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BMC Helix Discovery vs IBM Maximo comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

BMC Helix Discovery
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
IT Asset Management (5th)
IBM Maximo
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) (1st), Billing Software (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

BMC Helix Discovery and IBM Maximo aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. BMC Helix Discovery is designed for IT Asset Management and holds a mindshare of 6.5%, down 8.5% compared to last year.
IBM Maximo, on the other hand, focuses on Enterprise Asset Management (EAM), holds 22.6% mindshare, down 26.0% since last year.
IT Asset Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
BMC Helix Discovery6.5%
ServiceNow19.3%
Lansweeper9.9%
Other64.3%
IT Asset Management
Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM Maximo22.6%
Oracle Enterprise Asset Management9.1%
IFS Cloud Platform9.0%
Other59.3%
Enterprise Asset Management (EAM)
 

Featured Reviews

Rafael  Pinto Ferreira - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers features for modern IT environments like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and continuous optimization and help in predictive maintenance and efficient resource utilization
An area that can be improved is the IoT. I have a customer here in Brazil interested in using it to discover assets that are not technology assets, like in a factory where you have machines that you need to monitor. All these machines already have software that monitors them, but they don't have the artificial intelligence and machine learning that BMC has. So, it's like a marketing issue. It's like a segment of the market that can be more explored. We get some opportunities in that market here in Brazil, so I think it could improve. But they already have a module called Edge, Discovery Edge, which works with the IoT, but I think it can improve that.
Omar Samy - PeerSpot reviewer
Improved resource management and streamlined operations enhance organizational efficiency
IBM Maximo could be improved if they added a comprehensive finance module, as that would make it a more complete standalone application. Currently, if you need specific finance software, you need to purchase something such as SAP and integrate it with IBM Maximo. Coverage in this area would help reduce dependency on additional software. Regarding finance features, I would want to see payment capabilities added to IBM Maximo, particularly for factories making payments with providers and collections. This feature isn't adequately covered in IBM Maximo. Additionally, enhanced finance reporting and managing GL would be beneficial. IBM Maximo covers GL but only at a surface level. It doesn't provide deep account analysis.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I've used other discovery tools, but I found BMC Helix Discovery to be more UI-friendly, and that's the most valuable feature of the solution."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is easy to install and deploy."
"The most valuable feature is Windows proxy. We now need to install an additional link proxy server in Windows. The proxy is available as an outpost in the Elastic store. That is the advanced feature is added. There are many other features which can be used once we discover them. One time I was scanning the servers and all, going to data from additional based on the additional features, including advanced data like score upper display data successfully discover servers. There are many things good things that can be implemented using it while we haven’t installed those yet."
"It immediately understands which component it is, and it provides the exact API details with all the components."
"The solution is very stable and powerful."
"The initial setup was quite easy."
"Weekly reports to management really make our life simple."
"The solution's most valuable feature is service modeling."
"I have found Work Order management the most valuable feature. Additionally, it is a very robust and powerful solution."
"The most valuable features of IBM Maximo are the overall power and interface, and there are a lot of different modules that we use that are helpful. Additionally, it's an integrated solution and it has a lot of capabilities."
"It is configurable, where you can add extra fields to screens and to the database."
"Preventive maintenance management."
"They have a real strength of tracking the asset itself along with the condition of the asset, the maintenance of the asset and who has access to the asset, etc."
"Has a powerful audit combination that helps achieve high accuracy."
"Its capabilities let us organize our work."
"Reliable, very configurable, and it's all integrated in the same database."
 

Cons

"What would make BMC Helix Discovery better is if it had more client-side discovery features, for example, printers and desktops. Right now, it's focused more on data center discovery, so if it had additional features focused on the client-side discovery, that would be great. In the next release of BMC Helix Discovery, I'd like more client-side discovery features such as desktop discovery, printer discovery, and other IP-based client-side discovery features. The solution can discover desktops and printers, but there's still room for improvement on the client side."
"The monitoring tools could be more stable."
"It is very complicated to use."
"The support from BMC Helix Discovery can improve, it takes a long time before we receive any feedback. It can take days to months sometimes."
"There are certain limitations in the mapping feature of the solution."
"I would like to see the ability to scan some of the newer cloud platforms. I know that BMC has them on the roadmap, and they are coming soon, but they can't come fast enough. Being able to scan more of GCloud, Alibaba Cloud, or whatever the public clouds that our customers are buying, we need to make sure that Discovery can find them as well."
"The query language is somewhat challenging to learn. It uses a Berkeley database, and the query language is not easy to master for performing complex queries."
"It would be nice to see more updates to the solution."
"The latest version is slow due to the power it requires."
"The initial setup was complex, because it is a complex product."
"On a scale of one to ten, where ten is easy and one is difficult, I rate the setup process a two since it is very complicated."
"I feel that the interface is a little too complicated with a large number of fields to enter."
"Areas for improvement would be the user interface and support for Arabic. They could also be more customer-oriented."
"It was very slow due to the lagging issues. So that was kind of frustrating, considering how slow it was while functioning."
"It's not user-friendly. It could use shortcuts for frequently requested services."
"The solution is not stable. We can have one day when it is stable and another day it is not. Sometimes it crashes or becomes very slow, and there are times we are not even able to download all the databases. Without the database, we cannot work on that application. These are the small glitches, and stability issues we are facing."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Operating cost is actually high compared to other products, actually. It's a little expensive only, but it's very good than other products."
"BMC is available for a reasonable price compared to ServiceNow — it's half the price."
"I rate the pricing an eight out of ten. All BMC products are expensive."
"I've heard that the solution was expensive earlier but is now much cheaper than its competitors."
"The licenses are very complex and quite costly."
"The price was fair compared to competitors. BMC is very affordable. There are optional consulting services to assist with implementation."
"The solution offers yearly licenses."
"We are on a three-year agreement with BMC Helix Discovery to use the solution. There are not any additional fees other than the standard license."
"​Explore internal processes in order to evaluate the correct number of users in each Maximo module, then evaluate the different offers of pricing and licensing.​"
"IBM has changed the licensing policy. As I understand now, they are going from a complex way of licensing to a more simple way of licensing."
"I do not know about the price of the solution. However, this has been an expensive project overall."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is low and ten is high, I rate the pricing a nine. The price is very high."
"$USD700 per agent user."
"The price of IBM Maximo could reduce, it is expensive."
"Explore the possibility of using DB2. You will avoid the cost of SQL Server or Oracle licenses."
"You pay for what you get. There are lots of options depending on how you would like to implement Maximo."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
Government
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Energy/Utilities Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise13
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BMC Helix Discovery?
I like the artificial intelligence and machine learning that it uses in the solution. Because once the solution discovers all the assets, all the infrastructure, and all the dependencies between se...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for BMC Helix Discovery?
That's always a million dollar question regarding whether the solution is affordable or quite expensive; if you talk to the vendor, the pricing's great, but end users are always looking for a bette...
What needs improvement with BMC Helix Discovery?
Technical support from BMC is generally good. Resolutiion time is what's bothering me, as it's not always easy to get to the correct person or the right technical level needed to resolve the issue.
What needs improvement with IBM Maximo?
IBM Maximo could be improved if they added a comprehensive finance module, as that would make it a more complete standalone application. Currently, if you need specific finance software, you need t...
What is your primary use case for IBM Maximo?
My main use case for IBM Maximo is managing maintenance. I used it first as an end user, and later joined the implementation team. Now I'm administrating and implementing IBM Maximo. The transition...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Maximo?
There are many good implemented functions in IBM Maximo, but I see these two functions as the most valuable ones from my point of view. My advice to others considering IBM Maximo is that top manage...
 

Also Known As

Discovery, ADDM, Atrium Discovery & Dependency Mapping
Maximo
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Windstream Communications, News UK, Mercator Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR)
Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., DTE Energy, Swedish Match, Projetech, Fingrid, East Coast
Find out what your peers are saying about ServiceNow, Lansweeper, Qualys and others in IT Asset Management. Updated: January 2025.
871,688 professionals have used our research since 2012.