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Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune vs KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 1, 2026

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

Ivanti Neurons Patch for In...
Ranking in Patch Management
15th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
KACE Systems Management App...
Ranking in Patch Management
9th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Client Desktop Management (3rd), Endpoint Compliance (7th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (12th), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (10th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Patch Management category, the mindshare of Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune is 2.6%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is 3.6%, down from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Patch Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)3.6%
Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune2.6%
Other93.8%
Patch Management
 

Featured Reviews

PA
IT Administrator at FPT Software Strategic Unit no 17
Keeping servers updated while encountering documentation issues and time zone delays in support
In terms of improvement, I would recommend better documentation. During the time I used it, there were issues with up-to-date patching, and the documentation around those specific errors was quite confusing. Sometimes I had to uninstall, reinstall, or engage technical support, which took a lot of time. It would be helpful if the documentation could easily help us fix bugs on our own.
MH
Server Administrator III at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Reliability and adaptability enable efficient application deployment and security management
The best features Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) offers include the scripting function, which stands out to me because I can find specific needs and deploy the applications based on those needs. There was a time when scripting really saved me time by allowing me to find specific registry entries and modify them to patch security vulnerabilities. Scripting has saved us hundreds of hours over the years when patching these vulnerabilities compared to how we did it before. I really enjoy the security features that are enabled to deploy Microsoft and other vendor patches, which stand out to me as key functionalities.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features are device management and support for upgrading applications."
"We can set a maintenance window and push the patch."
"It is very easy to use, as well as extremely efficient and accurate."
"Both in terms of features and operations, this is a good solution."
"We use the solution for security patching of Windows devices."
"I have found the interface and ease of use valuable features. Additionally, it is very easy to patch VMs and other systems, such a Linux. We are able to do patches even without the internet manually."
"I like the product's Peer to Peer patching feature."
"Both in terms of features and operations, this is a good solution."
"The most valuable feature is the imaging of computers through the SDA... Being able to do that so quickly with the SDA, and to then use the SMA for reinstalling software, has been huge for our productivity."
"The ability to build scripts right on the deployment center itself, as well as building groups that take those scripts/task chains has been absolutely invaluable and one of the most important parts of my whole environment."
"Every year, the system becomes so much more valuable for us; maybe the quality of our service is much better now, the students at our university can use more software, so the knowledge of students using state-of-the-art software is much better than in the past."
"The solution provides us a single pane of glass with everything that we need for endpoint management of all devices. It definitely has made our endpoint management process much easier."
"The initial setup is relatively easy."
"The software asset management has been a big help, even when it comes to license true-ups. I can use it to find out how many Tivoli we have, and boom, there's the number... And you can actually click on the information about the software and it shows, for example, that these five servers are where it's being reported. If you really want, you can log in to them and validate."
"My company had bought some new machines. We used the tool to do some basic settings to ship every machine the same way and undertake the Windows deployment. We did the scripted installation. The tool helped us deploy custom software for specific departments. We also did Windows updates with the product."
"I am impressed by the service desk ticketing and asset management."
 

Cons

"In terms of improvement, I would recommend better documentation. During the time I used it, there were issues with up-to-date patching, and the documentation around those specific errors was quite confusing."
"Customers sometimes ask about non-existent features, and we pass these requests on to Ivanti."
"Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune needs to improve stability. We had issues with patching."
"The biggest problem that I have with technical support is that it is not regional and we are dealing with time differences."
"Customers sometimes ask about non-existent features, and we pass these requests on to Ivanti."
"There are times when there is an update that causes some issues. These issues should be sorted out before the release."
"I tried to be a partner of Ivanti and, from this vantage point, the quotes are, perhaps, a bit high."
"Ivanti Patch could be improved with better integration with other cloud solutions."
"There should be a mini toolbox, like the competitors of KACE have, with the small features for KACE administrators. That would make their lives easier. If you are troubleshooting a specific endpoint, remote control is available as is Wake-on-LAN. But if you want to execute some commands, you have to use a third-party tool, the PS tool. If they would integrate those small things, it would make KACE more powerful."
"They could make the booting solution easier for different things, e.g., easier to insert drivers. They could make it easier to create a new image and put it onto the server. Those would be some nice solutions. They could make it so that somebody who has no knowledge at all can do it. That would be really nice. Because every time, until I get it memorized, I still need to go back to the training, the manual, or Google it to figure it out again. If they would make it a lot easier, to where a nine-year-old could do it, that would be really cool. If they made it easier, I could have more people managing the images on the server, instead of just one or two people."
"I would like for there to be improvement when it comes to Microsoft and Windows updates. It has the ability to do it but the control of it is not there like I have in the Windows Server Update Services. The way KACE does it is still very granular. You don't really see the process like it is in the Windows Server Update Services. I think that would be one of the biggest things that I would like to see KACE really put some work into and really make that a big enhancement."
"The user interface needs improvement as customers have mentioned they do not like the interface since it is not an SMA-based interface and lacks a manual configuration option."
"I would like for there to be improvement when it comes to Microsoft and Windows updates. It has the ability to do it but the control of it is not there like I have in the Windows Server Update Services."
"We'd love to see support for larger dependencies in the scripting feature."
"The K1000 doesn't communicate well with some clients without SMB. There are some issues with getting things to image correctly because they rely on SMB, and SMB is a protocol that is being removed due to security reasons. Organizations are trying to rely less and less on SMB. I know Quest is aware of it. They've talked about having a new version that wouldn't rely on SMB for connection to the clients, but they haven't gotten there yet."
"I wish Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) would have a top-down approach since we use orgs; currently, we have to go into each org to deploy applications when we need them all across the university."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is affordable."
"For the one that works with SCCM, it is relatively inexpensive at $8 USD per node, yearly. The standalone product has two versions; the one that patches servers is about $45 USD annually and the version that patches workstations is about half that price at $22 USD."
"The license can get expensive if you have a lot of nodes."
"The solution is expensive compared to other products."
"While the price is a bit high, it may be equitable with the features one gets with the product, such as that involving the interface."
"Some of the other solutions were just astronomical in price compared with KACE and didn't necessarily have the ease of use either. So, we chose Quest KACE for its easy-to-use features and cost."
"We need it, so we have to pay the price. It is what it is. If you need a gallon of milk, then you have to pay the price for it. You don't want to buy the cheap stuff. You want to buy the stuff that is organic and good for your body, which doesn't have all this other junk in it. You want it clean for your body. Quest has done that for our deployment and management systems."
"Based on other solutions that we had implemented, its pricing seems to be quite competitive. It is not inexpensive, but it is also not more expensive than any other solution. They have the standard licensing fees and support fees."
"We pay annually for technical support."
"Licensing is done on a per device basis, so it's dependent on how many agents you've got installed."
"The product is reasonably priced."
"Their pricing is per end-point device. There is an initial cost for the license for the server, which is pretty low, and then there is a per end-point device license, which is also fairly low. So, the pricing is still reasonable."
"Its pricing model is good for what it offers. Nobody here gives me a hard time about renewing the contract every year. It might be a little cost prohibitive for a smaller company who has to stand up a virtual environment as well as have virtual environment licensing and the hardware. If you have a smaller environment, it might be cost prohibitive. If you only have a couple of hundred computers, you might be more willing to do those manually. In our environment, the cost savings of having KACE far outweigh the licensing costs. We are okay with its pricing model."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Healthcare Company
6%
University
12%
Non Profit
10%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise16
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Ivanti Patch for Windows?
In terms of improvement, I would recommend better documentation. During the time I used it, there were issues with up-to-date patching, and the documentation around those specific errors was quite ...
What advice do you have for others considering Ivanti Patch for Windows?
The only downside I found regarding technical support was the time zone difference. Since we are two hours behind, we occasionally had to wait until the next morning for assistance. I would rate th...
What is your primary use case for Ivanti Patch for Windows?
The primary use case of Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune ( /products/ivanti-neurons-patch-for-intune-reviews ) was primarily for updating all servers, ensuring that both main servers and production ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Quest KACE Systems Management?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is that, hands down, it beat all of the others in simplicity and pricing.
What needs improvement with Quest KACE Systems Management?
I wish Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) would have a top-down approach since we use orgs; currently, we have to go into each org to deploy applications when we need them all across the...
What is your primary use case for Quest KACE Systems Management?
My main use case for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is to deploy applications and maintain security, and we use it day-to-day to handle those tasks. With Quest KACE Systems Managemen...
 

Also Known As

Ivanti Patch for Windows, Patch for Windows, Shavlik Patch for Windows
Dell KACE Systems Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Presbyterian Church
Waypoint, Mattos Filho, Meetic, Gems Education, Green Clinic HealthSystem, Service King
Find out what your peers are saying about Ivanti Neurons Patch for Intune vs. KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,976 professionals have used our research since 2012.