Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs LiveNX comparison

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs. LiveNX

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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

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabri...

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

42nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

LiveNX

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

28th

Average Rating

7.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

IT Infrastructure Monitoring (34th)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) is 0.6%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of LiveNX is 1.0%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
LiveNX	1.0%
Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM)	0.6%
Other	98.4%

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

Jagdev Dhaliwal

Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Flow monitoring has improved planning for east-west traffic and real-time capacity decisions

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) helps to understand the flows and data plane capacities, which are the primary use cases. Usually, people struggle with east-west traffic flow when they need to decide on firewalls or products. People typically understand north-south traffic flows but usually miss the east-west traffic flows in data centers. I was focusing more on this so that people can accordingly plan, such as after F5, the number of servers, the number of sessions needed, and whether we need to plan the interface for groups from the line capacity perspective. This kind of information was valuable to us. The real-time telemetry feature was beneficial. When experiencing performance issues, I could determine if there were any issues related to flows or areas where bottlenecks were occurring.

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Ashwani Bansal

Senior Solution Consultant at Orange

Network management and diagnostics improved through effective monitoring and reporting capabilities

The solution is handy. I have not used that particular feature. Maintenance is required for the system. If you want to use something on the endpoints or end-user devices, then using LiveAction LiveNX in place of other tools would be quite beneficial. The solution impacts operational costs and resources. On a scale of 1-10, I rate LiveAction LiveNX a nine.

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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

"After installation, you almost forget that it is working."

"I like running the scripts. With the help of a Python script, we deployed within the configuration and built up the code."

"The product has excellent stability."

"More than good enough as we have new clients everyday connected using this product"

"Data Center Network Manager is absolutely stable."

"The solution is very stable and it has never crashed on us."

"It has a very nice dashboard so you can see what's currently happening in the network and the performance of the back story."

"The monitoring system in this product is valuable, providing a clear indication of what's going on in the network and the server processing, power, etc., and the user interface is also very good and very informative."

More Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) pros

"Its analytical capability is really good."

"LiveAction LiveNX provides valuable real-time and historical network traffic visualization capabilities that help monitor and analyze network performance."

"On a scale of 1-10, I rate LiveAction LiveNX a nine."

"The alerting feature is very good because it allows you to set MOS alerts at various network junctures or data points."

"There are many positive attributes, and it's the best of the best."

"All in all, LiveAction LiveNX has become an indispensable tool for maintaining and improving our network's reliability and performance, ultimately supporting our organization's goal of providing timely and dependable delivery services."

"It is very good if you are a Cisco shop; it gives you reporting, latency, and bandwidth utilization for your applications, so you can do good capacity management planning."

"One of the valuable features is the ability to create CLI scripts on the fly to fix any issues. We were using it for QoS modeling to ensure that we were properly modeling QoS, and it basically said here is what you need to fix to get this QoS done, whether it is ACL or something else. It would either push or recommend. If you have the right credentials, you could also push. It is very good if you are a Cisco shop. It gives you reporting, latency, and bandwidth utilization for your applications, so you can do good capacity management planning. There are a lot of pieces that LiveNX can give you. It is a total NPM solution for SD-WAN."

More LiveNX pros

Cons

"The visibility of applications is not great, which is why we study upscalability."

"Data Center Network Manager is a little complex because it includes a lot of hardware to be installed, so making this simpler would be an improvement."

"It's very expensive."

"The technical support is a gap for us as a company."

"I would like to see improved integration with other tools."

"Sometimes the product gives us problems that require support."

"It's a relatively expensive product for some clients so perhaps improvement could be made in that area."

"The initial setup is challenging."

More Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) cons

"It is not as robust as other NPM solutions."

"My advice to others would be to run away from it. This is a slight exaggeration but this is more because the application is horrible, the stability is horrible, the performance is horrible and the support is horrible."

"It is not as robust as other NPM solutions. For instance, there is a problem while labeling specific applications. It works well with well-known applications, but when you have to put in new applications that are not very known and set them up with names, ports, URLs, or some protocols, it is not as intuitive."

"Improved documentation and more responsive customer support can help in addressing issues faster."

"The only downside to this software is the price; it's a very pricey solution and very expensive, and it requires a good amount of resources in terms of server memory."

"This is a horrible solution and I think everything needs to be improved."

"The tool crashes sometimes when we try to pull reports simultaneously."

"The product is weak in multi-tenancy. We have to install multiple instances of LiveAction, whereas we would like to build it once for our customers."

More LiveNX cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We usually opt for a yearly plan, commonly for three or five years upfront. Some customers may not utilize all the features included in the product, and this can lead to them paying for functionalities they don't need."

"When we purchase a Nexus box, the MDS CM license comes with it."

"I would say that the pricing offers great value for the money."

"On average, Data Center Network Manager's pricing isn't too costly unless you choose a premier license."

"The product is licensed with contracts that work on a yearly basis rather than a monthly model."

"The solution is very expensive."

"The price of Cisco Data Center Network Manager is expensive compared to other vendors on the market."

"The tool is always expensive, but their service, product quality, and support are good. We're happy with it, but it's still an expensive solution. There are cheaper alternatives but no similar platform across all domains."

"We use the free version."

"The solution is fairly expensive compared to other products."

"It's very expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Construction Company

15%

Outsourcing Company

Healthcare Company

Comms Service Provider

Outsourcing Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	16

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	1
Large Enterprise	9

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco Data Center Network Manager?

I do not believe it integrated well with different infrastructures for hybrid environments. I am uncertain because we have never attempted that in our environment, so they could perform better in t...

What is your primary use case for Cisco Data Center Network Manager?

The main use case for URL filtering with PAN-DB is that it performs quite well. Earlier, when I started in 2012, there was a Blue Coat product available during that period. I am not certain whether...

What advice do you have for others considering Cisco Data Center Network Manager?

I do not have experience with Cortex. I worked primarily with Strata firewalls, Global Protect, and Prisma. These are the three primary products I have worked on. I am familiar with Prisma Access b...

What needs improvement with LiveAction LiveNX?

The solution could be enhanced by implementing custom patterns for each customer.

What is your primary use case for LiveAction LiveNX?

The customers use LiveAction LiveNX for network monitoring and management purposes.

What advice do you have for others considering LiveAction LiveNX?

I work as an integrator with LiveAction LiveNX. Most customers prefer deploying it on premises rather than in the cloud. The advanced diagnostics capabilities, including flow-based surveillance and...

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Product Reports

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM)

Download Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) product report

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) report

LiveNX

Download LiveNX product report

Also Known As

Cisco Data Center Network Manager

LiveNX

Overview

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller, formerly DCNM, provides a consolidated dashboard offering insights into network operations, real-time telemetry, and automation capabilities. Users noted enhanced data center management and seamless SD-WAN integration.

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller integrates Python, Ansible, and Terraform for efficient traffic management. Comprehensive data center insight and stability highlight its utility across policy updates and network troubleshooting. With support for hybrid environments and enhanced network health data visibility, the platform suits complex, evolving infrastructures.

What are the Key Features?

Automation Capabilities: Simplifies network operations with automated workflows and scheduling.
Programming Support: Facilitates integration through Python, Ansible, and Terraform compatibility.
Comprehensive Dashboard: Provides a centralized view of network performance and health.
Real-Time Telemetry: Enhances decision-making with up-to-the-moment data.
SD-WAN Integration: Ensures seamless traffic flow across network borders.

What Benefits Should Users Look for?

Enhanced Network Monitoring: Allows precise tracking and troubleshooting of network issues.
Efficient Resource Management: Streamlines policy updates and component management.
Improved Security: Facilitates tighter control over Nexus switch configurations.
Centralized Management: Reduces complexity in maintaining data centers through a unified interface.

In data center operations, businesses leverage Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller for improved security, tackling tasks like VPN operations and private cloud development. It enhances storage management, providing robust support to manage Nexus switches for optimized component oversight and security protocols.

Cisco

LiveNX enables real-time network monitoring with a graphical interface, offering detailed reports and advanced integration for comprehensive analysis and efficient network management.

LiveNX provides intuitive tools for real-time issue identification and resolution, leveraging advanced integration with platforms like Cisco SD-WAN to enhance network performance analysis. Through features such as visual analytics and QoS modeling, LiveNX supports capacity management planning and operational efficiency, although it requires improvements in pricing, resource efficiency, and web interface functionality. Users value its insights into traffic patterns, enabling optimization and proactive issue resolution.

What are the key features of LiveNX?

Real-Time Monitoring: Facilitates immediate issue identification.
Graphical Interface: Enhances user experience with detailed visualization.
Integration Capabilities: Supports platforms like Cisco SD-WAN for comprehensive analysis.
Visual Analytics: Provides insights into traffic patterns.
QoS Modeling: Aids in planning and maintaining service quality.
Custom Templates: Offers personalized network management tools.

What benefits should users look for?

Proactive Issue Resolution: Enables early detection and solving of network problems.
Comprehensive Analysis: Assists in understanding and managing network performance.
Operational Efficiency: Enhances overall network management processes.
Traffic Optimization: Improves service quality and network utilization.

Industries use LiveNX to monitor and troubleshoot network performance, manage traffic, and ensure QoS across on-premises and cloud environments. It is particularly valued for its ability to visualize and optimize network traffic, which is crucial for maintaining service quality.

BlueCat

Sample Customers

Banco de Guayaquil, Cox Communications, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Roper St. Francis, University of British Columbia

Tampa Electric, Digital First Media, Allscripts, Boxwood Technology

Cisco Nexus Dashboard Fabric Controller (Formerly DCNM) vs. LiveNX