Dec 09, 2019
I believe there is one on Wikipedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_network_monitoring_systems
However a matrix often doesn't tell the whole story.
My advice is to try several of them out.
The Wikipedia feature matrix looks useful, but just because one
product looks like it has "all" of the features doesn't make it
better, or even very good.
The more scalable systems run better under Linux, than Windows. If
you think you want a windows based system because it will be easier
because you know windows, that is a reasonable point of view. However
comprehensive network monitoring is not an "easy" thing, so ease is
not something you should be expecting if you want a really
comprehensive system. On the other hand, if all you want to do is see
if you can ping some servers, then anything will work, and your task
should be easy.
Look for a tool that addresses your most important challenge. For
example if you have a network supporting voip phones using Cisco
infrastructure, and you are seeing voice quality issues, then focus on
what system will solve those specific problems.
I like systems that have a lot of ways to add my own customizations,
and my most important systems have a lot of my own code running to
collect data that is fed up to the monitoring system. Flexibility to
solve more than "can I ping" is present in most systems, but not all
systems will let you easily add new features of your own.
I use zabbix. I have been monitoring complex infrastructure for 25
years, and I have investigated most of the tools out there, and used
many of the most popular systems, and Zabbix was the first one that I
loved. I have it alerting me when a user responds to phishing emails,
monitoring my server HVAC systems, producing SLA reports on demand,
and alerting me when someone leaves a door ajar... in addition to
watching every port on my network, every aspect of my servers, etc.
But *I* did that, Zabbix was just a tool to get me there.
Zabbix is the first affordable system I used that was nearly complete
to begin with. And to me it is easier to customize than most other
systems. But your experience WILL be different. So try several out,
and be prepared for it to take a LOT of your time.
George Wenzel
