While Siri Shortcut will only enable techs using Apple phones to patch, restart and control computers and servers with their voice, Pulseway is working on a similar solution for Android using Bixby.
Today, mobile-first, remote monitoring and management [RMM] provider Pulseway is announcing voice control capability for remote management by techs – at least for those techs who use Apple phones. Pulseway has enabled support for Siri Shortcuts, making them the first RMM provider to have voice controlled endpoint management solution capability. Android users need not gnash their teeth, but they will have to wait a while to get the same benefits, as Pulseway has a similar capability for Android phones under development.
“We have seen about 95% of our MSPs use our mobile apps,” said Marius Mihalec, founder and CEO of Pulseway. “Techs are relying more and more on their mobile devices to provide IT management tasks, which is something that we are happy to see as a mobile-first RMM. Now, with this, we are the first RMM platform to provide a voice-controlled endpoint management platform.”
Mihalec explained how the new feature, which is a free addition to the Pulseway platform, works.
“We are leveraging an integration with Siri Shortcuts, a commonly-used tool,” he said. “Siri Shortcuts lets you perform a command inside our platform. Instead of having to unlock your phone, unlock our app and issue a command, you can train your phone to listen to a voice shortcut like ‘Siri, restart my computer.’ Siri will determine that this is a shortcut recorded earlier. What we give is the ability to link a voice command that you determine, and send the command without you having to do anything else.” A built-in command confirmation feature ensures that only desired actions are executed.
The most obvious use case where the voice command would be valuable is while the tech is driving. However, Mihalec pointed out another major advantage of the voice command system – that it is simply faster regardless of where the tech is located.
“It cuts the time needed to perform an action from 20-30 seconds normally, to 3 seconds with a voice command,” he said.
“We are also adding widget support for iOS as well,” Mihalec added. “This provides the ability to define your own dashboard, and makes it much easier for you to know the status of all your systems wherever you are.
“It is an extra feature that highlights the focus we put on the end user experience,” Mihalec said.
In a further enhancement for mobile users, Pulseway recently launched iOS Mobile Widgets. Based on the web dashboard concept launched last year, these deliver an instant overview of all critical systems straight from the home page of any iOS device to make it even easier for users to monitor their systems wherever they are.
Finally, while the Siri Shortcut capability is obviously just for Apple phones, Mihalec said that an Android equivalent is in the works.
“Android has Bixby, which they have been trying to make the equivalent of Siri,” he indicated. “We are working on adding a similar capability through Bixby. We have a working prototype now, but we think that it needs more polish. We think that it is approximately two to three months away.”
