In The Know: Top 5 Must-Read Cloud Stories, March 20

Talkin’ Cloud at the end of each day pulls out five must-read cloud computing stories from the news cycle for its readers to review in the morning. Today’s column features ManageEngine, Microsoft (MSFT) and Zetta.net.

Some of these stories have been gathered from Talkin’ Cloud’s article database, while others have been collected from elsewhere. If we missed something, feel free to leave a comment below. We might just add it into the mix.

Here’s today’s list of must-read cloud computing stories.

ManageEngine Broadens Firewall Analyzer For Cloud Management And Tracking. ManageEngine is hoping to add another arrow in the quiver of service providers focused on helping clients manage security in cloud and hybrid environments. The firm yesterday rolled out a new cloud control feature for its security log analysis and firewall device management software, Firewall Analyzer.

New Opportunities For CSPs Beyond Infrastructure, Microsoft Finds. A new study from Microsoft and 451 Research indicated that today’s cloud services providers (CSPs) have an opportunity to offer customers support beyond traditional hosting capabilities. The study, titled “Beyond Infrastructure: Cloud 2.0 Signifies New Opportunities for Cloud Service Providers,” revealed that nearly 70 percent of the opportunity for CSPs now centers on application hosting (email and business applications), managed services (backup and disaster recovery) and security services (threat management).

CJ’s Way: Innovation Is Not About What You Want. Finding out what your customers want is only half the battle. Understanding how clients view their needs will have channel partners marching their way to victory. For example, let’s take a look at a CompTIA study titled “Enabling SMBs with Technology.” According to the report, small and mid-sized businesses (SMB) value innovation over all other factors when it comes to choosing to work with outside IT firms. But isn’t innovation subjective?

Zetta.net: Most IT Pros Are Using DR Solutions. Zetta.net showed that the demand for cloud-based backup and disaster recovery (BDR) solutions from managed service providers (MSPs) could increase soon. Zetta.net’s The State of Backup Survey of 425 IT professionals revealed nearly 97 percent of respondents said they currently are using some form of DR. Additionally, 31 percent said they plan to leverage a new DR method in the future, and more than half of these respondents intend to use cloud-based DR solutions.

Executive Spotlight: 11 Salesforce Channel Execs You Should Know. Salesforce.com (CRM) is a San Francisco-based company that ranked second on last year’s Talkin’ Cloud 100 list of the top 100 CSPs. This customer relationship management software provider also works closely with the channel, which is reflected by its channel team. Here’s everything you need to know about 11 Salesforce executives who support the company’s channel and partner programs..

Follow CJ Arlotta on Twitter @cjarlotta and Google+ for further updates on the story above — or if you just want to say hello.