Ever Heard an MSP Say “We Predict Problems Before They Happen?
If you’ve been looking for IT support, you’ve probably heard this claim before. MSPs love to talk about Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) tools as if they’re a magic solution that stops problems before they occur. But here’s the controversial truth that may get me in hot water with fellow IT service providers: For most small businesses, that promise doesn’t really hold up.
What RMM Actually Does
RMM software is designed to:
- Monitor system health (CPU, RAM, disk space) — things you can already see in Task Manager.
- Automate updates and scripts — which can also be done with tools like Endpoint Protection or Group Policy.
- Send alerts when something goes wrong — like low disk space or a machine going offline.
Sounds impressive, right?
Not really. It’s mostly basic reporting dressed up as something special. Here’s the reality…
Where RMM Falls Short
When your email stops syncing, Teams crashes, or the printer jams, RMM won’t swoop in and save the day. Your IT provider isn’t going to call and say, “We just saw your printer jammed—let us send someone over,” or “Outlook crashed—let us remote in and fix it before you even notice.”
That’s not how it works in the real world. You still end up picking up the phone or raising a ticket because RMM doesn’t prevent issues before they happen. It’s reactive, basic monitoring at best. Not proactive.
So when something breaks, you still have to call for help. There’s nothing proactive about that.
For small businesses with 1–25 devices, RMM doesn’t prevent the most common problems. It’s not a solution—it’s just a dashboard that gives IT providers visibility When managing lots of clients
Who Actually Benefits from RMM?
- Large environments: If you have hundreds of devices, RMM helps automate repetitive tasks and gives IT teams useful data.
- Servers: For uptime, RAID health, and backups, RMM is valuable.
But for small businesses? It’s mostly sold as something you “need,” when in reality, it doesn’t deliver much benefit to you directly.
What You Really Need: Endpoint Protection & monitoring
If you want real proactive management, endpoint protection solutions is really the one to invest in. These are the way forward. Modern EDR platforms:
- Actively block threats in real time
- Isolate compromised devices automatically
- Provide deep visibility into security events
- Include patch management and web filtering for compliance
- and allow your IT to see the status of your patches, antivirus and quarantined threats to keep an eye on your security status.
This is far more useful than knowing your disk is 90% full or your CPU hit 60% for 10 minutes. In fact, RMM often creates false alerts, making helpdesks busier and slowing down response times for real issues.
Endpoint protection combines monitoring with active prevention, which is what small businesses truly need. That’s where your money should go—not into tools that look good on paper but don’t solve your day-to-day problems or provide much value.
The Bottom Line Is…
RMM is not the crystal ball MSPs make it out to be. If you want real security and peace of mind, invest in endpoint protection and responsive IT support—because that’s what keeps your business running not a dashboard telling you basic stats you can already find out built in windows.
✅ Want IT support that actually solves problems? Talk to Cranfield IT Solutions today.
📞 Call us: 01435 897 155
📧 Email: Matt@cranfielditsolutions.co.uk