Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Microsoft Intune comparison

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12,016 views|9,291 comparisons
91% willing to recommend
Microsoft Logo
6,490 views|4,668 comparisons
91% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on Mar 6, 2024

We compared Microsoft Configuration Manager and Microsoft Intune based on our user's reviews in several parameters.

Microsoft Configuration Manager is praised for its efficient system management and robust security controls, while Microsoft Intune is highly valued for its device management capabilities and integration with broader enterprise systems. Users appreciate the flexibility in managing policies with Intune, while Configuration Manager users highlight its customizable reporting and remote access. Both products received positive feedback on customer service and support, with Configuration Manager offering competitive pricing and Intune demonstrating cost-effectiveness. Areas for improvement include enhancing user interfaces and improving software performance for both products.

Features: Microsoft Configuration Manager offers efficient system management, seamless software deployment, comprehensive inventory tracking, customizable reporting, robust security controls, and convenient remote access capabilities. Microsoft Intune provides the ability to wipe data and reset devices, excellent visibility into connected devices, integration with broader enterprise systems, control over user access to websites, and easy-to-use interfaces. Both products have their own strengths and valuable features.

Pricing and ROI: According to user feedback, both Microsoft Configuration Manager and Microsoft Intune offer reasonable pricing and flexible licensing options. Users find the setup process of Intune to be straightforward, while Configuration Manager is praised for its pricing structure and licensing terms., The ROI from Microsoft Configuration Manager was perceived as favorable based on user feedback. However, Microsoft Intune demonstrated positive ROI with effective cost management, increased productivity, secure device management, streamlined workflows, and seamless integration with existing systems. Users highlighted significant time savings, enhanced user experience, and improved security measures, making Microsoft Intune a valuable investment.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Configuration Manager could benefit from enhancing its user interface, navigation, and layout to streamline tasks. It should also improve reporting, alerting, integration with third-party apps, and device compatibility. On the other hand, users suggest that Microsoft Intune should focus on improving its user interface, speed, performance, customization options, and troubleshooting features.

Deployment and customer support: Based on user feedback, the duration required to establish a new tech solution with Microsoft Configuration Manager can vary widely. Some users spent three months on deployment, while others spent a week on setup. However, for Microsoft Intune, some users spent three months on deployment and an additional week on setup, while others spent a week in total for both phases., Microsoft Configuration Manager's customer service is highly praised for its helpfulness and responsiveness, while Microsoft Intune's support is commended for prompt assistance and knowledgeable staff. Both offer reliable and dependable support.

The summary above is based on 127 interviews we conducted recently with Microsoft Configuration Manager and Microsoft Intune users. To access the review's full transcripts, download our report.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. Microsoft Intune Report (Updated: March 2024).
767,847 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"I like a lot of the reporting capabilities and baseline configurations.""Microsoft Configuration Manager is integrated with other Microsoft products.""I like Mircosoft's technical support. Microsoft has a few updates, like some of the critical KBs. They are published within the interval time, and in case of an escalation on the client missions, we will raise a ticket with the Microsoft team. They will create a hotfix or a critical update. They will chat with us, and that is one thing I like about Microsoft. Whenever any issues occur at my organization, they will help you out soon as possible within the SLA.""The initial setup is fairly straightforward.""Patching is the main feature because SCCM is made to control the entire environment without manually interpreting. So it is good to use for patching.""Microsoft is being very competitive right now, and they are really investing in a lot of new features to be more competitive in the marketplace.""SCCM is a stable solution.""There is a faster time to rollout. If we get a new PC, it can be ready for productivity right away."

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"I like that we can implement conditional access.""The most valuable features are the ones that make sure that the deployment is of a standard operating system and the Zero Touch deployment, which is very useful. This allows users to have an out of box experience.""The dashboards, the security, and the customization capabilities work very well for us.""Stable product that's easy to set up compared to other MDM products.""The technical support of Microsoft Intune is good.""The main advantage is that Intune performs its intended functions effectively.""Microsoft Endpoint Manager is not expensive overall, especially for small environments.""While Microsoft Intune boasts a wide range of features, its user-friendliness and bundled licensing cost are key considerations for me."

More Microsoft Intune Pros →

Cons
"I would like to see more automation.""Microsoft should extend support for additional platforms.""The assets have reached their end-of-life, and patching them is a complex and laborious task. It would be highly advantageous if there were an integrated solution that provided distinct options for each end-of-life asset, streamlining the process and facilitating comprehension.""There should probably be better remote support. They should also continue to improve on patch management, patching, and creating or turning products in software into deployable apps.""The main thing is that SCCM has to become an appliance instead of a server. When I say appliance, it has to come preconfigured so that it is drop-shipped into the enterprise and then you activate the feature sets that you want. It should pull down all the latest binaries. Once that is all there, it should have a discovery tool which goes out and discovers the assets within an enterprise. If the server, workstation, and applications are all coming from the same vendor, why not have the vendor do this work for us and automate it as much as it possibly can?""In terms of scalability, I believe there's room for improvement. While SCCM is capable of handling our current needs effectively, scalability could be enhanced to accommodate future growth and larger deployments.""It should provide the ability to remotely connect to mobile devices. There are some solutions that are doing that, but with Microsoft Intune, the only way to remotely connect to devices outside the organization and mobile devices is by using TeamViewer. It is pretty strange for a big company like Microsoft to not have something for that.""The analysis is something that can be integrated. Their report analysis can be improved a little bit due to the fact that most of the time complaints policies are saved by the admins. It's something that we need to look into and search for."

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"It would be beneficial to have a more straightforward understanding of Intune's capabilities, presented in a simplified manner.""Its configuration is fairly complicated. You have to do quite a bit of discovery to be able to deploy it for a customer. You have to ask them a lot of questions. So, its initial deployment is the biggest challenge. They should make it easier to deploy with the use of Wizards or something else. During the deployment stage, there could be profiles for the customers who are particularly wanting to use certain feature sets of Intune.""Microsoft Intune has a latency response time issue. The latency has room for improvement.""In the next release, I would like a feature to be able to properly lock down the device. For example, if an attacker or somebody steals the phone, you can be sure that the pin cannot be broken.""The feature that allows us to import the business application from the configuration manager to Intune is not very good at this time.""While Intune works perfectly well, the only potential downside is that the deployment could be a bit complex for some users.""I wanted to check if there is any provision at the Intune level to restrict certain things, such as a website, but unfortunately, that feature is available only in Microsoft Defender. Intune has web filtering capabilities, but they are only useful for protection from malicious websites, whereas we would like to be able to restrict a website. For example, YouTube is a clean website. No one would identify it as a malicious website, but if we want to stop the end-users from going to that website, we have to go for another product, such as Microsoft Defender or another third-party proxy solution. It would be great if this capability is included in Intune.""They should make it easier to order it, however, that's generally true for everything from Microsoft."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Pricing and licensing are horrible. You have to not look at dollar value to use SCCM. It's super-duper expensive but it works. The acquisition cost is expensive, it's labor-intensive. But it works."
  • "Pricing and licensing are a downside of SCCM. It's expensive. I'd have to confirm this, but I think they changed the licensing to core-based instead of socket-based. It's not cheap, because you have to buy the software, you have to buy SQL. Another thing we learned from talking to Microsoft is that they provide you a license for SQL if you run it on the same box as the primary server. If you run it outside that box, you have to buy SQL. Microsoft does recommend you running it on the same box because of performance. But then, in order to run SQL, SCCM, and everything on the same box, you better have some resources. It's an expensive solution. There's no doubt about it."
  • "Overall, I think it's fine. It's pretty much in-line because there are ways to offset it with the Office 365 licensing."
  • "SCCM comes with its own version of SQL Server. If you use that SQL Server with SCCM and don't use it for another applications than you get an SQL Server for free."
  • "The licensing is good because they have various options, depending on what you are looking for."
  • "Pricing is negotiable with Microsoft, depending upon which of their packages you choose."
  • "When you compare this solution with other tools in the market you might actually find a lot of variation in the pricing and that's why people opt for the other tools rather than Microsoft tools."
  • "Its price is okay because it is part of our licensing."
  • More Microsoft Configuration Manager Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Consider the Microsoft Enterprise Mobility Suite rather than choosing specific sub-components, e.g. only Microsoft Intune."
  • "There is a cost benefit of using Microsoft Intune because of the packaging with other Microsoft products."
  • "Microsoft Intune is a cost effective choice. It is less expensive than other products on the market."
  • "The purchase of the product was handled by someone else."
  • "I have no comment on pricing of the solution."
  • "The product is offered as part of a Microsoft standard bundle. The pricing can be competitive to Airwatch, and Maas360."
  • "For Microsoft 365 E5 clients, cost is not an issue as this product is one of the benefits."
  • "The price of Intune is included with the license for Office 365, so we don't have to pay anything extra for it."
  • More Microsoft Intune Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your… more »
    Top Answer:ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily and… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Configuration Manager gives different tools in one solution.
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes it easy to control security and manage the usage of mobile apps when you have a… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of the things I like about it Pros: Protected productivity: Intune gives you the… more »
    Top Answer: Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also access to both Microsoft’s user community as well as around-the-clock customer… more »
    Ranking
    2nd
    Views
    12,016
    Comparisons
    9,291
    Reviews
    25
    Average Words per Review
    458
    Rating
    8.4
    3rd
    Views
    6,490
    Comparisons
    4,668
    Reviews
    67
    Average Words per Review
    727
    Rating
    8.3
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )
    Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
    Learn More
    Overview

    Microsoft Configuration Manager helps IT manage PCs and servers, keeping software up-to-date, setting configuration and security policies, and monitoring system status while giving employees access to corporate applications on the devices that they choose. When Configuration Manager is integrated with Microsoft Intune, you can manage corporate-connected PCs and Macs along with cloud-based mobile devices running Windows, iOS, and Android, all from a single management console.

    New features of Configuration Manager, such as the support of Windows 10 in-place upgrade, co-management with Microsoft Intune, Windows 10 and Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise Servicing Dashboard, integration with Windows Update for Business, and more make deploying and managing Windows easier than ever before.

    Microsoft Intune is a comprehensive cloud-based service that allows you to remotely manage mobile devices and mobile applications without worrying about the security of your organization’s data. Device and app management can be used on company-owned devices as well as personal devices.

    In an increasingly mobile workforce, Microsoft Intune keeps your sensitive data safe while on the move. Microsoft Intune makes it possible for your team members to work anywhere using their mobile devices. Microsoft Intune provides both the flexibility and the control needed for securing all your data on the cloud, no matter where the device with the data is located.

    Microsoft Intune Device Management Key Features

    With Microsoft Intune Device Management you can:

    • Ensure devices and apps are compliant with your security requirements.
    • Rapidly deploy and authenticate apps on all company devices.
    • Remotely access devices to troubleshoot issues or to remove data from them.
    • Generate reports for all devices in the system.
    • Monitor the way users access and share information to protect company information.
    • Set rules and configure settings on personal and organization-owned devices to access data and networks.
    • Create user groups and device groups, allowing you to rapidly access many users and devices simultaneously.

    Mobile Application Management

    Mobile application management in Intune is designed to protect your organization’s data at the application level.

    With Microsoft Intune Application Management you can:

    • Configure apps to run with specific settings enabled.
    • Update existing apps that are already on the device.
    • See reports on which apps are used and monitor their usage.
    • Selectively wipe organization data from apps.
    • Add mobile apps to user groups and devices.

    As part of Microsoft's Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) suite, Intune integrates with Microsoft Entra ID for access control and with Azure Information Protection for data protection. It also integrates with Microsoft 365 Applications.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Microsoft Intune stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its ability to secure all devices under its management and the flexibility that the solution offers its users.

    A computing services manager notes, "Its security is most valuable. It gives us a way to secure devices, not only those that are steady. We do have a few tablets and other devices, and it is a way for us to secure these devices and manage them. We know they're out there and what's their status. We can manage their life cycle and verify that they're updated properly."

    The head of IT engineering at a financial services company writes, "The one feature we find most useful is the Mobile Application Manager. There are two types: we have the complete MDM and the Mobile Application Manager (MAM). We don't give our users phones, it is their own personal phone, and we need to allow them to have access to the company details on their phone. We need to create a balance between their own personal data and the company data. We deploy the Mobile Application Manager for them so that we won't be able to interfere with their own personal data."

    Sample Customers
    Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
    Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company17%
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Manufacturing Company13%
    Insurance Company9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company12%
    Government11%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm19%
    Computer Software Company18%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Manufacturing Company5%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization23%
    Computer Software Company12%
    Government7%
    Financial Services Firm7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise69%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise15%
    Large Enterprise66%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business38%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise48%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise33%
    Large Enterprise47%
    Buyer's Guide
    Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. Microsoft Intune
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. Microsoft Intune and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    767,847 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Microsoft Configuration Manager is ranked 2nd in Configuration Management with 78 reviews while Microsoft Intune is ranked 3rd in Configuration Management with 163 reviews. Microsoft Configuration Manager is rated 8.2, while Microsoft Intune is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of Microsoft Configuration Manager writes "Seamless system updates, useful integration, and reliable". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Intune writes "We can manage all aspects of our devices from a single console, easy to scale, and quick to deploy". Microsoft Configuration Manager is most compared with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, ManageEngine Endpoint Central, BigFix, Tanium and AWS Systems Manager, whereas Microsoft Intune is most compared with Jamf Pro, VMware Workspace ONE, ManageEngine Endpoint Central, SOTI MobiControl and Sophos Mobile. See our Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. Microsoft Intune report.

    See our list of best Configuration Management vendors.

    We monitor all Configuration Management reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.