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Cisco DNA Center vs SCOM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 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

Cisco DNA Center
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
41
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (1st), Network Automation (2nd)
SCOM
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
16th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
82
Ranking in other categories
Event Monitoring (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco DNA Center is 1.4%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SCOM is 1.8%, down from 2.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

AvrahamSonenthal - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficiently manages our wireless network and provides valuable monitoring features
The platform's biggest benefit has been in managing our wireless network. Having a single pane of glass to control all wireless controllers and access points and to monitor activity has been a significant advantage. We're a small federal agency with around 300 network devices, so automation is a minor focus. It's more relevant for larger networks. The main benefits we've seen are in inventory management and the potential for configuration automation. However, I recommend using the DNA Centre only for larger networks with over a thousand devices; otherwise, it may not be cost-effective. Before proceeding, ensure that your devices are compatible with DNA Center, as not all Cisco devices are supported. Also, investing in proper training is different from plug-and-play. I rate it an eight.
MarcMermuys - PeerSpot reviewer
Has efficient monitoring with robust integration capabilities
We use SCOM to configure different monitors using several management packs. It integrates systems like Active Directory and correlates them, and it is used for monitoring and managing systems SCOM allows integration of several systems, providing correlation between different systems such as…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The monitoring features are very useful for network engineers."
"We can monitor all devices and get the required information using the product."
"The monitoring is very valuable to me."
"Automation helps configure devices without manual intervention, enabling zero-touch provisioning."
"The product gives a consolidated view."
"What I found valuable in Cisco DNA Center is the Software-Defined Access Network, so the entire LAN network can be centralized and managed from a single dashboard. Cisco DNA Center is suitable for centralized management and lets you deploy switches in a centralized fashion. You can also do multiple switch port configurations simultaneously and segregate your traffic into multiple fabrics. Another valuable feature of Cisco DNA Center is enhanced security through Scalable Group Tags. Cisco DNA Center can be integrated with your Cisco ISE to enhance the port securities, and this paves the way for Software-Defined Networking in the LAN segment, which is the main advantage of Cisco DNA Center. I also like that you can use Cisco DNA Center for data assurance or correlation. The solution shows your network and client health parameters, which I find convenient for troubleshooting."
"The product's most valuable feature is the visual representation of the switch's front panel."
"I think that their LAN automation is a very good feature."
"SCOM provides alerting capabilities and threshold settings, which are helpful for monitoring."
"Being able to make and customize management packs and send out notifications is very valuable."
"The product’s auto-remediation feature helps with automation."
"It's easy to use."
"The most valuable feature is the monitoring of Windows and Linux servers."
"The most valuable feature of SCOM is real-time alerts."
"It discovers the components automatically, which is a fantastic thing. The discovery works in an automatic way, and it has a dynamic way of discovering the components, assets, and applications. It doesn't require any manual intervention."
"The solution is scalable. If you want to monitor more you have to buy more licenses, but you can add on. We don't plan to increase usage."
 

Cons

"They can improve the network visibility. Licensing and its maintenance are also needed."
"Technical support could be better. The price could be better, and it could be more stable."
"DNA Center has been on the market for a few years and they need to update it."
"One area that needs improvement is the upgrade process."
"The cost is very high."
"They should include UTM features in the product."
"The task failure reporting or provisioning failure reporting could be a little bit better in the UI, with more information given to the user."
"In terms of the clustering part, there are some concerns."
"The solution can be improved by expanding to cloud usage."
"Non Windows monitoring is fairly weak. Network device monitoring is not reliable."
"The price could be improved."
"It'll help if they can provide real-time or closer to real-time monitoring."
"The GI is difficult to work with and the reporting servers are also difficult."
"There could be more integration of SIM in the solution."
"SCOM is not as straightforward in terms of user interface or general experience, which could be improved."
"There are some negative points about this product. Sometimes, the capabilities of the software don't appear, and you can't directly see the results. You have to wait for a long period to refresh the policy to push it to the software or other patches."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is very costly."
"Affordability is a problem because it's created for large enterprises only. So, some customers, even if their engineers want the solution, might have problems with budget limitations."
"Cisco DNA Center is a licensed product with multiple levels of licensing available such as basic, advanced, and essential. I don't have the exact figure, but Cisco DNA Center is costly. For example, the box has information about the essential license and costs a considerable amount of money. You need to pay extra to use advanced features in Cisco DNA Center. My company sees Cisco DNA Center as a solution that's worth the money, which is why it invested in the solution. If you want centralized management for your network, especially when upgrading it, Cisco DNA Center is perfect, but it's more suitable for a large-scale rather than a small-scale network."
"Licensing for Cisco DNA Center is a little bit expensive, just like any Cisco solution. Its cost could still be improved."
"It is an expensive solution."
"The partnership price is notably high, but it ultimately depends on the chosen business model."
"I rate the product's pricing an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is very cheap, and ten is very expensive."
"I do know that Cisco does offer some really good promotions for DNA Center to bring the costs down."
"I don't know the exact cost because it's managed by our sales team, but Microsoft is on the higher side."
"It is the cheapest product available in the market."
"It is more expensive than the competition."
"If you have a Microsoft Enterprise Agreement, then this is part of the agreement."
"Our licensing fees are approximately $30 per user, per month."
"Our Enterprise Agreement includes the price."
"SCOM is part of the System Center suite and I am satisfied with the pricing."
"The pricing and licensing are fair."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco DNA Center?
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it gives some kind of ease in operations, especially since our company is moving from CLI to GUI-based configuration.
What needs improvement with Cisco DNA Center?
The system is working fine for me currently.
What do you like most about SCOM?
The tool helps to monitor Windows servers. It offers alerts from a central location.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SCOM?
I am not aware of the exact pricing as it is managed by my supervisor. As an academic institution, we receive substantial discounts.
What needs improvement with SCOM?
SCOM is likely to be phased out in favor of more compatible tools like Icinga ( /products/icinga-reviews ) for application monitoring or when moving to cloud solutions like CloudWatch and Azure ( /...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

DNA Center
System Center Operations Manager, SCOM 2012
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Dialog Telekom
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco DNA Center vs. SCOM and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,236 professionals have used our research since 2012.