I've worked in professional IT for about four years and in systems administration for roughly two. At my small organization, I've become the person responsible for managing VSA9, including patching Microsoft and third-party applications, configuring policies, and building custom procedures to handle tasks that would otherwise require cloud-based group policies. Over the past three years I've learned how to work around many of the platform's quirks, and I appreciate how flexible it can be when there's time to test and troubleshoot.
With VSA9 approaching end of life, management is considering VSA10. I previously looked at NinjaOne and liked it, but the current direction seems to be staying with the same vendor and moving to VSA10. I haven't seen the newer platform since an older demonstration, so I'd like candid feedback from people who have actually migrated.
How difficult was the migration? Which features changed or disappeared, and what should I specifically ask about during the demo? I'm especially interested in patching, policies, procedures, scripting, automation, and any other major differences—both positive and negative.
4 Answers
Before choosing VSA10, compare it with a few alternatives rather than letting the existing account relationship make the decision for you. Datto RMM, NinjaOne, ManageEngine with ScreenConnect, and Microsoft Intune are all worth evaluating depending on your needs. If your organization already relies heavily on Microsoft 365, Intune can cover a lot of Windows management and Autopilot is strong when configured properly, although application deployment can still require extra work.
The migration itself may be fairly painless, but the loss of functionality can be the bigger problem. One major complaint was that Agent Procedures were gone entirely, which can break years of automation. Build an inventory of your current procedures, policies, scripts, patching rules, and reports, then test each one in a pilot environment before signing off on the move.
Our move toward VSA X was eventually stopped, and we’re switching to another product instead. I mainly used the RMM functions rather than administering the platform, but the change of direction suggests it’s worth comparing alternatives before committing to another migration within the same product family.
Be very careful about assuming VSA10 is a direct replacement. Several people have reported that features available in VSA9 were removed or changed, especially Agent Procedures. Ask the vendor to demonstrate every workflow you currently depend on instead of accepting a general feature comparison. Get written confirmation about feature parity, migration of existing policies and scripts, reporting, patching, and what happens to unsupported procedures.
Our product team has said they’re still investing in VSA10 and working to restore some of the missing functionality. Even so, the gap between the old and new platforms has been frustrating, so I’d treat promised future features as unavailable until they’re actually delivered.