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Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs OmniPeek 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
16th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
OmniPeek
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
47th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (41st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OmniPeek is 0.3%, down from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

Upul Abhayasena - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust management tool with an easy setup and room for more features
DCNM is used by one of the airline customers in Qatar to manage many data centers and rack switches running on normal Nexus or NX-OS mode. They required a controller platform to manage these Nexus switches, and thus, they utilized DCNM as a Fabric controller. Given that ACI deployment is very low…
Vinal-Patel - PeerSpot reviewer
Real-time analytics and alerts improve application performance and network operations
OmniPeek's ability to convert application visibility into flow helps me quickly understand application performance over LAN, WAN, or wireless. Its real-time analytics, integrated with LiveNX ( /products/liveaction-livenx-reviews ), allow me to monitor business-critical applications and set up alerts for application performance issues. This centralized dashboard and alert system is highly valuable for maintaining network operations.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Automation of the ILS."
"Fabric suite automation is a great feature."
"You can integrate all the networks into the software."
"Monitoring system provides a clear indication of what's going on in the network."
"It has a very nice dashboard so you can see what's currently happening in the network and the performance of the back story."
"The feature I find most valuable, is the stability of the solution."
"The product has excellent stability."
"The interface of this solution is easy to use overall."
"It's a solid piece of software. It's stable."
"The most valuable feature of OmniPeek is the ability to assign custom color codes to the different packets easily."
"The most valuable features are the voice bot, which checks the quality of service for voice, and the expert view that gives me insight on what and where to troubleshoot."
"I believe the most crucial feature of OmniPeek search is the ability to sniff packets based on channel switching."
"OmniPeek's ability to convert application visibility into flow helps me quickly understand application performance over LAN, WAN, or wireless."
"The most valuable feature is OmniPeek is user-friendly."
"The most valuable feature of OmniPeek was the ability it gave us to see the connection procedure."
 

Cons

"The configuration is too complicated and you have to create templates and use a lot of menus."
"API lacks robustness."
"We need better performance and reliability."
"The tool's pricing strategy could be improved to compete more effectively in the market, especially against competitors like Huawei, Aruba, and Juniper."
"The delivery Cisco Data Center Network Manager could improve if it was easier. Additionally, some feature improvement is needed."
"If the customer thinks about using additional solutions, Cisco should make sure they are not left out."
"Could integrate better with VMware products."
"The initial setup is challenging."
"I am not using OmniPeek for automation, we only do manual testing. Automation testing is tedious to do. The automation should be more user-friendly. I have exposed some APIs but the usage is not user-friendly."
"The solution's automation has room for improvement."
"I would like to see the saving feature improved. We have had issues if you do not save your progress then you have to start from the beginning."
"Making it more clear on how to configure the filters, or really automating them, would be an improvement."
"OmniPeek doesn't support Linux or Unix installations, which prompted the shift to Wireshark."
"I don't see a clear roadmap in the future for improving this software."
"I would like to see the tool work in an open environment the same as how it does in a closed environment."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is very expensive."
"I would say that the pricing offers great value for the money."
"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."
"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."
"The product is licensed with contracts that work on a yearly basis rather than a monthly model."
"On average, Data Center Network Manager's pricing isn't too costly unless you choose a premier license."
"When we purchase a Nexus box, the MDS CM license comes with it."
"There are different types of licenses available."
"The pricing for this solution could be improved, as it is a very expensive product."
"We have only purchased the add-on once and have not paid for any subsequent versions as it was too costly for us."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Educational Organization
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Data Center Network Manager?
It uses push technology, which pushes the changes to all relevant devices to ensure they are updated accordingly.
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?
In a mixed architecture where Nexus switches are used as border devices and are connected to a Palo Alto firewall (e.g., version 9.1 or 10.1), you might encounter issues with BGP peering. For insta...
What needs improvement with OmniPeek?
Centralized management of configurations needs improvement. Managing configurations for multiple sites individually is time-consuming; I should be able to push changes from a centralized portal. Ad...
What is your primary use case for OmniPeek?
I use OmniPeek ( /products/omnipeek-reviews ) for several use cases. Firstly, I use it for application performance, especially during acquisitions within my company, where applications are hosted a...
What advice do you have for others considering OmniPeek?
I recommend OmniPeek, especially if integrating with LiveNX for improved performance and security analytics. I would rate OmniPeek as an eight out of ten.
 

Also Known As

Cisco Data Center Network Manager
Savvius OmniPeek
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Banco de Guayaquil, Cox Communications, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Roper St. Francis, University of British Columbia
Apcon, Aruba Networks, Avaya Inc., Cisco Systems, Ekahau, Gigamon Systems, HP, IBM, IXIA, Meru Networks, Napatech, NextComputing, Procera Networks, Qualcomm Atheros, Ralink Technology Corporation, Telchemy
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs. OmniPeek and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.