CRN Exclusive: IGEL Unleashes Cloud Gateway, Steps Up Channel-Led End Point Management Software Offensive

IGEL is stepping full force into the endpoint management software market with the release of a breakthrough cloud gateway product that establishes a new price performance mark for x86 device management.

The new IGEL Cloud Gateway tears apart the high priced VPN market with a simple and secure cloud-based gateway for companies with thousands of devices in remote office or branch locations.

Partners said the eagerly anticipated product is a recurring revenue game changer for them providing them with a secure and manageable cloud based platform for x86 device management at a fraction of the cost of on-premises solutions.

[Related: CRN Exclusive: IGEL Making Big Investment In Channel, Looks To Capitalize On New Thin-Client Opportunities]

The IGEL Cloud Gateway – which is priced starting at $49 per user per year in the US market – replaces VPN based solutions that have traditionally cost business hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. In addition, the Linux based software is poised to save customers hundreds of thousands of dollars in x86 device software licensing and management costs.

The IGEL end point management offering, in fact, has caused somewhat of a frenzy among customers anxious to get their hands on an easy to use platform that can manage tens of thousands of Windows devices at a significant cost savings.

One IGEL Cloud Gateway customer beta testing the product has reduced the cost of managing thousands of remote locations by millions of dollars. The company replaced a costly VPN based solution that was being managed by a half dozen employees with an IGEL Cloud Gateway that is being managed by a single IT administrator, via a single user, simple interface, on a cloud-based platform.

"This is the game changer that puts IGEL full force into the endpoint management software market in a profound way," said IGEL North America CEO Jed Ayres, who has architected an all out software charge since taking the helm of the US unit last May. "This allows you to secure and manage any x86 device connected to the internet with a world class single pane of glass platform that is secure, policy driven and super easy to use."

The IGEL Cloud Gateway is the next step in a software makeover that is aimed at driving IGEL to become a big player in the booming internet of things market, said Ayres, who was just named one the 50 Most Influential Leaders on the 2017 CRN Channel Chief List. "We are already seeing IoT deployments including in healthcare with kidney dialysis pumps running our embedded Linux OS and in manufacturing with forklifts that are outfitted with devices that run our OS," he said.

Under Ayres leadership, the company's US software business was up 80 percent in last year powered by sales of its high performance Linux-based 64 bit OS and device converter software for securing and managing x86 devices.

As part of the software offensive, IGEL is planning to launch a new website next week where partners and customers can download the converter software that puts the company's highly regarded 64-bit OS on any x86 device.

The new website will allow both partners and customers to download three free software converter licenses for 90 days with the management console.

"Our partners and customers now have a way to easily get their hands on the software from a self service, do it yourself portal," said Ayres."The call to action is for customers and partners to try the software. When customers line up our software against the competition we win every time. The ability to download the software instantly changes the conversation with customers who can now experience first hand how easy it is to secure and manage devices with IGEL software."

As part of its drive to establish a new price performance mark for endpoint management, IGEL last month also released UD Pocket – a thumbnail sized, 8 Gbyte USB 3.0 drive that instantly transforms any x86 device into an IGEL VDI client.

The UD Pocket is being teamed with Cloud Gateway to dramatically reduce the cost of managing thousands of PCs or thin clients that are five years or older. The IGEL offering, in fact, is extending the life of those older x86 based devices for cloud service based solutions.

Mike Strohl, CEO of Concord, Calif.-based Entisys360, one of the top cloud solution providers in the country, said the IGEL Cloud Gateway is one of the key software products that is powering Entisys360's new CloudWorkspace- a fully managed, subscription based Citrix VDI workspace that runs on any public or private cloud.

"The IGEL Cloud Gateway allows anybody on any device to securely connect on the CloudWorkspace," said Strohl. "This is huge for us. We see an opportunity to go after tens of thousands of seats with this product with a complete recurring revenue model. It is allowing us to innovate, change and grow the business."

The Entisys360 CloudWorkspace is being used to rapidly deploy enterprise services and applications with provisioning, de-provisioning and chargebacks in a monthly subscription-based offering.

"We have created a Citrix environment that is portable from any cloud to any cloud, on premise or off premise, private cloud, Amazon or Azure across the board," said Strohl. "We are moving from selling thin clients and software to a fully integrated cloud service. Customers love it. There is no scenario that doesn't fit the CloudWorkspace."

Strohl sees the total market opportunity over the next several years in the tens of millions of dollars with much better margins than the traditional hardware-software reseller model."We are becoming a service provider with the help of IGEL," he said. "We still sell lots of physical stuff but more and more of our business is moving in the direction of Entisys360 CloudWorkspace. We just launched a full blown Dev/Ops big data cloud service and we are creating a healthcare as a service platform."

Strohl said Ayres' leadership has been a game changer for IGEL and its partners. "It's always been about software," Strohl said. "It's refreshing to see somebody has finally figured out IGEL's true identity. This software gives IGEL the greatest opportunity for success and they are backing it up with industry experts and investments in their channel partners. We are not dealing with a thin client anymore. We are dealing with a cloud enablement and end point software management company."

Ayres, for his part, said he is determined to make IGEL and its partners a much bigger force in the endpoint management, cloud services and internet of things market.

IGEL Is allowing partners to transform the old capital expenditure based hardware centric business models into a recurring revenue model with the best software in the business, said Ayres.

"The economics of a software company are much different than a thin client hardware company," he said. "The margin opportunity for IGEL and its partners is going way up. It's all about building recurring revenue around the great IGEL software. The IGEL journey to become an endpoint management software company is well underway."