CA Unified Communications Monitor vs SolarWinds NPM comparison

Broadcom and SolarWinds are both solutions in the Network Monitoring Software category. Broadcom is ranked #88, while SolarWinds is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.3. Broadcom holds a 0.5% mindshare in NMS, compared to SolarWinds’s 3.7% mindshare. Additionally, 50% of Broadcom users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 92% of SolarWinds users who would recommend it.

CA Unified Communications M...

Read 2 CA Unified Communications Monitor reviews

2,146 Views
1,481 Comparison Views

50% willing to recommend

SolarWinds NPM

Read 160 SolarWinds NPM reviews

21,458 Views
16,523 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

CA Unified Communications M...

SolarWinds NPM

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 2024

SolarWinds NPM and CA Unified Communications Monitor are competing network monitoring products. Data comparisons suggest SolarWinds NPM has an advantage in pricing and customer support, but CA Unified Communications Monitor stands out in features, appealing to tech buyers seeking comprehensive solutions.

Features: SolarWinds NPM offers extensive network performance metrics, customizable alerting systems, and precise monitoring capabilities. CA Unified Communications Monitor provides robust VoIP monitoring, in-depth analysis tools, and advanced communication features catering to enterprises with intensive communication needs.

Room for Improvement: SolarWinds NPM could enhance its communication monitoring, provide more in-depth analysis tools, and expand its VoIP capabilities. CA Unified Communications Monitor may improve its pricing model, ease of deployment, and overall customer support to match the competitive market.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SolarWinds NPM is recognized for straightforward deployment and quality customer support suitable for various IT infrastructures. CA Unified Communications Monitor offers comprehensive deployment options with configuration flexibility, though it might require more setup time, balancing it with notable customer support.

Pricing and ROI: SolarWinds NPM offers a competitive pricing model aligned with setup costs, delivering significant value and favorable ROI. CA Unified Communications Monitor may require more upfront investment but offers high ROI through specialized communication monitoring features, valuable for businesses prioritizing unified communications.

To learn more, read our detailed CA Unified Communications Monitor vs. SolarWinds NPM Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

CA Unified Communications Monitor vs. SolarWinds NPM

June 2026

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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

CA Unified Communications M...

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

88th

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

61st

Average Rating

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Unified Communications Monitoring (3rd)

SolarWinds NPM

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

2nd

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

3rd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

160

Ranking in other categories

Cloud Monitoring Software (7th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of CA Unified Communications Monitor is 0.5%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds NPM is 3.7%, down from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
SolarWinds NPM	3.7%
CA Unified Communications Monitor	0.5%
Other	95.8%

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

itarchit489981

IT Architect at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees

Good end-to-end voice quality monitoring and offers valuable features

The solution should have automatic baseline detection. On the per hour, per base, per week. That's usually the best. And on a per individual CI level. I know that they're working on it and when that's available then we will definitely implement it because it will reduce the effort we need to maintain all the products. Right now we have to set thresholds for every location, and it needs to be actually dynamic so if we have better thresholding, we'll have faster alarms across all our locations. We won't have to expend effort on it by resetting or checking them on a regular basis.

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Vivek Jaiswal

Manager IT at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Central monitoring has improved outage alerts and now needs smarter detection and modern dashboards

Regarding the automated network topology and mapping feature in SolarWinds NPM, I am not satisfied with it. For static monitoring, it is acceptable. However, if it is possible, I would need a feature in SolarWinds in the future for some kind of malfunctioning detection, such as malware attacks or that type of environment. We did not have any facility to detect that in SolarWinds. I think it would be better to incorporate those types of features. Regarding customization options in SolarWinds, the ability to customize the dashboard has room for improvement. The dashboard is quite old, and we need some improvement in it. Nowadays, we have multiple tools with AI-based monitoring and web-based dashboards. SolarWinds also has a web-based dashboard, but I think there is scope for improvement in the UI. There may be other areas I would like to improve in SolarWinds NPM.

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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

"For us, it's very key to know the voice quality of the total solution, which is based on many components across many domains."

"Good end-to-end monitoring"

"We use the solution to meet the needs of the customer."

"The people in technical support are very good."

"This solution has improved our organization because it saves time, in that I do not need to visit every workstation in order to update it, as I can do everything remotely, including running PowerShell scripts or performing standard updates, and I can also help customers remotely."

"The ease of deployment is great."

"I believe the ease of setup and use, including everything, from the initial installation to the discovery of devices is the most valuable."

"Without NPM monitoring, we would be in a world of hurt and constantly responding to outages and unexpected downtime."

"This product is of good caliber and we get better results by using it on our network."

"The stability is fantastic."

"As a large school district, I can tell you that NPM is very valuable to us."

More SolarWinds NPM pros

Cons

"All the features and functions of the solution can be improved, specifically the user experience."

"The solution should have automatic baseline detection."

"The pricing is very expensive for SolarWinds. That's a huge disadvantage for it."

"Yes, plenty of those that our systems team has spent hours on the phone with Solarwinds support with trying to rectify."

"It would be nice to have a test to check if you can access a particular device via API without installing it and waiting for a poll cycle. You should have the capacity to initiate a test to see if it was reachable and get the results almost immediately."

"It is too expensive."

"Failover functionality does not exist without the purchase of the "Fail Over Engine (FoE)" license."

"The evaluation time for the product is too short especially for large corporations."

"I would like to see more information on design, customization from the community, and a better certification department."

"The solution does not offer much customization so is somewhat inflexible."

More SolarWinds NPM cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"It is not an expensive product."

"When I compare the cost of CA Spectrum to that of SolarWinds NPM, the cost of CA Spectrum is way too high, and the cost of SolarWinds NPM is pretty low."

"We pay approximately $700 per year for renewal of the license."

"It's expensive and there are costs in addition to the standard licensing."

"Some solutions are open source and free."

"It is too expensive."

"USD $15,000 annually for maintenance."

"There are a lot of sub-products and it just continued to increase the price."

More SolarWinds NPM pricing and cost advice

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Comparison Review

it_user174738

IT Developer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

May 31, 2015

Nagios vs. Zabbix vs. PRTG vs. Spiceworks vs. Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor

I have researched a quite a few network monitoring tools which can be used for various monitoring purposes of not only the servers, but the intermediate routers as well. There are majorly three types of these softwares. Ones which are completely open-source, you can do almost anything you want…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Construction Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	59
Midsize Enterprise	33
Large Enterprise	86

Questions from the Community

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What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

It actually depends on the exact purpose or kind of devices (network devices, servers, something else). Some tools are better for only network devices while others are better for a cloud monitoring...

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What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

From my point of view, SolarWind is the best tool.

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What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

We are partners with SolarWinds and we sell a lot of Network management to large enterprises also because of scalability, products like Network Performance Monitor & Netflow Traffic Analyzer ar...

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Comparisons

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 6% of the time

Icinga vs CA Unified Communications Monitor

Compared 6% of the time

Precisely Network Management vs CA Unified Communications Monitor

Compared 5% of the time

More CA Unified Communications Monitor Competitors

ManageEngine OpManager vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

Nagios XI vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

DX Spectrum vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

Zabbix vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

PRTG Network Monitor vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 2% of the time

More SolarWinds NPM Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

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CA Unified Communications Monitor report

Download CA Unified Communications Monitor product report

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds NPM

June 2026

Download SolarWinds NPM product report

Also Known As

CA UC Monitor

Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor, SolarWinds Network Bandwidth Analyzer

Overview

CA Unified Communications Monitor provides real-time insight into communication networks, ensuring seamless connectivity and performance.

Designed for efficient management of unified communications, CA Unified Communications Monitor helps organizations monitor, diagnose, and manage their network and communication services efficiently. It delivers critical network visibility, allowing IT teams to quickly identify and resolve performance issues. Built with scalability in mind, it supports environments of all sizes, adapting to evolving network demands.

What are the key features of CA Unified Communications Monitor?

Real-time Monitoring: Provides live updates and dashboards for continuous network performance oversight.
Scalability: Handles growing network demands effortlessly, supporting various organization sizes.
Comprehensive Reporting: Offers detailed analytics and reporting to help in troubleshooting and performance analysis.
Custom Alerts: Configures alerts for proactive issue management, ensuring quick response to potential disruptions.

What benefits can users expect when evaluating CA Unified Communications Monitor?

Improved Network Performance: Enhances overall communication quality by addressing bottlenecks promptly.
Cost Efficiency: Reduces downtime and maintenance costs through proactive monitoring and quick issue resolution.
Enhanced User Satisfaction: Ensures a seamless user experience with consistent communication services.
Operational Agility: Adapts easily to growing network needs, supporting efficient management processes.

Industries such as finance, healthcare, and education benefit significantly from CA Unified Communications Monitor implementation. It ensures stable connections for remote consultations in healthcare, supports financial data transmission, and enables interactive learning experiences in education. By facilitating uninterrupted and high-quality communications, it directly contributes to business continuity and improved operational outcomes.

Broadcom

SolarWinds NPM is a network performance monitoring tool offering a user-friendly interface with customizable dashboards. It provides real-time tracking of device health, latency, and bandwidth utilization, supporting diverse integration and scalability needs.

SolarWinds NPM's robust features include real-time monitoring of network performance and efficient tracking of device health, latency, and bandwidth utilization. The tool is appreciated for its ease of deployment, scalability, and support for integration with other tools. Features like SNMP monitoring, NetPath, and comprehensive reporting enhance its diagnostic capabilities and network visibility. However, users identify areas for improvement such as real-time analytics, advanced customization options, and enhanced scalability for larger enterprises. Better customer support, improved integrations, and security measures are also desired.

What are the key features of SolarWinds NPM?

User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies navigation and operation.
Customizable Dashboards: Allows personalized data views.
Real-Time Monitoring: Provides instant updates on network performance.
Strong Alerting Capabilities: Offers immediate notifications for issues.
Scalability: Supports growth with ease.
Integration: Works smoothly with other tools for comprehensive monitoring.
SNMP Monitoring: Tracks device stats effectively.
NetPath: Helps visualize network paths and performance.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Improved Network Visibility: Enables proactive issue resolution.
Enhanced Diagnostics: Facilitates quicker troubleshooting.
Real-Time Performance Data: Supports informed decision-making.
Ease of Deployment: Reduces setup time and complexity.
Infrastructure Monitoring: Ensures network stability and reliability.
Custom Integration: Adapts to existing IT environments.

In enterprise environments, SolarWinds NPM is deployed to monitor network health and device status, sending alerts for any issues. It provides visibility into network performance, tracking bandwidth utilization and server metrics efficiently. Its applications span from monitoring routers, switches, and firewalls to supporting infrastructure monitoring across industries.

SolarWinds

Sample Customers

BBVA Compass

Microsoft, Federal Express, Hewlett-Packard, and MasterCard

Buyer's Guide

CA Unified Communications Monitor vs. SolarWinds NPM

June 2026

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