What is our primary use case?
I primarily use the solution for monitoring the network infrastructure and the operator platforms. The last implementation I did was for the user experience.
It can also be used as a data center, similar to a virtual machine. Some users use Zenoss only for seeing everything on specific types of devices. They see only certain devices like operating systems and network communications, for example.
What is most valuable?
The solution has a variety of great features.
The dashboard is excellent. With it, I can see everything from one place. It gives me a full picture of my networks and I can quickly see if there are any trouble areas to note.
The user experience is excellent.
Within the solution is a piece of software called Twill, which is very good. It's like dynamic monitoring. Twill provides a great user experience. I can put the URL from a website and I can send the user and password on that.
Overall, it's a great solution, and I consider it to be one of the best.
The initial setup is very easy.
The product offers good documentation that helps with initial training.
What needs improvement?
If Zenoss tries to change Twill from what it is now to another kind of solution, such as Selenium or something similar, it would be nice.
It would be nice if the ZenPack could work but with fewer features. That said it's a problem not from Zenoss. It's a problem from the ZenPack itself.
There's a bit of a learning curve when you first use the solution.
The product needs to be a bit better in terms of auditing features.
It would be ideal if the product offered sound alerts. If you have, for example, 10 monitors with a lot of batch alerts and you have it working with your computer, sometimes you will see the dashboard. However, if you could listen instead, and be alerted by the noise, you can raise your head easily look at your monitor, to see the problem. That's why I put in sound within my operating system. That is the only feature that I could never find in Zenoss.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for a few years at this point. I've been using the solution for two or three years now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I had a community ZenPack that started to eat through my RAM, and I did not know why. I removed it - which was a very easy process - and then went to the official ZenPack store and put in my samples and it worked fine after that. I'm not sure why I had that initial experience.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is very good. I can grow my site to suit any data center that I need.
I can have Zenoss in one data center, for my primary data center, and then I can deploy another one in another data center. I don't need a second Zenoss in that other machine. I use the same solution. On top of that, I can see all my devices in one dashboard for both data centers.
I can grow up very, very fast.
We have maybe 15 users of this product in my organization.
How are customer service and support?
I've only used technical support one or two times as I was having a bit of trouble with official ZenPacks. I sent an email with my case. I received a case number and the response was very fast. In less than one week, or five days, I received the new ZenPack with the features that I needed for my specific devices. The support was very good and the service was only a few days or more. In Zenoss, support is fast and strong and works very well.
How was the initial setup?
I've used the solution for about a year now, and therefore I don't find the implementation to be complex. It's very straightforward, actually.
The cloud solution can be a little hard if you don't know Zenoss. However, for me, it's very simple, and I can deploy a Zenoss environment in a couple of hours. When I first started about three years ago, it could take me as long as three days.
The first step was to deploy the virtual machine. Then you need to deploy the software, and then you need to deploy all the dashboards and all features that you need. That is a little complicated as you need to understand how Zenoss works.
Now, however, in the cloud solutions and hybrid models on cloud nodes or in side nodes, it's a little different due to the fact that you have a controller and you have the client's deployment in certain parts. Still, it's very, very easy to deploy as you put the controller software in one machine and you put the nodes in the other machines. Then, you only need to select your features. The features now are also all-inclusive.
The ZenPacks, the backup servers, are for also perfect all kinds of devices that I use.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The product offers both a community and enterprise-level version. I've deployed both.
What other advice do I have?
I'm using the latest, the most updated version of the solution.
I'm an administrator of this solution within my organization.
I would recommend this solution to other organizations. I'm a big believer in the product and I've even written papers on the solution.
I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. I really do love the product.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
*Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
