

IBM DataPower Gateway and IBM API Connect are prominent players in the integration solutions category. IBM API Connect appears to have an upper hand for organizations focusing on API management due to its robust API lifecycle management and user-friendly environment.
Features: IBM DataPower Gateway offers high-speed performance, handles multiple protocols, and provides robust security, making it suitable for security and traffic management tasks. IBM API Connect is known for its comprehensive API management capabilities, including developer portals and strong API governance, making it ideal for API setup and lifecycle management.
Room for Improvement: IBM DataPower Gateway could benefit from simplifying installation and maintenance, enhancing cloud integration, and expanding programming language support. IBM API Connect's complexity in setup and high price are areas for potential enhancement, along with the need for intuitive customization options and improved monetization features.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM DataPower Gateway is easy to deploy on-premises but faces challenges in hybrid and cloud environments, with generally positive customer service. IBM API Connect offers flexible deployment options and is well-regarded for customer support, though there's room for improvement in service continuity and efficiency.
Pricing and ROI: Both IBM DataPower Gateway and IBM API Connect are premium-priced products with substantial investment requirements. IBM API Connect offers scalable pricing options, especially for cloud-based solutions, making them valuable for larger enterprises looking for comprehensive features and robust security.
Reducing development hours from eighty to four for an API was possible due to reusing existing scripts from DataPower.
I have seen a return on investment from using IBM API Connect, as we created multiple plans based on customer usage.
I can provide some examples of return on investment by saying that we are running different APIs which we are using, and we are charging customers.
Support is excellent when it comes to APIC.
Support is extremely good, especially with Sev 1 issues.
It was frustrating that we almost could not install it by ourselves because some information I will never find because IBM keeps it.
In terms of OEM support, it is poor.
I would rate the technical support of IBM as an eight on a scale from one to ten.
I would evaluate customer service and technical support as a little bit weak, so I give it a seven out of ten.
When you have Kubernetes on cloud or on-premise, scalability is easy.
With container versions, scaling up or down the gateways deployed into pods is a two to three-minute task for the operations team.
It is distributed among IBM MQ, IBM Ace, IBM DataPower, and IBM API Connect.
Once you install the product, we can't scale the resources on the IBM DataPower Gateway.
The runtime engine for the APIC Gateway is still a DataPower component, which has been stable in the industry for about fifteen years.
If it is functioning well, you won't have a bad experience and your application becomes more reliable.
IBM API Connect was very stable.
IBM DataPower Gateway does not handle all the traffic on a single node.
Examples include the lack of connectivity to MQ.
You need to know when traffic peaks, so use auto-scaling when traffic comes.
Connectivity to MQ is not available in IBM API Connect.
Whenever I am writing code, it should give recommendations automatically by incorporating AI so I can write the code in a few minutes or seconds.
However, from the development perspective, it has limitations because it only supports the XSLT language.
My experience with the pricing of this product is that pricing is too high and should be reduced.
Pricing depends on how many instances run across environments.
I think it costs around 5 Crore in Indian Rupees.
It offers significant development efficiency, reducing man-hours from eighty to four when creating APIs.
We can add some policies to provide extra security, protect your backend, validate the consumers, and analyze based on the traffic limit to throw things out.
IBM API Connect has a designer and CLI features which can be used to completely automate the API.
No other Gateway offers this as part of the integration offering.
As per the development perspective, there are some limitations with IBM DataPower Gateway because it only supports XML and XSLT language, but it does not support the Java language.
IBM DataPower Gateway's multi-protocol transformation is important for my integration needs because all the API traffic is coming from this API data gateway.
| Product | Mindshare (%) |
|---|---|
| IBM API Connect | 4.4% |
| IBM DataPower Gateway | 3.1% |
| Other | 92.5% |

| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 19 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 10 |
| Large Enterprise | 62 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 11 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 2 |
| Large Enterprise | 18 |
IBM API Connect is an API management tool providing robust security, seamless REST and SOAP conversion, and flexible deployment options for diverse cloud environments. It aids organizations in securing and monetizing their APIs while streamlining the development process.
IBM API Connect offers features like a security gateway, API lifecycle management, and integration with DataPower. Its intuitive interface enhances ease of use, supporting extensive analytics and traffic management. However, there are areas for improvement in automation, system integration, and user configuration. Organizations can deploy API Connect on-premises or in the cloud, delivering secure access control and analytics for banking, financial services, and government sectors. Compliance with standards like PSD2 ensures secure external API exposure and integration with multiple systems.
What are the most important features of IBM API Connect?In specific industries like banking, financial services, and government sectors, IBM API Connect plays a crucial role in API management, orchestration, and regulation tasks. It provides secure access, control, and compliance with industry standards, serving as an essential gateway for data exchange and integration across multiple systems.
IBM DataPower Gateway provides advanced security, multi-protocol transformation, and API management, ensuring appliance-based stability and performance. It supports enterprise-level traffic, facilitating seamless integration and deployment, though it may pose challenges in terms of pricing and user complexity.
IBM DataPower Gateway integrates as an enterprise service bus and API management platform, effectively securing APIs and managing authentication and authorization. Serving large banks and enterprises, it supports B2B transactions with data security and compliance, especially for sectors requiring GDPR adherence. Users benefit from high performance and stability, despite its premium cost and complex configuration needs. Cloud integration, user-friendliness enhancements, and improved documentation are areas where it can advance. It meets the demands of sectors like BFSI by protecting against security threats and supporting significant traffic volumes.
What are key features of IBM DataPower Gateway?IBM DataPower Gateway is prominent in industries requiring rigorous data security and efficient integration, such as BFSI. Large enterprises leverage it for B2B transactions, ensuring regulatory compliance and high-performance standards. It's also implemented in environments demanding robust API security and management.
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