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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs N-able Take Control comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

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 Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Remote Access
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
335
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Remote Access
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
86
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (5th)
N-able Take Control
Ranking in Remote Access
29th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.2%, down from 10.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 8.2%, down from 12.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of N-able Take Control is 1.5%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune9.2%
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services8.2%
N-able Take Control1.5%
Other81.1%
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24
Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license
The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.
reviewer2795433 - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Secure remote access has protected sensitive country data and supports strict compliance needs
I understand from the IT team managing Microsoft Remote Desktop Services that it is complex to set up the multiple roles, certificates, and networks required. Networking is quite complicated. Even though on the data center side it is quite simple, maintaining the farm of other connections that connect to that server is the complex piece. I understand there are more modern systems replicating what this solution does, which are easier to use, such as Azure Virtual Desktop within Microsoft Azure Cloud or Amazon WorkSpaces, which I have used before. Rather than having to manage all the complex networking, you could abstract it away a little further in the cloud for easier use. I also understand that this tool is in an end-of-life state now, with Microsoft actively pushing people towards Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365. I do not believe further features will be rolled out due to its end-of-life state, making it a legacy solution now.
Brian Hershey - PeerSpot reviewer
Platform Manager at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
It covers you for HIPAA and PCI certification
Take Control is a way to remotely take over the console of a managed machine, but it also gives you other abilities. You can take over the console, access the registry, throw commands at it in the background, and manipulate the file system Take Control enables you to collaborate with end users.…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like how Microsoft Intune lets me lock down the email profile and make it accessible only on certain devices."
"There are so many features, but Windows Autopilot is one of the features that are very valuable for most customers."
"Its protection policies are most valuable. It protects mobile devices as well as individual apps. It is pretty scalable, and its documentation is also pretty good. It is also pretty straightforward to deploy."
"The integration with conditional access is great."
"I am very satisfied that when any user comes into our organization and we provide the user ID and password, the setup will auto-complete with basic applications and security installed automatically, making the device ready within approximately ten to fifteen minutes."
"From a solution perspective, I always recommend that you go for it."
"I have been using the Enterprise Application Management feature of Microsoft Intune, which enhances abilities when it comes to app discovery, deployment, and automatic updating."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Intune is patching-related capabilities."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of use."
"The most valuable features of the solution are ease of use and the simple environment."
"I like that it works. In most cases, it's predictable. You know what you get."
"It's simple to set up."
"I have found Microsoft Remote Desktop Services to be stable."
"The solution is easy to deploy and there are many features available that you can turn on or off depending on your budget."
"It is a stable product."
"The tool shares computer resources perfectly."
"Take Control enables you to collaborate with end users. It's for supporting a workstation where you want the person on the other side to see you moving their mouse, and you can work with them."
"N-able Take Control has saved me a lot of time driving back and forth to the customer's site."
"The most valuable part of N-able Take Control is being able to remotely access your customer's site. You are able to view their network. Once you have it set up, it's always available. N-able Take Control can be used even when other remote access controls have been made."
 

Cons

"It could offer more attributes for authentication."
"It would help if administrators could pinpoint the exact location of a stolen device to help law enforcement retrieve it and apprehend the suspect."
"My whole team is saying that they would rate technical support a three or four out of ten."
"Intune should support platforms other than Windows. We have encountered several limitations, especially when handling iOS devices."
"The solution could improve by having better integration with Apple."
"In the next release, I would like a feature to be able to properly lock down the device."
"Currently, BitLocker does not support BYOD enrollment, which is a product limitation."
"Although Intune is from the same provider, its integration with other Microsoft products, like Microsoft Defender or Microsoft Purview, could be improved."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could improve by allowing the sharing of the office application. For example, the ability to replace a PC when something is wrong."
"Sometimes, the updates break the system."
"It's so insecure, and it's so limited."
"Users have to re-enter their ID and password every time they log on, which is tedious and repetitive."
"There is a limitation on the number of concurrent users."
"Microsoft still has some really bad remote desktop appliance for Mac."
"The user interface needs improvement."
"We'd like them to continue to improve on security."
"The dashboards I do not use because there are issues. The solution monitors your antivirus and other programs but it does not seem to work well."
"The dashboards I do not use because there are issues. The solution monitors your antivirus and other programs but it does not seem to work well."
"We've seen some latency problems in AWS environments. Aside from that, it's a pretty solid service."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Generally, we get favorable discounts, so it's not too bad. Obviously, we're looking at decreasing those wherever we can to bring value back to the public purse because it's all charity based. It's all publicly funded."
"There are licenses required for this solution. We enable licenses on the devices we need to manage."
"The pricing for Intune and the competitor products are all within the same range, there is no true advantage when it comes to cost."
"Pricing depends on the features. Microsoft offers special packages if there are more than 10,000 users, and you may be able to get a reduced rate."
"It is reasonable. When you have Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 license, it is already licensed in that license. So, you could say it is free."
"It is not a cheap solution. The price for a device when you start using it at a large scale can be improved. It is covered under our enterprise agreement. We pay once a year. I am not aware of any additional costs."
"Intune's pricing is reasonable considering its benefits and the high costs it helps avoid."
"The product is relatively pricey, but considering its benefits, I'd say it's fair. The benefits outweigh the expensive licensing fees, especially for large organizations, but medium-sized and smaller businesses may be unable to afford it."
"We do not have to pay for the product."
"The tool must be cheaper."
"It's not an expensive product."
"The cost of the solution is low."
"I am aware that for Azure we do have an extra license because we are leveraging on different tenants."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comes free as part of Microsoft Windows."
"Although not an expensive product, pricing is always something that can be improved."
"The cost is fair."
"N-able Take Control charges you a monthly fee for every customer that you have booked in, and it used to be inexpensive but it's a little bit more expensive now."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Comms Service Provider
16%
Non Profit
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business124
Midsize Enterprise53
Large Enterprise167
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise34
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
I was not involved in the pricing and licensing perspective, so I cannot speak too much on that. However, I know that...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
I understand from the IT team managing Microsoft Remote Desktop Services that it is complex to set up the multiple ro...
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Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
Remote Desktop Services
SolarWinds MSP Take Control, SolarWinds MSP Anywhere, SolarWinds Take Control
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Bainbridge Technology Solutions, NKIT Systems
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. N-able Take Control and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,976 professionals have used our research since 2012.