Understanding Endpoint Performance Monitoring Best Practices

As businesses grow and remote work becomes the norm, it’s clear that having a variety of devices is essential to keep things running smoothly. The tricky part is ensuring these devices are secure and performing at their best.

According to a recent study^[1], more than 68% of businesses have faced successful attacks on their devices that compromised their data. This statistic highlights a real challenge. While we need multiple devices to stay efficient, we can’t afford to skimp on security. It’s a balancing act that many organizations are struggling with today.

The right solution is endpoint performance monitoring, which can track and monitor all your business devices and keep them up and running at all times. In this blog post, we will explore the concept of endpoint monitoring and endpoint performance monitoring best practices.

What is Endpoint Performance Monitoring?

Endpoint performance monitoring delivers end-to-end visibility into your device inventory or endpoints. IT teams can access a complete overview of business devices running on operating systems such as Android, Windows, iOS, macOS, and Linux. With continuous tracking, analyzing, and managing of endpoints, IT administrators can:

• Identify potential device security vulnerabilities
• Maintain compliance with regulations
• Ensure the overall security of the business device network

Endpoint devices are vulnerable to various security threats, including malware, phishing attacks, and advanced persistent threats. Traditional monitoring systems don’t detect many of these endpoint threats. However, specialized endpoint management software can monitor your endpoints to detect signs of potential vulnerabilities, malicious activity, and unusual changes in system configurations.

Different types of endpoint devices could leave your organization vulnerable:

• Smartphones
• PCs
• Macs
• Tablets
• Digital signage
• mPOS devices
• Wearables such as smart watches, AR/VR sets, etc
• Rugged devices like handheld scanners and rugged smartphones
• IoT devices
• Printers and peripherals
• Embedded devices such as medical devices and ATMs

Challenges of Endpoint Performance Monitoring

Monitoring the performance of endpoints, such as mobile devices, is necessary for maintaining optimal functionality and user satisfaction. However, there are several challenges that organizations face when implementing endpoint performance monitoring tools and solutions. Here are five key challenges:

1. Device Diversity: Modern enterprises use a wide variety of mobile devices, including smartphones, tablets, and rugged devices, running on different operating systems such as iOS, Android, and Windows. This diversity complicates the standardization of performance monitoring protocols. Each OS and device type may require specific endpoint performance monitoring tools and techniques, adding complexity to the management process.
2. Network Variability: All such endpoints operate across various network environments, including corporate Wi-Fi, public hotspots, and mobile data networks. Network variability can significantly impact device performance and user experience. Endpoint performance monitoring solutions must account for fluctuating network conditions and provide insights into how these variations affect device performance. There should also be a fall-back/security mechanism to manage endpoints when they are offline.
3. Battery Life Management: One critical aspect of mobile device performance is battery life. Unlike desktop computers, mobile devices rely heavily on battery power, and monitoring battery health and usage patterns is crucial. However, continuously monitoring device performance can be resource-intensive, potentially leading to increased battery drain. 
4. Real-time Data Analysis: Effective performance monitoring requires real-time data analysis to quickly identify and resolve issues. However, collecting and processing telemetry data from numerous devices can strain network and processing resources. Ensuring that endpoint performance monitoring tools can handle this data influx while providing timely and actionable insights is a complex task.
5. Scalability: As organizations grow, the number of devices under management can increase exponentially. Scaling the performance monitoring capabilities to accommodate this growth without compromising the quality of insights is a significant challenge. The endpoint performance monitoring solution must be strong enough to handle a large fleet of devices and adaptable enough to integrate new devices and technologies seamlessly.

Traditional Performance Monitoring Systems vs. Endpoint Monitoring Security

Traditional performance monitoring systems focus on assessing the operational efficiency and health of IT infrastructure, while endpoint monitoring security emphasizes protecting devices and data from security threats. Understanding the differences between these two approaches helps organizations effectively manage and secure their IT environments.

Benefits of Endpoint Performance Monitoring

1. Efficient Cost Savings: The repercussions of cyberattacks are severe and costly. According to a recent study^[2], a data breach costs $4.45 million. In 2022, compromised business emails accounted for $2.7 billion in losses. Endpoint performance monitoring helps businesses defend against sophisticated security threats and reduce costs.
2. Support Remote Work: Remote work has become a top choice for many people, leading businesses to support both remote and hybrid workforces. With remote workers relying heavily on their endpoint devices for daily tasks, IT teams turn to endpoint performance monitoring to ensure a secure and efficient work environment. This approach is also crucial for frontline and field workers who often work from multiple locations, not just a single office.
3. Strengthen Security: With endpoint performance monitoring tools, businesses can track and monitor endpoint performance and take a proactive approach to endpoint security. This is done by analyzing real-time device analytics and receiving alerts or notifications when an unusual situation occurs.
4. Gain Actionable Insights: IT teams can gain actionable insights into the overall health and performance of their devices with endpoint performance monitoring solutions, with their telemetry information providing capabilities. To unlock precise information on the endpoint devices, it’s best to choose an endpoint performance monitoring tool that offers real-time data from a single pane of glass.
5. Enhanced Employee Satisfaction: It’s very difficult to execute your day-to-day tasks from a device that is lagging or not performing as required. For instance, if a device’s battery is draining continuously, then it’s important to make some needed adjustments to the device. Endpoint performance monitoring tools provide these insights to the IT teams so they can detect and respond to any performance issues. This rapid response improves employee productivity and satisfaction.
6. Improved customer satisfaction: By ensuring that endpoint devices operate efficiently and securely, businesses can provide a seamless experience for their customers, leading to higher satisfaction and loyalty.

Finding the Right Way: Best Practices for Endpoint Performance Monitoring

Endpoint performance monitoring comes with numerous benefits to strengthen IT teams to effectively track and monitor device performance. Here are some of the best practices businesses can use to execute efficient endpoint monitoring:

1. Get Automated Alerts with Real-Time Device Analytics: The easiest way to get the most precise information from endpoint devices is to receive real-time data. Live information reflects what is happening on the endpoints, like battery usage, CPU usage, data usage, geofence breaches, and security incidents. These insights come in handy for monitoring and analysis purposes.
2. Monitor All Sorts of Endpoint Devices: Almost all organizations use devices that run on the Windows or Android operating systems, but businesses still need to monitor their endpoints to maintain excellent device performance. If a small number of devices run on iOS or macOS, they are connected to your device networks and can get compromised if not monitored properly. Monitor and manage all types of devices to ensure the health and safety of business devices.
3. Track and Monitor Every Device on the Business Network: With remote or hybrid workforces and BYOD policies, it can be difficult to manage each device on your business network. However, businesses need to manage every device. All it takes is one unsecured device to invite all sorts of security threats and malicious attacks.
4. Unlock the Bigger Picture with a Single Dashboard: With a single unified dashboard, IT teams can see all the critical information from the endpoints. This means no more switching between multiple screens or interfaces and attempting to gather and organize data to analyze. This way, business leaders can access the big picture for improved decision-making and business scalability.
5. Unified Endpoint Management: Information gathering from various tools can become stressful at times. Save time and boost efficiency with a unified endpoint management solution that offers all the endpoint monitoring and management tools you need in a single solution.

How Scalefusion UEM Enhances Endpoint Performance Monitoring for Businesses

Scalefusion UEM offers businesses far-reaching tools to manage and monitor their diverse fleet of devices effectively. With a clear overview of the total devices enrolled across multiple platforms such as Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and Linux, businesses can ensure that all endpoints are accounted for and properly managed. The platform’s inventory snapshot provides crucial insights into the status of active, inactive, locked, and managed devices, allowing IT administrators to quickly identify and address performance issues. This real-time visibility is essential for maintaining operational efficiency and ensuring that all devices are performing optimally.

Additionally, Scalefusion UEM’s violation overview, including geofence breaches, security incidents, SIM swaps, and low battery notifications, enhances device security and performance management. By identifying and addressing these issues promptly, businesses can mitigate risks and prevent potential disruptions. Scalefusion also ensures that devices remain secure with features like password policy and file encryption, further contributing to overall performance. These capabilities highlight how Scalefusion UEM helps businesses monitor endpoint performance and enhances security and operational efficiency, ensuring a seamless and productive digital environment.

The Future of Endpoint Management with Scalefusion

As businesses continue to navigate the complexities of managing a diverse array of devices, Scalefusion UEM stands out as a powerful solution that adapts to evolving needs. By providing extensive visibility, security, and performance monitoring, Scalefusion empowers organizations to maintain optimal device functionality and streamline operations. With its intuitive interface and powerful features, Scalefusion is poised to support businesses in their journey towards efficient and secure endpoint management, paving the way for a more connected and productive future.

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References

1. Ponemon Institute
2. Forbes