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AWS Directory Service vs Tenable Cloud Security comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 2, 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

AWS Directory Service
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
18th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Tenable Cloud Security
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
12th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
Container Security (24th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (11th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (17th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (13th), Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) category, the mindshare of AWS Directory Service is 1.6%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tenable Cloud Security is 0.8%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Tenable Cloud Security0.8%
AWS Directory Service1.6%
Other97.6%
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Basa Saiteja - PeerSpot reviewer
A valuable access management system with a user-friendly and straightforward setup
The solution is scalable, and we can scale according to our needs. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. In our organization, our access to our AWS comes from IAM. We use AWS consoles using our credentials and don't have route access, so each person will log in through our IAM programmatic access, and everyone on our team can work on cloud. Over 10,000 people in our organization utilize the solution.
DragosCernat - PeerSpot reviewer
Has significantly improved proactive monitoring through automated asset discovery and seamless integration with cloud environments
Making the system smarter would be beneficial. Adding modules for integration with AWS and Azure would be helpful. Adding capabilities for the scanner to automatically pick up changes and add assets automatically would be valuable. When discussing a big company, it is mandatory to have tools that will assist us rather than waiting for manual input to add hosts. Adding assets manually is prone to mistakes. Humans might forget to add an asset or make errors when adding multiple assets. Taking the human element out of the context and making it more streamlined is the future for security. The human should be involved where expertise is needed, such as analysis and decision-making. Currently, with resource constraints, we need tools to collect and aggregate data, eliminate false positives as much as possible, and present relevant information to employees for action.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We can provide specific access to people based on what they need from our accounts."
"We like the fact that it's got such great redundancy."
"I would rate AWS Directory Service nine out of ten."
"AWS Directory Service is secure."
"The support is very good. I would rate the technical support as a nine out of ten."
"The solution integrates well with other tools, particularly through single sign-on, allowing users to connect to various applications using just one password, including email."
"Provides good performance and availability."
"The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features."
"The product's deployment phase is easy."
"The analytical and reporting capabilities are pretty straightforward and show every transaction and major attempt to attack the application in the cloud."
"The key benefit lies in having the largest and most up-to-date database. When it comes to using any Tenable product, it excels in finding vulnerabilities and providing analytics."
"The tool alerts us on depreciating performance or deficiencies of our web application. It helps us react on time."
"If you have multi-cloud tenancy using AWS and Azure, you can have a single dashboard where you can onboard all the cloud infrastructure and have visibility into it."
"Tenable Cloud Security excels in vulnerability detection, one of its strongest features. Another valuable feature is software composition analysis, which highlights and automates the detection of security flaws. Additionally, their knowledge base is excellent; if anything goes wrong, they provide clear guidance on what needs to be done to address specific vulnerabilities."
"Ermetic can provide super visibility for our cloud environment (we are using AWS)."
"Scanning and reporting are the most valuable features of Tenable Cloud Security"
 

Cons

"Our only complaint is that you cannot integrate your Exchange server. Or, if you are planning to install an Exchange server on your Amazon EC2 instance, then you need to configure Active Directory on EC2 instance. We would like for this limitation to be lifted."
"The group policy can be improved."
"To get CloudWatch to monitor your memory and storage, you have to do some configuration within your server, which sometimes results in errors."
"The solution lacks certain features."
"Currently, there is no option to integrate our on-premises Cisco AWS Directory Service, requiring some manual configuration."
"AWS could improve the number of regions. Azure has passed them. The ned more consistency, as far as the Northeast is concerned."
"The AWS Directory Service should be easier to integrate."
"Some of the security protocols are difficult to understand."
"The product must provide more features."
"I have faced several bug incidents with the solution"
"If Tenable Cloud Security offers a complete Cnapp solution with CWP, CIEM, and Waap security, it will be able to compete with other competitors."
"I do think there might be room for more integrations. This could allow for further customization and flexibility, essentially offering different functionality options to accommodate various budgets."
"Tenable needs to offer a patch-based solution since it is an area where the tool lacks a bit."
"We still maintain Tenable Cloud Security but have reduced the number of licenses. We now use it occasionally to validate specific items rather than monitoring the entire surface, for which we use Element."
"Due to its robust nature, the platform's adoption can be overwhelming initially. However, once organizations start using it, they tend to get used to it. I haven't had much direct interaction with the support team, but some partners have reported a desire for better support for the product."
"There is a need for the support team to improve their response time since it is one of the areas where the product's technical team has certain shortcomings."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"AWS' pricing is fair, and costs can be cut if you look carefully at when you're using it."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"The pricing depends because with AWS there are two types of directory objects: 30,000 and 500,000. It varies. AWS provides the pricing calculators so we can get an estimate from there as per the company requirement of how many users and objects that we need to create. So we can go to that portal, put in the data, and get the quotation. There are no extra licensing fees. It's all included."
"We pay an annual subscription fee."
"There is a need to opt for a subscription-based pricing model to use Tenable Cloud Security. I rate the product price an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."
"The tool's pricing is fair."
"The tool's price is good compared to other brands. The tool's subscription is for a year."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Healthcare Company
11%
Performing Arts
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS Directory Service?
The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Directory Service?
The pricing is very good because it is low and there is no management cost. You do not need to hire any system administrator to manage your Active Directory.
What needs improvement with AWS Directory Service?
Accessing the data needs improvement. Additionally, integration and compatibility with other AWS ( /products/amazon-aws-reviews ) services, network open LDAP, support for on-premise and cloud envir...
What do you like most about Tenable Cloud Security?
The solution’s vulnerability management feature has helped us identify and mitigate risks well.
What needs improvement with Tenable Cloud Security?
I think Tenable Cloud Security could be improved with more clear licensing. What I would like to see improved with licensing is how they're used in the product. The calculations of what is consider...
What is your primary use case for Tenable Cloud Security?
My main use case for Tenable Cloud Security is managing our security compliance and security posture. I use Tenable Cloud Security for managing compliance and security posture, and we rely on the c...
 

Also Known As

AWS Managed Microsoft AD
Ermetic, Ermetic Identity Governance for AWS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Tyler Technologies, Bilfinger, BarkBox, MongoDB, airSlate, Adama, Latch, Cloudinary, Riskified, AppsFlyer, IntelyCare, Aidoc, 42Dot, and more.
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Directory Service vs. Tenable Cloud Security and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,513 professionals have used our research since 2012.