AWS CloudFormation vs AWS Systems Manager comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between AWS CloudFormation and AWS Systems Manager based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Configuration Management solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"A great solution for anyone wanting a modern endpoint device management solution.""Stable product that's easy to set up compared to other MDM products.""Configuration profiles, remediation, scripts, and auto-pilot features are very good.""By using Microsoft Intune we can control which websites the users can go to and it provides a secure environment for our employees using their laptops that are having access from home. We have installed Intune to control the user's environment minimizing the chances of any hacking.""The initial setup is not complex.""It allows our clients to have the confidence to centrally manage policies for security. It helps them in securing the organization from a technology aspect.""The stability is good.""The many policies available in Microsoft Intune for managing our devices are valuable."

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"What I like best about AWS CloudFormation is that it is a quick and simple way to deploy various applications, like WordPress.""The most valuable feature of AWS CloudFormation is the simple tracking of infrastructure.""CloudFormation gives us control of AWS and any Cloud infrastructure. It creates the whole stack for Cloud services technologies so it's easy to manage the whole system.""The nested stacks would be one of the more valuable features.""AWS CloudFormation has automated the resource-building process, thereby removing the scope of human errors. We can tag the resources which help the billing process.""Its ability to treat infrastructure's code is valuable. It makes things automatable and reproducible.""The most beneficial aspect lies in its capability to handle input acquisition and assessment.""The CloudFormation template can be reused to create multiple stacks, reducing duplications and improving our infrastructure."

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"Systems Manager has a feature where it analyzes the logs and gives us a performance overview in the form of a graph. We know when it's taking up more resources and when there are spikes, so we can predict the usability.""The solution is user-friendly""When we do the automation in the cloud, we use the SSM agent. This helps us to test our automation and documents, and monitor the cloud.""Has a variety of automation options.""The solution's ability to scale is good."

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Cons
"There are a few security features that are not available in Microsoft Intune, when compared to other products.""The synchronization could be improved.""Microsoft Intune's support for Mac devices is lacking and could be improved.""The main disadvantage seen today is regarding Linux clients. We have a lot of development resources that have Linux on their clients, and we can't manage them on the same platform, as we do with other clients such as macOS and Windows. So, it should have support for Linux clients. It should also have better support for macOS.""Microsoft Intune fails a lot when it comes to device compliance.""Intune doesn't provide much control over Windows servers. It's something we struggle with.""Enhancements for managing MacOS more comprehensively would be beneficial.""The reports aren't complete, and it's not easy to build custom reports. For example, Windows Autopilot isn't working well in cases where the computers don't have a good internet connection. Then the option is not good enough."

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"There could be better error handling. It would be a good way to improve the solution.""Including certain examples of templates would be advantageous.""The speed of the replication process could improve. It can take some time to replicate that could use a speed increase.""If you are a developer or a more technical person, it's very difficult to learn the complete syntax or because CloudFormation includes a new way to write infrastructure code.""GUI could be improved by adding graphical components.""As soon as they manage to parametrize the whole thing and to implement parameters at all levels, it will become automatically a lot more flexible.""This tool is not intuitive and there are others that are easier to understand.""There is less support for on-premise environments."

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"Lacks sufficient integrations.""We formerly used third-party products to analyze the log, give us information, and find bottlenecks. Systems Manager could provide more tools that conduct this analysis, so we don't have to do it ourselves.""Additional features can be added as per customer requirements.""The current challenge is that we can't pull any incidents from other accounts.""The AWS UIs are not the most intuitive. Also, the usability needs room for improvement."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Consider the Microsoft Enterprise Mobility Suite rather than choosing specific sub-components, e.g. only Microsoft Intune."
  • "There is a cost benefit of using Microsoft Intune because of the packaging with other Microsoft products."
  • "Microsoft Intune is a cost effective choice. It is less expensive than other products on the market."
  • "The purchase of the product was handled by someone else."
  • "I have no comment on pricing of the solution."
  • "The product is offered as part of a Microsoft standard bundle. The pricing can be competitive to Airwatch, and Maas360."
  • "For Microsoft 365 E5 clients, cost is not an issue as this product is one of the benefits."
  • "The price of Intune is included with the license for Office 365, so we don't have to pay anything extra for it."
  • More Microsoft Intune Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "This solution is free to use and does not require a license."
  • "AWS CloudFormation doesn't have any cost because it's only the resources that you deploy with the solution that'll incur costs."
  • "If you compared serverless and container-based, serverless is less expensive. If you use certain instances the price can increase and become too expensive."
  • "The price of the solution is good because it is scalable."
  • "The solution's cost is normal, neither cheap nor expensive."
  • "The pricing is not notably high."
  • "The product is free."
  • More AWS CloudFormation Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "As we were doing a government project so the government got the project at a very nominal cost."
  • More AWS Systems Manager Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes it… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of… more »
    Top Answer: Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also… more »
    Top Answer:There is less support for on-premise environments. We get support from third-party vendors from AWS Partner Network in… more »
    Top Answer:As we were doing a government project so the government got the project at a very nominal cost.
    Top Answer:Additional features can be added as per customer requirements.
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
    CloudFormation
    Amazon Elastic Container Registry
    Learn More
    Overview

    Microsoft Intune is a comprehensive cloud-based service that allows you to remotely manage mobile devices and mobile applications without worrying about the security of your organization’s data. Device and app management can be used on company-owned devices as well as personal devices.

    In an increasingly mobile workforce, Microsoft Intune keeps your sensitive data safe while on the move. Microsoft Intune makes it possible for your team members to work anywhere using their mobile devices. Microsoft Intune provides both the flexibility and the control needed for securing all your data on the cloud, no matter where the device with the data is located.

    Microsoft Intune Device Management Key Features

    With Microsoft Intune Device Management you can:

    • Ensure devices and apps are compliant with your security requirements.
    • Rapidly deploy and authenticate apps on all company devices.
    • Remotely access devices to troubleshoot issues or to remove data from them.
    • Generate reports for all devices in the system.
    • Monitor the way users access and share information to protect company information.
    • Set rules and configure settings on personal and organization-owned devices to access data and networks.
    • Create user groups and device groups, allowing you to rapidly access many users and devices simultaneously.

    Mobile Application Management

    Mobile application management in Intune is designed to protect your organization’s data at the application level.

    With Microsoft Intune Application Management you can:

    • Configure apps to run with specific settings enabled.
    • Update existing apps that are already on the device.
    • See reports on which apps are used and monitor their usage.
    • Selectively wipe organization data from apps.
    • Add mobile apps to user groups and devices.

    As part of Microsoft's Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) suite, Intune integrates with Microsoft Entra ID for access control and with Azure Information Protection for data protection. It also integrates with Microsoft 365 Applications.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Microsoft Intune stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its ability to secure all devices under its management and the flexibility that the solution offers its users.

    A computing services manager notes, "Its security is most valuable. It gives us a way to secure devices, not only those that are steady. We do have a few tablets and other devices, and it is a way for us to secure these devices and manage them. We know they're out there and what's their status. We can manage their life cycle and verify that they're updated properly."

    The head of IT engineering at a financial services company writes, "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 details 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."

    AWS CloudFormation provides a common language for you to model and provision AWS and third party application resources in your cloud environment. AWS CloudFormation allows you to use programming languages or a simple text file to model and provision, in an automated and secure manner, all the resources needed for your applications across all regions and accounts. This gives you a single source of truth for your AWS and third party resources.

    AWS Systems Manager is a management service that helps you automatically collect software inventory, apply OS patches, create system images, and configure Windows and Linux operating systems. These capabilities help you define and track system configurations, prevent drift, and maintain software compliance of your EC2 and on-premises configurations. By providing a management approach that is designed for the scale and agility of the cloud but extends into your on-premises data center, Systems Manager makes it easier for you to seamlessly bridge your existing infrastructure with AWS.

    Systems Manager is easy to use. Simply access Systems Manager from the EC2 Management Console, select the instances you want to manage, and define the management tasks you want to perform. Systems Manager is available now at no cost to manage both your EC2 and on-premises resources.

    Sample Customers
    Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
    Nextdoor, Coinbase, Expedia
    Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm19%
    Computer Software Company18%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Manufacturing Company6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization23%
    Computer Software Company13%
    Government7%
    Financial Services Firm7%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company30%
    Wellness & Fitness Company10%
    Recruiting/Hr Firm10%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm19%
    Computer Software Company12%
    Educational Organization6%
    Retailer6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Financial Services Firm12%
    Government10%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business36%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise49%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise33%
    Large Enterprise47%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business48%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise35%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business22%
    Midsize Enterprise9%
    Large Enterprise68%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business19%
    Midsize Enterprise11%
    Large Enterprise70%
    Buyer's Guide
    AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    AWS CloudFormation is ranked 9th in Configuration Management with 20 reviews while AWS Systems Manager is ranked 7th in Configuration Management with 5 reviews. AWS CloudFormation is rated 8.2, while AWS Systems Manager is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of AWS CloudFormation writes "Pretty easy setup with great automations for provisioning that save time and money". On the other hand, the top reviewer of AWS Systems Manager writes "Offers a variety of automation options; simplifies governance and administration ". AWS CloudFormation is most compared with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, Spring Cloud, Red Hat Satellite, Chef and SaltStack, whereas AWS Systems Manager is most compared with Microsoft Configuration Manager, Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, Red Hat Satellite, BigFix and Chef. See our AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager report.

    See our list of best Configuration Management vendors.

    We monitor all Configuration Management reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.