Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Reviews

Vendor: IBM

4.1 out of 5

12 reviews
75% willing to recommend

What is Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct?

IBM's Sterling Connect:Direct is a software product that offers security-hardened, point-to-point file transfers to reduce reliance on insecure File Transfer Protocol (FTP) transmissions. It is designed for high-volume file distribution within and between businesses. The solution guarantees more reliable file movement, from batch integration and movement of large images or catalogs to synchronization with distant sites. Sterling Connect:Direct also enables hybrid cloud deployment through certified containers, allowing for simple and consistent deployment lifecycle management.

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Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is the #8 ranked solution in top Managed File Transfer (MFT) solutions. PeerSpot users give Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct an average rating of 8.2 out of 10. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is most commonly compared to Control-M: Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs Control-M. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 69% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a financial services firm, accounting for 38% of all views.

Buyer's Guide

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct

July 2025

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Helped 865,384 peers since 2012

Featured Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct reviews

Caio Nascimento

Senior Consultant at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees

The package that IBM delivers does not come with many premade tools or templates. This means we have to create a lot of things by ourselves, which requires more work. We have a team of four to five people just to develop map-based programs. Additionally, the initial setup could be simpler and better.

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Sumit Mundik

Application Development Senior Analyst at Accenture

The initial setup of the solution is not straightforward because it's not GUI-based. If you are installing the solution on a UNIX server, you should have a basic understanding of UNIX. You should know how to go from one directory to another, what the config files are, how to edit those files, and how to get the backup of those files. You need a little technical knowledge for it. The developers working on the solution are very costly for the organization. Also, the complexity of having this kind of setup is very difficult. This solution is only used by giant financial companies like BNY Mellon, Barclays, and JPMorgan Chase. They cannot replace the solution because they have several files transferred internally using it. It is very difficult and cost-consuming for them to change, migrate, or upgrade their system. That's the reason they are not able to do it very easily.

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Ahmed El Attar

Systems Infrastructure Manager at Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank - Egypt

Overall, I would rate it a six out of ten. Sometimes we face issues and can't figure out the cause of failures. It impacts our business, and we have to find the root cause. But we faced a bad situation when we couldn't route calls properly. I have to investigate the issue to avoid it in the future. It's challenging when there's no support from management.

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Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct mindshare

As of August 2025, the mindshare of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category stands at 7.3%, down from 8.3% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Managed File Transfer (MFT)

PeerResearch reports based on Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Managed File Transfer (MFT)	Aug 20, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Aug 20, 2025	Download
Comparison	Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs GoAnywhere MFT	Aug 20, 2025	Download
Comparison	Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs IBM Sterling File Gateway	Aug 20, 2025	Download
Comparison	Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs Control-M	Aug 20, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Control-M	4.3	4.8%	98%	126 interviews Add to research
SEEBURGER Business Integration Suite	4.3	2.5%	95%	39 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct offers encryption technology, Checkpoint Restart, and FASP technology. Users value its security, scalability, customization, and file processing capabilities. It ensures reliable, secure file transmission. Its flexibility allows encrypted file handling, features efficient large file transfers, advanced scheduling, and monitoring via ICC. It's versatile, supporting multiple platforms, protocols like EBICS, and EDI transfers. Users benefit from containerization, orchestration, and high transfer speed.

"For Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct, my overall rating is ten out of ten."
"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."
"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."

Room for Improvement

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct requires improvements in its user interface, making it more user-friendly with integrated reverse proxy in the DMZ. Enhancements in monitoring visibility, support mechanism, and licensing costs are needed. Deployment challenges exist due to complex setup and costly resources. Functionality such as call agents could enhance the offering. Adapters for diverse protocols and improvements in file transfer protocols would benefit users. Initial setup complexity and template scarcity require significant attention.

"I do not have any notes for improvement."
"The initial setup could be simpler and better."
"The resources required for this tool are costly and not easily available in the market."

Pricing

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct users highlight the solution as costly, with licensing costs depending on hardware size and usage, making it the priciest in its product line. Annual licensing adds to costs, and the model requires purchasing all necessary containers, whether used or not. Although some praise the pricing model, many find it expensive compared to competitors like Primero, Software AG, and AppSystem, especially for smaller businesses and varied use cases.

"The solution's licensing cost is too high."
"The price and licensing of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is expensive."
"Annual licensing fee."

Popular Use Cases

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is primarily utilized for secure file transfers. It supports various protocols like SFTP and FTPS and is deployed on-premise, cloud, and hybrid environments. Users employ it for transferring data between systems, such as Linux, Unix, and mainframes. It enables seamless node-to-node transmissions across diverse industries, including finance, logistics, and distribution, allowing for efficient exchanges and data handling in banking, distribution, and other sectors.

Service and Support

Users report mixed experiences with Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct customer service. Some find technical support challenging, citing delayed responses and inadequate issue handling. Others note significant improvements over time, praising the responsiveness and knowledgeability. While initial interactions can vary, there is recognition of eventual resolution with varying timelines. The ticketing system and local portals assist in managing inquiries efficiently, contributing to a largely positive impression despite some initial hurdles.

Deployment

Many users find Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct's initial setup straightforward but acknowledge that complexity varies by environment. While the setup is easy for those with experience, challenges arise, especially with security considerations and integration. Organizations often seek assistance to ensure successful deployment. The installation process can be quick, but technical knowledge is often necessary, particularly for UNIX systems. Advanced deployments may require customization and can involve significant effort, especially in enterprise environments involving client integration and data file management.

Scalability

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is recognized for its strong scalability, supporting various company sizes and high-volume transfers. Users appreciate its horizontal and vertical expansion capabilities, facilitated by technologies like Kubernetes. While scalability is achievable, some find it not very straightforward. Many users frequently expand their ecosystems and infrastructures without requiring external support. Scalability is often rated highly with minimal installation time, enhancing its appeal for diverse organizational needs.

Stability

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is consistently praised for its stability, being free from bugs or glitches, and ensuring reliable operation without crashes or freezes. Users commend its robust performance across various sectors, including banking, highlighting its secure and efficient file transmission capabilities. Despite its strong performance, few have yet formed an opinion, but those familiar with it rate its reliability and functionality highly, often giving it top marks for stability and seamless operation.

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

Download our Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct 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

38%

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Insurance Company

Retailer

Media Company

Government

Healthcare Company

Construction Company

Non Profit

Comms Service Provider

Educational Organization

Performing Arts

University

Wholesaler/Distributor

Legal Firm

Real Estate/Law Firm

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Outsourcing Company

Consumer Goods Company

Recruiting/Hr Firm

Non Tech Company

Energy/Utilities Company

Transportation Company

Marketing Services Firm

Compare Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct with alternative products

Learn more about Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Features

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

Performance capabilities such as extraordinary scalability and low latency.

Automated, dependable file transmission that permits unattended, round-the-clock operations.

Designed to run on a variety of operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, UNIX, Linux, IBM z/OS, OpenVMS, i5/OS, and HP NonStop.

Advanced security features with cutting-edge encryption to meet regulatory and industry standards.

IBM certified containers for Sterling Connect:Direct are enterprise-grade, secure product editions that are scalable, secure, easy to install, and manage update and rollback processes. They also have integrated common software services for consistent deployment lifecycle management.
Boosts transfer speed for large files over high-speed networks by up to four times the previous speed while reducing latency.
Gives existing FTP transfers the ability to retry, checkpoint, and compress existing transfers.
Supports a variety of network protocols, including TCP/IP, Systems Network Architecture (SNA), and an optional high-speed add-on based on Aspera FASP technology.

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Benefits

There are many benefits to implementing Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

High performance: Takes care of your most demanding workloads, including multi-gigabyte files to large volumes of small files.

Reliable file delivery: To help ensure predictable, assured file delivery, it offers automated scheduling, checkpoint restart, and automatic recovery.

Secure transmission of files: Maintains the confidentiality of customer information and supports regulatory compliance measures.

Speed up patching and installation: By deploying your solution with a certified container that contains all necessary components, you can drastically cut installation and patch time from hours to minutes.

Reviews from Real Users

Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its robust file processing and its security for file transfers. PeerSpot users take note of the advantages of these features in their reviews:

Michele I., Business Unit Manager at Innovery, writes of the solution, “The file processing is done very well. By default, there are a lot of configurations that can be customized. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is one of the stronger MFT solutions in the market, it is available in each type of installation, and offers SaaS, PaaS, YaaS, on-premise.”

Camilo M., Pre-sales Engineer at Dell EMC, mentions, “It's a great tool because it offers secure file transfers and it has a fast and efficient protocol for very large files.”