Checkmk vs IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) comparison

Checkmk and IBM are both solutions in the Network Monitoring Software category. Checkmk is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.4, while IBM is ranked #37 with an average rating of 8.0. Checkmk holds a 3.8% mindshare in NMS, compared to IBM’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Checkmk users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Checkmk

Read 9 Checkmk reviews

3,526 Views
3,137 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM SevOne Network Performa...

Read 54 IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) reviews

1,885 Views
1,064 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Checkmk

IBM SevOne Network Performa...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) and Checkmk are two network performance management solutions that compete in providing advanced network monitoring and analytics. IBM SevOne NPM seems to have the upper hand in robust analytics and advanced reporting features, while Checkmk stands out for its comprehensive monitoring capabilities and flexibility.

Features: IBM SevOne NPM users highly value its advanced analytics, extensive reporting, and the ability to scale effectively to large networks. Checkmk users appreciate its comprehensive monitoring features, flexibility, and customizable dashboards.

Room for Improvement: Users of IBM SevOne NPM suggest that the product could benefit from a more intuitive setup process, improved alerting functionalities, and enhanced user interface. Checkmk users point out that the product could enhance its reporting capabilities, provide better support for complex integrations, and improve its alerting system.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Deployment of IBM SevOne NPM is seen as more complex, often requiring significant effort for proper configuration. Its customer service is viewed as responsive but occasionally lacking depth in advanced support. Checkmk users find the deployment process to be more straightforward and appreciate the extensive documentation provided. Their customer service is regarded as helpful and well-informed.

Pricing and ROI: IBM SevOne NPM is considered a higher-cost solution, reflecting its extensive features and capabilities. Some users question the ROI due to the higher setup costs and complexity. Checkmk is perceived as more cost-effective, offering substantial value for its price with a quicker realization of ROI, making it the more attractive option for budget-conscious users seeking a balance between cost and functionality.

To learn more, read our detailed Checkmk vs. IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Checkmk vs. IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

April 2025

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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

Checkmk

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

11th

Ranking in Server Monitoring

5th

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

13th

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

12th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM SevOne Network Performa...

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

37th

Ranking in Server Monitoring

18th

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

43rd

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

29th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (44th)

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Checkmk is 3.8%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) is 1.0%, down from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

Paolo Sala

Application performance and System monitoring at Agos

A reasonably priced tool for system and application monitoring

The main room for improvement is in the solution's presentation and the integration area. In our company, we use the integration capabilities from ServiceNow. We also have another big monitoring solution in place in our company, which is Dynatrace. At the moment, there doesn't exist an out-of-the-box integration for Dynatrace. I think that the integration and the exporting of the data collected are areas where Checkmk lacks but should try to improve the most. The only implementation of Checkmk that allows high availability is the virtual appliance that has the option for the availability of a different box. Otherwise, you have to find a way to implement it manually with some custom solution, which could be an improvement.

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Grzegorz Nowak

Solution Architect at Wingu

Improves infrastructure planning by helping us analyze network traffic

We use SevOne to collect and report on network flows SevOne improves infrastructure planning by helping us analyze network traffic. We can look at bandwidth for specific endpoints on the customer's network and analyze traffic to identify issues. For example, maybe some connectors are unavailable.…

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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

"I really like the auto-discovery feature."

"Checkmk was built on a platform that was user-friendly, and I could build my charts easily."

"Checkmk helps me compare data and foresee issues."

"Overall, from one to ten, I rate Checkmk a nine."

"It's versatile, scalable, and easier to use compared to other solutions like Nagios and OMD."

"The initial setup of Checkmk was easy...It is a very stable solution."

"We can monitor multiple sites using the product."

"The most valuable features of Checkmk are its resource monitoring, infra monitoring, and log factor configuration."

More Checkmk pros

"Another useful feature is that SevOne gives you real-time insights into your network performance. It polls every five minutes. That is important for our customers because there are some network teams that are always monitoring their networks."

"SevOne provides support for all universal connectors. They internally work with other data sources to get features implemented. We have an SD-WAN implementation and use other app data to monitor performance. If you pull that data into one centralized location, that is very useful for management."

"One of the most valuable features is the graphs, which you can build instantly. I have used some open-source platforms in the past, but they are not as good. With SevOne, the sampling in the graph can be every few seconds, not just every few minutes, and that's really helpful. It's really fast."

"SevOne’s data collection functionality is very good. From a collection point of view, we pull SNMP data, which is simple. It is easy to manipulate the pull in the estate. It is really simple compared to some of the other products that we have used. However, for deferred data, i.e., things that we import or don't pull directly, we tend to have a preplanned integration. So, its Universal Collector is really useful."

"I like SevOne's network flow reporting."

"The automation feature is good because if your CMDB is OK and it is already in sync, then the automation part is good to go."

"The out of the box reports and workflows are pretty good and they meet our requirements well."

"Scalability. I have never had to worry about how to handle really big environments."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) pros

Cons

"The initial setup is a bit complex."

"Sometimes we receive alerts, and it can become annoying when you acknowledge an alert. It is very clunky when you acknowledge the alert. The process is not very intuitive, and there are instances where it feels a bit cumbersome to acknowledge an alert."

"It is easy for tech-savvy people, but newcomers might find it intimidating."

"I think that the integration and the exporting of the data collected are areas where Checkmk lacks but should try to improve the most."

"The main challenge for us is that we're moving from Nagios to Checkmk, and we're still getting used to the new way of working."

"In Checkmk, the documentation can probably be improved a bit more."

"Checkmk does not allow running scripts at varying intervals."

"Checkmk does not work too easily with the PowerStore. I use a PowerShell script as Checkmk runs on Linux and a Windows system, connecting with the Checkmk agent."

More Checkmk cons

"You need to plan integrations. That has been the biggest bug with SevOne so far. For the things that SevOne pulls directly, those are easy to understand, modify, and put into the database. For things that need to use the Universal Collector or xStats, you need to plan that stuff well in advance."

"User-friendly, multi-tenancy."

"One area that requires a little bit of improvement is the topology of visualization and being able to map out connections, end-to-end. It's able to do that, but it's not as impressive as we would like it to be. We would like to understand the different interface types and the connection points better, through the visualization. Heatmaps also need further development."

"NMS has several areas for improvement. It should be more user-friendly inside of NMS for some of the functionality in there. It's been getting better the last version or two, but the there have been bugs in there whenever I've gone to new versions."

"The GUI: both the dashboard/user view and the admin tool."

"In terms of having a complete view of our network performance, I would rate it a nine out of 10. The reason for not giving it a 10 is that there is no packet capture associated with SevOne, but we do have other tools in place to do that."

"With the administrative management of the appliance, if some object appears from SevOne because something changed in the network or whatever, then as an administrator you will not be aware. If you are using this object in a report, this object will disappear from the report and you will not be aware of it. So, if you have 1,000 reports, you cannot always check these reports everyday to see if objects are missing or information has disappeared. We don't have any information on alerts, saying that something is happening there and maybe we need to take action. If an object was replaced by another one, or if a link was replaced by another one, then the graph needs to be changed because it doesn't exist in the graph anymore. However, we don't have this information."

"The reporting of NMS is good, but it could be better."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is affordable."

"Checkmk is a fairly reasonably priced solution."

"The price of Checkmk is cheaper compared to other enterprise products."

"For the value that you get from SevOne, it's worth the price. There are a lot of cheaper alternatives on the market, and even free options. But they require more staff, more resources, and engineers with more advanced knowledge of monitoring. That's what makes SevOne worth the price."

"Many tools price things based on the number of KPIs that you're collecting around a device. In many cases, there could be hundreds of metrics that you need to collect. SevOne provides device-level pricing. That gives us the flexibility to turn on, and expand on, the metrics that we're collecting around those devices, without taking a financial hit."

"A blocking point is the high upfront cost because it is challenging to get it accepted and the purchase approved."

"Although I don't have exact details in terms of cost, my experience has been that SevOne is willing to make a deal with the customer."

"There are cheaper solutions available."

"There are different options available for licensing, with the per-device option being more expensive but more flexible."

"Choose a SevOne partner who can provide SevOne as a service and can deliver professional services and maintenance."

"Have a bank of licenses, because it is about the number of objects (RAM, ports, CPU, etc.)."

More IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Government

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

17%

Manufacturing Company

14%

Computer Software Company

14%

Legal Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Checkmk?

The most valuable feature of the solution is that it has a lot of different pieces, and they all work together...It is a very scalable solution. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Checkmk?

I will get more information about Checkmk when the proof of concept is done. It's going to be before the summer. There will be a report about the tool and a recommendation to use it. So far, it loo...

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What is your primary use case for Checkmk?

Checkmk ( /products/checkmk-reviews ) is a monitoring tool, so that's what I will use it for. Right now, it's not in production, but it's in a proof of concept phase. It looks good, so probably, du...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SevOne Network Data Platform?

There is room for improvement in the integration with different vendors and the reporting capabilities. It would be beneficial to have out-of-the-box integration with third-party vendors and improv...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for SevOne Network Data Platform?

The primary use case of IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) ( /products/ibm-sevone-network-performance-management-npm-reviews ) is network monitoring. It helps to maintain the infrastru...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering SevOne Network Data Platform?

To compete with custom-built tools, IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) should accommodate the desired features and be timely in the delivery of feature updates. I would rate the overal...

See all answers

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Checkmk

April 2025

Download Checkmk product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

April 2025

IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) report

Download IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) product report

Also Known As

No data available

SevOne

Overview

Checkmk is a powerful tool for monitoring IT infrastructure, providing vital insights on servers, databases, network devices, and custom applications.

Primarily used for supervising IT infrastructure, Checkmk helps organizations ensure service availability by monitoring hosts, processes, load, storage, and network appliances. With support for both Linux and Windows environments across multiple data centers, Checkmk performs compliance checks and preserves historical data for core network devices.

What are the key features of Checkmk?

Auto-discovery: Automatically identifies new hosts and applies monitoring rules.
Custom monitoring: Enhances MySQL performance tracking.
Slack integration: Provides immediate downtime alerts.
Graphical trend analysis: Offers 400 days of trend data.
Multiple site monitoring: Ensures seamless data synchronization through task automation.
Resource and infrastructure monitoring: Configures log factors to fit budget constraints.
System metric imports: Includes servers, SQL, file systems, and application monitoring.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in reviews?

Time-saving: Auto-discovery and task automation streamline processes.
Proactive alerts: Immediate downtime notifications optimize response times.
Historical insights: Long-term graphical trend analysis aids strategic planning.
Cost efficiency: Resource monitoring aligned with budget constraints.

Checkmk is deployed extensively in large enterprise environments for monitoring critical infrastructure. It proves particularly useful under conditions of frequent power outages or network issues, helping maintain smooth operations. While the alert acknowledgment process and interface require improvements, and the lack of an agent-less platform complicates server management, the strengths in auto-discovery, integration, and comprehensive monitoring make Checkmk a strong contender for IT infrastructure monitoring.

Checkmk

The IBM® SevOne Network Performance Management (IBM SevOne NPM) solution helps you spot, address, and prevent network performance issues early with machine learning-powered analytics from a single source. Boost network performance and improve your user application experience by proactively monitoring your multivendor end-to-end network across enterprise, communication, and managed service provider networks.

Transform raw network performance data into intelligent and actionable insights. The IBM SevOne NPM solution goes beyond detection, combining industry-leading expertise and advanced technology to help your IT team plan and optimize your network and act on what matters: improving network performance to provide an exceptional customer experience.

For further information, please visit www.ibm.com/cloud/sevo...

IBM

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

ATOS, Devereux, Spark New Zealand, Access4, Rogers Communication, Lumen (formerly known as CenturyLink)

Buyer's Guide

Checkmk vs. IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

April 2025

Free Report: Checkmk vs. IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM)

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