I work as a technical consultant, and I suggest customers use SolarWinds NPM for cybersecurity monitoring purposes. We deploy it to monitor all network equipment, such as routers, switches, firewalls, and NetFlow within the network.
Presales Manager at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Good monitoring with a user-friendly interface and smooth deployment
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature is the user-friendly interface and the ease of deployment."
- "SolarWinds NPM should be more flexible to accommodate specific customer requirements quickly."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
SolarWinds NPM is a very effective solution for monitoring. The interface is user-friendly, deployment is easy, and the support from SolarWinds is great, especially within India.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is the user-friendly interface and the ease of deployment. Additionally, the support from SolarWinds has been very helpful.
What needs improvement?
SolarWinds NPM should be more flexible to accommodate specific customer requirements quickly. It would be beneficial if their development team could develop solutions within a limited time, like three to five months. This flexibility is sometimes missing compared to local developers in India.
Buyer's Guide
SolarWinds NPM
August 2025

Learn what your peers think about SolarWinds NPM. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
867,676 professionals have used our research since 2012.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SolarWinds NPM for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of SolarWinds NPM is very good; I would rate it 7.5 out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of the solution could be more flexible. I would rate it around 6.5 to seven out of ten.
How are customer service and support?
Customer service is good, but there is room for improvement. Sometimes, customers look for on-premises support directly from SolarWinds rather than through third parties or partners.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is relatively easy. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate it eight to 8.5.
What other advice do I have?
I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner

Consultant at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
A scalable tool for interface monitoring that can easily integrate with multiple tools
Pros and Cons
- "SolarWinds NPM is a scalable solution since it can handle a huge number of users."
- "The dashboard of the solution is an area with certain shortcomings that need improvement."
What is our primary use case?
My company uses SolarWinds NPM for interface monitoring because we are not required to put in any keywords and do the manual thing, making it easy to onboard. In our company, we just export the device and download the configuration, while the NCM part can be enabled by going to the settings and changing the configuration. The solution becomes easy if you use everything on a single dashboard.
How has it helped my organization?
My customers have experienced benefits from SolarWinds NPM since it supports Akamai Guardicore, Akamai Synthetic Monitoring, and VMware-based device monitoring. In general, SolarWinds NPM integrates smoothly with every solution. The integration part of the solution might not be as easy as it seems since one may have to enter some commands in JSON format in the integer part. The templates are already set in the solution, but there is a need to change the parameters, values, and IPs. After the aforementioned steps are followed, integrating the solution with tools like Tableau, Power BI, ServiceNow, and Microsoft Teams for notifications and alerting an incident becomes easy.
What is most valuable?
Though in SolarWinds NPM, there is no need to go into other interfaces and set up some settings with other parameters, SolarWinds NCM allows you to do so more easily. We just put the configuration and execute the particular IP, or you can just put the Excel sheet, where once the import is done, it shows all the IPs there, and so you just need to do the configuration and execute the IPs. The solution provides you with real-time data, including details like how many devices are completed, how many are left, and how many are getting errors.
What needs improvement?
The dashboard of the solution is an area with certain shortcomings that need improvement. Having all the features and parameters under a single tab in the solution would be good. For knowledge-related purposes, SolarWinds needs to consider adding documentation to its portal to provide users with the upgrade command if they want to upgrade the solution and how to carry out the onboarding procedure.
I would like to see real-time visualization and monitoring, especially when attempting to connect globally where one router is in the USA and the other is in the UK. With real-time visualization, all the interfaces can be made visible properly, while the users also get more visibility and their network. If an interface goes down, then one can monitor the interface directly with the help of the dashboard provided in the solution.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SolarWinds NPM for nine to ten months. I operate as a system integrator for SolarWinds. I use the open-source version of the tool.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable and good solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
SolarWinds NPM is a scalable solution since it can handle a huge number of users. When I joined my current organization, I saw SolarWinds NPM handling 10,000 devices, including the backup, storage, and everything else. SolarWinds NPM never had any performance problems, like hanging or lagging issues, and this may be because the solution only has a few features in it.
How are customer service and support?
For SolarWinds, my company needs to send an email to the customer support of SolarWinds, after which they will reply back to us with their incident number, and then work on it. If required, the customer support of SolarWinds will set up a call with our company to understand the real-time situation at our end.
I rate the support team an eight out of ten.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
Though I wasn't involved in the deployment process of SolarWinds NPM, I was involved in Fortinet FortiCloud's deployment. With the deployment part, my customers have deployed SolarWinds NPM and Fortinet FortiCloud on the same server.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
My company's current customers plan to replace SolarWinds NPM with Fortinet FortiCloud.
In comparison to other tools in the market, SolarWinds NPM hasn't been upgraded yet. I believe SolarWinds NPM plans to upgrade itself in the future and have more features, like the ability to support other devices or vendors, like Arista, Juniper, Guardicore, or Akamai. In terms of the advantages provided by SolarWinds NPM, I would say that the solution is easy to use, easy to onboard, easy to set up, easy to delete, easy to configure, easy to get the report on a single interface, and one can also apply a filter to get what is required.
What other advice do I have?
In the last four years, I have deployed three tools in Avaya and another four in my current organization.
The maintenance of SolarWinds NPM is not difficult.
SolarWinds NPM is one of the easiest and most flexible tools, but I would say that SolarWinds NCM is a better tool. I rate SolarWinds NCM a nine out of ten.
I don't know if there have been any upgrades in SolarWinds NPM. Considering the performance graph, one will see a clear visualization in SolarWinds and not in Fortinet FortiCloud.
I rate SolarWinds NPM an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Integrator
Buyer's Guide
SolarWinds NPM
August 2025

Learn what your peers think about SolarWinds NPM. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
867,676 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior Systems Engineer at a media company with 1,001-5,000 employees
It's a reasonably priced solution with excellent support
Pros and Cons
- "SolarWinds is reasonably priced."
- "The integration with video apps could be better."
What is our primary use case?
I use SolarWinds for monitoring. We have around 300 people at my company.
How has it helped my organization?
I like the NPM and SAM features.
What needs improvement?
The integration with video apps could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used SolarWinds NPM for one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
SolarWinds NPM is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
SolarWinds NPM is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
I rate SolarWinds support nine out of 10. SolarWinds support is excellent.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The SolarWinds deployment was straightforward and took about two weeks. One support engineer can handle it.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
SolarWinds is reasonably priced.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We considered Dotcom-Monitor, but we went with SolarWinds for financial reasons.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SolarWinds NPM eight out of 10. Before implementing SolarWinds, do your homework and compare it with other products. Contact the technical accounts manager and find out the latest features so you can see the pros and cons.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
ICT Design Manager at a hospitality company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Easy deployment, high stability, and reliable technical support
Pros and Cons
- "We found that it was easy to operate, and it was simple if anyone has entry-level working experience or even if someone is not experienced."
- "The improvement would be that SolarWinds NPM thoroughly checks its patches before releasing them to the market. Better testing, alpha testing, and then releasing it to the market."
What is our primary use case?
The primary use case is for cybersecurity, as they did not want it on their own personal cloud.
What is most valuable?
We found that it was easy to operate, and it was simple if anyone has entry-level working experience or even if someone is not experienced.
What needs improvement?
The improvement would be that SolarWinds NPM thoroughly checks its patches before releasing them to the market. Better testing, alpha testing, and then releasing it to the market.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with SolarWinds NPM for the past one to two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is very good and informative.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We were able to quickly expand and include any other active equipment or any new buildings which became requirements. We were able to easily take into consideration everything and set it up.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is good, however somewhat delayed due to the time difference. We had some troubleshooting issues because new people were working on it, but SolarWinds NPM responded back and it was easy for everyone to go through it.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
Deployment was straightforward and we had an expert of SolarWinds NPM who we employed. The process was completed within a couple of hours.
What about the implementation team?
We had one person from a third party help us through the deployment process.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate SolarWinds NPM a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Solutions Consultant at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
The network and server application monitoring features are strong.
Pros and Cons
- "SolarWinds' network and server application monitoring features are strong."
- "SolarWinds could offer more support and insights for a broader range of devices. Currently, it focuses on routers, switches, and some load balancers. However, it lacks an out-of-the-box dashboard for monitoring firewalls and some other modern network security devices. We have to customize it a lot."
What is our primary use case?
We use SolarWinds for network monitoring. It's suitable for mid-sized or enterprise-scale companies. It can work for a small business, too, because it's not too expensive.
What is most valuable?
SolarWinds' network and server application monitoring features are strong.
What needs improvement?
SolarWinds could offer more support and insights for a broader range of devices. Currently, it focuses on routers, switches, and some load balancers. However, it lacks an out-of-the-box dashboard for monitoring firewalls and some other modern network security devices. We have to customize it a lot.
At the same time, some tools don't have the ability to customize, so SolarWinds is ahead of the competition, in that regard. I would also like to see more support for software-defined network platforms and enhanced API monitoring capacity.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SolarWinds NPM for more than five years.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
SolarWinds offers some options for scalability, but there is a bottleneck on some features. I hope the scale of NetFlow can be increased. Also, SolarWinds uses the Microsoft SQL database, which doesn't allow distributed architecture or scaling options.
How are customer service and support?
I rate SolarWinds support seven out of 10. The quality varies depending on who picks up the phone.
How was the initial setup?
In most cases, setting up SolarWinds is simple. However, when customers have some special requirements, the deployment can become highly complex.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I rate SolarWinds NPM six out of 10 for pricing. It isn't the cheapest solution, but it's still affordable.
What other advice do I have?
I rate SolarWinds NPM eight out of 10. I would recommend this product for medium-sized and enterprise-scale companies.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Director of Operations at 802BR
Useful diagnostic, beneficial network search, and good support
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features in SolarWinds NPM are the network search and diagnostic tools."
- "SolarWinds NPM could improve by adding the deepest inspection, performance networking, and IP address discovery."
What is our primary use case?
SolarWinds NPM is used for searching equipment in the network, troubleshooting the network, and mapping the networking.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features in SolarWinds NPM are the network search and diagnostic tools.
What needs improvement?
SolarWinds NPM could improve by adding the deepest inspection, performance networking, and IP address discovery.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SolarWinds NPM for approximately three months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
SolarWinds NPM is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of SolarWinds NPM is easy to do.
We have three or four users using this solution.
How are customer service and support?
The support is very good for SolarWinds NPM.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of SolarWinds NPM is easy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost of the personal perpetual license for SolarWinds NPM is approximately $2,000.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend this solution to others.
I rate SolarWinds NPM a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
CEO/Consultant at CIL
Stable and scalable product for enterprise-level users
Pros and Cons
- "SolarWinds dashboard is very fast. Also, their interface is very good, it looks very user-friendly. The product allows me to see a summary of the network being monitored at a glance."
- "The product is scalable, but at a cost. Extra modules have to be purchased for each extra server. The initial set up isn't complex, but will require someone who is experienced with the network monitoring system"
What is our primary use case?
We use it for network monitoring, internet monitoring purpose and server monitoring purposes.
How has it helped my organization?
It allows me to see a summary of the network being monitored at a glance.
What is most valuable?
SolarWinds dashboard is very fast. Also, their interface is very good, it looks very user-friendly.
What needs improvement?
The time monitoring could be improved from every five seconds to every second. If they can move to an every-second basis, then it will improve the monitoring analysis.
I would also like to see the security system updated to prevent virus attacks.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using SolarWinds NPM for around 10 to 12 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We have found it is definitely stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This product is scalable by purchasing extra modules for more servers.
How are customer service and support?
They're one of the most responsive companies when it comes to support.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup wasn't complex, but not as easy as some systems either. It requires someone with experience with the network monitoring system.
What about the implementation team?
It was implemented in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The charge is currently made per module for the product, and there is no option to buy it as a full system bundle which makes it costly. Also, charges are made annually, it's not a perpetual purchase.
It would not be affordable for SME level organizations.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
The other solutions I evaluated were:
- PTRG
- Cisco
- WhatsUp Gold.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate this product at 7.5 out of 10.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Reseller
Provides a good enterprise level of tools with a new and improved GUI
Pros and Cons
- "Provides a good level of tools and covers essential components."
- "Currently lacks integration with SMS services."
What is our primary use case?
We are customers of SolarWinds and I'm the corporate IT infrastructure manager.
What is most valuable?
SolarWinds provides a good enterprise level of tools and covers the essential components. I like the new GUI.
What needs improvement?
The solution could be enhanced. It currently lacks integration with SMS services which is something we need. A cloud-based option would also be helpful so we can monitor at any time and from anywhere; for now, we need to VPN to our environment.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is generally stable although there are occasional bugs when updating to the latest version.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is good, we currently have around 2,000 users.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is simple.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Compared to other products, SolarWinds is not expensive.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated Zabbix and Nagios but SolarWinds is better for enterprise organizations. Other solutions are on a smaller scale and only provide basic monitoring; SolarWinds has a better engine.
What other advice do I have?
I rate this solution eight out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.

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Updated: August 2025
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