New API for 'clunky' Cisco health service

Networks First claims its new widget for Cisco Smart Services solves problems resellers were encountering with false positives

Networks First has moved to address concerns among Cisco resellers that Cisco Smart Services is "clunky and inefficient", by developing an API [application program interface] for the health-monitoring service.

An optional add-on to SMARTnet, [asset_library_tag 8945,Cisco Smart Services] is designed to enable resellers to deliver insight into the health of their customers' networks, boosting their sales in the process.

But although Cisco has been pushing Smart Services heavily to its reseller base, uptake remains modest due to the number of work hours required to generate useable output, Daljit Paul, head of services at Networks First, said.

"I know of about three or four Cisco partners that have adopted it at fairly small scale," Paul said.

"Some of the stumbling blocks we've come across when we've spoken to Cisco partners are that the interface is inefficient and that it generates a lot of false positives. Our API solves both these problems as it removes the inefficiencies and filters out the false positives."

Cisco Smart Services works by comparing data collected from inbuilt features in Cisco devices with data on vulnerabilities and end-of-life dates from Cisco's back-end database, Paul explained.

Networks First claims its widget is the first analytical API for Cisco Smart Services specifically for the reseller market.

"Cisco offered a standard interface that partners can use," Paul said. "We have identified a number of bugs in that interface, which leads me to conclude that no-one else has used it in the past. So I think this is fairly unique in the UK."

Steve Cutler, account director at Cisco Silver partner Maindec, said Networks First's API would provide his firm with better information on estate management.

"It means we are able to provide future planning for end-of-life products and software deployments, so it's a really useful tool," he said.

"I agree that the previous Smart Collector service available through Cisco was clunky and not very efficient. The difference with this is it provides usable output very quickly and efficiently."

Paul said Networks First is aiming to sign up 40 end users to its services, via channel partners such as Maindec, within 12 months.

"It will really benefit any Silver or Gold partner, but particularly Premier partners who don't have their own delivery capabilities in terms of a manned NOC," he said. "We have a manned NOC so can deliver this service to them and white-label the reporting with the partner's branding."