ExtremeManagement vs SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager comparison

"The report model is one of the valuable models. We are able to see all the information concentrated in reports, which is very useful. We are able to get the information about the performance of the equipment and check that everything is okay. You can get very useful information across applications, so we have very good experience with their management solutions. It has many functionalities to simplify the administration and monitor the development of the switches or AP. It is easy to deploy, easy to configure. and easy to develop. Its price is also good."

"The best thing about the solution is that it is all managed from just a single application window. We call this feature a single pane of glass due to the fact that almost all the features are all managed within a single application, or a browser, to be more specific."

"The technical support services are good."

"I need fewer people to do implementation and support, and I don't have to go on-site to change the configuration or otherwise support the switch."

"ExtremeManagement brings in the most value by reducing the technical debt to the organization in terms of having to hire personnel to maintain it or contract it."

"It is a stable solution."

"What's nice with NCM is you can set up policies that you can then check against the configs to ensure that your device configs adhere to a baseline or standard that you've set in place."

"The tool is useful for security purposes."

"Configuration pushing, upgrade capabilities, job backup, configuration backup, and real-time configuration change monitoring are highly beneficial features of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager."

"The most valuable Real-time fault detection is beneficial as it enables the identification of changes made to a device's configuration through the SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. This makes it easy to pinpoint which configurations were added or removed, potentially causing network issues. Such changes are saved in logs for future reference."

"It is pretty straightforward to set up."

"Compared to other vendors, like NetBrain, managing the solution is easy. They made it very user-friendly."

"The features we find most valuable is the configuration backup automation, the configuration compliance, the security vulnerability detection and upgrading devices."

"It would be great to not need an on-premises SiteIQ license for running a Fabric OS cloud or managing third-party devices."

"Some features are quite difficult to configure and they are very complicated to figure out. Maybe the vendors should introduce a more driven configuration that can clarify the processes a bit more to make the processes more clearly defined."

"It would be helpful if this solution had support for configuring and managing third-party hardware devices."

"They can improve the information period. Currently, we are able to have information for only 14 or 15 days, but we would like to have information for an extended period of maybe 30 days. Their technical support can also be improved in terms of the response time to the tickets."

"There could be better integration with third-party equipment and vendors."

"On NCM, reporting could be a bit better. It's completely become just one report. When I try to create a custom report, the solution just commits old server data."

"For each device, when you open the network performance monitor, it will give you all of the information about the device, but many of the natural configuration management features are not on that page."

"It would be great if they include a network service manager, network performance manager, or a privileged assessment in the next release."

"The solution could improve by being more secure."

"Its customer service response could be faster."

"I'd like to see additional features like support for devices that don't use CLI for configuration backups, expanded inventory support for other vendors beyond Cisco, and compatibility with newer SD WAN devices. These enhancements would further improve the product's versatility and utility for users. we hope for future enhancements, especially in supporting security devices that lack CLI backup options."

"The AI features do not work well."

"Improvements are needed in the automatic network mapping function."

"While they don't consider it affordable, they don't find it overly expensive."

"The support is billed on a yearly basis, and there are no additional costs."

"It has a good price. There is a good relationship between the cost and the performance."

"You have a base license for 50 devices, and then you can add more licenses as you go."

"With a minimal bundle, we pay about $3000 a year in licensing costs. If you have multiple devices in your network, you must buy the bundle, which is 100% identical for your infrastructure. If you have 15 devices, you need 15 licenses, for example. That's one bundle. You don't pay for anything over and above that."

"In Africa, the cost is a major factor in decision-making for many companies. As a result, some companies may choose cheaper solutions, even if they are open-source, over more expensive ones, such as SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. However, as an engineer, I believe that the functionalities and services offered by SolarWinds justify the cost. Nonetheless, many companies in Africa may still view the prices as unaffordable."

"The price of the solution is high compared to other solutions."

"Available at a moderate price"

"There is a license needed to use SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager."

"Pricing is reasonable and competitive."

"I have a yearly subscription."