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IBM WebSphere Application Server vs Microsoft .NET Framework comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM WebSphere Application S...
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (5th)
Microsoft .NET Framework
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
4th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of IBM WebSphere Application Server is 10.5%, up from 10.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft .NET Framework is 6.5%, down from 6.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

Saleem Shar - PeerSpot reviewer
Compatible, stable, and scalable
IBM WebSphere Application Server is one of the best servers due to its stability and paid license. I have never encountered any issues when installing and deploying applications, as it never goes down. Currently, there are two versions of WebSphere Application Server: the old version, known as WebSphere Application ND, and the newer version, Liberty, which is Docker-based. I have experience with both and have never encountered any issues. I believe that WebSphere Application Server is a great feature.
Pavan Kodur - PeerSpot reviewer
Intuitive, easier to develop, maintain, and migrate from the old framework to newer versions
There are a few areas where they could compete better with products like React or Angular – the popular SPA (Single Page Application) frameworks. Microsoft has its own product called Blazor, but I don't think it's quite as powerful yet as React or Angular. I think that's an area for improvement. For example, HR asked me to build something that worked offline and online. Microsoft products don't really support that well, as I'd have to rely on browser databases. React and Angular are better for that. If I need something faster, I'd definitely use React. So, I see Microsoft lagging a bit in that area.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"IBM WAS is the backbone for our enterprise content management suite which delivers the primary processes for our customers. Without a good application server, it would be hard to provide a secure layer of midddleware upon which the other applications run. IBM WAS improves the stability of the entire solution and provides a high quality platform for running web-based solutions."
"What's most valuable in IBM WebSphere Application Server is its resilience. When you use the solution, you know that after the communication has been done, there will be no doubt that the data has reached its destination."
"The solution has good performance."
"The solution is very stable and robust."
"Without the Admin Console it would be very hard to configure JVM settings, JDBC datasources, mail session settings, and security providers."
"The most valuable features are its user-friendliness and reliability in terms of application hosting."
"Network Deployment is the most useful feature for scalability. It has many features within the standard WebSphere Application Server edition."
"IBM WebSphere Application Server is one of the best servers due to its stability and paid license."
"The most valuable feature is the financial accounting."
"The solution is easy to use if the user is a developer or some technical person."
"The solution's technical support is very good...The product's initial setup phase was easy."
"The tool offers a lot of support, and there is a lot of knowledge material available, along with a lot of community groups."
"Microsoft .NET Framework continually innovates, particularly in Visual Studio, which focuses on improving languages, debugging, and .NET functionality."
"Microsoft Platform is the only viable solution when I wish to do something that is not supposed to be cross-platform."
"The solution is not limited in storage, is customizable and simple to use."
"The addition of generics to handle common functionality across types, and the more recent upgrade of the dataset to the Entity Framework, has cut development time drastically, while increasing quality and confidence between builds."
 

Cons

"In the next release of this solution, I would like to see support for the Arabic language."
"The licensing could be improved, and I would like it to give the longevity of the lifespan of the visions. In the next release, I would like to be able to download and extract the files so that I can just use my application server."
"When compared with WebLogic, Weblogic is lighter and consumes less memory."
"The installation has room for improvement."
"The security could be better."
"IBM WebSphere Application Server hasn't changed much. It's still a heavyweight for any company compared to what you get. Unless your code base is deeply linked with it, I don't think it's a great idea to go with this solution. The current trend is toward modularity and containerization, and given the product's requirements, containerization will be difficult. There is a memory requirement as well."
"The main issue we faced was its limited compatibility with non-Java technologies, which can result in difficulty detecting potential bugs and requiring additional integration efforts."
"They should make the solution more lightweight and not bundle everything into a single product."
"The .NET open source community could be larger."
"The learning curve could be improved."
"The solution has difficulty integrating with other products. There are no such difficulties if you have the same platform, hardware, and operating system."
"It is of great concern to us that the solution is not very powerful on cross platform, at it impedes the ability to build and scale with it."
"The integration with DevOps tools, such as Azure DevOps, Jira, and GitLab, would be a valuable addition."
"The solution needs to update its security periodically because there are many security concerns."
"You need to have the technical expertise to use this product."
"The product is nearing its sunset, and we think that by 2028, we won't get support anymore"
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's expensive."
"There is an Eclipse Plugin provided by IBM, so no need to buy IBM Rational Application Developer or Rational Software Architect tools."
"The licensing policy is based on the PVU base."
"The price of this product is higher than that of competitors."
"It costs more than some of the others, but, you get what you pay for."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"WebSphere Application Server is expensive, so it may not be a good option for small companies."
"It is very expensive."
"The pricing could be cheaper."
"Considering the bigger picture, opting for the Microsoft ecosystem can be beneficial and it is priced well. When relying on entirely open-source solutions, you may encounter challenges associated with dealing with multiple vendors and potentially compromised security measures. However, it is important to note that Microsoft could enhance its performance when it comes to addressing critical security concerns."
"Microsoft .NET Framework is a free, open-source solution."
"The product’s pricing is a bit high."
"The solution is a bit costly when compared to open source products or open gear licenses."
"The support is an extra cost when purchasing the license. The price of the solution is overall reasonable and paid annually or every three years. Additionally, they have a monthly license. The cost is approximately $1,000 per user."
"I rate the solution's pricing a two out of ten because .NET is an open-source framework. You don't have to pay for a license."
"The product and support for this solution are free for everyone."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
32%
Computer Software Company
12%
Insurance Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
10%
Construction Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM WebSphere Application Server?
Network Deployment is the most useful feature for scalability. It has many features within the standard WebSphere Application Server edition.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM WebSphere Application Server?
The product is expensive. I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with IBM WebSphere Application Server?
I think in some moments, the security was a little bit more complex to configure when it was delegated to other systems, making it an area where improvements are required.
What do you like most about Microsoft .NET Framework?
Microsoft .NET Framework continually innovates, particularly in Visual Studio, which focuses on improving languages, debugging, and .NET functionality.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft .NET Framework?
The pricing is rated six out of ten. It provides value for the cost.
What needs improvement with Microsoft .NET Framework?
There is room for Microsoft .NET Framework to improve cloud platform capabilities. They have already made improvements in their new version by making it multi-platform and upgrading it for cloud pl...
 

Also Known As

WebSphere Application Server
MS .NET Framework
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

TalkTalk, Property management group, E.SUN Bank, Ohio National Financial Services, Aviarc, Cincom Systems, FJA-US, D+H, Staples, Michigan Municipal League
Curtin University, Rockwell Automation, Aruba Networks, Insurity Inc., City of Barcelona, Pennsylvania DCNR, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, A1 Telekom Austria AG, Eastman Chemical Company
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. Microsoft .NET Framework and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.