AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] vs IBM Sterling File Gateway comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and IBM are both solutions in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category. Additionally, 75% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of IBM users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] and IBM Sterling File Gateway based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Progress Software, Fortra and others in Managed File Transfer (MFT).

To learn more, read our detailed Managed File Transfer (MFT) Report (Updated: October 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

October 2024

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Categories and Ranking

Aspera Managed File Transfer

Featured Reviews

Michele Illiano

Head of Division at Innovery

Mar 23, 2022

Beneficial quick protocol, powerful, but limited use cases

Aspera Managed File Transfer should be packaged into another solution. Explaining to customers you need to have multiple solutions from multiple vendors for their use cases can get complicated for them to understand. The best way to propose a suite is to have an integrated suite where the customer could choose to license part of it. This solution could be one solution not two choices between 10 or 12 different solutions. The main feature of Aspera Managed File Transfer is the communication protocol, which is fast. There are a lot of different clients that are offering features related to these fast protocols. It's possible to create one unique suite that can handle this base protocol. It will be quite easy to propose to the customers.

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Kyle Titus

Chief Technology Officer at Revio

Feb 21, 2023

Always works, handles all types of load, and allows us to have S3 files as storage

Its cost needs improvement. In addition, there could be a universal client that works on all desktops. There could be client software that you use to connect to the server. Generally, AWS doesn't provide one for you, so you have to use either your CLI, maybe your SSH CLI, or use some kind of desktop solution. I had to find a desktop app from a third party to run this. Our clients also do the same everywhere else, so it would be nice if the SFTP Gateway solution came with a client that anyone could download on their Mac, Windows, or any other machine.

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Vinutha Gangadhara

Integration Manager at Infosys

Aug 14, 2024

Ability to customize on top of the inbuilt processes, user-friendly and well-categorized

I’ve been part of this client for the last seven-plus years. It’s been close to 70 to 80 continuous improvements we have delivered. The priority ones which we always shortlist are the recurring incidents or recurring issues, which came in the initial phase of the year when we took this entire landscape under our maintenance. One such incident I can recollect is with respect to performance tuning. We committed to our users 99.99% and above as the availability metrics for Sterling Integrator. This has acted as a high-availability system, but we treat it as mission-critical. When it comes to the commitment we give to users, we have to ensure the system is kept most stable. So, the majority of the problem was in the communication channels. Whenever we enabled additional logging for the communication channel, the system used to have hiccups. So we worked with the vendor, stating that the visibility channel framework needs to be changed because the moment we enable more logging, it literally brings the system down, or the system doesn’t work as it should. They took our input and delivered a better framework in their next releases, which helped us after upgrading to have that stability intact. As the system grows, we ensure to have performance tuning triggered and optimize the business process wherever required. For example, by default, Sterling Integrator business process will have full logging enabled. We took care of those things. Not all business processes or workflows require full logging enabled. Only a few critical ones require every step logs. For the rest, we categorized and reduced the logging for those workflows. That actually helped us to increase the IO overall from ten milliseconds to six milliseconds. That was a good achievement. Apart from that, in terms of queues, how we maintain the queues, how we defined all file queues across the critical business process is one thing we felt was done better. The threads we assign for the priority queues and the business processes were configured to those priority queues, whatever is critical, so that it gets high priority to allow the threads to process. So that queue thread Sterling was taken under the performance tuning. Apart from that, I think some of the best practices which IBM recommends is what we usually run through every year. We just have the health check done through IBM, and we just ensure that all the best practice recommendations are added in the system.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The main feature of Aspera Managed File Transfer is that it's an incredibly fast protocol, you can use all the bandwidth available. If I need to send large amounts of data this is the fastest protocol on the market. I have been using it for some minor projects and it is very powerful."

"Good user interface and ability to set up multiple file transfer jobs."

"Aspera Managed File Transfer is an optimal solution for customers who want to transfer large files to remote sites with lower bandwidth and in less time."

"The solution offers good data recovery."

"The solution has helped with collaboration in our organization."

"Being able to have the S3 files as storage is most valuable. We can use S3 as storage instead of an SFTP server or a machine."

"The most valuable aspect is that it has good functionality."

"This product has been a leader in the field of secure file exchange."

"It is a very flexible platform, and this flexibility is the best part of it."

"IBM Sterling File Gateway is user-friendly, allowing us to easily monitor and track file data."

"It also has good error-handling methods."

"Very high functionality with the ability to plug in your own code."

"What I like best is that the tool is very secure and reliable. We can send huge files, even up to hundreds of GB. The automation depends on the source - it can be through automated processes, manual transfers, shell scripting, or file scripting. Partners can schedule batches according to their needs."

"In IBM Sterling File Gateway, automation primarily involves schedulers, which significantly transfer daily generated claim files to the end user. We ensure that the directory and files are up to date, particularly those placed in specific directories by the source. Processing can stop if someonechanges the directory without updating it in the SFG partner profile. On the destination side, after setting up a partner file, we provide the end user with an MFT link, user ID, password, and a guide on uploading, downloading, and viewing files. Initially, we set up a primary password for them, and they can later change it to a preferred one for viewing their files. This process ensures smooth file handling, but miscommunication regarding directory changes can lead to issues."

More IBM Sterling File Gateway pros

Cons

"Deployment is complex and it was difficult to get support."

"The solution's pricing is high and should be reduced."

"Aspera Managed File Transfer should be packaged into another solution. Explaining to customers you need to have multiple solutions from multiple vendors for their use cases can get complicated for them to understand."

"Its cost needs improvement. In addition, there could be a universal client that works on all desktops."

"Could be more automated, particularly for file transfers."

"The tool's UI should be pretty easy and straightforward. I would also like to see a simple audit report of the SFTP guest account that shows the amount of data transfers and security kind enabled."

"The product could be improved by offering native API capabilities and making the solution more user-friendly for larger, multi-node implementations."

"The number of failed files number increases with high workflow so that needs improvement."

"Based on my experience, there's some room for improvement. We're currently using version 6.1.1, which has a limitation where files are purged after seven days. We have to restart the purge count manually through our standard procedure. This issue should be resolved in the latest version."

"Not a ten because it's a bit complex, not so simple. It's one product but there are many screens."

"The solution's technical support is sometimes slow to understand the use cases, and the answers are not practical."

"I would like to see auto-deployment without service disruptions."

"IBM Sterling File Gateway depends on a database, which can be a drawback compared to platforms where system resources are entirely controlled internally."

"Too many features; UI is not good."

More IBM Sterling File Gateway cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Aspera Managed File Transfer is not an inexpensive solution. I am not aware of many competitors to determine how affordable the price is overall."

"It's $249 per month per instance. It's not great; it's pretty pricey. We've got multiple users on that one instance. If we had to build it by hand, we would win on cost there, but obviously, there is effort and time. In terms of the additional costs, they do have some specific pricing, but for our use case, we don't end up going over $249. They do specify in their pricing what they're charging for."

"The solution's pricing is reasonable."

"I do know that it's generally considered expensive, but it's also widely used across corporate organizations due to its robust protocol communication, secure file transfer capabilities, and integration features. Although there are other tools on the market, IBM Sterling File Gateway stands out for its unique options and cloud compatibility, which offers future benefits, particularly in avoiding data storage issues."

"There are two types of customer licenses, an annual preview license, and an ELA-based license. I have found the solution is priced well. However, they need to review the pricing model because if you look at any other competitors, such as GlobalSCAPE, they do pricing based on the components and what you select. With this solution you have a monolithic application which you need to buy, there is no component level price discount."

"It's reasonably priced at $800,000."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

18%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Insurance Company

Financial Services Firm

29%

Computer Software Company

12%

Insurance Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

36%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Insurance Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aspera Managed File Transfer?

Aspera Managed File Transfer is an optimal solution for customers who want to transfer large files to remote sites wi...

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What needs improvement with Aspera Managed File Transfer?

The solution's pricing calculation needs revision to be more competitive

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Aspera Managed File Transfer?

Aspera Managed File Transfer has superior technology. Overall, I rate Aspera Managed File Transfer a nine out of ten.

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What do you like most about AWS Transfer for SFTP?

The solution has helped with collaboration in our organization.

See all answers

What needs improvement with AWS Transfer for SFTP?

The tool's UI should be pretty easy and straightforward. I would also like to see a simple audit report of the SFTP g...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for AWS Transfer for SFTP?

We have integrations with third-party systems that unfortunately make use of a very old-school, file-based protocol. ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Sterling File Gateway?

The cost-effectiveness of IBM Sterling File Gateway was a major factor in our decision to use it, in comparison to th...

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What needs improvement with IBM Sterling File Gateway?

The weakness is that the engines associated with the tool require too much expertise to master how they work. Finding...

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What is your primary use case for IBM Sterling File Gateway?

I use the solution in my company since we have lots of different use cases attached to the tool. Mainly, we have inco...

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Comparisons

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs Aspera Managed File Transfer

Compared 15% of the time

Axway AMPLIFY Managed File Transfer vs Aspera Managed File Transfer

Compared 8% of the time

Fortra's Globalscape WAFS vs Aspera Managed File Transfer

Compared 6% of the time

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Kiteworks vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 44% of the time

MOVEit vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 9% of the time

CA XCOM Data Transport vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 6% of the time

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 5% of the time

Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL]

Compared 4% of the time

More AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] Competitors

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs IBM Sterling File Gateway

Compared 22% of the time

MOVEit vs IBM Sterling File Gateway

Compared 17% of the time

Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs IBM Sterling File Gateway

Compared 10% of the time

BMC Control-M Managed File Transfer vs IBM Sterling File Gateway

Compared 8% of the time

Axway AMPLIFY Managed File Transfer vs IBM Sterling File Gateway

Compared 5% of the time

More IBM Sterling File Gateway Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

October 2024

Download Aspera Managed File Transfer product report

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

October 2024

Download AWS Transfer for SFTP [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM Sterling File Gateway

October 2024

Download IBM Sterling File Gateway product report

Learn More

IBM

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

IBM

Overview

IBM Aspera takes a different approach to tackling the challenges of big data movement over global WANs. Rather than optimize or accelerate data transfer, Aspera eliminates underlying bottlenecks by using its proprietary fasp technology that fully utilizes available network bandwidth to maximize speed and quickly scale up with no theoretical limit. Using fasp, transfers are secure end-to-end and are largely unaffected by file size, transfer distance, or network conditions, making transfer times up to 100Xs faster than TCP-based protocols.

IBM Aspera offers SaaS, on-prem, and hybrid solutions to meet the needs of modernizing infrastructures. All solutions offer robust security and compliance, intuitive file sharing, workflow automation, central administration, and real-time visibility. Quickly and easily initiate transfers across hybrid infrastructures, including support for cloud-to-cloud transfers. IBM Aspera offers unmatched transfer speeds, end-to-end security, reliability, and exceptional bandwidth control.

AWS Transfer for SFTP is a fully managed service that enables the transfer of files directly into and out of Amazon S3 using the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP)—also known as Secure Shell (SSH) File Transfer Protocol.

Securely manage transfer files with authentication, encryption and audit trails while you retain administrative control of data using a library of templates.

Sterling File Gateway can help you increase secure and dependable file transfer with your trading partners. It consolidates disparate centers of file transfer activity and facilitates the security-rich exchange of file-based data over the Internet. It helps companies avoid the risk and operational issues that can result from using loosely controlled file-transfer servers.

Sample Customers

Gwinnett County Public Schools, Evonik, Voith, BITMARCK, Oracle

Myriota, FINRA, Celgene, Kontor New Media, Belong, ThinkCX, BluTV

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

October 2024

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