SCOM Reviews

Name: SCOM
Brand: Microsoft
Rating: 3.9 (82 reviews)

3.9 out of 5

82 reviews
85% willing to recommend

4,737 followers

What is SCOM?

SCOM (System Center Operations Manager) is a cross-platform data center monitoring and reporting tool that checks the status of various objects defined within the environment, such as server hardware, system services, etc. The solution allows data center administrators to deploy, configure, manage, and monitor the operations, services, devices and applications of multiple enterprise IT systems via a single pane of glass. It is suitable for businesses of all sizes.

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SCOM is the #4 ranked solution in top Event Monitoring solutions and #16 ranked solution in best Network Monitoring Tools. PeerSpot users give SCOM an average rating of 7.8 out of 10. SCOM is most commonly compared to ServiceNow IT Operations Management: SCOM vs ServiceNow IT Operations Management. SCOM is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 67% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a financial services firm, accounting for 16% of all views.

Helped 849,686 peers since 2012

Featured SCOM reviews

MarcMermuys

ICT System Administrator at College of Europe

We use SCOM to configure different monitors using several management packs. It integrates systems like Active Directory and correlates them, and it is used for monitoring and managing systems SCOM allows integration of several systems, providing correlation between different systems such as…

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GaneshRp

Senior Manager - Monitoring & Observability at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

One of the good features is the inbuilt reporting in SCOM. It has a reporting tool where you can fetch the performance data and have historical data. By default, SCOM has a data warehouse, so all the data is collected and stored there, and you can use it for future analysis. That is one of the features. And apart from that, we have the web console. You don't need to have the thick client installed on your laptop. You can just go to the web console URL and see the HTML dashboards and live alerts. You can even see the live data and live performance data, the graphical view of the current performance of your application.

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Mohamed Tantawy

IT Technical Support Deputy General Manager at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

The product's availability reports are valuable because they provide feedback on service stability. If a service isn't stable, the team focuses on maintenance or looks for alternative solutions They could provide better dashboards, detailed logs, and reports crucial for monitoring services in…

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SCOM mindshare

Product category:

As of April 2025, the mindshare of SCOM in the Event Monitoring category stands at 8.0%, down from 9.3% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Event Monitoring

PeerResearch reports based on SCOM reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Event Monitoring	Apr 30, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Apr 30, 2025	Download
Comparison	SCOM vs ServiceNow IT Operations Management	Apr 30, 2025	Download
Comparison	SCOM vs BMC TrueSight Operations Management	Apr 30, 2025	Download
Comparison	SCOM vs IBM Tivoli NetCool OMNIbus	Apr 30, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
ServiceNow IT Operations Management	4.1	19.9%	94%	42 interviews Add to research
ScienceLogic	4.3	7.5%	93%	45 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

SCOM excels in monitoring Microsoft apps, offering extensive management packs and integration with Windows environments. It provides valuable features like real-time alerts, reporting, and dashboard capabilities. Users appreciate its flexibility in creating custom monitors, extensive community support, and reliability in alerting issues. The reporting engine offers detailed insights on application health. Users benefit from SCOM's ability to monitor a range of devices and services, making it indispensable for preventing disruptions and optimizing performance.

"Setting up SCOM is straightforward and takes about an hour as long as you have all your firewalls and DNS settings in place."
"SCOM provides alerting capabilities and threshold settings, which are helpful for monitoring."
"SCOM integrates several systems and offers correlation features, like setting up everything around Active Directory or DNS."

Room for Improvement

SCOM requires enhancements in reducing event overload, lowering license costs, and improving dashboard quality. Reporting complexity and limited monitoring for non-Microsoft systems need attention. The administration and setup processes are cumbersome. It lacks effective third-party integrations and cloud monitoring capabilities. Visual interface and application monitoring are limited, and management packs are not user-friendly. The transition from Silverlight to HTML5 is necessary, along with greater support for network and Unix-based systems and lighter resource consumption.

"SCOM is likely to be phased out in favor of more compatible tools like Icinga for application monitoring or when moving to cloud solutions like CloudWatch and Azure."
"SCOM is not as straightforward in terms of user interface or general experience, which could be improved."
"SCOM is not as straightforward in terms of user interface or general experience, which could be improved."

ROI

Organizations express difficulty in calculating ROI from SCOM but highlight its value in infrastructure monitoring. SCOM helps meet SLAs, minimizes downtime, and promptly escalates outages. Benefits come from proactive disruption management, centralized data center monitoring, and auditing reports. Some experience licensing cost efficiency, especially when using Microsoft's System Center Suite. Despite challenges like latency, many find SCOM beneficial, facilitating cost avoidance and informed decisions on infrastructure upgrades, contributing to overall satisfaction in ROI terms.

Pricing

Enterprise buyers find SCOM pricing and licensing competitive, often included in broader Microsoft agreements. Most organizations see cost-effectiveness due to existing Microsoft arrangements, with licenses often covering the entire System Center suite. Licensing is simplified into Standard and Datacenter editions, with SQL and management servers free. Some companies benefit from educational discounts or special pricing. However, calculating specific costs can require Microsoft guidance to navigate diverse pricing structures and potential operational costs.

"The platform is cost-effective due to our existing Microsoft support."
"It is the cheapest product available in the market."
"SCOM's pricing is average."

Popular Use Cases

Organizations primarily use SCOM for monitoring Windows environments, including Windows servers, hardware, and network devices. It's widely adopted to monitor Linux systems, deploy images, and manage infrastructure. Users integrate it with third-party dashboards for comprehensive monitoring and utilize it for reporting, logging, and performance checks. SCOM also manages application-level monitoring for Microsoft products like Active Directory, Exchange, and SharePoint. It's a pivotal tool for proactive monitoring, alerts, and notifications in diverse sectors.

Service and Support

Many reviewers appreciate Microsoft's customer service and support for SCOM, especially with Microsoft Premier. Response times are generally quick, technicians are knowledgeable, and multi-faceted issues receive attention. There is mention of experience varying by engineer and region, with some relying on community forums. Premium support plans offer sound knowledge but may ignore interconnected issues, causing delays. Despite occasional variability, customers regard Microsoft's SCOM support favorably, especially through structured support agreements.

Deployment

SCOM's initial setup is generally straightforward with a clear step-by-step process when documentation is utilized. It's important to address prerequisites, and while installation is easy, configuring alerts and management packs requires attention. Some find setup complex, especially with security certificates and integrating multiple components. Users note various external resources like Microsoft's documentation make the process manageable. Deployment time and complexity can vary depending on the environment's size and specific requirements.

Scalability

SCOM demonstrates strong scalability, easily accommodating additional management servers and expanding to monitor countless devices across numerous enterprises. Users highlight its ease in scaling and integration, but some point to limitations with non-Microsoft infrastructure. As environments grow, resources like storage and network capacity may require careful planning. SCOM's flexibility in large setups, especially within Microsoft environments, is praised, yet deployment complexity may present challenges without a deep understanding of the system. Users appreciate its performance in diverse settings.

Stability

SCOM stability varies depending on setup and resources. Earlier versions experienced instabilities, but recent iterations, especially from 2012 R2 onwards, are generally stable. Proper configuration and resource allocation are crucial. Occasional issues with agents and maintenance needs exist. User experiences indicate stability when infrastructure is appropriately managed. SCOM's reliability improves with tuning and correct implementation. Some face minor challenges, generally linked to external factors like hardware or resource constraints rather than SCOM itself.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our SCOM Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

12%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Insurance Company

Retailer

Healthcare Company

Energy/Utilities Company

University

Educational Organization

Real Estate/Law Firm

Non Profit

Construction Company

Hospitality Company

Media Company

Wholesaler/Distributor

Transportation Company

Comms Service Provider

Legal Firm

Logistics Company

Outsourcing Company

Performing Arts

Pharma/Biotech Company

Consumer Goods Company

Security Firm

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Aerospace/Defense Firm

Compare SCOM with alternative products

Learn more about SCOM

SCOM Features

SCOM has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

Application monitoring
Database monitoring
Threshold alerts
IT Asset Discovery
Predictive capabilities
Server usage monitoring and capacity forecasting
Application performance management console
Server availability and performance monitoring
Collaboration tools
Virtualization monitoring
Patch management
Out-of-the box templates to monitor applications
Application dependency mapping and thresholding

SCOM Benefits

There are several benefits to implementing SCOM. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

Management and monitoring of Windows as well as Unix/Linux platforms
Remotely connect to Windows machines and perform administrative tasks from the console itself
Custom dashboard creation to help monitor the datacenter with ease
Agent based monitoring
Integrates well with other Microsoft products
Easy to use and reliable

Reviews from Real Users

Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by PeerSpot users currently using the SCOM solution.

A Manager at a financial services firm says, “The feature I like most about SCOM is that it is easy-to-use. I find it very user-friendly. I also like the knowledge base which it has. You can find the resolution to questions or issues directly within the SCOM itself. It will alert you with a recommendation of what you need to do at the same time. This sort of self-diagnosis or prompting is one of the great values you get from SCOM compared to other solutions.”

PeerSpot user Zahari Z., Information Technology Auditor at a financial services firm, mentions, “Availability monitoring is the feature I have found most valuable, as well as the capacity and ability to send notifications. There is a mechanism to set up a notification from the SCOM and whenever there is a drop in the availability the notification alerts not only for availability but for other issues as well. You can align thresholds according to the speed of your environment and you can have a threshold related notification, which is one of the useful features.”

Bill W., Sr. Systems Engineer at Arapahoe County Government, comments, “ I like some of their newer features, such as maintenance schedules, because SCOM records SLA and SLO time. When we patch, things are automatically put into maintenance mode so that the numbers for our systems being down, do not count against us.”

A Project Manager at a tech services company explains, “The feature I have found most valuable is the book feature. While we run the Sprint one we can add some setups for multiple sprints.”

A Systems Engineer at an educational organization states, “Because it's Windows-based, it actually reports quite well. It reports everything you can think of on the Windows server and allows you to monitor anything. It's excellent for those in the Windows world as it's very good at it.”

SCOM was previously known as System Center Operations Manager, SCOM 2012.