PRTG Network Monitor and Cisco DNA Center are two prominent contenders in network monitoring and management, each offering unique advantages. PRTG is particularly preferred for its cost-effectiveness and ease of deployment, making it more suitable for smaller to mid-sized environments, whereas Cisco DNA Center offers advanced analytics and integration for Cisco-heavy infrastructures, justifying its higher cost for larger enterprises.
Features: PRTG Network Monitor quickly deploys and scales without needing extensive customization, offers comprehensive monitoring, and benefits from strong vendor support. Cisco DNA Center excels with its advanced network analytics, seamless integration with Cisco devices, and feature-rich solutions, enhancing its functionality in large, Cisco-based environments.
Room for Improvement: PRTG Network Monitor faces challenges with template management and application monitoring, issues with its web and desktop interfaces, and its licensing cost. Cisco DNA Center struggles with high pricing and complex provisioning, particularly for third-party integrations, and broader network automation is limited by pricing concerns.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: PRTG Network Monitor is known for its straightforward setup but primarily relies on email-based support, which can experience delays. Cisco DNA Center's deployment process can be intricate but is well-supported in Cisco environments, offering robust customer service options at a higher price.
Pricing and ROI: PRTG Network Monitor provides a cost-effective licensing model based on sensor count, ideal for smaller setups with minimal ongoing expenses, resulting in a favorable ROI. Cisco DNA Center presents a higher price point, restricting access for smaller businesses, but its potential to decrease downtime makes it valuable in large-scale deployments capable of bearing its premium costs.
Although Cisco DNA Center is expensive, we have seen a return on investment in terms of time savings.
It provides accurate data for utilization, allowing us to monitor and optimize our investments in WAN connection capacity.
After introducing PRTG Network Monitor, we have saved time, and it's easy for everybody to monitor everything.
I have seen a return on investment with PRTG Network Monitor as it has saved a lot of time, and its monitoring has reduced manpower requirements, which has been helpful.
Overall, Cisco DNA Center rates eight out of ten as a complete solution.
The support for Cisco DNA Center is good.
They resolve our queries 24/7.
The setup process is well-documented, making it easy to deploy.
Tutorials are available so I can manage any issue with PRTG Network Monitor easily.
From my experience, we can easily manage numerous devices.
The solution is designed for large enterprise companies.
On a scale of one to ten, scalability is rated as 9.5.
PRTG Network Monitor has the ability to scale and add new devices.
You can install them in each network, even if they are not connected, and it works.
When we communicate problems, they solve them effectively.
We haven't needed vendor support for the last three years, which demonstrates the product's stability.
PRTG Network Monitor is stable in my experience, and I have not encountered issues with crashes or downtime.
PRTG Network Monitor is very stable and requires low maintenance.
The AI-driven insights have contributed significantly to faster troubleshooting and predictive analytics.
The client history in Cisco DNA Center can be longer than 10 days, perhaps extending to 15 or 20 days.
They need to improve application performance monitoring, error tracing mechanisms, and log management.
PRTG Network Monitor should provide syslog monitoring since it is not available at this time.
PRTG Network Monitor can sometimes be too detailed and cluttered at the beginning, making it heavy to use.
The licensing part is a recurring license for every year, which is very affordable, making PRTG Network Monitor budget-friendly.
Pricing is by the number of devices, not by sensor.
The prices are very high for PRTG Network Monitor.
The most valuable features include AI-driven insights which make troubleshooting much easier.
If there is a problem, I can inspect the situation and see what is happening, which is beneficial.
PRTG Network Monitor already provided me with 100 free sensors, which is enough for my network monitoring.
PRTG Network Monitor has a good dashboard that shows each and every piece of information, so we can easily find out what is happening with the systems.
These reports help me in my day-to-day work, and I rely on them because they provide proof during escalation, with exact downtime logs and related information.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| PRTG Network Monitor | 4.1% |
| Cisco DNA Center | 1.4% |
| Other | 94.5% |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 10 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 9 |
| Large Enterprise | 25 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 57 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 18 |
| Large Enterprise | 43 |
Cisco DNA Center offers a comprehensive platform for network automation and management, providing detailed analytics, enhanced security, and streamlined operations for both wired and wireless networks.
Cisco DNA Center integrates with Cisco infrastructure to deliver efficient network automation and management, helping organizations improve network visibility, security, and control. It supports AI-driven analytics and automated workflows to enhance operational efficiency and reduce errors. Challenges include compatibility with third-party systems, steep learning curve, and complex deployment. Its interface facilitates centralized control, vital for troubleshooting, policy management, and configuration management, with support for zero-touch provisioning and SD-Access.
What are the key features of Cisco DNA Center?In sectors such as healthcare, finance, and retail, Cisco DNA Center is utilized for its ability to enhance security and compliance, manage large-scale networks, and provide detailed analytics for better operational decision-making. Its support for location tracking and policy automation ensures efficient network management across diverse environments.
PRTG Network Monitor runs on a Windows machine within your network, collecting various statistics from the machines, software, and devices which you designate. PRTG comes with an easy-to-use web interface with point-and-click configuration. You can easily share data from it with non-technical colleagues and customers, including via live graphs and custom reports. This will let you plan for network expansion, see what applications are using most of your connection, and make sure that no one is hogging the entire network just to torrent videos.
To monitor a large IT environment, it's important to be able to scale PRTG up. Paessler PRTG Enterprise Monitor includes all the proven capabilities of PRTG Network Monitor, which are enhanced by exclusive ITOps Board for a service-oriented, central overview of multiple PRTG servers.
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