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Microsoft Identity Manager vs OpenText Identity Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 29, 2026

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

Microsoft Identity Manager
Ranking in Identity Management (IM)
12th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
OpenText Identity Manager
Ranking in Identity Management (IM)
15th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
User Provisioning Software (9th), Identity Governance Administration (IGA) (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Identity Management (IM) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Identity Manager is 2.0%, down from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenText Identity Manager is 1.9%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity Management (IM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Identity Manager2.0%
OpenText Identity Manager1.9%
Other96.1%
Identity Management (IM)
 

Featured Reviews

RameshKumar9 - PeerSpot reviewer
Consultant at IOM - UN Migration
Supports reliable identity management and custom policy design
Microsoft Identity Manager can be improved by integrating it with Entra ID as a SaaS application or by having a cloud-based connector, as it is currently limited to on-prem scenarios, and a combination of both would be a great solution compared to competitors such as SailPoint or One Identity Manager. While the initial setup of Microsoft Identity Manager is not completely complex, migrating or upgrading to a new version can be complex and requires multiple backups to ensure it goes smoothly.
reviewer2401464 - PeerSpot reviewer
Architect at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
Updates systems quickly and does not have a limit on the number of users
NetIQ does not have a limit on the number of users. The tool is secure by nature. It can have more than one billion users. Event-based systems know what has to be changed. SQL-based systems can only change using time and date. Event-based systems provide immediate results, while SQL-based systems need time to sync. It is totally different from a security perspective. Event-based systems can update all the systems in seconds or minutes. Other systems do it within 24 hours. The basic event-based system is AI-driven. It has some kind of robotics and programming. Other tools need programming. I like systems that have prebuilt ideas of security. NetIQ has been in the market for a long period. It has all the systems and connectors. There is not much coding. We just need to configure the products. We need not do any programming. I haven't seen any other product that needs only configuration to do the job. Most products in the market are SQL-based. They need programming. Some service providers who sell other products to customers do not sell NetIQ because they can make more money by selling solutions that need more consultancy and programming. More hours lead to more money.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Very powerful synchronization tool."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the fact that I can use it to track who is sending which email, who is accessing which documents or which files, etc. These tools help me improve security within the enterprise environment."
"The product allows us to track the logins easily."
"I would recommend Microsoft Identity Manager to others anytime."
"Microsoft integration products are strong. That is what I like about the product."
"I would say that it's the best solution on the market and I would go ahead with it."
"What makes this solution attractive is the licensing model, as Microsoft Identity Manager is included in premium versions of Azure AD and in enterprise agreements such as E3, which makes the solution very attractive to many of our clients who are subscribed to those products."
"It is one of the easiest products to implement, which is one of the main advantages. The integration is easy. Unlike other products, it is not complicated to integrate."
"The Identity Engine is event-based and provides real-time synchronization and password synchronization to more than 40 different applications and services."
"NetIQ does not have a limit on the number of users."
"I would recommend this product, its quite flexible and quick to start with."
"The most valuable feature of this solution has been the ability for us to integrate a lot of external systems, and the automatic transfer of a lot of identity information. Additionally, the customization is very good."
"To my knowledge it is the only event based IDM system."
"It's a solid product, it's a mature product."
"NetIQ Identity Manager is by far the most flexible product available, and the pricing is incredibly good, even if you're not situated in the BeNeLux."
"The greater strength was to keep the identities synchronized without failures in both attributes and passwords."
 

Cons

"From my view, Microsoft doesn't invest much in this product and it can take a while to resolve any issues."
"Instead of using the connectors from the third-party companies, they should make the Microsoft templates available with this product. If Microsoft would increase the number of the box connectors that would be helpful to all the customers who use it daily."
"It requires a lot of improvements. Microsoft is killing this product and migrating some of the features to Azure AD. The last version of this solution was 2016. If it is going to stay and integrate with Azure AD, its integration needs to be worked on in terms of connectors, etc. It doesn't seem that they are improving it alone. Microsoft wants to integrate it with Azure AD, but the integration is still not complete."
"All actions require logging in to the server."
"The setup was difficult. The deployment process is not quick."
"The product could be more friendly for non-native English speakers. It would also be better if it were more intuitive and visually attractive."
"The information that is available for the Active Directory portal is segregated here and there."
"It would be good if Microsoft Identity Manager Maybe could be integrated with Azure Active Directory directly and made as a cloud platform."
"Be more honest about how poorly it runs on Windows servers. It is optimized for Linux."
"The interface is old and outdated, and the design software seems archaic."
"We have another system that is using the SAML system, and we also integrate with Active Directory only. If NetIQ Identity Manager can integrate directly, we would not need to use the Active Directory directory."
"The vendor must provide an easier console for configuring things for smaller customers."
"NetIQ Identity Manager can improve the bulk account uploads, it's very slow. We work in the education sector, and every year we have approximately 20,000 accounts to create in a very short period, the NetIQ Identity Manager has a problem with this, we need to use a batch job."
"There are some limitations in the custom workflows, mainly in the GUI presentation, but the latest release improved."
"If it works, Designer is a charm, but it can be a pain to keep updated because of all the Java stuff that regularly goes wrong."
"User Application UI Product Licensing"
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The prices can always be improved. I'd rate it a 4 out of 10 in terms of pricing."
"When comparing the cost, Microsoft Identity Manager is the best solution because it is free if you have an Azure P2 license."
"My rating for the pricing of Microsoft Identity Manager is average, neither too expensive nor too cheap."
"The tool's price is low for my company."
"The solution is expensive."
"MIM is free with a Microsoft Azure license."
"Microsoft Identity Manager comes with the premium or community license. If the customer doesn't have a premium license, the reseller who sells the licenses of Microsoft to the enterprise can extend the license for the client."
"The solution is included in the Microsoft E3 license and premium subscriptions of Azure AD."
"The price of the solution is a bit high and could be reduced."
"I would rate the pricing a two out of ten, with one being low price and ten being high price. It is significantly more cost-effective than the major players in the market."
"It would easily help them in getting more market and more customers if more consultants knew about their software. If they could keep it free for schools for teaching purposes, it would be good. I had to pay myself to get it and use it for training. Their competitors are giving it for free. I had to pay for it myself. They are losing market to their competitors."
"The solution is quite affordable."
"You just need to be aware that the more systems you connect, the more license fees you have to pay."
"Micro Focus is flexible when it comes to price. The cost varies from customer to customer. There are no additional costs, though. Everything is included."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
8%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise11
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise6
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Identity Manager?
Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Microsoft Identity Manager, it has a couple of cloud connectors that can sync directly with the O365 admin center, which is good enough, but Entra I...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Identity Manager?
Microsoft Identity Manager could be improved in several areas. The solution uses a batching process that executes at scheduled times, which differs from other vendor solutions. It is missing capabi...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Identity Manager?
Microsoft Identity Manager is used primarily in the retail business. The implementation is enterprise-level within a national company, specifically at JCPenney, which is a large organization.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NetIQ Identity Manager?
The pricing depends on whether we buy the solution as a service or a license. The license is expensive. If we buy it as a service for a large number of users, it is the cheapest tool we can get. Th...
What needs improvement with NetIQ Identity Manager?
The tool is used mostly in big systems to understand what is happening. There are not many technicians who know how to use the product. The vendor must provide an easier console for configuring thi...
What is your primary use case for NetIQ Identity Manager?
NetIQ Directory is the main function of the product. As far as I know, it is the only event test directory that exists. It has all the potential for event-based testing. It has rules, connectors, a...
 

Also Known As

MIM, Forefront Identity Manager, FIM, MS Identity Manager
Novell Identity Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Whole Foods Market
Sheetz
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Identity Manager vs. OpenText Identity Manager and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.