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BMC Helix Discovery vs Qualys VMDR comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 29, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

BMC Helix Discovery
Ranking in IT Asset Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Qualys VMDR
Ranking in IT Asset Management
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
89
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (2nd), Configuration Management Databases (3rd), Container Security (10th), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the IT Asset Management category, the mindshare of BMC Helix Discovery is 8.7%, up from 8.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys VMDR is 3.6%, down from 5.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
IT Asset Management
 

Featured Reviews

Shirish Kamalapurkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Feb 22, 2023
Very stable, fast, and powerful with valuable inventory management features
Our company uses the solution as an inventory tool for customers. The solution discovers your infrastructure and lets you know what servers and network devices are on it. It gives you details about applications, hardware, and software such as how they are connected and the dependencies between…
Harold Jensen - PeerSpot reviewer
Jul 13, 2023
Good visibility but expensive and needs better support
Support: It's often overseas and often following a script, basically asking us to redo what we opened the case with. Multiple APIs: There seems to be a lack of easy onboarding into Qualys. We had to use manual inputs and some API calls to get items in place. Dashboard: It is very rudimentary with very little customization. The Qualys Scripting Language (QSL) works differently in different Qualys modules, so when you get it working in one area you have to modify the syntax in others. User account management: We often have to give users more rights than needed just to give them what they need. Integration with the various Qualys Modules: You can tell the UI is different based on of the different teams that created them. QSL syntax same in all modules Responsiveness of some of the components: They time out, you get a blank screen, etc. Backend updates between the various modules: You update connectors and information takes a few minutes to show in VMDR or Global Asset View Connectors: Connectors have a throttling issue with AWS which causes them to frequently fail unless you manually run them again.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"A valuable feature concerns the ability to integrate with different solutions."
"BMC provides great support. As managed service support, they are gold."
"Start anywhere application modelling brings a fantastic opportunity for users to see what is where."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its application dependency mapping."
"It provides comprehensive dependency mapping, which is essential for reducing the time spent and addressing problem-solving between data centers."
"It is agentless, which means you don't have to install anything on all the different pieces of hardware that you are looking to discover."
"The solution is definitely useful."
"It now comes with a very flexible deployment solution, whether you want to keep it inside your data center or want to have the cloud, depending on if you're cloud forward or not."
"The biggest benefit is from a security operations perspective, where we are able to drive our security posture upwards by remediating any discovered vulnerabilities."
"The most valuable features are vulnerability detection and the scanning capability to enable identification of vulnerabilities across our network."
"The Vulnerability Management and Patch Management features are the most valuable features of this solution."
"The most valuable feature is the vulnerability assessment."
"It's really beneficial for scanning and interacting with the agent."
"Qualys has a continuous endpoint monitoring feature for agent-based scanning. Once you deploy the solution, it monitors everything that is happening every 30 minutes. Then, if there are any vulnerabilities, they are reported."
"Intuitive and easy to use."
"Monitors workstations and servers for vulnerabilities and creates reports."
 

Cons

"It would be nice to see more updates to the solution."
"BMC Helix Discovery is a bit tough to use and administer."
"The solution's scalability is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are needed."
"If the dependency maps can go live and we can work through the process with a click, we're reaching the stage where issues are identified and mitigated. It would be ideal if we could utilize it to reduce vulnerabilities or address any other feedback."
"The solution is definitely useful."
"The monitoring tools could be more stable."
"The product falls short compared to storage discovery mechanisms offered by Tenable or ServiceNow ITOM. In the market, there are various applications available that provide different sets of features. Its drawback is that it doesn't give the database configuration customers need out of the box. Additionally, the classification of storage virtualization is relatively lacking. Therefore, there is room for improvement, particularly in the database areas."
"I would like to see the ability to scan some of the newer cloud platforms. I know that BMC has them on the roadmap, and they are coming soon, but they can't come fast enough. Being able to scan more of GCloud, Alibaba Cloud, or whatever the public clouds that our customers are buying, we need to make sure that Discovery can find them as well."
"Qualys VM's machine learning and artificial intelligence features could be improved."
"Qualys VMDR should improve authenticated scanning capabilities."
"It is a struggle to be able to pull our report and to be able to do onboarding using automated tools."
"I would like to see more accuracy in detections, better reporting capabilities, and better dashboard download capabilities."
"It would be nice to have an all-in-one solution that was automated and could handle the scanning and reports as well as the patching and updating."
"The reporting and the GUI need improvements."
"They should make it accessible for more operating systems."
"We are moving away from Qualys to Defender ATP because I find that Defender ATP is much better at prioritizing the vulnerabilities that I should be looking at."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licenses are very complex and quite costly."
"Operating cost is actually high compared to other products, actually. It's a little expensive only, but it's very good than other products."
"I rate the pricing an eight out of ten. All BMC products are expensive."
"We have a perpetual license for the solution."
"BMC is available for a reasonable price compared to ServiceNow — it's half the price."
"We are on a three-year agreement with BMC Helix Discovery to use the solution. There are not any additional fees other than the standard license."
"I've heard that the solution was expensive earlier but is now much cheaper than its competitors."
"The price was fair compared to competitors. BMC is very affordable. There are optional consulting services to assist with implementation."
"The tool's pricing is expensive and I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten."
"Qualys VM is reasonably priced."
"Qualys VM is quite expensive. It's a subscription-based license, and it's yearly. Right now, it's open for me, and I don't have any limitations or caps on the licenses. They are seeing if the product is viable for 4500 users. I can add as much as I want, and at the end of the subscription, they'll let me know how many licenses were actually used and bill me accordingly. On a scale from one to five, I would give their pricing a three. It's still expensive."
"The license is on a yearly basis."
"It is a high cost product. Compared to the other solutions, it is around 15 to 20% higher in cost."
"Qualys Virtual Scanner Appliance isn't expensive right now. But the price for their product bundles could be better."
"Usually every implementation is different and the quote is in function of number of assets."
"When you want to cover yourself for scalability, you will be charged for the number you place on the scan itself."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
17%
Energy/Utilities Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
35%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BMC Helix Discovery?
I like the artificial intelligence and machine learning that it uses in the solution. Because once the solution discovers all the assets, all the infrastructure, and all the dependencies between se...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for BMC Helix Discovery?
I would rate the pricing around four out of ten. It is quite expensive.
What needs improvement with BMC Helix Discovery?
The improvement I want to see is a reduction in duplicate records. In comparison with SCCM, SCCM does not have any duplicate records, which is a significant advantage. Discovery should adopt a simi...
What is your primary use case for Qualys VM?
Qualys VM is used for vulnerability scans for the internet and applications using application exchange. There are many applications. We also use the solution for asset management per team, and the ...
What do you like most about Qualys VMDR?
I like that we have many scanners and channels that don't overload. It helps us scan and track easily. Also, the tagging system is good for tagging. We can still use QualysAgent task ID tools even ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys VMDR?
I am not aware of the actual cost or pricing as it is managed by the client.
 

Also Known As

Discovery, ADDM, Atrium Discovery & Dependency Mapping
Qualys VM, QualysGuard VM, Qualys Asset Inventory, Qualys Container Security, Qualys Virtual Scanner Appliance
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Windstream Communications, News UK, Mercator Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR)
Agrokor Group, American Specialty Health, American State Bank, Arval, Life:), Axway, Bank of the West, Blueport Commerce, BSkyB, Brinks, CaixaBank, Cartagena, Catholic Health System, CEC Bank, Cegedim, CIGNA, Clickability, Colby-Sawyer College, Commercial Bank of Dubai, University of Utah, eBay Inc., ING Singapore, National Theatre, OTP Bank, Sodexo, WebEx
Find out what your peers are saying about BMC Helix Discovery vs. Qualys VMDR and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
814,763 professionals have used our research since 2012.