IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) vs Wireshark comparison

IBM SevOne Network Performa...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) and Wireshark based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Zabbix, SolarWinds, Datadog and others in Network Monitoring Software.

To learn more, read our detailed Network Monitoring Software Report (Updated: September 2026).

Network Monitoring Software

September 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

IBM SevOne Network Performa...

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Monitoring Software (30th), Server Monitoring (16th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (35th), Log Management (35th), Cloud Monitoring Software (27th)

Wireshark

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Troubleshooting (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Network Management solutions, they serve different purposes. IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) is designed for Network Monitoring Software and holds a mindshare of 1.1%, up 1.0% compared to last year.
Wireshark, on the other hand, focuses on Network Troubleshooting, holds 19.1% mindshare, up 12.6% since last year.

Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)	1.1%
Zabbix	3.6%
SolarWinds NPM	3.6%
Other	91.7%

Network Monitoring Software

Network Troubleshooting Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Wireshark	19.1%
AirMagnet Survey PRO	8.3%
DX Spectrum	7.5%
Other	65.1%

Network Troubleshooting

Featured Reviews

reviewer1543041

Network monitoring engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Provides consistent infrastructure monitoring with excellent usability and support

The primary use case of IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) is network monitoring. It helps to maintain the infrastructure's availability and ensure that alerts are generated when needed The most valuable features of IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) are its stability,…

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reviewer2837244

It System Engineer at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Packet analysis has improved real-time troubleshooting and simplifies mapping complex data flows

The best features that Wireshark offers are everything. Every time I look into Wireshark, I find something new. The ability to capture real-time packets and understand how the packet is working and moving through how many hops and to how many points it reaches makes it a wonderful tool. The specific feature I use most is capturing packets of real-time communication and seeing how the packet is working. I rely on all the filters it has to check the protocols and see the communication between one end and another end and what the hops in between are, and if there is a proxy, how it behaves. Everything helps us check out the issue and troubleshoot it. I do not have anything additional to add about the features; everything looks really fine. The graphics are also good, and you can change its graphical features, making it a pretty nice tool. You can also use it with the PCAP file, which is really nice. Wireshark has positively impacted my organization by giving us the ability to capture packets and see into the network how it is working and what we can clarify about the network, specifically how we can remove many hops in the communication channels. A specific example of a measurable outcome is that we have a few switches in our network that, when we use Wireshark analysis, we find should not be needed or can be replaced with automatic switches instead of manual switches, such as switches which do not have any active features and only passive switches. That has saved us a lot of time.

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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

"It's given us the ability to create various real-time network performance reports and distribute them to any colleague who can access these reports immediately."

"One of the benefits is that we've been able to leverage one tool to do a lot of things."

"SevOne provides support for all universal connectors. They internally work with other data sources to get features implemented. We have an SD-WAN implementation and use other app data to monitor performance. If you pull that data into one centralized location, that is very useful for management."

"One of the most valuable features is the graphs, which you can build instantly. I have used some open-source platforms in the past, but they are not as good. With SevOne, the sampling in the graph can be every few seconds, not just every few minutes, and that's really helpful. It's really fast."

"I don't think the product cost compares to the savings we get by detecting a problem and resolving a problem faster."

"We have increased our capability a hundred-fold over, so it was more of a customer performance thing than ROI."

"We find that the reporting is particularly valuable in terms of not only communicating with our peer teams but also with the executives."

"The network data collection has been very flexible for us. It's been thorough in areas that were lacking. They have a team that I've worked with to add other pieces to it. So if it's missing something out of the box, they work with me to add it. I was able to collect that data. It's not perfect, but it's pretty thorough."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) pros

"It gives us the ability to pinpoint problems and to communicate network problems with software and hardware vendors."

"For example, while debugging through food issues, we can draw the graph of the data captured in the solution and see how the throughput is moving."

"The best thing about Wireshark is the community/ecosystem."

"The session-level filtering features are valuable."

"Wireshark is a good tool to start with network analyzing and packet capturing."

"If you're dealing with troubleshooting network, voice issues, or network operations, having a tool like Wireshark to dive into packet details is important. The initial setup is straightforward. Anyone starting out or looking to deploy it on your personal PC or machine can do it easily."

"Wireshark is the world's most powerful network protocol analyzer tool."

"Setup is very easy. It's also possible to change source code and compile if you want to change something in the code, because it's free."

More Wireshark pros

Cons

"There are a lot of pain points. My main problem is that we don't have a high availability system."

"The reports are easy to configure but they are a bit outdated in terms of appearance and visualization."

"You need to plan integrations; that has been the biggest bug with SevOne so far."

"The GUI: both the dashboard/user view and the admin tool."

"I think that the upgrade process could be improved, which can be painful at times."

"We initially had issues getting the product to accommodate the number of network devices to monitor."

"The method of searching for SIP and the way to create the groups."

"Telemetry is hot these days, and IBM can improve SevOne's support for telemetry correction. Reporting is another feature that could be better. It provides the bare minimum functionality, which is good enough for most engineers, but the management isn't advanced. The new portal provides a much lighter view and better visualization, but the management is not so good."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) cons

"The only thing that I don't like is sometimes there is an update, and something that I was using is either no longer there or it has changed."

"Can be difficult for non packet heads to understand"

"The solution has a steep learning curve. There are so many filters and features that are frequently being updated, it takes research, experience and familiarity to be able to use them. It could be a lot more user-friendly."

"Big trace files (more than 1,000,000 packets) can be slow, but then you can use "TraceWrangler" (also free) to help with slicing and dicing the data."

"The initial setup depends upon the basics. You need to have a clear understanding of the basics."

"One con is that this software is only an observer, not an interactive component of the network, meaning you cant change anything with it."

"We would like the product to be developed so that it doesn't rely on internet access for installation. We would like to see all of the components required to be integrated into the installer."

"The Wireshark search function shows green for a correct search and red for an incorrect search."

More Wireshark cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing has been fair."

"It is inexpensive compared to other monitoring tools."

"There are different options available for licensing, with the per-device option being more expensive but more flexible."

"Choose a SevOne partner who can provide SevOne as a service and can deliver professional services and maintenance."

"The pricing has not evolved with the market, which is one of the reasons we are moving to a new product."

"For the value that you get from SevOne, it's worth the price. There are a lot of cheaper alternatives on the market, and even free options. But they require more staff, more resources, and engineers with more advanced knowledge of monitoring. That's what makes SevOne worth the price."

"The tool is not expensive. We were able to negotiate with SevOne on pricing."

"Although I don't have exact details in terms of cost, my experience has been that SevOne is willing to make a deal with the customer."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) pricing and cost advice

"We are using a freeware version of this solution, so there are no licence costs involved."

"Wireshark is an open-source product, so it's free to use."

"We're using the free version of Wireshark."

"Wireshark is open-source and free of charge."

"It is free to download and install. It runs on multiple platforms, so how can you go wrong?"

"Wireshark is free software, so you don't have to pay any licensing fee. Individual people can use it and then donate to Wireshark."

"It's a stand-alone tool. If there is a commercial license for it I am unaware of it."

"It is an open-source solution."

More Wireshark pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Construction Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Outsourcing Company

University

10%

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	45

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	31
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	29

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with SevOne Network Data Platform?

There is room for improvement in the integration with different vendors and the reporting capabilities. It would be beneficial to have out-of-the-box integration with third-party vendors and improv...

What is your primary use case for SevOne Network Data Platform?

The primary use case of IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) ( /products/ibm-sevone-network-performance-management-npm-reviews ) is network monitoring. It helps to maintain the infrastru...

What advice do you have for others considering SevOne Network Data Platform?

To compete with custom-built tools, IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) should accommodate the desired features and be timely in the delivery of feature updates. I would rate the overal...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Wireshark?

Wireshark is priced at a medium range, not too high, not too low. The pricing could be more flexible, and they might make it more expensive. That said, compared to other products, it is competitive.

What needs improvement with Wireshark?

Wireshark can be improved if it provides the accessibility of capturing packets from one device that is installed in the network without needing the port-mirrored facility. They could provide somet...

What is your primary use case for Wireshark?

Wireshark's main use case is capturing packets and reviewing the data flow over the network. Regarding my main use case for Wireshark, it is a great tool and would be one of the best tools availabl...

SolarWinds NPM vs IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

Comparisons

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Avada Software Infrared360 vs IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

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IBM Security QRadar vs IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

Compared 2% of the time

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Colasoft Capsa vs Wireshark

Compared 8% of the time

AirMagnet Survey PRO vs Wireshark

Compared 7% of the time

DX Spectrum vs Wireshark

Compared 7% of the time

Observer GigaStor vs Wireshark

Compared 6% of the time

Broadcom Network Flow Analysis vs Wireshark

Compared 6% of the time

More Wireshark Competitors

Product Reports

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

September 2026

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) report

Download IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) product report

Download Wireshark product report

August 2026

Also Known As

SevOne

No data available

Overview

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management offers real-time insights, customization, and integration capabilities to efficiently monitor network performance across diverse infrastructures, enhancing operational efficiency.

IBM SevOne NPM is recognized for its ability to provide scalable network monitoring across multi-vendor environments. It delivers real-time data insights essential for maintaining network health and performance. With features like SNMP monitoring, NetFlow data collection, and comprehensive dashboards, it supports proactive tracking and analysis. While challenges in upgrade processes and third-party integration exist, its ability to monitor network availability, capacity, and performance in complex environments makes it valuable for organizations managing data centers and virtual machines.

What are the key features of IBM SevOne NPM?

Real-time Data Insights: Provides immediate visibility into network performance.
Scalability: Supports growing infrastructure and diverse environments.
Customization: Adaptable to specific infrastructure needs.
Extensive Device Support: Monitors a wide range of network devices.
Comprehensive Dashboards: Offers detailed performance assessments.

What benefits and ROI should users expect from IBM SevOne NPM?

Improved Efficiency: Enhances operational processes through ITSM integration.
Proactive Monitoring: Facilitates early detection of network issues.
Flexible Infrastructure Support: Efficient in multi-vendor environments.
Insightful Reporting: Provides baseline comparisons and anomaly detection.

In industries such as IT service providers and large enterprises, IBM SevOne NPM is implemented for its ability to monitor extensive network environments, including data centers and virtual machines. Its proactive monitoring and reporting capabilities are instrumental in maintaining network health and ensuring seamless performance across multiple regions and platforms.

IBM

Wireshark offers robust packet analysis through comprehensive filtering and color-coding features, adaptable across platforms due to its open-source nature. It supports real-time and offline packet captures, multiple protocols, and easy installation, making it a favored tool for network experts.

Renowned for its traffic decryption capabilities and detailed traffic insights, Wireshark provides deep packet inspection and a simple GUI. Ideal for network troubleshooting, it allows users to view VoIP traffic and perform advanced customizations. While Wireshark's interface can be complex and challenging for newcomers, its powerful features make it invaluable in identifying network issues, inspecting protocols, and understanding data flow across wired and wireless environments. Users seek more intuitive filters, better Windows and non-laptop support, as well as features like real-time evolution and graphical analysis tools to enhance usability. Wireshark's wide application includes security research, protocol analysis, and application performance baselining, supporting both on-premises and cloud-based operations.

What are Wireshark's standout features?

Filtering and Color-Coding: Enables detailed packet analysis.
Real-Time and Offline Captures: Supports both capture modes for comprehensive network monitoring.
Traffic Decryption: Provides detailed insights into encrypted traffic.
Deep Packet Inspection: Delivers granular network data examination.
GUI Simplicity: Ensures ease of use despite complex capabilities.

What benefits and ROI should users evaluate?

Network Troubleshooting: Streamlines identification and resolution of network issues.
Protocol Inspection: Facilitates in-depth examination of network communication protocols.
Traffic Monitoring: Ensures effective monitoring of network traffic in real time.
Security Research: Assists in uncovering malicious traffic and vulnerabilities.
Application Performance: Aids in baselining and optimizing app performance.

Wireshark is implemented across industries to manage and troubleshoot networks, analyze traffic flow, and ensure secure, efficient communication. It supports research and security operations, providing insights into protocol usage and application performance across physical and virtual environments. Its deployment spans education, telecommunications, finance, and healthcare, underpinning connectivity and data integrity.

Sample Customers

ATOS, Devereux, Spark New Zealand, Access4, Rogers Communication, Lumen (formerly known as CenturyLink)

Comversion, ADP, Talbots