SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor Reviews

Name: SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor
Brand: SolarWinds
Rating: 3.9 (41 reviews)

3.9 out of 5

41 reviews
88% willing to recommend

1,202 followers

What is SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor (SAM) delivers powerful application and server monitoring capabilities for IT pros, enabling them to diagnose and troubleshoot performance issues faster. Do not let slow applications and downtime impact your end-users and business services. Pinpoint the root cause of application issues across various layers of the IT stack. SolarWinds SAM is affordable and easy to deploy, use, and customize. You can automatically discover your system's environment and start monitoring in about an hour. No professional services or consultation needed.

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SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is the #10 ranked solution in top Server Monitoring solutions, #14 ranked solution in top Active Directory Management solutions, and #18 ranked solution in APM tools. PeerSpot users give SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor an average rating of 7.8 out of 10. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is most commonly compared to Zabbix: SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs Zabbix. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is popular among the midsize enterprise segment, accounting for 53% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a educational organization, accounting for 46% of all views.

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

February 2025

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Featured SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor reviews

Subhajit Nag

Senior Process Associate at Tata Consultancy Services

SolarWinds' interface is slow, and this is a global concern. Every SolarWinds user complains about the sluggishness. The response is slow. If you browse from one page to another, you have to wait. Our company is a massive user with plenty of licenses, so the performance issues could be due to the load per license. Ten thousand components can be mapped under one license. So SolarWinds needs to take care of the speed problem. It cannot be this slow. That is a huge complaint. Otherwise, the tool is good. It should also be easier to upgrade SolarWinds. AppDynamics is harder to deploy but easier to upgrade. So AppDynamics takes a lot of time and effort to install, but you can upgrade it in minutes. SolarWinds is the opposite. It's easy to deploy, but upgrades take forever. To date, nobody can complete it on time, so the production environment is sitting idle. The upgrade time matters because you only install the solution once, but you'll need to upgrade the solution repeatedly over the life of the product. A complex installation isn't an issue, but I mind if the upgrade takes too long because it's already in production.

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VIVEK PATHAK

Solutions Architect at Airtel

My company uses Riverbed for application performance monitoring. I was doing research so that I could understand if SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor provide APM capabilities similar to Riverbed, which allows our company to get a packet capture of an entire session, and on the basis of it, we look at the application performance monitoring part. With SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor, my company does SNMP polling, so it can drag an entire session, but it focuses more on availability, CPU memory, and server connection status. In Riverbed, my company catches an entire system, so when we deal with two applications, we have end-to-end app visibility. All the application monitoring happens through Riverbed. Our company's main problem is that, as of now, we have two different products in our organization, and we don't want to continue with the multiple products currently. I wanted to understand if SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor already have capabilities like Riverbed, and if they do, then I wanted to figure out why our company should not go with SolarWinds and why we are using products from multiple vendors. My company needs to continue with either Riverbed or SolarWinds. I wanted to see which products are good for the organization and how much I want to continue with Riverbed.

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Ross R

Infrastructure Technical Applications Manager at Emory Healthcare

I try to always follow the processes and things exactly to a T. I don't think we had any major issues with the product. It has room for improvement, but overall, it does most of what we need to do on a day-to-day basis. Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

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SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor mindshare

Product category:

As of March 2025, the mindshare of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor in the Server Monitoring category stands at 2.6%, down from 3.4% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Server Monitoring

PeerAnalyst reports based on SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Server Monitoring	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs Zabbix	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs ServiceNow Discovery	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs Oracle Enterprise Manager	Mar 4, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Zabbix	4.2	27.2%	95%	105 interviews Add to research
Microsoft Configuration Manager	4.1	6.6%	90%	81 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor offers comprehensive service and process monitoring using WMI and SNMP, streamlined management via web console, and detailed dashboards for resource management. Features include network discovery, custom dashboards, advanced alerting, AppInsight for SQL and Exchange, and automated VM management. Users value customizable views, robust reporting, ease of installation, integration capabilities, and powerful monitoring for applications and infrastructure, including real-time node monitoring, hardware health, and dependency mapping. AppStack aids in quick issue identification.

"The graphical interfaces, GUI customizations, and alert configurations are impressive."
"We manage SolarWinds ourselves without outsourcing its services."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its interface, which is used for monitoring."

Room for Improvement

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor struggles with performance as the web console often crashes, and it's slow in larger architectures. The user interface lacks efficiency; it's hard to perform administrative tasks seamlessly. Reporting features need enhancement for better manager-level summaries. Integration with additional applications and security compliance needs improvement. Users often find it challenging to navigate customization and scripting and hope for better cloud functionalities. Better support and licensing synchronization are also necessary.

"The technical support was better in previous years. With the launch of the premium support service, the normal support has declined."
"Application-based monitoring, such as monitoring within servers like Apache and IIS, has room for improvement."
"The technical support team's response time could be improved."

ROI

Based on user feedback, SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor has proven to be a valuable investment. Users have reported positive outcomes and benefits, indicating a satisfactory return on investment.

Pricing

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor pricing is perceived as costly but offers competitive value compared to other vendors. Many users appreciate the features relative to the investment, while others express concerns about high costs and complex licensing. Costs vary significantly based on factors such as devices and feature modules, with prices starting from $2,440. While some highlight potential savings during quarter-end, the overall expense can reach up to $400,000 annually for larger implementations.

"We pay around $ 2,000 to $ 5,000 yearly for the solution."
"The product is expensive."
"The tool is available for my company at a good price point."

Popular Use Cases

Users primarily utilize SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor for monitoring applications and servers, including network performance, CPU, and memory usage. It supports various environments such as on-premise, hybrid, and cloud. Users deploy it for network configuration, application health, and infrastructure oversight, offering insights and alerts for proactive management. It monitors approximately 150 infrastructure components, enhancing visibility into application environments and aiding in managing capacity, bandwidth, and performance across diverse systems and devices.

Service and Support

Customer service and support for SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor have mixed feedback. Some users praise quick responses, helpfulness, and 24/7 availability, while others point out the decline in quality and delayed escalations. The shift to global support teams has reportedly impacted response times and expertise, especially for complex issues. Users mention the changing quality after SolarWinds went private and the variance in service based on the support plan chosen. Many value the THWACK community for solutions.

Deployment

Users found the initial setup of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor mostly straightforward and easy. Agent-less deployment was quick, supported by detailed documentation and technical support. While most found it simple, some mentioned setup complexity in large environments. Users noted customization required time and resource investment. Deployment time varied based on infrastructure, taking anywhere from hours to weeks. The step-by-step installation procedure and user-friendly APIs received positive feedback, though some expressed challenges with upgrades.

Scalability

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor demonstrates scalable capabilities suitable for mid to large-scale environments. It handles additional elements by deploying more polling engines, though some face cost concerns. Users appreciate its modular approach for expansion, allowing for flexible adaptation to various sizes, with improvements in maintenance over time. Scalability challenges arise with large deployments, but adapting to changes has become easier. Some find monitoring capacities require additional resources, yet it suits diverse organizational needs.

Stability

Many find SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor stable, appreciating its dependability. Some report issues, often linked to older versions or specific configurations. Regular maintenance, health checks, resource management, and upgrades are advised to ensure consistent performance. Stability ratings range from seven to nine out of ten. Users recommend removing unused components and addressing unknown applications to maintain optimal function. Larger data loads can affect speed, but generally, SolarWinds is considered reliable and robust.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

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