We performed a comparison between F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) and Microsoft Remote Desktop Services based on real PeerSpot user reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is the more user-friendly and cost-effective option compared to F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM), which is noted for its stability and scalability but considered complex and expensive. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services offers good centralized security features, low bandwidth usage, and good value for money. It is also easier to set up and has fewer reported issues.
"The performance of the solution is valuable."
"The solution is stable and reliable."
"The load balancing features are valuable."
"We have seen a return on investment from F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager. It provided access at a time when we didn't have it."
"The portal access was very good."
"The product allows us to create customized portals for your users."
"Our customers have never complained about the stability"
"In my opinion, the GUI is perfect with the configuration options provided. F5 BIG-IP has given customization options and policy configuration tools in the GUI. It's good and good enough to work."
"What I found most valuable in Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is accessibility because the solution lets you take control of your computer remotely."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is stable and reliable."
"It's built into the operating system and has a command line interface capability to insert credentials, IDs, a password, et cetera."
"Things can be made easier if someone is not with us or at a long distance since we can connect easily with those people. So, it's easy for us to use such features."
"The most valuable feature is performance."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services are unification, central management, and accessibility."
"The solution is easy to use."
"Microsoft is very reasonable in its approach to cost."
"The operational deployment is not great."
"In my opinion, the GUI side needs some improvement based on my usage. Sometimes, it doesn't work as efficiently as the CLI side."
"The price of this product can be improved."
"Cloud services are something that F5 Access Policy Manager could do better"
"I'd suggest improved documentation integration directly within the GUI. Right now, finding comprehensive documentation often requires going to external websites like the community portal."
"F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has room for improvement in integration with other products."
"The solution’s GUI looks very old."
"We do not have knowledgeable support teams locally."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could improve by having a better application for managing multiple sessions. There used to be one but they stopped supporting it."
"The initial setup of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is not the easiest. You need to have a certain understanding of how Microsoft is provisioning the solution to be able to set it up and use it."
"Sometimes the server stops working, and we don’t know why. Occasionally we’ll get a message to the effect of "There is no remote license.""
"Microsoft still has some really bad remote desktop appliance for Mac."
"Microsoft Desktop Services is stable but it takes up a lot of resources in the CPU. It's a bit heavier than some solutions."
"My customers are worried that the RDP protocol can be easily compromised and would like the option to use an alternative like Blast."
"Sometimes difficult to set up without the requirement for login credentials each time."
"We find the services are not as transparent as we would like for our integration with Citrix."
More F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) Pricing and Cost Advice →
More Microsoft Remote Desktop Services Pricing and Cost Advice →
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is ranked 12th in Remote Access with 13 reviews while Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is ranked 2nd in Remote Access with 75 reviews. F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is rated 8.2, while Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) writes " Facilitates packet inspection, modification, and offloading and offers visibility and troubleshooting capabilities, allowing for pre-production server testing". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services writes "Easy to set up and reliable, but needs an additional control panel". F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is most compared with Citrix Gateway, CyberArk Privileged Access Manager, Cisco ISE (Identity Services Engine), Ivanti Connect Secure and Microsoft Entra ID, whereas Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is most compared with TeamViewer, VMware Horizon, VMware Workstation, Citrix Workspace and Parallels Access. See our F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services report.
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