SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs Tanium comparison

SolarWinds Server and Appli...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

Tanium and SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor compete in the network management and monitoring space. Tanium has an advantage in customer service, while SolarWinds stands out with extensive features, providing a strong option for comprehensive monitoring solutions.

Features: Tanium provides strong security features including endpoint management, data protection, and instant discovery for threat-hunting and vulnerability management. SolarWinds offers detailed server monitoring with AppInsight for SQL and Exchange, advanced alerting mechanisms, and virtual infrastructure monitoring through VMAN.

Room for Improvement: Tanium could enhance its feature integration for broader IT environments and provide more intuitive user interfaces. Improved scalability customization and extending their non-security components would also be beneficial. SolarWinds might work on simplifying setup procedures, reducing the complexity of advanced configurations, and enhancing user experience in handling diverse monitoring tasks.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Tanium is recognized for its straightforward deployment and effective customer support, which aids in quick implementation. SolarWinds, in contrast, may require more complex configurations but offers robust customer service support to ensure successful setups.

Pricing and ROI: Tanium typically involves a higher initial cost but offers strong ROI through security and management efficiency. SolarWinds provides flexible pricing that presents good value when its comprehensive capabilities are fully utilized, balancing cost and functionality effectively.

To learn more, read our detailed SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs. Tanium Report (Updated: June 2026).

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs. Tanium

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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

SolarWinds Server and Appli...

Ranking in Server Monitoring

7th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

4.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (17th), Active Directory Management (8th)

Tanium

Ranking in Server Monitoring

4th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Vulnerability Management (26th), Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (17th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (22nd), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (7th)

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Server Monitoring category, the mindshare of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is 2.9%, up from 2.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tanium is 3.8%, down from 6.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Server Monitoring Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Tanium	3.8%
SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor	2.9%
Other	93.3%

Server Monitoring

Featured Reviews

NikhilKalwint

Technical Specialist at ServiceIO

Monitoring over a thousand systems has improved decision making and operational visibility

From an advantage perspective, SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is comparatively cheaper from a commercial point of view. It is easy to install and configure, very user-friendly, and quick to get up and running, allowing you to see the early value adds in your organization. It is compatible with most technologies for monitoring with very few chances of incompatibility. Configuration also allows us to monitor all the technical parameters we are looking for, making it a very good experience for us. The alerting feature in SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is a main advantage, as it alerts based on threshold breaches and can raise tickets to the ticketing system, send SMS, and email notifications, allowing engineers to work on those tickets to resolve issues and avoid further impact. The visibility into server health is a beneficial feature that I am utilizing. We widely use various application performance metrics in SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor such as database monitoring and server monitoring, which are quite good enough for any monitoring solution. We utilize the customizable dashboards in SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor.

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Mairajuddin Ahmed

Division Manager, Information Technology at a legal firm with 51-200 employees

Centralized policies have improved remote endpoint control and have simplified data visibility

The integration is not simple and easy. It requires experienced users or people who have done the implementation. When certain policies are applied, they do not immediately push the policies. For example, we manage endpoint device USB access. We set a policy to block it, but it does not come into effect immediately. Sometimes it takes three or four days for it to reflect. That is a pain point. I have raised this issue with support as well, but they said that I need to limit the number of devices in the policy. In terms of application deployment, for us, it was seamless.

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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

"We use the solution as a central monitoring tool. We use it to monitor every transaction that has a relation to the organization’s infrastructure."

"Once we got our IT inventory organized and aligned with the business, we were able to leverage our Orion Platform to provide more than just a reactive-based monitoring service to the business."

"The more valuable feature of this solution is the Exchange feature."

"SolarWinds SAM has significantly improved our workflow by allowing us to develop a comprehensive knowledge base of known errors and automate responses to specific alerts."

"SolarWinds is one of the best products on the market and if they eventually support the IBM Mainframe then it will be perfect."

"The most valuable feature of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor is the network devices' performance monitor is the best."

"SAM has altered the way monitoring is being looked at - from just being able to monitor CPU, Mem, Disk and network utilization levels we have moved to the next levels of finding out process related issues, service related issues and specific application related issues to identify root cause of performance issues."

"The most valuable feature is the Access Rights Manager."

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor pros

"The most valuable features of this solution are the consolidation of all historical data on device endpoints, security drivers, firmware, and Software version gaps."

"For incident response tasks, all these tasks can get done in minutes with minimal disruption to the end-user."

"Tanium is used for endpoint management, specifically patching and configuration management."

"I'm not so familiar with the tool but I like the interaction of the console to the picture. Patching is the primary model I have been focusing on for the last couple of weeks. So I have created a proof of concept environment and have been checking the available features."

"When I push a quick update, it's done right away, and I can rescan immediately to confirm completion within minutes."

"I like the fact that you can create patching campaigns depending on the area of your network that you want to address first. I like the ability it has to make several campaigns that work in parallel."

"I find the inventory and compliance features of Tanium to be the most impressive."

"Tanium is stable and it is also lightweight."

More Tanium pros

Cons

"We are looking into other solutions because it is just too expensive to keep scaling."

"PerfStack can be made more effective. I am sure SolarWinds already has a plan for the same in coming versions."

"The product does not explain why a problem occurred."

"PerfStack can be made more effective."

"A lot of times, we have to do a lot of manual cleanups."

"The templates could use improvement. Currently, they are quite complex. They should have drag-and-drop functionality instead. It would make it easier to use."

"Some custom applications cannot be monitored, and a lot more applications need to be included."

"It should also be easier to upgrade SolarWinds. AppDynamics is harder to deploy but easier to upgrade. So AppDynamics takes a lot of time and effort to install, but you can upgrade it in minutes. SolarWinds is the opposite. It's easy to deploy, but upgrades take forever. To date, nobody can complete it on time, so the production environment is sitting idle."

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor cons

"They could improve the UI."

"Any movement into a SaaS solution has challenges since the processes and data flows are not well defined. Hence, you need to build it at the same time."

"The problem or challenge is a pre-sales and go-to strategy for the SMB market delivered through a channel or model. It's very convoluted and vague, which leads to some confusion about the various types of modules, and the device-to-seat cost is extremely difficult to calculate."

"There are some bugs in the product. The tool needs to improve in the area of reporting."

"Our biggest issue with the solution is its lack of mobility."

"When working with Tanium, there are some older devices that haven't been patched for a long time, and certain patches are not included in Tanium. I have to search outside to download patches, create bundles, and then perform the task."

"It is not really additional functions, or the features that are needed, rather the complexity would be reduced based on the number of modules required to put together a comprehensive operational security and risk compliance model."

"I would like to have more integrations and custom plugins to input. Integration is always a big deal in a lot of different environments."

More Tanium cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is overpriced in terms of application management."

"The price is too high."

"The product is expensive."

"The solution's price is reasonable. Though it's on the higher side, the tool is worth the money."

"I would rate the pricing for this solution a three out of five."

"I like the pricing for this SolarWinds product."

"Nagios XI, WhatsUpGold, Uptime Software, PRTG, Manage Engine, and SpiceWorks are the other tools that have lower pricing and licensing costs. However, they can't compete with SolarWinds when it comes to the features and functionality that SolarWinds can provide."

"Its licensing is on a yearly basis. It is just the standard price, but it can vary depending on the current rate of the dollar."

More SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor pricing and cost advice

"The product's pricing differs from region to region depending on negotiations and the number of endpoints."

"The solution offers value for money."

"It's an expensive solution. It would be nice if the cost were lower."

"It is higher than some competitors in the market."

"Tanium is a more expensive solution in Latin America than some of the competitors, such as BigFix."

"The solution is expensive but it's a good investment."

"There is an annual license required to use this solution."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

13%

University

Financial Services Firm

Government

Financial Services Firm

14%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	17
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	21

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	8
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	12

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

The initial cost is quite high, but the renewal cost is reasonable.

What needs improvement with SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

There is definitely room for improvement besides simplifying its setup. As a non-technical person, I believe the dashboards could be improved. Everything we use appears on video walls, and we need ...

What is your primary use case for SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor?

I am doing research as we currently have both solutions, and I am looking to see if we need both or can manage with one. Currently, the outcome indicates that we need both. The focus point is diffe...

What needs improvement with Tanium?

While there is always room for improvement, I am pleased with Tanium.

What is your primary use case for Tanium?

The primary use case for Tanium ( /products/tanium-reviews ) is compliance, patching, and inventory as part of the core functions.

What advice do you have for others considering Tanium?

For smaller companies, Tanium is quite a big investment, and one needs to have a considerable setup to make it economically viable. I would recommend it to others with a similar use case. The solut...

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Product Reports

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor

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SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor report

Download Tanium product report

Also Known As

SolarWinds SAM

Tanium Inc Cloud, Tanium XEM

Overview

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor provides comprehensive server, application, and infrastructure monitoring, focusing on integration, application dependency, and network insights through user-friendly interfaces and detailed dashboards.

With AppStack and AppInsight support, SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor offers service management, detailed resource dashboards, and integration capabilities. It monitors hardware metrics and performance parameters, facilitating database and network insights for cloud and virtual environments. Robust alerting, predictive analytics, and capacity planning ensure efficient management of server health and application performance.

What are the key features?

Integration: Seamlessly connects with existing tools.
AppStack: Provides a holistic view of applications.
AppInsight: Supports widely-used applications.
SNMP Polling: Efficient network data collection.
Diagnostics: Real-time troubleshooting.
Customizable Dashboards: Tailored monitoring views.

What benefits should users expect?

Comprehensive Monitoring: Extends from servers to databases.
Transparent Control: Enhances visibility into performance metrics.
User-Friendly: Simplifies proactive monitoring with alerts.
Predictive Features: Supports capacity and trend planning.

Industries implement SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor to enhance server utilization reporting, network configuration, and AV equipment performance tracking. They benefit from monitoring critical services across diverse deployment models, improving management efficiency and decision-making.

SolarWinds

Tanium offers robust endpoint protection, patching, and inventory management, consolidating the functions of tools like BigFix with capabilities in incident response, network security, and cloud or on-premise deployments.

Known for real-time capabilities, Tanium provides detailed analytics, security features, and device management. Users benefit from quick implementation, real-time updates, and patching campaigns. Despite its strengths, integration and custom plugin expansion remain areas to improve, along with data visualization and network optimization. Reporting enhancements and user training could advance its usability, and some UI elements may require updates for clarity and security.

What are the essential features of Tanium?

Detailed Analytics: Provides actionable insights for better decision-making.
Security Capabilities: Offers strong defense measures against threats.
Real-Time Queries: Facilitates immediate information access.
Patch Management: Streamlines software updates across devices.
Device Management: Efficiently handles comprehensive inventory and monitoring tasks.

What benefits should users expect?

Ease of Use: Simplifies complex IT tasks.
Scalability: Adapts to growing IT infrastructure needs.
Integration Flexibility: Merges with existing systems effortlessly.
Real-Time Updates: Ensures current data availability for informed actions.

Tanium's deployment spans industries focusing on endpoint protection and compliance, ensuring reliable device and server management in settings where safety and quick adaptation are critical. Organizations use it for application deployment, compliance checks, and integrating it as an EDR solution, enhancing overall security and operational efficiencies.

Sample Customers

Andr. L. Riis AS, NetSuite

JPMorgan Chase, eBay, Amazon, US Bank, MetLife, pwc, Cerner, Delphi, MGM Grand, New York Life

SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor vs. Tanium