10 Apr ZPE and MSPs: a major challenge in IT network outages
Why do MSPs still struggle with network outages?
Despite using advanced tools for monitoring, automation, and remote management, many Managed Service Providers (MSPs) still face challenges when it comes to effectively responding to network outages.
The issue is not a lack of tools. The core limitation lies in the reliance on so-called in-band management.
A critical dependency on the network
Most tools used by MSPs operate over the production network itself. This includes, among others, VPN, RDP, and jump servers. All of these require active connectivity.
When the network goes down due to routing errors, firewall issues, ISP outages, or authentication failures, access to these tools is lost. The team receives an alert, but cannot take action.
When a small issue becomes a major incident
The lack of remote access significantly complicates incident response.
What could have been resolved in minutes turns into a prolonged outage. In many cases, on-site intervention becomes necessary, further extending response times and increasing the business impact on the customer.
Costs and operational constraints
On-site interventions remain a major challenge for MSPs. They involve time-consuming travel, access limitations such as security procedures or maintenance windows, and the need for additional resources.
As a result, operational costs increase, while pressure on SLAs and customer satisfaction continues to grow.
Limitations of traditional tools
Adding more monitoring or automation systems does not solve the problem.
As long as access to infrastructure depends on the production network, MSPs remain exposed to outages.
The key question
How can you manage infrastructure when the network itself is unavailable?
A different approach: out-of-band management
The answer is to separate infrastructure management from the production network.
This is exactly what out-of-band management provides, supported by an independent management layer known as IMI (Isolated Management Infrastructure).
ZPE Systems Nodegrid enables this type of architecture to be built — independent, secure, and centrally managed.
Access even during an outage
With out-of-band management, IT teams retain access to infrastructure even when the production network is unavailable.
In practice, this makes it possible to:
maintain console access to devices during a WAN outage
remotely reboot devices — even at the BIOS level
retain access despite routing issues
start remediation without an on-site visit
The result: greater operational resilience
Separating management from the production network makes it possible to:
reduce incident response times
minimize downtime
reduce the number of on-site interventions
improve operational efficiency
This approach supports service availability requirements and helps meet customer expectations.
Learn more
If you would like to see how out-of-band management works in practice, contact the Kappa Data team.