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Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs Entuity 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 Nexus Dashboard Fabri...
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
24th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Entuity
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
67th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) is 0.6%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Entuity is 0.7%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM)0.6%
Entuity0.7%
Other98.7%
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

Jagdev Dhaliwal - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Flow monitoring has improved planning for east-west traffic and real-time capacity decisions
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) helps to understand the flows and data plane capacities, which are the primary use cases. Usually, people struggle with east-west traffic flow when they need to decide on firewalls or products. People typically understand north-south traffic flows but usually miss the east-west traffic flows in data centers. I was focusing more on this so that people can accordingly plan, such as after F5, the number of servers, the number of sessions needed, and whether we need to plan the interface for groups from the line capacity perspective. This kind of information was valuable to us. The real-time telemetry feature was beneficial. When experiencing performance issues, I could determine if there were any issues related to flows or areas where bottlenecks were occurring.
Ahmed Salman - PeerSpot reviewer
Performance & Monitoring Supervisor at Saudi Telecom Company
A good solution for network monitoring and support management, but there is no centralized database
There is no centralized database. It is an issue if you use a local database and have multiple borders. However, if you have an external database, you can keep the same old data from an old border up to 100 borders. In addition, if we want to create an ABI or use an ABI to connect data, there is no competition when we ask for support. If we want to modify the calculation matrix or equation, we have to raise a professional service. Other competitors like Micro Focus, a network management system, have a new supportability matrix in the market every quarter.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"After installation, you almost forget that it is working."
"The interface of this solution is easy to use overall."
"I like running the scripts. With the help of a Python script, we deployed within the configuration and built up the code."
"The product makes the management of our environment simpler."
"Data Center Network Manager is absolutely stable."
"We use the product to manage access points."
"There are many valuable features in this solution: The automation of the ILS, the automation of the small changes, the lands updates, scheduling, integration - basically, the pushing of features that we used to do manually."
"The most valuable features of Cisco Data Center Network Manager are consistency and the core server. The teams have had a good experience."
"We went for this solution because it comes with a lot of features; it's an all-in-one solution, which means we don't have to go for multiple solutions."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of deployment, simplicity of the end user's experience (the forms and the sheets that you use, the screens you can use to see what's going on, and overall capability), as well as the ease of integration into other solutions."
"This is a product that is easy to deploy and maintain with a positive end-user experience."
"My clients have received a good return on investment."
"We are able to receive a visualized monitoring of the network infrastructure which is very helpful."
"I would encourage others to use Entuity, as it's powerful and user-friendly."
"Entuity's best feature is its ability to monitor a large number of devices."
"The most valuable feature of Entuity is network mapping and information. When clicking on a particular location it can automatically survey the connectivity diagram for us. We can arrange this icon in any kind of formats, such as ring or mesh. The networking mapping can show the components and interconnectivity with the help of IP addresses and NetFlow."
 

Cons

"The visibility of applications is not great, which is why we study upscalability."
"Could integrate better with VMware products."
"I would like to see improved integration with other tools."
"Sometimes the product gives us problems that require support."
"If the customer thinks about using additional solutions, Cisco should make sure they are not left out."
"It would be nice to have the ability to more easily collect information from other software when doing some types of analysis."
"More integration features would be beneficial."
"The configuration is too complicated and you have to create templates and use a lot of menus."
"If we want to modify the calculation matrix or equation, we have to raise a professional service."
"A typical user might want to see even more depth to the standard reporting and ease of integration."
"Entuity currently has APIs, but they are not straightforward. They are not flexible if an external system wants to communicate with Entuity or create an integration that is not available out of the box. Its APIs can be flexible so that they can be utilized for external integrations that are not available out of the box."
"It should support IPAM or IP Address Management. When it comes to the network, IP Address Management is a feature for which we have to use a different solution. When we are managing networks, if IPAM also becomes a part of this, we do not have to look for a separate solution."
"The configuration of the logging could be improved because if someone deleted any note or inventory, or some change to the inventory, we are not able to identify which user or which administrator modifies these details. For example, there should be read-only locks on maps to prevent their deletion. This way people can only read and cannot delete that particular map."
"Entuity can expand its coverage on monitoring VoIP solutions a little bit more."
"Entuity could improve by having more integration because now network management is not a standalone solution. You have to integrate it with your network, applications, and everything else. We have to collect that information from those solutions or relevant managers. Additionally, the SLA dashboard should be improved."
"What might be improved for the user may be the depth of insight into the events that do happen and the ease of integration."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar platform across all domains."
"The price of Cisco Data Center Network Manager is expensive compared to other vendors on the market."
"When we purchase a Nexus box, the MDS CM license comes with it."
"The product is licensed with contracts that work on a yearly basis rather than a monthly model."
"We usually opt for a yearly plan, commonly for three or five years upfront. Some customers may not utilize all the features included in the product, and this can lead to them paying for functionalities they don't need."
"On average, Data Center Network Manager's pricing isn't too costly unless you choose a premier license."
"The solution is very expensive."
"I would say that the pricing offers great value for the money."
"Entuity is not an expensive solution."
"It can be comparatively expensive but that is because it is comprehensive."
"It varies and depends on the quantity. It's worth the cost."
"We have 400 licenses and we are only using 150 licenses."
"Entuity's licensing is very highly-priced."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Healthcare Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
26%
Government
7%
Construction Company
6%
Outsourcing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business10
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise16
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar plat...
What needs improvement with Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
I do not believe it integrated well with different infrastructures for hybrid environments. I am uncertain because we have never attempted that in our environment, so they could perform better in t...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
The main use case for URL filtering with PAN-DB is that it performs quite well. Earlier, when I started in 2012, there was a Blue Coat product available during that period. I am not certain whether...
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Also Known As

Cisco Data Center Network Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Banco de Guayaquil, Cox Communications, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Roper St. Francis, University of British Columbia
Tait Communications, Vattenfall, Discovery, University of Minnesota, Pernod Ricard, Electric Car
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs. Entuity and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,988 professionals have used our research since 2012.