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What clients want to know about their devices and backups
The questions are usually simple, and without a shared view each one becomes a ticket or an email:
- How many laptops do we have, and who uses them?
- Which machines are out of warranty or due for replacement this year?
- Is this computer backed up? When did the last backup finish?
- Are our Microsoft 365 mailboxes and OneDrive files backed up as well?
- Which devices have a problem we should know about?
Answering these on request means someone at the MSP exports a list, cleans it up and sends it, and the list is out of date a week later. A portal view stays automatically updated from the source tools.
What to show clients and what to keep internal
Show the information a client can act on or needs for planning:
- device name, user, type, model and serial number;
- operating system and when the device was last seen;
- warranty end date and device age, for budgeting replacements;
- protection status and last successful backup for each device and each Microsoft 365 workload.
Keep remote-access shortcuts, provider consoles and raw technical alerts with the MSP team. Clients also do not need the name of every vendor in your stack. A label such as "Managed Device Backup" tells them what the service is without exposing tooling.
Explain one thing clearly: a missing value is not a healthy value. If a device has no warranty date or a backup provider has not reported, the screen should show "unknown", not imply that all is well.
How MSPortal shows devices to clients
The Devices module combines manual inventory records with equipment imported from connected tools. The integrations catalog includes Datto RMM, Syncro, ConnectWise Asio, NinjaOne, N-able N-central, Addigy, Cisco Meraki, UniFi and Domotz, and coverage varies by connector. Client users see the devices their role and company allow. They can filter the list by name, type, model, serial number or location, and use the warranty column and summary cards to find expiring warranties.
Opening a device shows what its sources have reported: operating system, model, serial number, hardware, user, network details, warranty and purchase dates, and security information such as protection, encryption or patching where the connected tool supplies it. When CIPP is connected, the record can also show Microsoft Entra ID and Intune compliance. Remote-access and provider shortcuts are hidden from client users, the installed software tab is for MSP staff only, and editing devices needs separate access. See the device guide.
How MSPortal shows backup status to clients
The Backup module reports what your backup providers report: protection status, storage, backup dates and alerts. It has four tabs, each shown only when there is data for it:
| Tab | What it shows | Providers |
|---|---|---|
| Dashboard | Protection tiles and summaries | All below |
| Devices | One row per backed-up device or workload | Cove, Acronis, NinjaOne, Datto Backup, Slide Backup |
| Microsoft 365 | Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams backups or health reports | Cove, Acronis, Kaseya SaaS Protection, Spanning Backup, NinjaOne SaaS Backup |
| Alerts | Active and resolved backup alerts | Acronis, Datto Backup, Slide Backup |
Client users see your managed service names, such as Managed Device Backup, instead of vendor names. Users need the Backup read permission, and each provider's customers must be mapped to the right company. Backup screens do not start backups, restore files or change retention. If something looks wrong, a client can raise it with the Home AI assistant, which prepares a ticket for them to review. The backup guide lists what each tab shows.
Device and backup widgets also appear on client dashboards and in reports, so the same data can be shared with a client's leadership in a review. See whether to give clients a dashboard or a report.
How current the device and backup data is
Data is automatically updated on each integration's schedule, not live. According to the published sync schedules, Cove backups refresh every 30 minutes, Acronis alerts every 15 minutes, Datto RMM devices every 2 hours, and NinjaOne devices and backups daily. Each device shows when it was last seen, so clients and technicians can judge how fresh a value is.
Related questions
Can clients restore files from the MSPortal backup view?
No. MSPortal's Backup screens only report status, storage, dates and alerts. Restores, schedule changes and retention changes are done by the MSP in the backup provider's own tools.
Do clients see the names of the MSP's backup vendors?
No. In MSPortal, client users see managed service names such as Managed Device Backup and Managed Microsoft 365 Backup. Provider names and provider filters are shown to MSP staff only.
Can clients see device warranty dates?
Yes, when their role includes device access. MSPortal shows warranty start and end dates on each device record, with a warranty column and summary cards in the device list. See how MSPs help clients plan an IT budget for using them in replacement planning.
Which device and RMM tools does MSPortal connect to?
The catalog includes Datto RMM, Syncro, ConnectWise Asio, NinjaOne, N-able N-central, Addigy, Cisco Meraki, UniFi and Domotz. Check the integrations page for each connector's status.