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F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs Parallels Access comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 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 Remote Access
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
384
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (3rd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Man...
Ranking in Remote Access
16th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (20th), Network Access Control (NAC) (11th), SSL VPN (8th), Access Management (13th)
Parallels Access
Ranking in Remote Access
26th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 4.6%, down from 10.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is 1.8%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Parallels Access is 1.8%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune4.6%
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)1.8%
Parallels Access1.8%
Other91.8%
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

HA
Senior Business Development Executive at Digitaltrack
Centralized device management has automated onboarding and improves remote security compliance
One thing I feel Microsoft Intune could improve is troubleshooting visibility. In many cases, when a policy or application deployment fails, the error messages are a bit generic. So, admins still spend time checking logs manually or testing on devices one by one. Compared to the simplicity of deployment, troubleshooting sometimes feels less mature. I also think reporting and real-time monitoring could be stronger. The dashboard gives useful information, but in large environments, many teams still depend on additional tools or scripts for deeper reporting and analytics. If I had to focus on one area first, I would probably choose troubleshooting and reporting. Deployment through Microsoft Intune is generally straightforward, but when something fails, identifying the exact root cause can still take more time than expected. Error messages are sometimes too generic, and admins often have to dig through logs, sync status, or multiple portals to understand what actually happened. I think user experience and policy management could also improve further. Microsoft Intune has become much better over the years, but sometimes the admin portal still feels fragmented because certain configurations open in different sections or redirect to older interfaces. For new admins, especially, it can take time to understand where everything is located. Another thing is policy conflict handling. In larger organizations, multiple device policies, compliance rules, and configuration profiles can overlap. When conflicts happen, the visibility is not always very clear, so admins spend time figuring out which policy actually won or caused the issue.
SÜ
Senior Cyber Security Consultant at KoçSistem
Has provided reliable policy controls and secure web access for large enterprises
I consider Cloudflare when evaluating centralized access control features; Cloudflare utilizes multi-factor authentication and full API support, while F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) needs to enhance its API support. I recommend F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) for large companies such as Tüpraş and Ford. Tüpraş is one of the biggest companies in Turkey, along with other customers such as Tofaş, Euroko, Koç Holding, and more. For on-premises deployment, I would rate it a 10. For cloud deployment, I would rate it a seven. I primarily use it on-premises. I rate F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) eight out of ten.
JP
CEO at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
Allows users to access and operate their computers remotely
When you want to transfer a file from your iPad or remote device to the computer, the copy-and-paste feature doesn't always work. I'd have to turn on the Bluetooth a lot of times and transfer it that way on both devices, which was troublesome. However, it would sometimes randomly work. I could go on my iPad, find whatever I wanted to do, click copy, then go over to the computer through Parallels Access, click paste, and it would randomly work. I had to call Parallels many times. They would log in and try something, which would temporarily work, but then it wouldn't. When it worked, it made integration between the two things great. That was a very helpful feature that didn't get polished.

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 experienced any bugs or glitches with this solution."
"At the moment, Autopilot is the most valuable feature."
"Autopilot is a feature I really like."
"What I value most about Microsoft Intune is that it is a cloud-native tool and is embedded into Premium at a reasonable cost."
"Without Microsoft Intune, it would be extremely challenging, if not impossible, for a large company to send out computers to users and have them set up and ready to use right out of the box in a remote location."
"As an IT administrator, I appreciate Intune's ability to implement granular device-level policies for our organization's employees."
"The most valuable feature is the UEM capabilities."
"I like Intune's ability to manage roles, maintenance tasks, compliance settings, and patch development for all endpoints."
"F5 BIG-IP APM is relatively easy to use."
"F5 is great for handling complex issues, and most of our big customers, including banks and insurance companies, like it because it's such a robust platform that enables them to do almost anything."
"The most valuable feature is the virtual IP creation. It's our most frequently used feature."
"Our customers have never complained about the stability"
"The performance of the solution is valuable."
"I rate the overall solution nine out of ten."
"The solution is stable and reliable."
"This is a product that is easy to install and integrate, and it is simple to use."
"It's great that the total deployment can happen completely remotely."
"We don't have problems with stability. Everything is good."
"What seems to be the most valuable from the customer side is the ease of operation, and the overall experience they have."
"Parallels Access gives me full access and control of the computer, and I can do anything I want remotely."
"It's got a very easy-to-use interface."
"Parallels Access has flexible licensing policies, which is beneficial for customers who have intermittent usage or users who are on and off the system."
"The application used to publish for mobile devices is very good and the desktop publishing is very, very good."
 

Cons

"In Microsoft Intune, there is significant slowness, and there needs to be more logs when we deploy software, parameters, or scripts to troubleshoot problems and errors in the interface, workstations, and Android devices."
"However, due to access limitations, we are unable to deploy certain security features on end-user devices."
"There is improvement needed in integrating with the installed Office solutions versions, such as Office 2019. The Office 365 integrates without a problem."
"What would make this product better is adding more security policies and features in the next upgrade."
"The reporting could be improved, as it's pretty poor compared to other products of this type."
"There is room for improvement in the remediation and detection modules, which are currently about eighty percent fully functional."
"Sometimes, customers compare it with AirWatch, but the concept of Intune is different from other solutions. It's an application management app. It gets a bit difficult to explain it to customers, but it's not a product limitation. It takes a presale document or presentation to explain it to customers."
"In the future, I would like to see improvements in Microsoft Intune, especially related to policies and GPU."
"The solution is quite costly."
"If I could copy and paste objects instead of picking and configuring them from scratch each time, it would be great."
"The solution’s GUI looks very old."
"The main improvement needed for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is to integrate into the cloud-delivered services from F5."
"The operational deployment is not great and can be improved."
"I'd suggest improved documentation integration directly within the GUI. Right now, finding comprehensive documentation often requires going to external websites like the community portal."
"Integrating identity providers and single sign-on solutions can simplify user authentication and access control."
"The initial setup was not easy."
"There is room for improvement in the pricing policy. The price point is pretty aggressive."
"One challenge we do notice is that the application is limited to Windows servers only. If a customer has a Linux server, things get complicated. They should open it up a bit to be more compatible with different types of servers."
"When you want to transfer a file from your iPad or remote device to the computer, the copy-and-paste feature doesn't always work."
"The solution may not scale well for enterprises."
"The scalability is great for small or medium-sized businesses. However, it may not scale well for enterprise-level entities."
"They could improve the reporting."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Every customer used to purchase licenses based on their needs."
"The pricing is competitive, but it is not cheap."
"The E5 license is expensive."
"Microsoft Intune has a user-based subscription model. You can go for a monthly or a yearly payment."
"The price of Intune is often included as part of a bundle with other Microsoft licenses, which makes it somewhat cheaper."
"As a partner, we always look for how we can generate more revenue from a consulting point of view, but I do not see any complaints from the customer side regarding pricing, so they are satisfied with it."
"Intune is cost-effective as it is included in some of the Office 365 packages."
"Intune is included in the Microsoft 365 licensing package that we have."
"Recently, they have simplified the licensing"
"The tool is a little bit expensive."
"The product is very expensive."
"The licensing costs are about $100 per user."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Outsourcing Company
14%
Construction Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Transportation Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business195
Midsize Enterprise64
Large Enterprise190
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise9
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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
F5 products are more expensive than other solutions but are valued for their quality and reliability, akin to purchas...
What needs improvement with F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is not user-friendly and operates slowly. Additional features for architecture ...
What is your primary use case for F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?
I am using F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) along with Bot Management, API Gateway, API Security, and F5 Cloud. ...
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Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
F5 Access Policy Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
City Bank, Ricacorp Properties, Miele, American Systems, Bangladesh Post Office
Gilt Groupe K.K.
Find out what your peers are saying about F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. Parallels Access and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.