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Rapid7 InsightOps vs syslog-ng comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 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

Rapid7 InsightOps
Ranking in Log Management
25th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
syslog-ng
Ranking in Log Management
17th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
3.2
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of Rapid7 InsightOps is 0.4%, down from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of syslog-ng is 2.4%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Log Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
syslog-ng2.4%
Rapid7 InsightOps0.4%
Other97.2%
Log Management
 

Featured Reviews

Karthick Selvam - PeerSpot reviewer
A cloud solution to collect and analyse logs with timely support
We should understand the basic concepts of Rapid7 InsightOps. We are using Rapid7 InsightOps to collect and analyze data. We need to ensure that our environment is suitable before proceeding. The solution is user-friendly and support all environment like Linux, Windows, CentOS, etc. It is suitable for all. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
RyanVargas - PeerSpot reviewer
It's a user-friendly open-source solution that can replace or augment a commercial product in some cases
I rate syslog-ng 10 out of 10. It's free and easy to use. It has built-in tools that help us index the various logs sent to it. It's a solid log product. If you're looking for a SIEM solution, syslog-ng will work as a stopgap measure at beginning of the project. It can also work as an injector for a true SIEM solution. You can send all the logs to syslog-ng and forward all the data to the SIEM solution after you've cleaned up the data and got the pertinent information. It's a good front end for a commercial SIEM solution, which becomes more expensive as you load more data into it. I would highly recommend syslog-ng for that use case. However, if you lack the expertise, you might need to go with a cloud-based SIEM instead. You need some in-house expertise or an outside consultant to manage it and set it up.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Rapid7 InsightOps is the search functionality."
"Integration of InsightOps with other tools, especially SIEM solutions, has generally improved operational efficiency."
"We can save logs as plain text."
"The machine learning algorithms in Rapid7 InsightIDR for threat detection work quite effectively as part of the user entity behavior analytic model, allowing us to focus group normal typical behavior of users and then turn on the rule to spot any unexpected behavior."
"The ability to browse logs from multiple sources at the same time really speeds up root cause analysis."
"It has the ability to alert and track logs from different sources."
"Syslog-ng has a separate config file in addition to the core configuration."
"Syslog-ng provides easy access to all my logs. It helps me show managers and other clients precisely where an incident occurred. I also like it because you can integrate syslog-ng with multiple solutions to allow real-time monitoring."
"For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"The ability to extract and store the logs is the most valuable feature of syslog-ng."
"We chose syslog-ng because it is easy to install, easy to maintain, easy to update, and due to the fact that all data arrive in raw format, we can manipulate it as we want."
 

Cons

"Rapid7 InsightOps could improve by making the search query better. There are times when the search query is broken and it does not find anything."
"Since I used the beta, improvements are to be expected. The dashboard options could have been clearer, but I believe it is more a problem with the limited documentation available at the time."
"Improvement is needed in the dashboard of InsightOps, especially for less technical users."
"There are a few things I would like to do with a few more complex queries which I am not able to do right now, because it is a SaaS solution."
"The solution takes a little bit of time when we load the website for the first time."
"There is always the potential for additional integration and protocol extensions."
"In syslog-ng, I think a GUI would be beneficial. I am unsure if the premium module has a GUI to administer it."
"It's hard to find people who know how to use syslog-ng. I often find problems with configurations, and solutions aren't integrated correctly with syslog-ng. For example, there might be data with extra decimals, or the collector agents are incorrectly named. It isn't a problem with the solution; it's a lack of professionals."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"The filtering has room for improvement."
"There is room for improvement in terms of observability."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is cheap."
"Syslog-ng is a free open-source solution."
"Syslog-ng is open-source."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Construction Company
9%
Media Company
7%
Government
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Rapid7 InsightOps?
Integration of InsightOps with other tools, especially SIEM solutions, has generally improved operational efficiency.
What needs improvement with Rapid7 InsightOps?
In my opinion, there are no specific areas of Rapid7 InsightIDR that need improvement because all solutions in the SIEM market, including InsightOps and its competitors, are doing the same things b...
What is your primary use case for Rapid7 InsightOps?
The usual use cases for Rapid7 InsightOps that I work with are to meet standard requirements such as PCI DSS and ISO standards, collecting data and protecting event logs. Rapid7 InsightOps plays a ...
What needs improvement with syslog-ng?
We currently do not use that feature. We currently have just an open-source release, not a premium release. My boss has indicated that he wants to buy a premium syslog-ng version next month. I thin...
What is your primary use case for syslog-ng?
In Italy, we have to be compliant with the Garante for privacy. We have to log every login, logout, or login failure made by a system administrator. We store all syslog data of the infrastructure. ...
What advice do you have for others considering syslog-ng?
When it comes to parsing, I can parse both structured and unstructured data, though our data are only structured. Currently, we collect all data we receive as raw data. Each file is stored for each...
 

Also Known As

InsightOps, Logentries
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Trimble Navigation Limited
Tecnocom, University of Victoria, University of Exeter, Datapath
Find out what your peers are saying about Rapid7 InsightOps vs. syslog-ng and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,760 professionals have used our research since 2012.