Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Helix Core vs Rocket ChangeMan ZMF (formerly a Micro Focus product) 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Helix Core
Ranking in Software Configuration Management
7th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.9
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Version Control (8th)
Rocket ChangeMan ZMF (forme...
Ranking in Software Configuration Management
6th
Average Rating
7.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Software Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Helix Core is 0.8%, down from 2.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rocket ChangeMan ZMF (formerly a Micro Focus product) is 8.1%, up from 6.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Configuration Management
 

Featured Reviews

DK
Configuration management features improve workflow but require a steep learning curve
I need to work more with Helix Core to identify specific areas for improvement. However, it has an extensive feature set that leads to a steep learning curve, where users need to learn quite a bit of features to work with it effectively. While its customization is not an issue, the GUI might not appeal to everyone.
reviewer1527093 - PeerSpot reviewer
Very flexible with Johnny-on-the-spot tech support
I would like to see them enable parallel development for online. It's available now for batch stuff on the mainframe. Jenkins, IBM, and Rocket all supposedly already have safe and workable version of Git for the mainframe. With that in mind, we need to know where our feature is. Unfortunately, as good as ChangeMan is, if we're listing downfalls, they should be talking to me about this. Not me having to go talk to them about it. Hopefully, they have this in the works and they are positioning their product for the future. That's just a straightforward comment. It really comes down to whether they are complacent or not. The other thing that should improve is cost. Git, even on the mainframe, a large part of the components "free". They're the way you set them up yourselves and they're self-sustaining and built into the infrastructure. You can't charge me for that. I gave ChangeMan an overall score of eight, but what could drive them to a nine is coming up with a way for all my code that belongs together to be tracked and moved together. Everything should move based upon the mainframe; it needs to be alerted and synchronized.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I find the configuration management features of Helix Core particularly valuable."
"The customer service and support are excellent."
"We audit once a year for our ChangeMan access, accurate financial programs, and all of that. Auditors really love ChangeMan for how easy it is to get through and how tight the security is on it. Our internal auditors, external auditors, and SOX editors love this solution. We're in the healthcare business, so HIPAA regulations and all such things are a big deal, and this makes all that really simple."
"Scalability is great. It has absolutely met every need for us so far. We do have some concurrent development paths and we're able to flexibly assign variables. At the same time, our skeletons assemble where we want them to, so the scalability is very good."
 

Cons

"However, it has an extensive feature set that leads to a steep learning curve, where users need to learn quite a bit of features to work with it effectively."
"It has an extensive feature set that leads to a steep learning curve, where users need to learn quite a bit of features to work with it effectively."
"As such, there's nothing wrong with the product. It is great, but there are small things that can be better to make it much more friendly. The way you navigate through fields can be improved. If I'm going to stage a component over something that exists and that I've created in another library, and I want to pull it in and write it over what I've got there in my package, I've got to type in that data set name every time. That can be aggravating. It is not a big deal. The way things are sorted can also be improved. If you're doing a delete of a bunch of components, you can't sort those out by type or anything. Some things are just standard, and you can't look at them in a way that would be helpful."
"I would like to see them enable parallel development for online. It's available now for batch stuff on the mainframe. Jenkins, IBM, and Rocket all supposedly already have safe and workable version of Git for the mainframe. With that in mind, we need to know where our feature is."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"It's on a yearly basis. I am not aware of any additional costs."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Software Configuration Management solutions are best for your needs.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Educational Organization
8%
Real Estate/Law Firm
8%
Financial Services Firm
29%
Computer Software Company
11%
Insurance Company
8%
Hospitality Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Helix Core?
Pricing is relatively moderate at three to four out of ten. I find this cost justified for the capabilities provided by the product.
What needs improvement with Helix Core?
I need to work more with Helix Core to identify specific areas for improvement. However, it has an extensive feature set that leads to a steep learning curve, where users need to learn quite a bit ...
What is your primary use case for Helix Core?
We use Helix Core in our software development processes as a configuration management solution. Our typical use cases include system-level configuration management, versioning software, and managin...
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Also Known As

Perforce
Open Text, Micro Focus ChangeMan ZMF
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Intuit, Disney, Nvidia, Ubisoft, Samsung, Vmware, Adidas, Pixar, salesforce.com, EA
SPTS Technologies, Generali France, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (BBH), Kutxa-Vital-Banco Madrid, Space and Naval Warfare Information Technology Center (SPAWAR ITC)
Find out what your peers are saying about Helix Core vs. Rocket ChangeMan ZMF (formerly a Micro Focus product) and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.