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KACE Systems Deployment Appliance (SDA) vs Microsoft Configuration Manager comparison

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 27, 2024

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

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Configuration Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
234
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
KACE Systems Deployment App...
Ranking in Configuration Management
29th
Average Rating
7.0
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Configuration Man...
Ranking in Configuration Management
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
81
Ranking in other categories
Server Monitoring (3rd), Patch Management (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 11.9%, up from 10.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of KACE Systems Deployment Appliance (SDA) is 0.1%, down from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Configuration Manager is 14.6%, down from 15.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Configuration Management
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
Everything has worked better since we started using it
Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.
reviewer1731783 - PeerSpot reviewer
Straightforward to use with good ticketing but accessing inventory needs to be easier
I have heard feedback that the imaging is slow. It takes somewhere around an hour to image one PC. Accessing the inventory piece needs to be improved. We are going to refresh a PC every four years. We need something that can handle that. We're going to keep the EWAs form in there. We want to have the form, some kind of form, where we have the inventory and all we have to do, is just come in and view the EWAs or survey that equipment. Otherwise, you have to go in and check and say to remove it out of the system manually. We want some kind of way to keep track of everything, similar to an assessment management system. They need to have some kind of system whereby, if you have the schedule to deploy, if they missed the deployment, then they can pull back and wait for next time, instead of pushing then waiting as soon as the PC turns on and then just dumps the file to the PC.
MikeNelson2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Deployment recovery works well but requires configuration improvements
While I do not use the product frequently, many issues were due to configuration rather than the product itself. I cannot give an exact recommendation as it is not my area of responsibility. The team that uses it finds it adequate. It is presently good enough for us not to investigate other options. Overall, I rate the product a six out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The feature I like the most is that we can perform remote tasks. If we want to retire or wipe out personal data or corporate data from a device, we can use Microsoft Intune remotely, and with the click of a button, data is removed automatically. Nothing needs to be done from the end-user side."
"The ability to block and erase remote devices is valuable to us, especially when those devices are lost."
"There are so many features, but Windows Autopilot is one of the features that are very valuable for most customers."
"Intune's most valuable features are the device, compliance, and configuration policies."
"The one feature we find most useful is the Mobile Application Manager. There are two types, we have the complete MDM and the Mobile Application Manager(MAM). We don't give our users phones, it is their own personal phone, and we need to allow them to have access to the company detail on their phone. We need to create a balance between their own personal data and the company data. We deploy the Mobile Application Manager for them so that we won't be able to interfere with their own personal data."
"I have seen a return on investment right from the start of the tool's usage."
"I like how Intune deploys the policies and makes them customizable. You can deploy it through Intune and forget about it."
"Microsoft Intune's autopilot has been nice to have."
"Its ticketing is pretty good."
"Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager is valuable in keeping our systems updated. We are able to send updates to all the systems. Additionally, the Intune integration is helpful."
"This has made the management of our environment easier."
"The solution has a very good set of features."
"I find the product valuable for deployment recovery and it has done much more than that."
"The tool's most valuable features include security updates and patch management, which are critical functions for maintaining security. The automated software distribution and the ability to manage deployments are also highly useful. Enforcing compliance with set policies on systems is another key functionality we leverage."
"It lets you know what your infrastructure is like and what state you are in."
"The product is suitable for our size, handling 800 devices."
"It works well for the endpoints for the customer I'm consulting. It has a bunch of knobs, and you can tune it to do lots of things."
 

Cons

"Lacking ability to leverage more iOS device management internally."
"The interoperability or communication with a different platform can be better. It is a two-way street. It is not only about Microsoft. The other platforms also have to be willing to share some information, but that absolutely can be improved."
"The synchronization could be improved."
"I think that there is room for improvement with the reporting. If this is done, it will be a better product."
"In the next release, I would like a feature to be able to properly lock down the device. For example, if an attacker or somebody steals the phone, you can be sure that the pin cannot be broken."
"Intune does not provide real-time visibility."
"In the past, I raised some tickets for the enhancement feature, which was missing in Intune."
"Improvements can be made by allowing server integrations since it is an area where the product currently has shortcomings."
"I have heard feedback that the imaging is slow. It takes somewhere around an hour to image one PC."
"Built in PowerShell cmdlets would be a nice feature because managing clients remotely can be a pain without knowing the WMI calls to run."
"It would be better if reporting were more user-friendly. I would like to see an upgrade in the reporting structure in the next release. At the moment, you have to use an SQL query or configure it to pull reports through the graphical user interface. Their updates could be more regular. I think Mircosoft updates it every six months. They are also moving many things to Intune, and Microsoft decided to move the deployment solution there. I think SCCM is getting old, and Intune is new."
"The deployment process is lengthy and should be quicker to complete."
"The main room for improvement is the on-screen display. I think it would be good if some improvements were made."
"The time the solution takes for updating systems could be quicker. For example, the system information status is not updating as it should. Additionally, the database synchronization querying is slow and could be improved."
"The reports are too busy. They could be simpler. I'm a technician, so I don't care how pretty the reports look. They should be easy to read. I'm designing this for production folks. They need to read the reports quickly when they're patching in the middle of the night."
"Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager can improve by allowing us to schedule the scripts, we don't have a script scheduling option and have to do it manually."
"The operations could be faster and you need some patience with this tool."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive. The cost depends on the license that we choose."
"Any bundle package, such as Security E3, covers multiple things, such as AAP, BitLocker, etc. If you go for them individually, they would be more expensive. Bundling makes the price more attractive and competitive."
"The product is relatively pricey, but considering its benefits, I'd say it's fair. The benefits outweigh the expensive licensing fees, especially for large organizations, but medium-sized and smaller businesses may be unable to afford it."
"We don't pay for Intune because it is bundled with the premium subscription to Office 365. It includes Intune and Defender. I don't have to buy two extra products to manage my enterprise."
"The price is very reasonable."
"Microsoft Intune is more expensive than other solutions, but it offers a wider range of features and control."
"The product is expensive."
"The price is reasonable, but they should lower it a bit to make it more competitive. It's cheaper than AirWatch and other products, but I still feel like Microsoft can make a base version or with Exchange online or a la carte only Intune version which will be useful. A customer who doesn't want to go full-fledged E3 or E5 can take out or consume an Intune solution only for their purpose, and we want to target that customer."
Information not available
"The price could be better."
"Overall, I think it's fine. It's pretty much in-line because there are ways to offset it with the Office 365 licensing."
"Pricing is negotiable with Microsoft, depending upon which of their packages you choose."
"The solution operates on a licensing model that can be expensive."
"The price of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager is expensive."
"Along with buying a license for MECM, we also have to buy a service called CMG (Cloud Management Gateway) which is a virtual machine in the cloud with which you can link your MECM to the Azure tenant so as to manage teleworkers."
"There is an annual license needed to use the solution."
"The license price could be reduced for Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager They should make the price more affordable for smaller companies, most companies would be able to use the solution if it was priced better. There are more people on this cloud because you don't have to have either a server room or an on-premise server. You can have one IT person handle this without any local infrastructure."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
26%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
No data available
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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What do you like most about SCCM?
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Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
No data available
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Information Not Available
Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat, Microsoft, HCLSoftware and others in Configuration Management. Updated: December 2024.
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