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GoAnywhere MFT vs JSCAPE by Redwood vs Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct 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:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category, the mindshare of GoAnywhere MFT is 9.2%, up from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of JSCAPE by Redwood is 2.7%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is 8.1%, up from 8.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Managed File Transfer (MFT)
 

Featured Reviews

Joel Vinas - PeerSpot reviewer
Created a much better working relationship with our partners and saved a lot of time
While I was happy with the training and support, more of it could be beneficial. We had some basic training and support. I talked with Fortra recently, and they said that they revamped and changed their training support. I have not used it since December. I got support in February and May of last year, and it was not bad. I was just not sure which questions to ask. Trying to learn this stuff on the fly as you are handed a project is always stressful. I like that you can tweak the interface so much, but it would be nice to be able to tweak it some more. The ability to further tweak the interface would be advantageous, as our end users had some questions about modifications that we could not address. Other than that, GoAnywhere seemed to fulfill its role as a simple solution for secure file transfer.
Akshatha Ramesh - PeerSpot reviewer
Good automation, no complex coding, and high-level data encryption
When it comes to performance and scalability, JSCAPE is a highly reliable software, however, I would suggest a few improvements: 1. The documentation needs a revamp for a better understanding of the features of the tool. 2. Customer service can be offered on call or chat. 3. The initial setup is time-consuming; it could use a video tutorial. 4. UI can be improved in terms of look and feel. 5. Documentation should be provided for a majority of newly released features as these can be difficult for a layman to use without proper instructions.
Sumit Mundik - PeerSpot reviewer
Has good file transfer speed, but licensing cost is too high
The initial setup of the solution is not straightforward because it's not GUI-based. If you are installing the solution on a UNIX server, you should have a basic understanding of UNIX. You should know how to go from one directory to another, what the config files are, how to edit those files, and how to get the backup of those files. You need a little technical knowledge for it. The developers working on the solution are very costly for the organization. Also, the complexity of having this kind of setup is very difficult. This solution is only used by giant financial companies like BNY Mellon, Barclays, and JPMorgan Chase. They cannot replace the solution because they have several files transferred internally using it. It is very difficult and cost-consuming for them to change, migrate, or upgrade their system. That's the reason they are not able to do it very easily.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution provides secure, customized forms where users can input values and share details, which is very important for internal data sharing."
"GoAnywhere MFT is the best; we prefer it."
"Before, we had to write scripts and manually update them to move data around, encrypt files, or rename files. Now we just use the GUI to set the modules for transfers, encryption, renaming, and copying, allowing us to set it and schedule it to run without any user interaction."
"The most valuable features are the automatic processing of files and scheduled execution of the files."
"When users say, 'I'm building spreadsheets that I would like to be uploaded on a regular basis into the IBM i,' we are able to accommodate that request within a matter of hours rather than the days it would take to create programs to do that. That is very useful. It has eliminated several dozens of scripts for us."
"Its speed is the most valuable because every integration used to take months with old SOA tools, integration buses, and that type of stuff. Now, we do integrations in a matter of days. Security is another valuable thing because every step in the workflow has an audit trace, which is great. This also brings a lot of confidence in automating business process workflows through this type of solution."
"Another nice feature is that you can invoke a native program from GoAnywhere. That helps you because you don't have to get fancy with agents. If a native program runs on the server that GoAnywhere is running on, like sed or perl, you can use it,"
"GoAnywhere centralizes data exchanges, helping to facilitate file transfers between our critical systems."
"JSCAPE provides high-level data encryption, which can help us share confidential and time-sensitive data across our global partners without any hassle."
"Triggers are also something that is useful as they automate the use of boilerplate code."
"It keeps a clear record of all the file transfers that take place, the person who initiated them, and the outcome of the execution."
"We can send the data quickly and securely."
"The product's most valuable feature is the high availability clustering."
"The automation part of JSCAPE by Redwood is great because you can set up a scheduled delivery with files and be notified if the transfer was successful."
"It helped in confidentially transferring files with a vast number of servers available with no external applications required."
"Triggers are something that is very useful as they automate the use of boilerplate code, and we can define certain functionality of certain tasks also."
"Security is the most valuable feature of this product."
"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."
"The product has been very stable."
"Automation is the most valuable feature."
"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."
"The Security Plus feature of this solution is excellent, and allows you to send encrypted files very securely to remote destinations."
"Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is a solution that is on the market for a very long time. There is an integrator that has been developed and evolves every year. On the roadmap, there is always a new integration. For example, it's one of the solutions in the market that out of the box can handle EBICS protocol. The file processing is done very well. By default, there are a lot of configurations that can be customized."
"The most valuable feature is that it provides 100% reliability for file transmission. It ensures that files get delivered in a secure manner. When you use Connect:Direct, your file 100% gets delivered to the next delivery location. If the log shows that a file got delivered, it will have all the transmitted data without truncation or other data issues."
 

Cons

"If the hostname has a dash in it then it does not work."
"For training, there should be some sites or resources on YouTube or Udemy. They do not have that currently."
"The technical support has room for improvement."
"We are a little concerned because the maximum number of open connections allowed is 200, and we are pretty much maxed out... if they expanded the number of open connections allowed, we would be better off."
"Improvement in support or product relies on being ingenious, supportive, and listening to its customer base."
"On the platform side, I would like to see some improvements in the dashboarding and telemetry data."
"GoAnywhere's interface could be a little more intuitive."
"The process of adding a vendor is very easy. You just point and click. You create your job, schedule, and project, and off you go. You just need to know what the processes do when you add in a new job that runs daily and so on. For us, it is not a problem, but maybe the documentation on that could be a little more straightforward. We, however, have no problems figuring that out. It is pretty straightforward for us."
"The FTP/S and ad-hoc techniques can further be automated."
"Database crashing was seen whenever there was an overload."
"Enhancing the user interface would make it more accessible and appealing to the new users and it will definitely enhance the user experience."
"The price is too high and the product line is too complex."
"The product's pricing needs improvement."
"Improving the error handling feature can help users to identify and resolve issues more quickly and efficiently."
"Support for more complicated workflows, such as conditional logic or branching, could be added to allow users to create more advanced automation processes."
"The JSCAPE team could create detailed documents or blogs on how to troubleshoot certain errors that come over in integration with existing environment tools."
"I do not have any notes for improvement."
"The initial setup could be simpler and better."
"Technical support is the number one concern."
"Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct could improve by adding some of the functionality that some other vendors have. For example, GoAnywhere has call agents, which are small clients that can be installed on the endpoints and can be handled by the central point on the server. If I want to do this with the IBM solution, I have to sell a lot of account addresses. The price could be unprofitable for the customer. There is some small functionality that could be implemented and could be easily done to improve this solution."
"User interface is not user friendly."
"The user interface could be more user-friendly."
"This solution cannot be deployed on a root_squash NFS, which limits superuser privileges."
"They have File Agent, which is an additional utility and a component of Connect:Direct, for automated file transmission. In that utility, there is some issue with the file name. There is a limitation on the file name, and that is being fixed by IBM."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is very attractive. In terms of the capacity of the product and functionality, it is a good price."
"The cost was definitely within reason and it has definitely been worth the cost, based on how much we can automate. It has exceeded my expectations."
"The cost of GoAnywhere versus the value it brings to our data transfer operations is reasonable... The cost is relatively expensive but, back to the car analogy, that's to be expected with a Ferrari."
"HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT is very reasonably priced for the value it brings."
"After evaluating other solutions, we found the pricing they offered to be genuinely competitive."
"For what we pay to GoAnywhere every year, we are getting a fantastic deal. From a dollar perspective, it provides very good value."
"Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT is an inexpensive solution."
"I find it to be very fair. It is very good."
"The software is expensive compared to other vendors."
"The price and licensing of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is expensive."
"Annual licensing fee."
"The solution's licensing cost is too high."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Retailer
9%
Financial Services Firm
42%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Insurance Company
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?
GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?
The pricing for GoAnywhere MFT seems reasonable when compared to other similar services, especially cloud services. A...
What needs improvement with Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT?
The application uses resources such as network connections to shared directories or SFTP connections. I would appreci...
What do you like most about JSCAPE?
The product's most valuable feature is the high availability clustering.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for JSCAPE?
I rate the product’s pricing a three out of ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with JSCAPE?
JSCAPE ensures data integrity. You know that the file has been transferred and on which date, as we provide timestamp...
What needs improvement with Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct?
I do not find anything that needs improvement in Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct as a product. I have been supportin...
What is your primary use case for Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct?
The primary use case of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is to transmit data. It offers two modes of transfers: SFTP,...
 

Also Known As

HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer,
No data available
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

McKesson City of Modesto, California Kwik Trip Northwestern University Charter Communications
BAE Systems, ABN AMRO, Boeing, Bank of America, Dassault Falcon Jet Corp, Bank of Montreal, General Dynamics, Bank of Taiwan, General Electric, Citibank Canada, Honeywell, CreditSuisse, L-3 Communications, Columbia University, Harvard Medical School, Kaplan Higher Education, Northwest Christian College, Kaiser Permanente, Share Builder, Procter & Gamble, TransUnion, Roche Diagnostics, BASF, 1-800-Contacts, Canon, AMPM, Daimler AG, Coach, Edwards Brothers, USB Financial Services
HZMO, Bank of Communications
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Fortra, Progress Software and others in Managed File Transfer (MFT). Updated: May 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.