Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs Scalefusion comparison

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Scalefusion

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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

Quest KACE Systems Manageme...

Ranking in Patch Management

10th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Client Desktop Management (6th), Endpoint Compliance (7th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (15th)

Scalefusion

Ranking in Patch Management

18th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Web Content Filtering (11th), Mobile Device Management (MDM) (10th), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (11th), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (12th)

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Patch Management category, the mindshare of Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is 5.4%, down from 6.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Scalefusion is 0.5%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Patch Management

Featured Reviews

Scott Tweed

Windows Engineer at a tech services company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Low maintenance, reliable, and easy to create packages

I like how when you click on the device, it shows you everything that has changed as well as the software versioning. I am really enjoying the inventory aspect of it. The deployment process for both deploying and creating a package is straightforward. I believe the inventory in KACE is superior to SCCM's. I know with SCCM I could do things like remote console into machines via the agent's remote console, but that is not a feature that is provided in KACE. I know that at least in the Systems Management Appliance, I can't get to it. I'm not sure how distribution works, with distribution points. I'm not sure if KACE has that feature. You could use an SCCM to set up distribution points at remote sites so that they don't have to download patches or software from across the country. If you have a DP or something similar, they could pull it down.

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Jijin Joseph

Technical Director at Channelnext

An MDM solution for controlling and restricting data on devices

Everyone is using high-end devices, such as mobile devices. If they lose their devices, how about the data copied to other devices? Once the device is lost, you can remotely delete all of the data and block the device, preventing anyone from using or reusing it. This will keep your devices secure.

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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

"This product made the job easy to do without having to go put hands on the machines."

"We're able to deploy software and push out fixes to endpoints faster than ever."

"The big pros of Quest KACE Systems Management are its simple interface, and simple, direct management. It's very easy to maintain and manage the device, and it's easy to get it up and running. You can have it up and running in an hour..."

"I like how when you click on the device, it shows you everything that has changed as well as the software versioning. I am really enjoying the inventory aspect of it."

"The scripting part increases IT productivity because of the specialized software in our environments for students' courses. You need to use software which is not programmed by developers. A lot of software for building houses or other things is developed by normal guys, who do not have much skill in programming. When you need to install this type of software, it is very difficult. You have to install registry keys, etc. For that, it is very good to use the scripting part of this solution. So, you can automate this part as well."

"We use the Systems Deployment appliance. It's our bread and butter. It is every machine that gets imaged here in this building and out through the whole state goes through the SDA. We rely on it completely. There is no manual process of getting a laptop out of a box, plugging it up, turning it on, and waiting for Windows to start. If you were to go to Best Buy and buy a brand new laptop, you spend the next two to three hours just setting it up. We don't do that. We get a laptop, plug it into the network, connect it to the SDA, and within about three clicks, we're done."

"The single pane of glass for managing devices is helpful because it allows me to perform updates and control things without having to disturb the doctors or nurses."

"The scripting is a very valuable feature, as it saves us time on pushing certain things out to the users, such as software and patches."

More Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) pros

"Its enhanced support for iOS and Windows devices has been particularly beneficial, expanding our service offerings to customers with diverse device environments."

"Scalefusion is easy to use, and they have a broad knowledge base, so you can quickly find answers if you're unsure how to do something. The articles on the knowledge base are well-written, with clear steps on what to do for a specific scenario. That part is well documented."

Cons

"I have complaints about smart label adaptation and because of this, I recommend a 24 to 48 hour bake-in period."

"I think it should have the ability to have the applications automatically update. It would be really helpful if this would override what the user might choose to do."

"The software asset management functionality is an area that needs to be improved. It could be more automated because when connections need to be made, such as when I connected Adobe and my malware removed, the process was pretty much manual."

"The GUI needs some work. I love all that it can do, however, it can be just be so cluttered at times."

"There should be a mini toolbox, like the competitors of KACE have, with the small features for KACE administrators. That would make their lives easier. If you are troubleshooting a specific endpoint, remote control is available as is Wake-on-LAN. But if you want to execute some commands, you have to use a third-party tool, the PS tool. If they would integrate those small things, it would make KACE more powerful."

"The problem is that it's harder to directly emulate a lot of the stuff that the group policies do, using the KACE solution. With regular group policies, you just specify the various settings you want to change on the workstations, and then you specify the workstations and—while it's kind of an ugly mess—it does it. Whereas on KACE, you really have to know what you're doing with scripting to effectively script those exact same changes."

"There isn't a lot they need to improve with the solution itself at this point. It is pretty close to providing a single pane of glass for everything that we need for endpoint management specifically on all devices. There is very little that it doesn't provide for us, and for those, we have to go to other methods. There are some of the patching solutions that it doesn't take care of for us. So, we have to do those manually on the devices, and that's really the biggest thing. It doesn't do patching really well for non-Microsoft applications. The major application updates, particularly Windows updates, don't function nearly as well, but, for the vast majority of things, it does just fine. If they could improve in this aspect, that'd be great, but I don't know if they're going to be able to do that."

"Paying for the product should come with full and extended training anytime it is needed."

More Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) cons

"One area for improvement could be streamlining permissions during initial device setup, especially for corporate-owned devices, to reduce manual user interaction and expedite deployment."

"It could be easier to put devices on the blocklist. I would like the ability to block a device with a click of a button. Currently, we have to sift through different groups to block a device. It would be nice if Scalefusion allowed me to block without moving the device to a different profile. Another helpful feature they could add is the ability to migrate from one MDM to another. I'd also appreciate more extensive cloud storage. They give you 1 GB by default, but sometimes that's not enough."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are also saving on the licensing fee, compared to other endpoint management solutions."

"The pricing is fair."

"Licensing is done on a per device basis, so it's dependent on how many agents you've got installed."

"Its pricing model is good for what it offers. Nobody here gives me a hard time about renewing the contract every year. It might be a little cost prohibitive for a smaller company who has to stand up a virtual environment as well as have virtual environment licensing and the hardware. If you have a smaller environment, it might be cost prohibitive. If you only have a couple of hundred computers, you might be more willing to do those manually. In our environment, the cost savings of having KACE far outweigh the licensing costs. We are okay with its pricing model."

"The pricing and licensing are good. It's worth it."

"We buy consulting fees from Software Factory, then we pay extra for it."

"It was a very attractive price. This is a huge feature of this product. If you would "credit score" this product versus others out there on the market, this one has a very attractive price."

"The cost of KACE has been relatively low compared to other systems. Even if those systems have the same cost, they do not do as much of the third-party patching that KACE natively does."

More Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

10%

University

10%

Financial Services Firm

Educational Organization

24%

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Quest KACE Systems Management?

My company had bought some new machines. We used the tool to do some basic settings to ship every machine the same way and undertake the Windows deployment. We did the scripted installation. The to...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Quest KACE Systems Management?

The pricing is in the middle range of the market, not too expensive but not the cheapest either.

What needs improvement with Quest KACE Systems Management?

The user interface needs improvement as customers have mentioned they do not like the interface since it is not an SMA-based interface and lacks a manual configuration option.

What needs improvement with Scalefusion?

One area for improvement could be streamlining permissions during initial device setup, especially for corporate-owned devices, to reduce manual user interaction and expedite deployment.

What is your primary use case for Scalefusion?

Our typical use cases for the product involve auto-enrollment, zero-touch deployment, location tracking, application deployment, auto-installation, and content deployment across various device type...

What advice do you have for others considering Scalefusion?

In terms of device management, the platform is particularly effective for managing Android devices, especially Samsung, which are predominant among our customers. Its enhanced support for iOS and W...

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

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Product Reports

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)

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Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) report

Mobile Device Management (MDM)

Download Scalefusion product report

Also Known As

Dell KACE Systems Management

No data available

Overview

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance is a comprehensive tool for managing IT endpoints. It facilitates asset management, software distribution, and endpoint tracking while offering remote access capabilities and a centralized help desk.

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance is designed for organizations that need efficient endpoint management. It offers a range of features like inventory tracking, automated patch management, and ticketing. By integrating with remote access tools such as Bomgar, Quest KACE helps reduce manual tasks involved in managing software updates and system deployments. Although it faces challenges in scalability and requires improvements in integration and reporting, it remains a versatile choice for asset tracking and endpoint administration.

What are Quest KACE SMA's key features?

Asset Management: Streamline the organization and tracking of physical and virtual assets.
Remote Access: Integrates with Bomgar for secure, remote troubleshooting and management.
Software Distribution: Deploy applications across devices efficiently without physical intervention.
Centralized Endpoint Management: Manage endpoints from a centralized console to ensure compliance and optimization.
Automated Patch Management: Schedule and deploy patches to maintain system security and performance.
Help Desk: Integrated ticketing system for tracking and resolving user issues.
Scripting and Reporting: Enhance administrative tasks through automated scripts and detailed reports.

What benefits should users consider?

Improved Productivity: Reduces manual interference with automated deployments and updates.
Labor Savings: Minimizes labor requirements with efficient remote management tools.
Integrated Reporting: Provides actionable insights through comprehensive reports to optimize IT operation.
User-Friendly Interface: Boosts effectiveness due to its intuitive, easy-to-navigate design.

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance is implemented across industries for managing IT assets and endpoints, particularly where remote management and compliance are critical. It's employed in healthcare, education, and government sectors for efficient patch management, inventory control, and software deployment, aiding organizations in managing security accreditations and centralizing help desk operations.

Quest Software

Scalefusion is a leading Mobile Device & Endpoint Management software helping businesses globally to secure and manage their device fleet.

Ambitious companies around the world trust Scalefusion MDM to secure and manage endpoints including smartphones, tablets, laptops, rugged devices, POS, and digital signages. Our mission is to make Device Management simple and effortless along with providing world-class customer support.

Scalefusion

Sample Customers

Waypoint, Mattos Filho, Meetic, Gems Education, Green Clinic HealthSystem, Service King

Magna, Scania, Darya - Varia, Radisson Blu, Slice, Veezu

Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. Scalefusion