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DX Spectrum vs SolarWinds Network 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.1
DX Spectrum offers significant ROI and value through cost savings, automation, improved accuracy, and long-term process efficiency.
Sentiment score
7.2
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager offers valuable automation and compliance features, enhancing ROI by reducing engineer reliance and improving issue resolution.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.1
DX Spectrum's customer service ratings vary, with praise for expertise but criticism for response time and inconsistent support.
Sentiment score
6.6
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager's support is generally satisfactory, but users desire faster response times and better ticket prioritization.
Broadcom technical support is very good.
Senior Program Manager at Tata Consultancy Services
Technical support is limited but generally acceptable as we possess skilled personnel, making us less dependent on SolarWinds.
Managed Services Engineer at Loop1 Systems
SolarWinds tech support is a strong point.
MD at Thembanet
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
DX Spectrum is praised for scalability, handling large networks, easy server addition, and supporting numerous devices efficiently.
Sentiment score
7.6
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager is highly scalable, supporting thousands of devices efficiently for varying enterprise sizes, despite past issues.
The product is scalable as SolarWinds increased its licensing capacity from supporting 12,000 devices to 48,000 devices with stack licenses.
Managed Services Engineer at Loop1 Systems
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
DX Spectrum is stable with minimal downtime, quick bug fixes, enhanced performance, and valued for its long-standing market presence.
Sentiment score
7.6
Users praise SolarWinds NCM for stability and performance, but mention occasional issues from OS updates and system specifications.
We found the process of DX Spectrum down from time to time, and we need to interfere manually to restart.
Network Engineer at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

DX Spectrum needs simpler documentation, modern interface, improved user-friendliness, and better integration with third-party tools and HTML5.
SolarWinds requires improvements in report generation, compliance, AI features, integration, device support, interface, security, automation, and performance.
Currently, they appear as pop-up messages, but I would prefer having alarm messages shown as a scrolling bar at the taskbar for easier visibility.
Solution Architect at SA Consulting
If we want to make others changes without paying for customization, we need to learn it deeply by ourselves.
Network Engineer at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
The event management should have more deduplication and alert correlation and check the bidirectional communication with ServiceNow.
Senior Program Manager at Tata Consultancy Services
Currently, there are limitations in performing tasks without logging into routers directly.
Managed Services Engineer at Loop1 Systems
I would like to see more features in terms of wireless reporting and more historical information for client connectivity in SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager.
MD at Thembanet
 

Setup Cost

DX Spectrum's pricing is high, more suitable for large enterprises, with robust features justifying the cost despite concerns.
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager offers reliable features with prices from $1,000-$30,000 yearly, despite initial setup challenges.
The price of DX Spectrum is not competitive when compared to other solutions, such as SolarWinds.
Solution Architect at SA Consulting
The price is very, very high.
Network Engineer at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
The licensing costs of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager are expensive, but considering its reliability, feature enhancements, and support, it is worthwhile.
MD at Thembanet
 

Valuable Features

DX Spectrum offers scalable monitoring, robust fault management, user-friendly interface, and seamless integration with CA Service Desk.
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager automates backups, compliance, and upgrades while enhancing security and network performance with real-time insights.
The interface has the needed configuration for visualization, and it's effective in providing a complete diagram of network links and connections across various stations globally.
Solution Architect at SA Consulting
The DX Net apps include all kinds of dashboards and integrate with event management tools, network tools, and all these tools from Broadcom.
Senior Program Manager at Tata Consultancy Services
We do not know everything about how to build the dashboard, but for what the management requires, it is very simple.
Network Engineer at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
The solution facilitates compliance reporting through an NCM module, effectively generating out-of-the-box reports on software vulnerabilities and outdated software versions.
MD at Thembanet
Configuration pushing, upgrade capabilities, job backup, configuration backup, and real-time configuration change monitoring are highly beneficial features of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager.
Managed Services Engineer at Loop1 Systems
 

Categories and Ranking

DX Spectrum
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
118
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (11th), Network Monitoring Software (30th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (29th), Network Troubleshooting (8th), DX NetOps (1st)
SolarWinds Network Configur...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (15th), Network Automation (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Network Management solutions, they serve different purposes. DX Spectrum is designed for DX NetOps and holds a mindshare of 24.3%, down 32.5% compared to last year.
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager, on the other hand, focuses on Configuration Management, holds 2.4% mindshare, up 1.3% since last year.
DX NetOps Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
DX Spectrum24.3%
AppNeta by Broadcom34.7%
DX Performance Management27.1%
Other13.900000000000006%
DX NetOps
Configuration Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager2.4%
Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform11.9%
Microsoft Configuration Manager8.8%
Other76.9%
Configuration Management
 

Featured Reviews

PinchasAlbalya - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Engineer at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
Monitoring has become centralized and management now sees real‑time health of key network assets
The time investment required is significant, not because of difficulty but because of the need for free time to invest in it. We need to get the knowledge. We know there are many options, but we took an external vendor to install and make the customization. If we want to make others changes without paying for customization, we need to learn it deeply by ourselves. The tutorials are very complicated. They could work on that area. The tutorial part could be more simplified. I know there are many explanations, and you can get help or documents in one click on the current page in the product, but it is not very clear. If you want to do something new that you did not see from the vendor in the installation, it is not very simple. The documents are good for people that know how to operate the product well, but for new users, it is not simple.
AB
MD at Thembanet
Flexibility and reliability enable effective network monitoring with integrations and compliance reporting
The flexibility and reliability of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager are particularly valuable. It allows for a significant amount of integrations, including with collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams and Telegram, as well as ServiceNow and Microsoft BI. The solution facilitates compliance reporting through an NCM module, effectively generating out-of-the-box reports on software vulnerabilities and outdated software versions. Additionally, the real-time change detection feature significantly reduces the time to resolve issues by allowing alerts to be tracked through to resolution. The use of templates helps in deploying configuration standards, preventing configuration errors.
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Marketing Services Firm
6%
Government
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise90
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise8
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with DX Spectrum?
The time investment required is significant, not because of difficulty but because of the need for free time to invest in it. We need to get the knowledge. We know there are many options, but we to...
What is your primary use case for DX Spectrum?
The university purchased DX Spectrum, called ICE. DX Spectrum NAC is working for us only on Cisco 9200 switches. It is not working on any other switch like C1000 or HG or any 2960X. Even other Cisc...
What do you like most about SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
The configuration compliance aspect of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager allows for easy comparison of configuration settings across branches, ensuring adherence to security guidelines and b...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
The licensing costs of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager are expensive, but considering its reliability, feature enhancements, and support, it is worthwhile.
What needs improvement with SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
NCM could benefit from enhanced automation capabilities — for instance, enabling workflow-based configuration automation tasks. While regex and command-line scripting are available, they require sp...
 

Also Known As

CA Spectrum
SolarWinds NCM
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

National Informatics Centre India, Banese, Olympus, AlphaServe Technologies, Sicredi
United Lincolnshire Hospitals, Air Rarotonga, NetSuite, Thai AirAsia, REA Group, 335th Signal Command, Agilisys, Marine Expeditionary Force
Find out what your peers are saying about DX Spectrum vs. SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager and other solutions. Updated: September 2020.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.