Microsoft Configuration Manager vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor comparison

Microsoft and SolarWinds are both solutions in the Server Monitoring category. Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.3, while SolarWinds is ranked #11 with an average rating of 7.3. Microsoft holds a 9.5% mindshare in SM, compared to SolarWinds’s 4.9% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of SolarWinds users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Configuration Man...

Read 80 Microsoft Configuration Manager reviews

3,078 Views
2,330 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

SolarWinds Server and Appli...

Read 40 SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor reviews

1,408 Views
915 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

Microsoft Configuration Man...

SolarWinds Server and Appli...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 20, 2024

Microsoft Configuration Manager and SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor are powerful IT management tools. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor edges out in overall satisfaction due to its comprehensive features, although Microsoft Configuration Manager is preferred for pricing and support.

Features: Microsoft Configuration Manager is known for its integration with Windows environments, detailed inventory capabilities, and cost-effectiveness. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor offers broad monitoring options, intuitive dashboards, and advanced alerting capabilities, making it suitable for diverse IT environments.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Configuration Manager could improve in reporting capabilities, support for non-Windows environments, and cross-platform functionalities. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor needs enhancements in scalability, user access control, and addressing complex environment challenges.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Configuration Manager has a complex deployment process but strong customer service support. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor features a straightforward deployment process with responsive customer service, offering easier initial setup compared to Microsoft Configuration Manager.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Configuration Manager is more cost-effective with better ROI in simple Windows-based environments. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor, although costlier, provides high ROI in diverse and complex environments. Microsoft Configuration Manager is budget-friendly, while SolarWinds offers value through extensive functionality.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor Report (Updated: October 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

October 2024

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Helped 816,406 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Configuration Man...

Ranking in Server Monitoring

2nd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Configuration Management (3rd), Patch Management (1st)

SolarWinds Server and Appli...

Ranking in Server Monitoring

11th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (24th), Active Directory Management (14th)

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Server Monitoring category, the mindshare of Microsoft Configuration Manager is 9.5%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is 4.9%, up from 4.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Server Monitoring

Featured Reviews

Sachin Vinay

Assistant Manager-Networks at Amrita

We can specialize the policies related to each device group which ensures that each group has access to the applications they need for their work and non-work hours

I give the solution a nine out of ten. Maintenance is required for some client requests because a few of our cases involve clients reporting issues with their applications. We need to maintain their laptops because they usually run into issues while running other applications. However, in the case of personal computers, there is no problem. We can maintain them with only 20% of the typical maintenance requirements. I would recommend that everyone try out the Endpoint Manager solution from Microsoft. It is a great product because it integrates well with Microsoft products, which most organizations use. This reduces the number of integration and troubleshooting problems. Even if Microsoft products are not used in an organization, I still recommend this product. Other solutions are available but there may be some integration and troubleshooting problems.

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Subhajit Nag

Senior Process Associate at Tata Consultancy Services

The component and cable monitoring features are good, but the interface is slow

SolarWinds' interface is slow, and this is a global concern. Every SolarWinds user complains about the sluggishness. The response is slow. If you browse from one page to another, you have to wait. Our company is a massive user with plenty of licenses, so the performance issues could be due to the load per license. Ten thousand components can be mapped under one license. So SolarWinds needs to take care of the speed problem. It cannot be this slow. That is a huge complaint. Otherwise, the tool is good. It should also be easier to upgrade SolarWinds. AppDynamics is harder to deploy but easier to upgrade. So AppDynamics takes a lot of time and effort to install, but you can upgrade it in minutes. SolarWinds is the opposite. It's easy to deploy, but upgrades take forever. To date, nobody can complete it on time, so the production environment is sitting idle. The upgrade time matters because you only install the solution once, but you'll need to upgrade the solution repeatedly over the life of the product. A complex installation isn't an issue, but I mind if the upgrade takes too long because it's already in production.

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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

"The most valuable feature is the graphical-based reports of software updates that have been successful, the ones that have failed, and a summary of where the failures are what security breaches may occur."

"I have found the solution to be scalable. We have around 50,000 users using the solution."

"The cloud account management is a valuable feature."

"It gives us the ability to set up schedules, according to what our security requirements are, to automate the patching of our servers and desktops."

"It is a very well-rounded product. It is a complete package with all the features using which we are able to manage our PCs very efficiently."

"I like Mircosoft's technical support. Microsoft has a few updates, like some of the critical KBs. They are published within the interval time, and in case of an escalation on the client missions, we will raise a ticket with the Microsoft team. They will create a hotfix or a critical update. They will chat with us, and that is one thing I like about Microsoft. Whenever any issues occur at my organization, they will help you out soon as possible within the SLA."

"Microsoft Configuration Manager gives different tools in one solution."

"I like a lot of the reporting capabilities and baseline configurations."

More Microsoft Configuration Manager pros

"There are many valuable features, including the network configuration manager, and the network performance manager."

"Monitoring of processes and services is the most valuable feature. It is not necessarily just the server alone in terms of the CPU or the memory. We can go in-depth into services and processes."

"The features like trends, capacity planning, recommendations, and diagnostics are the main items I focus on for added value."

"The solution has good alerts. Notifications are sent via email to technicians. You can filter the kinds of alerts you want to receive as well. It's excellent."

"The most valuable feature is the Access Rights Manager."

"I'd rate technical support at eight out of ten. They are helpful and fast."

"The most valuable feature of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is the network devices' performance monitor is the best."

"SSL Certificate Monitoring and Expiry Alerting"

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor pros

Cons

"The main room for improvement is the on-screen display. I think it would be good if some improvements were made."

"There's no way to say, "I want this maintenance window to be on the second Tuesday of the month." It's strict. This window is this and that's it. You can't fluctuate."

"I want the system to provide some dependency relations. I would also like to see the relationship between different machines."

"The tool's deployment is difficult. Microsoft needs to improve documentation with videos."

"I'm looking for a single solution for all discovery needs. It fulfills about 40% of the requirements, and I'd like to see the other 60% so that I don't have to keep doing this."

"The downside of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager is it's an on-premise-based solution. With the pandemic coming on board the need to support users across the globe has increased. For a while, we would use the in-built Microsoft Teams screen sharing feature but the disadvantage of that is you cannot perform privileged access. Microsoft does not give you access to that. That's where you need cloud-based tools, such as BeyondTrust or Freshservice."

"Our company would prefer not rebooting computers while people are using them. There seems to be no strategy behind it."

"In terms of scalability, I believe there's room for improvement. While SCCM is capable of handling our current needs effectively, scalability could be enhanced to accommodate future growth and larger deployments."

More Microsoft Configuration Manager cons

"The current script monitoring feature has limitations, especially when dealing with custom scripts."

"There is one feature that is a report writer. And they are currently trying to take it out from being a stand-alone application and integrating to the web. This doesn't give us the flexibility and it doesn't expand what we can get when it comes to reporting. So, putting it on the web is going to make it difficult to get some information. Leaving it where it is now will help us a lot."

"I believe that some of the trends, environmental maps, and items like those found in Orion would be very beneficial."

"SAM AppInsight for SQL: The ability to ignore fragmentation of specific indexes."

"One product area that could benefit from improvement is the synchronization of licensing periods across different modules"

"Support for the IBM Mainframe is needed."

"It should also be easier to upgrade SolarWinds. AppDynamics is harder to deploy but easier to upgrade. So AppDynamics takes a lot of time and effort to install, but you can upgrade it in minutes. SolarWinds is the opposite. It's easy to deploy, but upgrades take forever. To date, nobody can complete it on time, so the production environment is sitting idle."

"The stability, flexibility, and ease of use could be improved."

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager is expensive."

"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."

"Microsoft provides a steep price for their enterprise products, but they offer very competitive pricing for their legacy customers."

"The price of SCCM depends on the size of the organization. The price is competitive."

"The price could be better."

"The licensing is good because they have various options, depending on what you are looking for."

"Overall, I think it's fine. It's pretty much in-line because there are ways to offset it with the Office 365 licensing."

"I rate the price of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager an eight out of ten."

More Microsoft Configuration Manager pricing and cost advice

"Nagios XI, WhatsUpGold, Uptime Software, PRTG, Manage Engine, and SpiceWorks are the other tools that have lower pricing and licensing costs. However, they can't compete with SolarWinds when it comes to the features and functionality that SolarWinds can provide."

"When planning for the number of licenses to purchase, make sure you understand all of the elements within an application required to really understand performance well. In our case, we quickly came to the conclusion that an unlimited license for SAM was the way to go."

"I think SolarWinds' pricing is very decent compared to other competitors in the market."

"I would advise potential buyers to wait until the end of the quarter, end of year, or other time to place orders. There are actually great deals to be had at those times if your budget cycle can match up."

"Pricing is inexpensive, starting at 2440 euros. For that, you get the ability to monitor a couple of nodes and one year of maintenance and support."

"I have always said SolarWinds is very “proud” of their products, meaning they are expensive. I cannot afford to purchase all the licenses I need for all the SolarWinds products."

"The product is expensive."

"The solution's price is reasonable. Though it's on the higher side, the tool is worth the money."

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor pricing and cost advice

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816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Computer Software Company

12%

Government

11%

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

45%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?

Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...

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How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?

ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...

See all answers

What do you like most about SCCM?

One of the standout features of SCCM is its application management capabilities. It allows us to create packages efficiently and deploy them to specific groups within our network. This streamlined ...

See all answers

What do you like most about SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

Identifying the problem statement is easy.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

The product is expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

One product area that could benefit from improvement is the synchronization of licensing periods across different modules. The misalignment of licensing terms can present commercial challenges when...

See all answers

Comparisons

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs Microsoft Configuration Manager

Compared 13% of the time

ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Configuration Manager

Compared 13% of the time

Tanium vs Microsoft Configuration Manager

Compared 7% of the time

BigFix vs Microsoft Configuration Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs Microsoft Configuration Manager

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Configuration Manager Competitors

Azure Monitor vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Compared 19% of the time

Dynatrace vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Compared 19% of the time

AppDynamics vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Compared 14% of the time

Prometheus vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Compared 7% of the time

Nagios XI vs SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Compared 4% of the time

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Configuration Manager

November 2024

Download Microsoft Configuration Manager product report

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

October 2024

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor report

Download SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor product report

Also Known As

Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )

SolarWinds SAM

Learn More

Microsoft

SolarWinds

Overview

Microsoft Configuration Manager helps IT manage PCs and servers, keeping software up-to-date, setting configuration and security policies, and monitoring system status while giving employees access to corporate applications on the devices that they choose. When Configuration Manager is integrated with Microsoft Intune, you can manage corporate-connected PCs and Macs along with cloud-based mobile devices running Windows, iOS, and Android, all from a single management console.

New features of Configuration Manager, such as the support of Windows 10 in-place upgrade, co-management with Microsoft Intune, Windows 10 and Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise Servicing Dashboard, integration with Windows Update for Business, and more make deploying and managing Windows easier than ever before.

SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor (SAM) delivers powerful application and server monitoring capabilities for IT pros, enabling them to diagnose and troubleshoot performance issues faster. Do not let slow applications and downtime impact your end-users and business services. Pinpoint the root cause of application issues across various layers of the IT stack. SolarWinds SAM is affordable and easy to deploy, use, and customize. You can automatically discover your system's environment and start monitoring in about an hour. No professional services or consultation needed.

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad

Andr. L. Riis AS, NetSuite

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

October 2024

Free Report: Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.

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