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IBM Sterling File Gateway vs JSCAPE by Redwood vs Safe-T Secure Application Access comparison

 

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Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

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Managed File Transfer (MFT)
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Featured Reviews

Vinutha Gangadhara - PeerSpot reviewer
Ability to customize on top of the inbuilt processes, user-friendly and well-categorized
I’ve been part of this client for the last seven-plus years. It’s been close to 70 to 80 continuous improvements we have delivered. The priority ones which we always shortlist are the recurring incidents or recurring issues, which came in the initial phase of the year when we took this entire landscape under our maintenance. One such incident I can recollect is with respect to performance tuning. We committed to our users 99.99% and above as the availability metrics for Sterling Integrator. This has acted as a high-availability system, but we treat it as mission-critical. When it comes to the commitment we give to users, we have to ensure the system is kept most stable. So, the majority of the problem was in the communication channels. Whenever we enabled additional logging for the communication channel, the system used to have hiccups. So we worked with the vendor, stating that the visibility channel framework needs to be changed because the moment we enable more logging, it literally brings the system down, or the system doesn’t work as it should. They took our input and delivered a better framework in their next releases, which helped us after upgrading to have that stability intact. As the system grows, we ensure to have performance tuning triggered and optimize the business process wherever required. For example, by default, Sterling Integrator business process will have full logging enabled. We took care of those things. Not all business processes or workflows require full logging enabled. Only a few critical ones require every step logs. For the rest, we categorized and reduced the logging for those workflows. That actually helped us to increase the IO overall from ten milliseconds to six milliseconds. That was a good achievement. Apart from that, in terms of queues, how we maintain the queues, how we defined all file queues across the critical business process is one thing we felt was done better. The threads we assign for the priority queues and the business processes were configured to those priority queues, whatever is critical, so that it gets high priority to allow the threads to process. So that queue thread Sterling was taken under the performance tuning. Apart from that, I think some of the best practices which IBM recommends is what we usually run through every year. We just have the health check done through IBM, and we just ensure that all the best practice recommendations are added in the system.
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.
it_user787671 - PeerSpot reviewer
Needs to be easier to configure and to display logs more simply
We use only it for scanning files for viruses. That's the only feature we use in this product It needs to be easier to configure, it should be something that's working well with other sources. It should be something that allows me to see the logs simply. One to three years. Sometimes it doesn't…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Scalability is fine."
"It is a very flexible platform, and this flexibility is the best part of it."
"It offers easy utilization of resources for smooth transfers."
"This product has been a leader in the field of secure file exchange."
"IBM Sterling File Gateway is user-friendly, allowing us to easily monitor and track file data."
"I have found almost all the features valuable."
"The most valuable aspect is that it has good functionality."
"The solution's most valuable features include the partner management capability, which centralizes all configurations and connections."
"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."
"We can send the data quickly and securely."
"We receive customized email notifications and alerts regarding user activities and the number of login attempts."
"JSCAPE provides high-level data encryption, which can help us share confidential and time-sensitive data across our global partners without any hassle."
"It is platform-independent and can flawlessly work on any operating system using the latest security standards."
"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."
"Valuable features include a comprehensive management UI and a strictly controlled managed file transfer."
"The tool can transfer files of any size and type without any issue."
"If you want a very flexible system that you can easily integrate, and develop interfaces for it or plug-ins to other application environments, it's probably the most flexible"
"Safe-T is very good for users because it has plug-in for Outlook."
"the security level is very high. After we tested it and checked all the security aspects of the product, we found that it's highly secure."
"It's easy to use over the web. A user who is not in the office can use it and securely insert files."
 

Cons

"Whenever we enabled additional logging for the communication channel, the system used to have hiccups."
"We need REST APIs or other tools to create that listening producer."
"Not a ten because it's a bit complex, not so simple. It's one product but there are many screens."
"Based on my experience, there's some room for improvement. We're currently using version 6.1.1, which has a limitation where files are purged after seven days. We have to restart the purge count manually through our standard procedure. This issue should be resolved in the latest version."
"The solution should provide content or videos explaining to freshers how to configure it and what every field means."
"IBM is advising not to use the IT translate anymore but this is going to be an extra cost to the customer to use the alternative."
"I faced issues during stress testing."
"The number of failed files number increases with high workflow so that needs improvement."
"Enhancing the user interface would make it more accessible and appealing to the new users and it will definitely enhance the user experience."
"The documentation part can be improved to be more precise for beginners to understand the advanced features of the tool."
"With constant software releases and updates, detailed notifications and documentation on the improvements along with the comparison of the past and present features would be helpful to understand and use it better."
"The GUI has to be enhanced."
"The product's pricing needs improvement."
"Setup is time-consuming."
"The JSCAPE team could create detailed documents or blogs on how to troubleshoot certain errors that come over in integration with existing environment tools."
"The price is too high and the product line is too complex."
"One important thing that we haven't found in this product is the ability to provide a read-only view for documents. Also, the ability for the customer to add annotations to these documents."
"The Outlook agent is not working well for installing it in the entire office."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are two types of customer licenses, an annual preview license, and an ELA-based license. I have found the solution is priced well. However, they need to review the pricing model because if you look at any other competitors, such as GlobalSCAPE, they do pricing based on the components and what you select. With this solution you have a monolithic application which you need to buy, there is no component level price discount."
"I do know that it's generally considered expensive, but it's also widely used across corporate organizations due to its robust protocol communication, secure file transfer capabilities, and integration features. Although there are other tools on the market, IBM Sterling File Gateway stands out for its unique options and cloud compatibility, which offers future benefits, particularly in avoiding data storage issues."
"It's reasonably priced at $800,000."
"The solution's pricing is reasonable."
"The software is expensive compared to other vendors."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
35%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Insurance Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Retailer
7%
Computer Software Company
7%
No data available
 

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 IBM Sterling File Gateway?
The cost-effectiveness of IBM Sterling File Gateway was a major factor in our decision to use it, in comparison to th...
What needs improvement with IBM Sterling File Gateway?
The product itself wasn't very easy to comprehend. I required a lot of customization that didn’t meet my needs. I res...
What is your primary use case for IBM Sterling File Gateway?
I utilized Sterling primarily for SFTP and Connect Direct. I have a complicated system involving ZOS mainframe, data ...
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...
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Also Known As

No data available
No data available
Safe-T SDA, Safe-T, Safe-T Software-Defined Access
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
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
Government of Israel, eviCore Healthcore, Glen Imaging, Sarin, LBG, Rollomatic, Boegli-Gravures SA, Banque Heritage, Groupe Minoteries, Temenos, ZEK, RLM Finsbury, Harel Insurance, Meitav Dash
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