Stay ahead of IT issues with TeamViewer’s proactive Device Monitoring and DEX

On 19 July 2024, a glitch in a security update from CrowdStrike led to a significant global IT outage. Around 8.5 million devices crashed. Estimates say the losses reached tens of billions of US dollars, making it one of history’s biggest tech failures. While a fix was released quickly, many systems still needed manual repairs.

That day was one of the worst for many IT teams, especially those lacking endpoint visibility. Because maintaining oversight and managing all end-user devices in an organization is a challenge, even without IT outages of historic proportions.

TeamViewer Device Monitoring assists IT teams with this task. It now features Digital Employee Experience (DEX) capabilities, which help prevent disruptions and improve IT performance. The solution features real-time endpoint monitoring, event logs, and automated rules to resolve device issues proactively.

In this blog article, we discuss the problems of reactive IT management before explaining how proactive monitoring works. Finally, we share the success story of Lucky Bike, Germany’s largest bicycle retailer, and how it uses Device Monitoring.

In this article:

• The problem: Downtime and reactive IT management
• The solution: Proactive device monitoring with DEX
• Success story: How TeamViewer supports Lucky Bike’s growth
• Summary

The problem: Downtime and reactive IT management

Unplanned IT downtime is frequently cited as a significant cost driver for businesses. Finding valid numbers on the actual cost of IT downtime is difficult, though. Estimates say it is somewhere between USD5,600 and USD9,000 per minute on average.

One reason unplanned downtime occurs is that companies delay issues and avoid scheduled IT maintenance. Why? A study by Forrester found that planned IT downtime accounted for USD5,6 million in costs among 100 large US enterprises on average. The study says: “Planned downtime is costly, some enterprises attempt to avoid it. However, avoiding downtime for the necessary bug fixes and security updates results in a greater risk of unplanned downtime, creating a downtime cycle.”

It sure sounds right that delaying IT issues causes bigger problems later on. But some research suggests otherwise. A paper on the Delayed Issue Effect (DIE) by Menzies, Nichols, Shull, and Layman analyzes 171 software projects worldwide. The result: “We found no evidence for the delayed issue effect; i.e., the effort to resolve issues in a later phase was not [...] greater than when issues were resolved soon after their introduction.” But the paper also says: “We do not claim that this theory never holds in software projects; just that it cannot be assumed to always hold […].”

So, what’s right then? Is investing in proactive IT management worth the cost it creates? Or is waiting on and fixing things once they break down good enough? Considering the losses triggered by the Crowdstrike outage, it sure is better to be prepared. Such an event can be severe, especially for smaller businesses.

Related read: Downtime: The enemy of productivity

Common downsides of reactive IT management

What we described above with the global IT outage is a worst-case scenario. But there are other, more minor things to consider regarding reactive IT management:

• With reactive troubleshooting, IT teams constantly firefight, addressing problems as they arise. This prevents fixing issues once and forever.
  
• Without automated tools, IT teams resolve issues one by one. This approach is time-consuming, prone to errors, and delays resolution time.
  
• Remote sessions to fix problems can sometimes distract employees from their work. With proactive remediation, their time can be better used.
  

Related read: Achieving compliance with remote monitoring and control

The solution: Proactive device monitoring with DEX

Proactive IT monitoring, in contrast to what we’ve just discussed, prevents disruptions before they escalate. A monitoring solution like TeamViewer Device Monitoring gives you real-time info on a user’s device’s CPU, memory, and disk usage.

“Imagine this: You have a device whose CPU is running at 90%. At some point, it will crash. This will mess with the user experience and lead to unexpected outages on the device,” says Ethem Nostar, a Senior Product Manager at TeamViewer.

Device Monitoring creates a log entry whenever a critical event occurs on a device. Things like patch installations, software crashes, and operating system failures. Logs help IT managers understand what’s been happening on a device.

Ethem: “We can show you the real-time metrics for each device in a graphical curve for the past hour. For example, the CPU level might be 10%, memory 85%, and disk usage time 0%. An agent on the device checks and updates these metrics continuously. Additionally, you are notified if they’re above a threshold set up in a policy, and these events are logged as soon as you set up the solution.”

With Device Monitoring, you can set policies for what you want to be notified about. Then, you can compare the logs created to the real-time information about that device. This way, you can see if a problem persists. If historical data shows high CPU usage for the past week and the real-time graphs confirm it, it’s time to act.

You don’t have to do it manually, though. You also can set policies to automatically end processes on devices that are likely to cause problems.

“You will immediately see the value of such an early alert system for your devices. It will enable you to identify and address issues for a seamless IT operation. Such a proactive approach can prevent outages and provide a better user experience,” concludes Ethem.

Device Monitoring is the first TeamViewer solution to enjoy real-time monitoring capabilities of the new Digital Employee Experience (DEX) platform. TeamViewer’s DEX platform resolves IT issues before they affect users and reduces IT friction.

Related read: DEX: What is it, why it matters, and what are its benefits

Main benefits of proactive device monitoring with TeamViewer

To sum it up, here’s what you can get out of TeamViewer Device Monitoring:

• Resolve issues faster with real-time data, event logs, and alerts in one dashboard

• Save costs by reducing remote sessions and minimizing downtime

• Improve productivity by fixing issues before they disrupt work

• Simplify remote support by starting sessions directly when needed