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Datto Remote Monitoring and Management vs Microsoft Configuration Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Datto Remote Monitoring and...
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (5th)
Microsoft Configuration Man...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
85
Ranking in other categories
Software Distribution (1st), Server Monitoring (5th), Configuration Management (3rd), Patch Management (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Systems Management solutions, they serve different purposes. Datto Remote Monitoring and Management is designed for Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) and holds a mindshare of 11.7%, up 7.4% compared to last year.
Microsoft Configuration Manager, on the other hand, focuses on Server Monitoring, holds 5.2% mindshare, down 7.1% since last year.
Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Datto Remote Monitoring and Management11.7%
Kaseya VSA18.2%
NinjaOne13.5%
Other56.6%
Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM)
Server Monitoring Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Configuration Manager5.2%
Zabbix24.7%
Checkmk9.9%
Other60.2%
Server Monitoring
 

Featured Reviews

Dario Caraponale - PeerSpot reviewer
It's very easy to implement and create policies
Implementation for our first customer took about a week. The console is cloud-based, while we install agents on customer desktops and laptops, both on-premises and remote. Maintenance seems quite easy so far. I can set up alerts for anything happening in the tool, so my technical staff don't need to monitor the console constantly.
JunedBedrekar - PeerSpot reviewer
Have effectively deployed patches and applications while integrating with cloud solutions
The features I find most valuable in Microsoft Configuration Manager are replication and scripting. If I want to get a fetch report for anything, such as hardware-related issues or group policy-related issues, I need to fetch the report by using SCCM's scripting language and remediation part. The inventory collection features of Microsoft Configuration Manager are good because we always prefer the inventory. We do it by using the script language. We use remote management capabilities in Microsoft Configuration Manager. Remote management capabilities are useful if the user is not providing access; we can use the backend users to update the group policy and sync the devices. These are the main features we require.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Automation, in terms of the standard patches and standard updates, and remote support are valuable. When it does the standard Windows and patches, it works really well. This is something they focus on. Remote support is also something they focus on quite a bit, and it works really well. Being able to get to an agent or a client computer right away is very helpful."
"The alerting system helps us determine what are high level alerts, and what are alerts which can wait for a day or two. We catch RAID failures, hot servers, bad drives (or predicted failures on drives), etc."
"I also like how Datto integrates seamlessly with the Autotask ticketing system."
"It has a single pane of glass, and it integrates well with other software."
"AEM support is great for Macs."
"Even when the connection to the server is lost, the monitoring continues without interruption."
"The project management and task management features work well. It's a decent product in that regard."
"We support nine different nonprofits, and the billing took the manager three or four days working on spreadsheets. When I finished automating everything with Datto, we cut everything down to a couple of hours. That's a substantial cost savings on the billing side."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager is patch management."
"It uses detailed descriptions of the workstations, and that is good for me."
"Valuable features include configurations enforcement, compliance data gathering, and deployment of a standardized OS."
"I have found the solution to be scalable. We have around 50,000 users using the solution."
"Patching is the main feature because SCCM is made to control the entire environment without manually interpreting. So it is good to use for patching."
"With the right administrator, application deployment can do wonders."
"There is a faster time to rollout. If we get a new PC, it can be ready for productivity right away."
"Overall, I believe Microsoft Configuration Manager is definitely a good product."
 

Cons

"Be prepared to spend a lot of time on conversions if you have a lot of clients."
"The only area where I see room for improvement is the ability to delay the application of patches for a set number of days."
"Sometimes we have some downtime when Datto is doing updates. Maybe it's because of the cloud service they use. I'm not sure if they're going through AWS or Azure or what. That's happened, but the outages have been few and far between."
"We would like to see a little more functionality when monitoring network devices, such as switches and routers."
"My most significant criticism is Datto is a complex product that takes a while to understand, but that could be said of almost any solution at the same level. It depends on where you're starting from. You have to rework all your workflows, and it's some heavy lifting if you want to get it right."
"The actual setup and the automation of their product are horrific. When you buy it, there is nothing out of the box. You have to custom design it for everything you want it to do. You pay for implementation, but they don't really do a whole lot to help you get it going. I know it does a lot more than what ours is set up to do, which is frustrating. When I've demoed other systems, their setup is so much better. When you pay for their setup, there is so much more, whereas I just feel like we didn't get a very good setup."
"I would like the ability to remotely manage configuration and settings on individual units. Some organizations have a certain device configuration that needs to be consistent across all computers. For example, if we have computers that cannot go to sleep or hibernate because they're being accessed remotely, we need to be able to quickly configure those computers to not hibernate. With Datto, there is no easy and/or direct way to accomplish this. I can't create a group called No Hibernate and drag all those computers to that group so that they do not go into hibernation. There is no easy way to put in a policy or a procedure like that. It's still back to going to each computer and doing it by hand, which is what I'm trying to get away from. I want to automate and simplify as much as possible. I write code and scripts to do most of my work anyways. The intention is to get away from me having to be so hands-on."
"The main challenge was implementing patch management for software that was not in the tool's standard library or catalog."
"Built in PowerShell cmdlets would be a nice feature because managing clients remotely can be a pain without knowing the WMI calls to run."
"Management of Linux devices could be improved."
"The solution should incorporate AI. It should also incorporate real-time capabilities. If we could get real-time information about challenges or issues, it would allow us to take immediate action. For example, with the recent outage caused by the Windows issue, having a real-time warning system could have helped us avoid or reduce the downtime we experienced."
"Devices like smartphones and tablets are managed very well on VMware, however, they are absent in SCCM. I could configure iPad from the VMware site and it was done very easily. It should be just as possible on SCCM."
"They need to improve the support for the Mac operating system."
"Its dashboard can be improved and made a little bit better."
"The assets have reached their end-of-life, and patching them is a complex and laborious task. It would be highly advantageous if there were an integrated solution that provided distinct options for each end-of-life asset, streamlining the process and facilitating comprehension."
"Not everything is readily available, and there are a lot of commands that are only executable via PowerShell."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The license typically depends on the number of endpoints. On the RMM side, I think we're paying around $2,250 per endpoint. Then there is also a license per user and tech, so that comes out to about a hundred bucks per tech, give or take."
"We had to pay out some overtime for a few problematic sites. Sites on domain networks are incredibly easy to install. We learned a few tricks that streamlined the process, but in the beginning, it was a bit tedious."
"AEM is a lot more scalable as you just pay per agent instead of having to purchase expensive licenses."
"It fluctuates on the number of computers you have. Depending on the number of computers you have, it can fluctuate anywhere between $5 to $10 per computer per month, which is not too bad. I am not aware of any additional costs beyond the standard licensing fee. It was one flat rate per device."
"It goes by how many endpoints you have. It is about $3,000 a month for us. If we can't figure it out ourselves and need additional help to set it up, we would have to pay for that."
"Regarding pricing, Kaseya sells it as part of a bundle called Kaseya 360. This package includes several tools, such as EDR, ransomware protection, and more. Considering the bundle, the price is reasonable. However, where I am in Brazil, the high dollar rate and taxes make it not cheap for mid-sized companies. Still, it's competitively priced compared to similar tools."
"Pricing and licensing are a downside of SCCM. It's expensive. I'd have to confirm this, but I think they changed the licensing to core-based instead of socket-based. It's not cheap, because you have to buy the software, you have to buy SQL. Another thing we learned from talking to Microsoft is that they provide you a license for SQL if you run it on the same box as the primary server. If you run it outside that box, you have to buy SQL. Microsoft does recommend you running it on the same box because of performance. But then, in order to run SQL, SCCM, and everything on the same box, you better have some resources. It's an expensive solution. There's no doubt about it."
"Microsoft provides a steep price for their enterprise products, but they offer very competitive pricing for their legacy customers."
"I rate the price of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager an eight out of ten."
"The solution operates on a licensing model that can be expensive."
"We use the tool's free license. It is expensive."
"The price model is different for every client."
"We have a support license from Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager and the overall price of the solution is reasonable."
"As far as I know, it is an annual operating expense license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Performing Arts
15%
Wholesaler/Distributor
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise64
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Datto Remote Monitoring and Management?
We would like the ability to be able to mass push scripts and programs to several computers when we need to install things, versus doing it one by one, as an improvement for Datto Remote Monitoring...
What advice do you have for others considering Datto Remote Monitoring and Management?
I gave Datto Remote Monitoring and Management a rating of 10 out of 10 because it is smooth, easy to connect, and use. My advice to others looking into using Datto Remote Monitoring and Management ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Datto Remote Monitoring and Management?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Datto Remote Monitoring and Management is that it is smooth and simple.
How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...
How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...
What do you like most about SCCM?
One of the standout features of SCCM is its application management capabilities. It allows us to create packages efficiently and deploy them to specific groups within our network. This streamlined ...
 

Also Known As

Autotask EM, Autotask Endpoint Management, Datto RMM
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM ), Microsoft SMS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Wessex Networks, Base2, Valiant Technology, Technology Services Group, TechGuru
Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Find out what your peers are saying about NinjaOne, Kaseya, N-able and others in Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM). Updated: October 2025.
872,655 professionals have used our research since 2012.