fast becoming one of the most exciting areas for edge networking. Financial services…
Updates Paused: How are MSPs Navigating Today’s Supply Chain Issues?
In a perfect world, a hardware network would probably look pretty boring. If you’re looking to take advantage of scale for the price,…
Network Basics: What is EIGRP?
There are many different routing protocols to choose from, but folks in a predominantly Cisco network environment often choose Enhanced…
The MSP Provider’s Guide to Getting Hired
In the years that I’ve worked with large technology vendors and an MSP provider, there were a few common denominators between the ones…
Introducing OID Monitor History
Despite everyone’s best efforts, network failures happen. And when downtime means lost productivity, fast troubleshooting becomes an…
Filling in the Gaps: Manufacturing and MSPs
Of course, a shift from a primarily analog and mechanical world to one where digital is at the forefront means increased bandwidth…
Network Nickels and Dimes: Government IT on a Budget
So what can IT teams at state and local governments do? Is begging for increases to the government IT budget the only solution? Of…
What Else But SNMP?
Most network engineers have a love/hate relationship with the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). Ok, maybe it’s more like…
Data Sovereignty: Everything You Need to Know
“What’s data sovereignty? Is it the same thing as data privacy? What about data sovereignty vs data residency?” These are questions…
The Springboard Video Series
Welcome to The Springboard, where we take ideas to the deep end! In this video series, subject matter experts from the Auvik team share…
What’s next for the Internet of Things?
IoT devices seem to be ubiquitous, but the truth is we’re not nearly there yet. In fact, IoT Analytics continues to predict steady…
Finding & Fixing Asymmetric Routing Issues
The workstation at the bottom sends a packet to the server along the green path, and it goes through the firewall on the left. But,…
Passing Grade: Top 3 Recommendations for School Network Administrators
Peace of mind. There is nothing else like it. And when you’ve planned well, taken decisive action to document, close gaps, review…
What Does it Take to Run a Smart City?
From smart lighting, to waste management, to air quality, IoT devices and other “smart city technologies” are rapidly changing life…
Insider Risk: The Call is Coming from Inside the House
[BONUS POINTS IF YOU CAN NAME THE MOVIES THESE GIFS COME FROM IN THE COMMENTS] In IT, we tend to think of threats as external. Hackers,…
Trends in Education Networking
The EdTech space is evolving at a rapid pace. In addition to a drastic increase in remote learning, a wide range of new technologies and…
Live Auvik Demo
Fast-track your evaluation of Auvik’s network monitoring and management software at our next live group demo. 30 mins or less | Hosted…
Moving in Concert: What is SD-WAN, and Where is it Going?
SD-WAN evolved quickly throughout the last decade, and we expect more evolutions through the 2020s. Conditions around the modern work…
Layer 2 vs Layer 3 Network Switches: What’s the Difference?
What's the difference between Layer 2 and Layer 3 network switches and how critical are they to a properly functioning network?
Defending Your Network Infrastructure Against Attack
Since perfect network security is impossible, your goal is to cover as many of the risk areas as you can with the budget you have. In…
4 Common VPN Types (And When to Use Them)
Virtual private networks (VPNs) are a straightforward idea. The trick comes in knowing the different VPN types and when to use which.…
Cover Your DRaaS: Everything you need to know about Disaster Recovery
Unplanned downtime carries a hefty price tag for enterprises. In 2020, critical server outages cost enterprises on average at least…
What is a Supply Chain Attack (and What Can You Do About It)?
Any cybersecurity breach is damaging to individual companies. But when it becomes a supply chain attack, the results can be chaotic and…
What is Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)?
The flexible consumption model (FCM)—or as we know it—the everything-as-a-Service (XaaS) model, has steadily, but modestly, taken a…
3 MSP Trends on the Rise in 2022
For a lot of modern business, MSPs play a valuable role. Supporting IT environments—whether that’s through physical devices for end…
The No Sweat Guide to Effective Switch Management
Switches are a critical network link & switch management is an important job. Learn how to choose a good location, design an uplink, &…
Will Layer 3 Switches Give Routers the Boot?
A Layer 3 switch combines the capabilities of a Layer 2 switch and a router in one device. Does this mean the death of the router is…
Network Discovery Tools: Pros & Cons for 2022
You can’t manage what you can’t see—when it comes to the network, you need full visibility & awareness. But you don’t need to…