OpenText Service Management (SMAX) vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL] comparison

OpenText Service Management (SMAX) and OpenText Service Manager [EOL] are both solutions in the IT Service Management (ITSM) category. Additionally, 88% of OpenText Service Management (SMAX) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 79% of OpenText Service Manager [EOL] users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 21, 2025

OpenText Service Manager [EOL] and OpenText Service Management SMAX compete in IT service management. SMAX appears more favored for its advanced automation and AI capabilities, providing better long-term value.

Features: OpenText Service Manager EOL offers comprehensive IT service request management, robust integration capabilities, and customization options. SMAX boasts advanced automation, AI-driven insights, and a modern architecture, which are often preferred for their enhanced functionality.

Room for Improvement: OpenText Service Manager EOL could enhance its cloud capabilities, reduce deployment resource requirements, and simplify its integration process. SMAX might improve by refining its reporting tools, enhancing dashboard customization, and expanding customer support to meet complex demands.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: OpenText Service Manager EOL involves a traditional deployment model that can be resource-intensive, but it offers strong customer support. SMAX provides a more flexible deployment through cloud-based technologies, allowing for quicker implementation and improved satisfaction from its responsive service.

Pricing and ROI: OpenText Service Manager EOL typically has a lower initial setup cost, appealing for budget concerns. SMAX requires a higher initial investment but offers a better return on investment over time due to its scalable, flexible features that enhance efficiency, justifying the total cost of ownership.

To learn more, read our detailed IT Service Management (ITSM) Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

IT Service Management (ITSM)

June 2026

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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

Automation Anywhere

Featured Reviews

Venkat Sivaprakash

Management Consultant at Accenture

Has significantly improved document-driven workflows and reduced processing time across finance and HR functions

Automation Anywhere has evolved significantly and upgraded itself to provide agentic AI and AI-based automation solutions for document automation. The product has matured considerably over time. We can create workflows that can call an API. We can include prompts in particular workflows for ChatGPT-related functions, connecting to an LLM and RAG to perform tasks. For document automation, modern features are available to train documents, ensuring high accuracy and repeatability over time. The system is very easy to use. I recently completed a course in document automation, typically designed for people involved in coding and technical aspects. Though I understand coding comprehensively, I don't do actual coding. The course was very accessible. Currently, extensive coding isn't necessary due to the hybrid model incorporating GenAI aspects, low-code, no-code capabilities, APIs, and numerous pre-built objects in Automation Anywhere. The features include GenAI-driven prompting methods and workflow creation capabilities. In these workflows, we can create decision boxes and call APIs without coding. We simply pull objects, drop them, connect them, and add minimal coding when needed. The most crucial aspect isn't coding but rather sizing the automation and fleshing out the details. Automation Co-pilot takes notes and performs automated analysis. It can extract details from videos, summarize conversations, and provide detailed information. During calls, it identifies instructions and performs tasks such as preparing reports and reconciliation. Automation Anywhere can also connect with Microsoft Co-pilot. Through Co-pilot, real-time operations can be executed, allowing direct interaction between vendors and automation through this component.

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HugoAlmeida

Head Of Delivery at Timestamp ITM

Centralized service processes have improved cross‑department visibility but reporting still needs work

The machine learning capabilities in OpenText Service Management (SMAX) are somewhat not published the way they should be. They work pretty well, but they are not used as much in the current experience of our customers. They have them; the solution has them, but they usually go a little bit below the radar in terms of visibility. I believe there is room for improvement when it comes to machine learning capabilities. OpenText Service Management (SMAX) has room to improve mainly on reporting components. The reporting components include dashboards, and while OpenText Service Management (SMAX) has a reporting module, it's somewhat limited, so I believe it has room to improve there, with more inclusion of artificial intelligence in the models and more in project management and portfolio management capabilities. We want to see better use and more functionalities enabled with the already existing capabilities such as AI and reporting in the next OpenText Service Management (SMAX) release, but one important thing we think should be included is a module for metrics, similar to Google Analytics, that focuses on the metrics of the tool usage. The module shouldn't just report on the components of OpenText Service Management (SMAX) but also track how the tool is used by end users, for example, what functionalities users utilize more frequently, the performance of those functionalities, and how long it takes them to open a ticket or log in, focusing on applicational monitoring metrics and performance management metrics.

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Farah Ben Ahmed

DLO Veritas Backup solution Project Manager at Tunisie Telecom

Is easy to set up, but customization needs improvement

Sometimes, customization is simple. The version we are using now has a nice interface Customization can be difficult at times because scripting is often required. I've been using this solution for ten years. Generally, it's stable, but sometimes we see behavior that we cannot understand. It's…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"By combining Automation Anywhere and Appian together, we have been able to build a bot that works with Appian workflows to manage all our employees."

"Automation has been playing a significant role in every aspect of our institution."

"This is the right platform and choice, as every business needs to be at this pace and cannot ignore automation if you really want your company to get to the next level and be at par with competitors."

"In our efforts to efficiently manage the master data at our factories, the biggest benefit is the fact that we have been able to rein in what was an increasing number of engineers who were needed, on the order of some 100 people, so that’s a major result."

"This RPA software has good scalability and stability, is easy to understand and easy to use, even for users who have no experience with automation software."

"A cloud deployment typically takes no more than one business day."

"Overall, based on my experience with Automation Anywhere, I would rate it a nine out of ten."

"Automation Anywhere has improved my company significantly; earlier we were dependent on the client installed on local machines, but now it is completely web-based, so we don't have to worry about having a dedicated VM."

More Automation Anywhere pros

"This is a cordless application that can be used throughout any organization."

"The most valuable features of Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX) are that it is user-friendly, easy to configure, and adaptable."

"OpenText Service Management (SMAX) is evolving in addressing the needs across different sectors like IT or HR."

"I've used this kind of application for more than 20 years and from my perspective, SMAX is one of the best products on the market."

"The customization features are quite good, and we have a very good local vendor helping us in this regard."

"OpenText Service Management Automation X provides valuable features such as topic analytics for incident and problem management. It also includes natural language processing for analyzing technical descriptions. Additionally, it features a virtual chatbot capable of processing natural language to interact effectively with end users. This service enhances customer support and is not subject to the limitations often found in offerings from other vendors."

"The tool is very easy to use."

"The product provides an interface for the end users to make requests."

More OpenText Service Management (SMAX) pros

"It's a complete service management suite; a complete management product used by the company worldwide for us."

"One of the big benefits that’s come out of this is a centralized view of all IT operations that really enable us to shift resources (people and money) in a real-time way to accomplish whatever we need."

"The initial setup is easy."

"I advise others to use the HP Service Manager because it's a powerful and capable enterprise solution."

"A valuable feature for us is that we have an ordered way to handle all the cases that we can handle with the infrastructure."

"It is a rich content solution and a good and complete solution, along with a lot of functionality."

"It can adapt to any process in the organization."

"Service Manager does what it should, but it's quite outdated."

More OpenText Service Manager [EOL] pros

Cons

"IQ Bot is useful but the price is not friendly."

"Automation Anywhere can be improved in certain areas specified in the cognitive zone where the information needs better OCR Engine + Machine Learning capabilities. Also, they can improve on the System Identified region function of the IQ Bot - Our team faced a tough time in handling that as we were not able to assign variable to System Identified Region as the IQ Bot tool wasn't allowing it."

"They are working on scalability, but I'm expecting them maybe a faster pace for the thing already in place. They need to improve the extraction and accuracy. It's a sort of a journey that we started with a few fears that may end up with a 100 or 200 fears. These are our expectations from IQ Bot. We are quite hopeful that a future release will solve this problem."

"There should be a way to avoid recoding everything whenever there's an upgrade to the latest version."

"Improvement areas will be there for everybody. I think one area which I would like to see improvement is in IQ Bot. Maybe it has improved a lot in version 11 X but I think that that's one area which definitely scope to improve."

"Unwanted windows are popping up. We have to train a bot to recognize the window if it comes up, know what it is, and click it. If it is interrupting our bot, I just want to avoid that window, because I am getting failed logs."

"It is not able to use OCR effectively and has limited usability."

"Enhancing the support tiers might be beneficial, and pricing has been a primary challenge, with a need for cheaper options and more tiered support."

More Automation Anywhere cons

"SMAX lacks in integrations as well as written documentation."

"The product's connectivity with third-party products is an area of concern where improvements are required."

"The solution lacks sufficient documentation."

"The initial setup of Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX) is complicated, but once it is set up the configuration is straightforward to adapt to the users' or customers' needs."

"The tool has negatively impacted our productivity."

"The reporting functionality is not the best as it is not easy to use."

"OpenText Service Management (SMAX) has some stability challenges that are crashable and not stable at times."

"OpenText Service Management (SMAX) has room to improve mainly on reporting components. The reporting components include dashboards, and while OpenText Service Management (SMAX) has a reporting module, it's somewhat limited, so I believe it has room to improve there, with more inclusion of artificial intelligence in the models and more in project management and portfolio management capabilities."

More OpenText Service Management (SMAX) cons

"I think one area which is the most painful from my point of view is if you need to integrate a lot of the tools, and being able to make that a lot more seamless."

"I think the best recommendation to Micro Focus would be to increase awareness and the marketing for this product."

"Micro Focus Service Manager is not very great. It would be better if it had more features. When it comes to features, BMC tops the chart. When it comes to usage, people use BMC more."

"In the release that we currently have, the biggest challenge was reporting."

"The greatest issue for us is to understand the roadmap. We want to know whether we should upgrade now or should we wait three months."

"The solution does not interface well with other products and is difficult to implement."

"The user interface is very clunky. It's only now beginning to be a web-based interface, but for now it's still very clunky."

"Room for improvement is the speed with which you're able to access it and where it isn't as slow and draggy. It is really draggy."

More OpenText Service Manager [EOL] cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Licensing costs range from $50,000 to $200,000."

"On a scale of one to ten with ten being the most expensive, I rate the price of Automation Anywhere an eight out of ten."

"Automation Anywhere has an advantage in terms of licensing. It is more cost-efficient compared to all other RPA platforms. It is a recommended solution when clients need a cost-efficient automation tool to perform unattended automation."

"Automation Anywhere's price is considerably better than UiPath's."

"Our advice is that anybody interested in this product should negotiate product bundles in order to reduce the cost of installation and setup."

"We are not receiving the right information about their features, e.g. Automation Anywhere University, or anything that they are selling. They need to improve their documentation."

"Our pricing a year ago was $600 per license."

"It's justified because we have saved quite a bit of money at the company and many manual hours. Overall, it justifies the cost."

More Automation Anywhere pricing and cost advice

"The solution is somewhat cheaper than the competitors."

"The cost of the license for SMAX varies depending on the configuration, including the number of seats for users and the customer's specific requirements. It's not a fixed cost and can vary."

"The license is not cheap."

"I would say that identify your requirements and pay for the support to implement and test those requirements, and then hope that you did a good job because the cost of their service is fairly expensive."

"I pay for Service Manager on a yearly basis, and the price is reasonable - I would rate it five out of ten."

"Micro Focus Service Manager is a little cheaper than other options. You have to pay a monthly subscription fee."

"HP Service Manager has moderate pricing."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

17%

Construction Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

14%

Manufacturing Company

Marketing Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	154
Midsize Enterprise	82
Large Enterprise	536

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	4

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	38

Questions from the Community

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It depends on your use case. Is it simply to automate a couple of processes? Is it to augment a human team? AA is ver...

See all answers

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

From my experience using AA tool, it depends on the applications that you want to automate, because there some applic...

See all answers

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It is a highly preferred RPA tool. You can check my Automation Anywhere Review to know more.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)?

We mostly deal with OpenText Service Management (SMAX), Service Management, and UCMDB, the UD Discovery, Unified Disc...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)?

We are still working with OpenText and Splunk. I remember that Splunk is now with what Cisco AppDynamics bought. We a...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)?

OpenText Service Management (SMAX) is okay, not expensive and not the cheapest. It is overall good.

See all answers

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Comparisons

UiPath Platform vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 13% of the time

Microsoft Power Automate vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 11% of the time

Blue Prism vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 7% of the time

WorkFusion vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 2% of the time

AutomationEdge vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 2% of the time

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ServiceNow vs OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

Compared 17% of the time

Ivanti Voice vs OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

Compared 13% of the time

JIRA Service Management vs OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

Compared 13% of the time

BMC Helix ITSM vs OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

Compared 6% of the time

ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus vs OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

Compared 5% of the time

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ServiceNow vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

Compared 19% of the time

JIRA Service Management vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

Compared 14% of the time

BMC Helix ITSM vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

Compared 13% of the time

SCSM vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

Compared 11% of the time

TOPdesk vs OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

Compared 7% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Automation Anywhere

June 2026

Download Automation Anywhere product report

Buyer's Guide

OpenText Service Management (SMAX)

June 2026

OpenText Service Management (SMAX) report

Download OpenText Service Management (SMAX) product report

Buyer's Guide

OpenText Service Manager [EOL]

June 2026

Download OpenText Service Manager [EOL] product report

Also Known As

Automation Anywhere, Testing Anywhere, Automation Anywhere Enterprise, Agentic Process Automation System (Now Certified for WorkSpaces)

OpenText Service Manager, Micro Focus Service Management Automation X (SMAX)

Micro Focus Service Manager, HPE ITSM, HPE Service Manager

Interactive Demo

Automation Anywhere

OpenText

Demo not available

OpenText

Overview

Automation Anywhere offers ease of use, robust system connectivity, and GenAI-driven document automation through a cloud-native platform, significantly enhancing productivity across multiple industries with advanced AI features.

Delivering a comprehensive suite of tools designed for easy integration and rapid deployment, Automation Anywhere drives efficiency by reducing costs and automating repetitive tasks. Its cloud-native platform supports broad industry adoption, including advanced AI features like process automation and Co-Pilot, streamlining complex workflows with minimal technical skills required. Users benefit from robust integration capabilities, which facilitate seamless interaction with multiple systems. However, there is room for improvement in areas such as user-friendliness for beginners, stability, flexible licensing, and enhanced OCR functionality. Organizations in sectors such as banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare gain from the improved operational efficiency and ROI Automation Anywhere offers.

What are the important features of Automation Anywhere?

Ease of Use: Simplifies automation tasks with a user-centric interface.
Robust Connectivity: Provides seamless integration with multiple systems.
GenAI-Driven Document Automation: Leverages AI to automate document management.
Process Automation & Co-Pilot: Enhances workflow automation with advanced AI.
Cloud-Native Platform: Enables rapid deployment and integration.

What benefits should be evaluated in reviews?

Time Savings: Automation drastically reduces manual processing time.
Cost Efficiency: Decreases overall operational costs by automating tasks.
Productivity Enhancement: Streamlines workflows with AI-driven tools.
Improved Integration: Enhances ability to work with multiple systems.
Scalability: Supports growth with a flexible cloud-native architecture.

In the insurance industry, Automation Anywhere is utilized for automating processes such as enrollment management and compliance checks. Its applications extend to supply chain management, financial transactions, and business performance monitoring across sectors like banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare, helping organizations to automate routine tasks, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.

Automation Anywhere

OpenText Service Management Automation X delivers efficient service management automation with user-friendly configurability across IT, IoT, HR, and finance sectors. It enhances business processes through integrated incident management and natural language processing with virtual chatbots.

OpenText SMAX blends user-friendly design with broad language support and robust storage. It enables organizations to deploy in both on-premise and cloud environments using Kubernetes. SMAX excels in business process improvement, incident management, and uses intelligent agents for autonomous alerts and issue resolution. However, it requires enhancements in integration capabilities and documentation, third-party product connectivity, and contract management. Users face challenges with process automation and search functionality, demanding greater customization and flexibility.

What are the key features of OpenText SMAX?

User-Friendliness: Simplifies service management across departments.
Configurability: Allows customization to meet specific needs.
Adaptability: Effective across IT, IoT, HR, and finance.
Language Support: Broad language capabilities for diverse users.
Storage Capabilities: Efficient and reliable data management.
Process Improvement: Tools for streamlining business operations.
Incident Management: Effective handling and resolution of issues.
Natural Language Processing: Chatbots that enhance customer support.
Automation: Facilitates seamless logistics and service catalog management.

What benefits and ROI should users evaluate?

Enhanced Efficiency: Streamlines service management processes.
Improved Customer Support: Virtual chatbots provide superior assistance.
Scalability: Adaptable to growing business needs.
Cost Reduction: Optimizes resource usage and reduces operational costs.
Employee Onboarding: Simplifies and accelerates onboarding processes.

Banks and telecom companies primarily employ OpenText SMAX for service management automation, leveraging its ESM and ITSM capabilities. Deployed on-premise and via cloud, organizations in regions such as Saudi Arabia focus on integrations and upgrades, using SMAX as an end-user portal for incident management.

OpenText

Service Manager on SaaS provides you with a cloud-based, industry leading IT Service Management solution.

OpenText

Sample Customers

Google, Linkedin, Cisco, Juniper Networks, DellEMC, Comcast, Mastercard, Quest Diagnostics

Zurich Airport, Envirosuite, Norsk Helsenett, Achmea, University of Milan, World Vision, Petroleum Development Oman, Court of Justice of the Federal District and Territories (TJDFT).

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Buyer's Guide

IT Service Management (ITSM)

June 2026

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