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AWS Systems Manager vs OpenText ZENworks Configuration Management comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 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

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Configuration Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
335
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (2nd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
AWS Systems Manager
Ranking in Configuration Management
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
OpenText ZENworks Configura...
Ranking in Configuration Management
23rd
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 6.9%, down from 10.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS Systems Manager is 6.3%, down from 10.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenText ZENworks Configuration Management is 2.0%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Configuration Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune6.9%
AWS Systems Manager6.3%
OpenText ZENworks Configuration Management2.0%
Other84.8%
Configuration Management
 

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24
Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license
The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.
GC
Senior Cloud Engineer at Prabhav Services
Efficient value synchronization across multiple accounts with good reliability
AWS Systems Manager's most valuable feature is its ability to dynamically export and import values in various AWS accounts. When you update the value, it's directly reflected across the system without needing manual editing. This is particularly effective for setting policies securely. The parameter store features are among the best aspects.
it_user1272306 - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Technology Officer at DoITWise
Helpful impact analysis and the discovery capability is quite good
This tool works hand-in-hand with RPA technology. RPA will allow you to control your servers by deploying the server automation agent. You don't have the discovery, but then you can deploy the policies that maintain the authorized versus current state. On top of that, you can use server automation to deploy patches or remediate configuration issues on the operating system. My advice to anybody who is implementing this solution is to ensure that the process is set up properly, first. Once the process is set up, the tool will do the rest for you. Overall, this is a comprehensive tool that works well, and I wouldn't touch it other than to enhance the UI and make containerization work without the CDF. I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We have not had any issues with the scalability."
"Microsoft Intune has never crashed for me; it always works without fail."
"Intune's most valuable features are the device, compliance, and configuration policies."
"We like Intune's Autopilot functionality, which enables one-touch deployment. Dynamic grouping is another feature we find valuable working in academia. We have people in buckets based on their roles in the university, such as faculty, staff, alum, or grad. Sometimes, they will fit into multiple places, and dynamic grouping helps with that."
"First of all, the integration with the rest of Microsoft's products is a major win."
"We handle the distribution software, collect metrics for app usage, and create policies to make the device compliant for Microsoft Intune."
"I particularly appreciate the administration and security features, which can be deployed easily."
"Intune does consolidate all endpoint and security management tools into one place, making everything easier to manage."
"The solution is user-friendly"
"AWS Systems Manager's most valuable feature is its ability to dynamically export and import values in various AWS accounts"
"The solution's most valuable feature is the change management option. It tracks every action on my AWS accounts in a centralized way, acting like a control tool for me. This is especially useful when working with Kubernetes and AWS ECS services. Additionally, my colleagues and clients often use the application management tools for configuration, parameters, and installations."
"I use AWS Systems Manager primarily for infrastructure management and automation. One of its key benefits is managing patches and updates for our EC2 instances, including both Windows and Linux workloads. It can perform compliance checks on all managed workloads, identifying which systems aren't compliant or haven't been patched."
"The store organizes parameters hierarchically, making it easier to configure and control versions. It also ensures scalability and high availability, automatically scaling to handle increasing workloads and providing reliable access to configuration data across multiple AWS availability zones."
"AWS provides Auto Scaling groups."
"With AWS Systems Manager, our company can patch our systems directly from it, so we don't need to patch our systems manually."
"When we do the automation in the cloud, we use the SSM agent. This helps us to test our automation and documents, and monitor the cloud."
"Overall, this is a comprehensive tool that works well, and I wouldn't touch it other than to enhance the UI and make containerization work without the CDF."
"Automatic Spiral Discovery: This feature enables deep and dynamic configuration and change management."
"Helps me perform changes in connected infrastructure thanks to the discovery features."
"We use it for managing our desktops; we have 350,000 desktops and it allows us to manage and control them relatively easily."
"The most valuable feature is the impact analysis."
 

Cons

"The reporting dashboard is really limited."
"When somebody has a customized application or their own company's application, we cannot deploy that application."
"Integrating certain group policies can be challenging and may necessitate using on-premises systems to integrate them with Microsoft Intune."
"Since the devices are configured over the Internet, whatever policy we apply from the compliance portal does not reflect immediately on the endpoint."
"The solution can have some compliance problems in general and the end-point user can bypass easily the company policies in Intune."
"Applying security recommendations can be difficult in Microsoft Intune. Sometimes, they give you recommendations, but you need a different server to manage the pieces, or you have to go to each device individually. However, it has been improving. Before, there were certain policies you could not implement directly in Intune, but now I see progress. I would like to see more improvement in policy management, similar to how we used group policies on-premises."
"Issues such as Windows 32 app failures occur frequently, and detailed manual detection rules are often necessary."
"Enrollment into the Microsoft Intune service can still get easier, especially for legacy-managed systems, such as how we get it from a GPO or an SCCM configuration into Intune."
"Lacks sufficient integrations."
"The AWS UIs are not the most intuitive. Also, the usability needs room for improvement."
"We formerly used third-party products to analyze the log, give us information, and find bottlenecks. Systems Manager could provide more tools that conduct this analysis, so we don't have to do it ourselves."
"Additional features can be added as per customer requirements."
"The cost is a very important factor to keep in mind because the cost of cloud services, not just AWS cloud, can be substantial if not controlled."
"AWS does not have EKS cluster backup."
"One area that could be enhanced is dynamic configuration management. Additionally, improving integration with other AWS services like Lambda and CloudFormation would be beneficial."
"It could be agentless if there's room for improvement in the AWS Systems Manager. Currently, you have to install agents, although, for most of the latest EC2 images, the agents come preinstalled. If it could be at the level of Ansible, which is agentless, that would be fantastic. When you compare the solution to Ansible, one of the most widely accepted tools, the agentless feature stands out. So, if the AWS Systems Manager could become agentless, that would be a significant improvement."
"The native UI should be simplified because it is outdated and a little bit over-complicated."
"It needs dashboards."
"The infrastructure itself is stable, but the agent has a lot of problems."
"The native UI should be simplified because it is outdated and a little bit over-complicated."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"While Microsoft charges for actual usage, it lacks discount options."
"If you're subscribing to Premium or E3, there are no additional costs for Intune, it's included."
"Intune's pricing is competitive. For example, the license of Blackberry's Enterprise Mobility Suite was costly, but Intune is affordable. It is included as an additional feature when you buy security enhancements for your organization. For example, let's say I have fifty users in my organization and all of them are using Microsoft cloud services, like Teams, Office 365, and OneDrive."
"The product is relatively pricey, but considering its benefits, I'd say it's fair. The benefits outweigh the expensive licensing fees, especially for large organizations, but medium-sized and smaller businesses may be unable to afford it."
"It is reasonable for the features it has."
"It's affordable for the protection it gives. There are no additional costs."
"While I can't provide insights from a business perspective, it's worth noting that the pricing may differ significantly, and the discount we received might not be reflective of standard business rates."
"The clients pay for a license and each can have a different type of license, such as an E3 or E5."
"Most of the features are free. I'm not entirely certain, but I believe the pricing is generally very low. Some services that are part of Ops Manager might have associated costs."
"An AWS cloud engineer can bring down the costs."
"The platform provides excellent value for the capabilities it offers when compared to third-party tools for similar tasks."
"As we were doing a government project so the government got the project at a very nominal cost."
"This is a really good tool for the money."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
6%
University
27%
Government
14%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business124
Midsize Enterprise53
Large Enterprise167
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Large Enterprise7
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What do you like most about AWS Systems Manager?
With AWS Systems Manager, our company can patch our systems directly from it, so we don't need to patch our systems m...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Systems Manager?
Every AWS service comes with some associated costs. While using AWS Systems Manager, we continually monitor to optimi...
What needs improvement with AWS Systems Manager?
I do not use the automation feature in this product.
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Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
Amazon Elastic Container Registry
Micro Focus ZENworks Configuration Management, HPE CMS, HPE Configuration Management, Micro Focus Configuration Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Tech Mahindra, NNIT, ASIC
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Systems Manager vs. OpenText ZENworks Configuration Management and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,976 professionals have used our research since 2012.