BigFix vs SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor comparison

BigFix vs. SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor

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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

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 4.9%, down from 10.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of BigFix is 4.8%, down from 9.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is 1.6%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Configuration Management Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune	4.9%
BigFix	4.8%
SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor	1.6%
Other	88.7%

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

OluwashileAdeniyi

Senior Infrastructure Security Engineer at a outsourcing company with 51-200 employees

Centralized endpoint security has improved and supports hybrid work and BYOD policies

Regarding what I dislike about Microsoft Intune and its downsides, I would say that more Mac controls are needed because we have limited Mac and Linux control. When comparing controls and policies between Windows, Mac, and Linux, Windows has almost everything you can think of, while Mac and Linux have limited types of control. You cannot implement certain things on Mac and Linux that you can on Windows. The limited controls are a major issue. Additionally, if Microsoft could find a way to embed servers into Microsoft Intune, that would be beneficial. Microsoft Intune is not really designed for servers or Windows servers. It is more tailored towards Windows 11 and Windows 10 operating systems. Windows servers are not fully supported. Enterprise organizations usually have both servers and endpoints, which are users' workstations. For servers, most people look for other solutions such as SCCM, which is Configuration Manager. However, SCCM is what Microsoft Intune is trying to replace. Both SCCM and Microsoft Intune belong to Microsoft. Microsoft is trying to transition organizations into Microsoft Intune, the native cloud solution. However, because this update is still in process, servers are not fully compatible with Microsoft Intune and cannot be managed by it. The current policy that has emerged from issues with clients is what they call co-management, which is relatively new, and I do not know if adoption is significant. Many legacy or older customers who have been using these products for decades still have SCCM. When it is time for them to manage their Windows devices, they use what is called cloud attach. Cloud attach is a term whereby your SCCM is connected to your Microsoft Intune. Most people do not know about it, but I have deployed it for several organizations. Cloud attach and co-management work together so that your device is in SCCM, but some policies are pushed from Microsoft Intune. It is like two different solutions working hand in hand. That is what they call co-management. Microsoft Intune does not bring all of your endpoint and security management tools into one place, which is the goal and how it should be. However, as I mentioned, servers are not included. If we talk about end users, Microsoft Intune does bring all your devices together. In a typical enterprise environment, you have end users with workstations, laptops, company-issued phones, and bring your own devices. You can create policies for all of these. However, for the backend, your servers do not have much coverage. Servers are not really covered by Microsoft Intune in that way.

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Ravi Khanchandani

Founder Director at Techsa Services

Long-term partnership improves customer satisfaction and delivers efficient endpoint management

BigFix supports something known as Patch Policies, which allows users to define that whenever critical patches are released, they should get evaluated against machines and automatically deploy them. Their software distribution is very efficient because they use a pull mechanism rather than a push mechanism, allowing each machine to download from the closest repository and install themselves. The same assessment mechanism applies for real-time vulnerability remediation, allowing identification, evaluation, and automatic remediation across machines. Compliance metrics typically measure the patch percentages deployed against the number of endpoints, which could be various device types including virtual machines and mobile devices. Measurements are taken against each device type, looking into compliance percentages for browsers such as Chrome and Edge based on their versions.

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Akhil Reddy

Software Developer at NOESIS Portugal

Alerting has helped us detect server issues across our environment

The alert mechanism is the biggest advantage of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor. The customizability of the alerting system is particularly valuable. Whatever devices are in the environment, whether EC2 servers or on-premises servers, all of them can be monitored using this service. I can easily find out what exactly is going wrong in the environment. The clear audit trail aids in troubleshooting and optimization. The tool is effective for detecting unauthorized changes across platforms.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The ability to work from all over the planet is valuable. You just need a functioning and working Internet connection."

"The solution has significantly improved managing a diverse range of devices. We have observed enhancements across Android, iOS, and Windows devices."

"Microsoft's licensing is more flexible and adaptive than its competitors."

"When managing a large number of devices in an organization, it becomes easy to handle them on one platform using Microsoft Intune."

"I like how Intune brings everything into one place. For example, you can set up conditional access to applications and devices inside Intune. I also like the segregation inside the Intune devices. You can segregate them by Windows, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Android. You can sort it by platform, so you don't need to go into the devices section."

"It is easy to use and easy to roll out with low impact on users; it is stable and scalable as well, and the central administration con dashboard is very easy to use and provides very good oversight on all that needs to be monitored."

"One of the biggest advantages of Microsoft Intune is that it brings the management of Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and even Linux under a single pane of glass."

"It is a helpful tool to manage BYOD policies."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"Patch management, because it very much improved the patch compliance and has the capability to manage Windows and non-Windows clients."

"Patch Management for a variety of operating systems makes it valuable as we can rely on a single tool for obtaining patch compliance of the entire compute infrastructure."

"We are able to decrease the number of high and critical vulnerabilities by at least 30% in six months, which is a huge improvement and makes the environment more secure."

"My company provides support services to a lot of customers and companies. We have reduced a huge amount of man-effort. Along with the man-effort, we have reduced the timeline to fix the compliance and security gaps. We have an unbroken record. The documentation clearly says that we have done the patching of newly released patches, including Microsoft and third-party patches, in up to 80% of the computers, within 72 hours of the release of the production. That was a very massive benefit that we have seen. When I talk about the 80% endpoints, it is 100 or 200. I am talking about 25,000 endpoints."

"This solution is giving us the results that it's meant for."

"Pre-packaged support for many third-party applications such as Adobe, Google, Mozilla, Sun (Java), WinZip, and others."

"IBM BigFix is one of the easiest client management tools to install."

"It's enabled us to have a highly successful endpoint patching program for the past decade. It's been enormously successful there. It's also become a core part of many of our business processes, from compliance monitoring of endpoints, encryption management, key escrow, and local administrator password escrow. It's built into our inventory. It's very much everywhere."

More BigFix pros

"The most valuable feature of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is version control. For example, if we began on the first of the month and we considered that as the configuration of the server, I could set that configuration as my baseline. On a daily basis, if there was the operations team that did, for example, server patching, the tool will maintain all levels of versions."

"The customizability of the alerting system is particularly valuable; whatever devices are in the environment, whether EC2 servers or on-premises servers, all of them can be monitored using this service."

"SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is a good-to-have solution for all customers who are under audit pressure, especially from regulatory authorities."

"The product’s alert feature is good. We receive notifications whenever some failures occur in the configuration."

Cons

"My assessment of the user experience of Microsoft Intune is that it is sometimes good and sometimes poor, depending on Microsoft's infrastructure."

"I, as such, do not have any specific inputs or needs. However, there is always room for improvement when it comes to scalability."

"The technical support by Microsoft is not so good. We have to manage many things by ourselves and do not receive responses in a timely manner."

"Lacking ability to leverage more iOS device management internally."

"The pricing can be expensive if you are not combining it with other products."

"In the past, I raised some tickets for the enhancement feature, which was missing in Intune."

"Microsoft Intune could be improved with a more intuitive user interface, simpler policy configuration for complex environments, and faster troubleshooting tools."

"I think there should be a better tracking of the cell phones used on the Intune."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"The look and feel of the system are old-fashioned."

"The first setup was complex."

"We're a partner, so we deliver technical support to customers. When we need to talk to the product support, traditionally, with the product over the last five years, I would not say support has been supportive. I hope that changes."

"I would like to see much better web reporting because as it is now, it's convoluted, basic, it's not modern, and there are limitations to it."

"The solution could improve by adding support drivers for different systems and equipment. When you have a lot of different computers if they could fix how to install any updates, firmware, or drivers for different systems or servers it would be good."

"Be careful. It's a super powerful tool. It can be unforgiving, i.e., if you do some of the things wrong, it can be a nightmare."

"The stability is generally pretty good. The one thing that we came across is the battle between load on endpoints and load on our servers and relays versus how quickly, effectively and reliably actions can be taken. I'd like to not have to take an action on a system while I'm working with someone and then have to say whether something will happen between five seconds or thirty minutes from that point."

"I would like to see more emphasis on using the web console, to have the same power as the full fat client console that they do they now. It's a lighter way to log in and it would be faster for our operators to do their work. The console tends to take a long time for a large number of clients."

More BigFix cons

"The price of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is not reasonable, it is slightly on the higher side."

"The product’s support services and licensing models need improvement."

"In a feature release, they could enhance the reporting. However, we have not evaluated this part of the solution extensively."

"Some dashboards I observed in Dynatrace are not available in SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is cost-efficient."

"Intune is inexpensive. It also comes bundled in some Office 365 licenses, so you can choose to purchase it separately or as a package."

"If you're ever going to buy an Office 365 environment, then pricing is reasonable given all that it does, but if you're not, then you might find the pricing expensive."

"Microsoft Intune costs about $7 per user per month, which is somewhat on the pricier end. That said, it's a reliable product, so it's fair."

"Microsoft Intune is pretty reasonable. We have difficulty with Azure, which is probably why we have not put many assets in Azure. Everything we put there is very expensive."

"Cost is not my department, but the product is included in the E5 license that we already pay for every user, so no additional cost is incurred."

"All security solutions worldwide are expensive. Microsoft has allowed a small scale of features within Microsoft Intune for cost-efficient solutions. If you want the full suite, you need to invest more to gain better security features."

"The cost is handled through our Office 365 license, so I have yet to be able to compare it directly with other tools in its class."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"The price of BigFix is better than the solutions. You are able to pay monthly or annually. There are not any hidden costs with BigFix. There is an additional cost for the SQL database."

"So, the pricing is slightly more expensive than the others. I have to keep buying licenses every time I add a new device."

"There's not much big cost. We only have to pay the agents' cost for the server, and for the systems."

"The price is reasonable, but our customers find it expensive."

"It is too costly. It is one of the best tools, but because of pricing, not all clients support it. Its licensing is on a yearly basis."

"You get what we call the Platform Edition, which you get for free. The patch service is maybe $0.50 per workstation per month. Then there's the basic server cost, which is about $1.50 per server per month. You also get into Lifecycle which does power management, OSD remote control, and those types of things, and that might be about 10 times the price - which works out to about $13 per server and, maybe $5 per workstation per month."

"The cost is slightly high."

"The price of BigFix could be lower. However, I am always seeking a lower price."

More BigFix pricing and cost advice

"The price of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is not reasonable, it is slightly on the higher side."

"SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor has medium pricing compared to other solutions."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Construction Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	190
Midsize Enterprise	65
Large Enterprise	185

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	30
Midsize Enterprise	12
Large Enterprise	67

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?

Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...

What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...

How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for BigFix?

The pricing is pretty good and now follows a subscription model similar to other major software solutions, making it ...

What needs improvement with BigFix?

I have concerns about BigFix's pricing, which I find to be slightly on the higher side. While it may not be the most ...

What is your primary use case for BigFix?

I have been working at Tech Data for the last 12 plus years.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor?

In general, I think that licensing for SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor is acceptable, and the solution is qui...

What needs improvement with SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor?

Some dashboards I observed in Dynatrace are not available in SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor. The dashboard f...

What is your primary use case for SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor?

I work only with SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor. My major use case is the monitoring of environment servers ...

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Product Reports

Microsoft Intune

Download Microsoft Intune product report

BigFix

Download BigFix product report

Configuration Management

Download SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor product report

SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

Tivoli Endpoint Manager

SolarWinds SCM

Interactive Demo

Demo not available

Microsoft

HCLSoftware

Demo not available

SolarWinds

Overview

Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based service designed for device management, security, and compliance. It supports automation and facilitates endpoint management for Windows, iOS, and Android devices, ensuring data protection and efficient policy enforcement.

Microsoft Intune offers seamless integration with tools like Windows Autopilot to automate device setup and deployment. Integrated with Azure Active Directory, it enhances policy management while providing robust reporting and analytics tools for compliance tracking. Despite its intuitive interface aimed at simplifying navigation and device security management, there are challenges such as compatibility issues with Linux and Mac, limited policy support for Android, and demands for better third-party integration. It's widely used for both corporate-owned devices and BYOD scenarios in dynamic IT environments.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Windows Autopilot: Automates device setup for rapid deployment.
Azure Active Directory Integration: Enhances user policy management.
Reporting and Analytics: Improves compliance visibility.
Mobile Application Management: Ensures app security without compromising personal data.
Cloud-Based Management: Allows management from any location.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Time Efficiency: Automation reduces time in policy enforcement and configuration updates.
Enhanced Security: Ensures data protection across corporate-owned and BYOD devices.
Improved Compliance: Advanced reporting tools enhance compliance visibility.
Flexible Management: Cloud-based nature supports management from any location.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure data protection and compliance with regulatory standards. Manufacturing sectors utilize Intune for managing a distributed workforce across global locations, while educational institutions employ it to secure and manage devices in learning environments supporting both students and faculty.

Microsoft

HCL BigFix offers a Unified Endpoint Management platform that enhances security, reduces costs, and simplifies IT operations across hybrid, multi-cloud environments through a centralized control structure.

BigFix streamlines enterprise IT management by integrating infrastructure security, endpoint remediation, and employee experience automation within a single platform. It enables IT Operations and Security teams to function efficiently from a unified control plane, managing over 155 million endpoints. Its robust architecture supports continuous compliance and automated vulnerability remediation, closing the gap between detection and fix. It excels in digital employee experience by ensuring proactive monitoring and utilizing agentic AI for self-healing workflows and intelligent automation, thereby reducing manual efforts and enhancing productivity.

What are BigFix's key features?

Efficient Patch Management: Automates and optimizes patch distribution across platforms.
Compliance Integration: Ensures robust adherence to compliance standards through automated processes.
Scalability: Capable of managing and securing an extensive range of endpoints.
Multi-Platform Support: Provides management for various operating systems through a single console.
Customization Options: Enables API-based customizations and versatile reporting capabilities.

What are potential benefits and ROI factors?

Enhanced Security: Swift vulnerability management reduces risk exposure.
Cost Efficiency: Centralized management minimizes operational complexities and expenses.
Operational Resilience: Maintains compliance and security across distributed environments.
Ease of Management: Simplifies diverse environment management with robust tools.
Boost in Productivity: Reduces manual IT efforts while improving employee experience.

Industries such as telecom, finance, and industrial facilities leverage BigFix for comprehensive patch management, software deployment, and inventory solutions. They benefit from its capacity to support endpoint security, compliance, and diverse operational needs, using it for vulnerability assessment and custom content creation.

HCLSoftware

SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor offers a comprehensive solution for tracking and managing server configurations. It provides visibility into configuration changes, helping IT professionals ensure compliance and prevent unplanned downtime.

Designed for IT teams prioritizing server performance and uptime, SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor delivers detailed insights into configuration changes and deviations. By automating the tracking process, it minimizes manual errors and accelerates troubleshooting. Customers rely on it for maintaining compliance with internal policies and external regulations. This tool not only monitors servers but also provides alerts and automated workflows to resolve configuration issues promptly, enhancing efficiency and service delivery.

What are the key features of SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor?

Configuration Change Monitoring: Tracks all server configuration changes in real-time to detect unauthorized or unintended modifications.
Compliance Reporting: Offers detailed reports to ensure compliance with industry standards and organizational policies.
Alerting System: Provides customizable alerts to notify IT teams about critical configuration changes.
Historical Comparison: Allows users to compare current configurations with past setups to identify variances.
Automated Workflow: Simplifies the process of managing and resolving configuration issues with automated tasks.

What benefits and ROI should users expect?

Improved Uptime: By quickly identifying and rectifying configuration issues, reduces server downtime.
Enhanced Security: Detects unauthorized changes, preventing potential security breaches.
Cost Efficiency: Reduces manual effort and the associated costs with automated monitoring and reporting.
Regulatory Compliance: Facilitates adherence to legal and industry regulations, minimizing compliance risks.

Industries such as finance, healthcare, and technology leverage SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor for stringent compliance requirements and to maintain high performance standards. Its role in swiftly identifying deviations from required configurations makes it invaluable for sectors where data integrity and availability are critical.

SolarWinds

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

US Foods, Penn State, St Vincent's Health US Foods, Sabadell Bank, SunTrust, Australia Sydney, Stemac, Capgemini, WNS Global Services, Jebsen & Jessen, CenterBeam, Strauss, Christian Hospital Centre, Brit Insurance, Career Education Corporation

Information Not Available

BigFix vs. SolarWinds Server Configuration Monitor