Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Auvik Network Management (ANM) vs Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 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

Auvik Network Management (ANM)
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
198
Ranking in other categories
IT Infrastructure Monitoring (3rd), Network Troubleshooting (1st), Cloud Monitoring Software (4th), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (2nd)
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabri...
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
16th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Auvik Network Management (ANM) is 0.9%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

HardeepSingh2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Centralized dashboard and real-time picture of the network improve efficiency
We have integrated Auvik Network Management with PRTG and our ServiceNow ticketing tool through API. It automatically creates notifications and sends them to Teams and our ticketing tool. It saves a lot of time. It saved 40% to 50% of our time. Auvik Network Management's network map, together with the dashboard, gives me a real-time picture of my network. It allows me to see the inventory under all sites and devices. My company has 55 sites. Whenever I want to go to a site, I can navigate the network path, and it provides me with the topology directly from source to destination. It shows all events, such as downtime or critical warnings, in an easy-to-use manner. It provides information about device interfaces, device bandwidth, latency, etc. I just need to click to view more detailed information. I have never found a scenario where Auvik Network Management did not allow me to find my site or any device. I can use global search to find my device or site and get the information easily. However, proper configuration within Auvik is critical for accurate reporting, covering all interfaces and their utilization. Using the automated documentation capabilities of Auvik Network Management is very easy. Over the last year, I have been continuously exploring this, finding that the API integration with our other platforms is straightforward, as it just requires configuration on both ends for proper communication. I didn't find any issue so far. It has been awesome. The network map dashboard of Auvik Network Management gives me full visibility into my network, making it easy to troubleshoot issues with inbuilt tools such as traceroute, ping, and SNMP. It helps diagnose problems quickly without having to type commands manually. Real-time performance insights from Auvik Network Management are very critical for my organization as we currently manage 55 sites with over 2,000 devices, and we need to keep track of numerous services such as Active Directory, DNS, and many protocols, so Auvik is essential as it consolidates everything on one dashboard. Auvik Network Management has decreased our mean time to resolution by 40% to 50%. It allows us to see traffic flow in real time without needing to guess. I can just log into the Auvik dashboard and quickly get results. Auvik Network Management helps my organization troubleshoot network issues proactively by providing alerts and monitoring. Instead of waiting for user feedback, we receive alerts on issues such as high latency or device failures directly on the dashboard. The impact of Auvik Network Management on reducing business disruptions related to network issues is significant. It reduces our downtime, improves security, and simplifies complex tasks into straightforward ones, making it the best tool for managing our complex network. We have configured multiple notification channels. We get alerts through email or integrated platforms such as Teams, which helps streamline communication. It makes it easy to collect information from various devices. We just need to configure the collector, IP addresses, and connections, and get approval from both ends. It creates a unique ID, and it can communicate with those devices.
Upul Abhayasena - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust management tool with an easy setup and room for more features
DCNM is used by one of the airline customers in Qatar to manage many data centers and rack switches running on normal Nexus or NX-OS mode. They required a controller platform to manage these Nexus switches, and thus, they utilized DCNM as a Fabric controller. Given that ACI deployment is very low…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I appreciate the ability to log in to different switches with the click of a button, using the SNMP map and having that login information there, because it allows you to skip going through each IP individually and trying to log in manually."
"What I find most valuable about Auvik Network Management is the statistics it provides over the months, which are valuable to consumers. I use reporting every month for reporting to the institutions, so for me, that's the most beneficial."
"The main selling point was the traffic insights feature, which better explains our network traffic. Auvik has many different features, but we primarily want it for traffic insights. It has monitoring and network discovery. Network discovery is useful, but we already have a monitoring solution. The network map is easy to use."
"The automation of alerts and ticketing has saved us about 30% to 40% of our time."
"I love the alerting. With a single pane of glass, it's able to tell me that there's a firewall error, or that something is offline, there is a switch configuration error, or a configuration change has taken place on a certain device."
"It's simplified tasks and made things easier."
"The ability to map out the network topology is one of the top features I like about Auvik. It's one of the best on the market. They have a feature called Loopback Detection, which has helped us, in many scenarios easily detect that without having to physically go to the location to see if there is a loopback somewhere."
"I find the mapping topology, traffic insights, and reporting to be the most valuable features that Auvik offers."
"It has a very nice dashboard so you can see what's currently happening in the network and the performance of the back story."
"The product has excellent stability."
"I don't have to rely on the on-site engineer who can do the configuration. I can have our team just plug the devices and perform remotely. I can also do the templates."
"The interface of this solution is easy to use overall."
"I like running the scripts. With the help of a Python script, we deployed within the configuration and built up the code."
"VCNM provides a unique capability of managing the admin VDCs of Nexus boxes."
"I like that is easy to work on and straightforward."
"Automation of the ILS."
 

Cons

"They may need to add some more integration pieces with different vendors. For example, API keys aren't available for certain vendors. While everything that I have works with Auvik and gets monitored by it, there are a few network items I have that I would like to see deeper integration with..."
"I've been finding some features difficult. It might be because I'm used to PRTG, and Auvik works differently. When it comes to monitoring a simple IP address, Auvik makes it a bit harder and more complex because you have to create a service inside the site. It's not just creating a sensor and having it ping the device. You need to go to the site and create the service."
"The global dashboard needs work, and I'm not the only one saying this. The current dashboard shows a map of the country and all the sites, but many of our sites are in one city, resulting in 17 sites all having those pin drops sitting on top of each other. That view needs to be looked at in my mind."
"The user interface could be less cluttered."
"More options in the network map of Auvik Network Management (ANM) would be beneficial. Currently, we are just getting layer one, layer two, and layer three."
"I did not have the chance to go through all the aspects or services that Auvik Network Management provides, but what I dealt with was good, and there was not much to complain about. However, its pricing was a little bit higher."
"They can implement a more collective network mapping to help reduce any congestive features. When it came down to many of the companies we worked with, their networks were already pre-structured, so we didn't have as much congestion. Given the fact that I could see how that would be an issue, maybe there would be a better way they could collapse or compile the network mapping issues."
"When mapping complex network architectures or nonstandard things, the map doesn't always accurately reflect reality. Sometimes the interface is pretty sluggish. It's much worse if the customer environment is relatively large and complex. But even if you split a site that's large into a couple of multi-sites, The performance is still a bit slow sometimes."
"Data Center Network Manager is a little complex because it includes a lot of hardware to be installed."
"One of the biggest challenges is that we aren't always able to push the configuration onto the target device. Whenever this happens, we have to do a factory reset, put on the script, and then reconfigure it again. In the next release, I would like to have a troubleshooting feature."
"The tool's pricing strategy could be improved to compete more effectively in the market, especially against competitors like Huawei, Aruba, and Juniper."
"It's a relatively expensive product for some clients."
"API lacks robustness."
"It is not very easy to monitor or to browse."
"If the customer thinks about using additional solutions, Cisco should make sure they are not left out."
"We need better performance and reliability."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It definitely costs more than some of the competitors that are out there. It's also better, so I understand why it's a little bit more expensive."
"It is a little more on the expensive side, but I feel that it is a premium product. It is good."
"The pricing gets pretty expensive because it is per device that is managed. It is not per site, so it can get pricey."
"Among the products considered, Auvik stood out for its competitive pricing."
"Auvik's pretty good in terms of pricing. It can get pricey if you have multiple managed devices, but if it's just a simple network with only one or two firewall walls and smart switches, it's reasonable."
"Pricing for Auvik Network Management is genuine. I would categorize its pricing as good."
"The pricing is fair; it's just the right price for what the solution provides."
"Auvik is fairly priced. The cost is what we expected considering network management. The benefits outweigh the cost for us."
"The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar platform across all domains."
"The product is licensed with contracts that work on a yearly basis rather than a monthly model."
"On average, Data Center Network Manager's pricing isn't too costly unless you choose a premier license."
"The solution is very expensive."
"We usually opt for a yearly plan, commonly for three or five years upfront. Some customers may not utilize all the features included in the product, and this can lead to them paying for functionalities they don't need."
"The price of Cisco Data Center Network Manager is expensive compared to other vendors on the market."
"When we purchase a Nexus box, the MDS CM license comes with it."
"I would say that the pricing offers great value for the money."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Network Monitoring Software solutions are best for your needs.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Auvik?
The most valuable feature for us in Auvik is the network topology.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Auvik?
I only know the pricing for the first year of Auvik Network Management (ANM). After that, pricing is managed by my manager.
What needs improvement with Auvik?
It gets cluttered depending on how your sites are organized with Auvik Network Management (ANM), and if you have a ton of sites or if you set up your sites in different ways. The documentation goes...
What do you like most about Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
It uses push technology, which pushes the changes to all relevant devices to ensure they are updated accordingly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar plat...
What needs improvement with Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
In a mixed architecture where Nexus switches are used as border devices and are connected to a Palo Alto firewall (e.g., version 9.1 or 10.1), you might encounter issues with BGP peering. For insta...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Cisco Data Center Network Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Banco de Guayaquil, Cox Communications, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Roper St. Francis, University of British Columbia
Find out what your peers are saying about Auvik Network Management (ANM) vs. Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.