IBM Tivoli NetCool vs SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager comparison

"Anything is possible with Tivoli. It's quite a robust system."

"It's very easy to use."

"Tivoli NetCool allows us to grasp a lot of data that can be applied toward predictive analytics and auto-remediation."

"The tool is much easier to manage than running scripts and figuring out how many endpoints have been exceeded."

"The scalability of monitoring, the breadth of supported network components, the scale of the number of monitoring events, and the flexibility in customization make this a well-rounded product."

"Support is one of the best aspects of this solution. NetCool is a good product that has good flexibility. There are a lot of documents available online which is one of the best features of IBM Tivoli Suite. Whenever an issue happens, rather than going to technical support, if you find the exact issue in Google, you can get tech notes for that particular issue."

"The feature I have found most valuable with NetCool is how it collaborates all the alarms, and then it does a predictive analysis, providing a consolidated alarm view and management."

"NetCool has a huge database that can collect and process about one million alarms a day."

"We push all our configurations to the servers with ease and the logs capture almost all the transactions needed for an internal audit."

"SolarWinds NCM provides updates on the status of your network infrastructure. If any issues arise, such as a link failure or a device going offline, you will receive notifications and alerts. Additionally, if someone unplugs a cable, SolarWinds NCM will detect it. It also features a Topology Mapper that displays the connectivity of your network devices, giving you a visual representation of the network's structure. With SolarWinds NCM, you have a clear understanding of what's happening within your network and can generate comprehensive reports."

"It is a stable solution."

"It allows us to manage backups in big companies. It is also useful in managing the configuration changes."

"The solution's view is very nice, and they have a great customized dashboard."

"The scanning features have proven to be highly valuable, particularly due to the comprehensive information they provide."

"Compared to other vendors, like NetBrain, managing the solution is easy. They made it very user-friendly."

"This solution has helped our organization by allowing us to store all the device configurations for the various network devices in NCM and making it easy for us to retrieve and look them over."

"Tivoli NetCool is based on a Linux platform, it would be beneficial if they moved it to Windows because not everyone is acquainted with Linux."

"The solution does not have any AI capabilities."

"The installation could be simplified, and technical support could be faster."

"The solution is too expensive."

"UI is outdated, very old legacy."

"Customization and integration that you need to do to make the product fit your needs is very complex. It is not a product that somebody could easily pick up without any prior training or experience."

"The solution is not user-friendly."

"The installation could be simplified, and technical support could be faster."

"Its look and feel can be improved. They can also put in more effort into building the THWACK community and use the information about various customer issues and requests to build the new releases."

"It would be great if they include a network service manager, network performance manager, or a privileged assessment in the next release."

"When it comes to the way of managing the network devices, SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager should provide the simplest way that devices can relate to the server. For example, when we want to get the devices on board, we go by SSH to make the SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager create the connectivity with the device. After that, we pull the configuration. It would be helpful if they could combine both so that everything will be done in one step."

"Its customer service response could be faster."

"Further improvements in automation are needed. Currently, there are limitations in performing tasks without logging into routers directly, and we expect more comprehensive device control."

"The third-party plugins available in the solution could improve. I have received some issues with the templates."

"The solution could have better integration."

"On NCM, reporting could be a bit better. It's completely become just one report. When I try to create a custom report, the solution just commits old server data."

"Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."

"The price of the product is too expensive."

"It costs around 100k for every ten servers, which is lower than similar products from other vendors."

"Customers are required to pay a licensing fee."

"You have a base license for 50 devices, and then you can add more licenses as you go."

"With a minimal bundle, we pay about $3000 a year in licensing costs. If you have multiple devices in your network, you must buy the bundle, which is 100% identical for your infrastructure. If you have 15 devices, you need 15 licenses, for example. That's one bundle. You don't pay for anything over and above that."

"There is a license needed to use SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager."

"The pricing is good."

"We have to pay additionally for its support and maintenance."

"Pricing is reasonable and competitive."

"I have a yearly subscription."

"In Africa, the cost is a major factor in decision-making for many companies. As a result, some companies may choose cheaper solutions, even if they are open-source, over more expensive ones, such as SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. However, as an engineer, I believe that the functionalities and services offered by SolarWinds justify the cost. Nonetheless, many companies in Africa may still view the prices as unaffordable."