No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Symantec Client Management Suite comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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 Configuration Man...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
86
Ranking in other categories
Software Distribution (1st), Server Monitoring (5th), Configuration Management (4th), Patch Management (2nd)
Symantec Client Management ...
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Client Desktop Management (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Systems Management solutions, they serve different purposes. Microsoft Configuration Manager is designed for Server Monitoring and holds a mindshare of 3.9%, down 5.6% compared to last year.
Symantec Client Management Suite, on the other hand, focuses on Client Desktop Management, holds 13.1% mindshare, down 24.2% since last year.
Server Monitoring Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Configuration Manager3.9%
Zabbix10.7%
Nagios XI6.1%
Other79.3%
Server Monitoring
Client Desktop Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Symantec Client Management Suite13.1%
ManageEngine Endpoint Central18.9%
KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA)12.2%
Other55.8%
Client Desktop Management
 

Featured Reviews

NS
Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Centralized endpoint control has streamlined deployments and improved security compliance
In my experience, the best features of Microsoft Configuration Manager are software deployments and updates, OSD, hardware and software inventory, compliance and configuration baseline, reporting and monitoring, and integration with Intune hybrid management. These features make endpoint management efficient and scalable. The feature I rely on the most day-to-day is software deployment and patch management. It keeps endpoints updated and secure with minimal manual effort. Inventory and compliance monitoring are also important, but daily deployments are critical. Microsoft Configuration Manager has had a significant positive impact on our organization in several ways: improved efficiency, enhanced security and compliance, standardization, scalability, and visibility reporting. Overall, Microsoft Configuration Manager has helped us save time, reduce risk, improve operational efficiency, and maintain strong control over our endpoints. One of the biggest impacts Microsoft Configuration Manager has had on efficiency is the reduced manual work for software deployment and patching. For example, deploying a new application or security updates to hundreds or thousands of devices previously required several days of manual effort, including running scripts, checking devices individually, and validating installation. With Microsoft Configuration Manager, these tasks are automated and managed, allowing deployments to complete in hours rather than days. We also have automated reporting for deployment success and compliance which saved the IT team significant time that used to be spent gathering and reconciling inventory data from multiple tools.
Sathish-Holla - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Consultant at a real estate/law firm with 51-200 employees
Knowledgeable support, easy client management, and straightforward agent installation
Symantec Client Management Suite is used for Microsoft Windows patches and inventory management. The solution can be deployed on-premise and on the cloud Yes it helped to update systems remotely  The most valuable feature of Symantec Client Management Suite is the ease of client management and…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It works well for the endpoints for the customer I'm consulting, it has a bunch of knobs, and you can tune it to do lots of things."
"The tool's most valuable features include security updates and patch management, which are critical functions for maintaining security. The automated software distribution and the ability to manage deployments are also highly useful. Enforcing compliance with set policies on systems is another key functionality we leverage."
"The most valuable features are Remote Connect, SUP, Cloud functionality, Report, Query, and third-party patching."
"I like the data collection."
"I have found the solution to be scalable. We have around 50,000 users using the solution."
"There is a faster time to rollout. If we get a new PC, it can be ready for productivity right away."
"I have found some valuable features to be the built-in reporting tool, the ability to get visibility on your organization, compliance reports, software remitting for all your products in your organization, and the management of all machines in your environment including a new domain and workgroups."
"Patching is the main feature because SCCM is made to control the entire environment without manually interpreting. So it is good to use for patching."
"We can track the incidents, we can track the changes, we can track the assets from cradle to grave and give some kind of accounting as they get older."
"We can track the incidents, we can track the changes, we can track the assets from cradle to grave and give some kind of accounting as they get older."
"This is a very strong solution, and the most important thing for us is that it is very easy to use, as well as the availability of it in our support centers."
"The most valuable feature of Symantec Client Management Suite is the ease of client management and agent installation."
"The most important thing for us is that it is very easy to use, as well as the availability of it in our support centers."
 

Cons

"I would like to see an agentless version of the solution."
"With Microsoft Premier Support, you get what you pay for. There's Third Tier Support that you pay for; if you pay for that, you get excellent support, and if you don't pay for that, then you get the less experienced staff."
"Microsoft should extend support for additional platforms."
"The App to upgrades to the server needs to be improved."
"There is a reboot issue with the patching. Sometimes, if patching runs into any issue whatsoever, it doesn't reboot but it doesn't tell you it errored out. It just sits there and we don't find out until the next day whether it patched or not. That was a big issue for us. We're working through that. They added some stuff in there now where you can actually tell reboot is pending. But we still need some kind of notification that if something fails or is pending, we know. We shouldn't have to go in and look. They don't have anything for that right now."
"This solution should be simpler, and more consistent across modules/sections."
"The solution should be more compatible with different versions of Linux."
"Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager can improve by allowing us to schedule the scripts, we don't have a script scheduling option and have to do it manually."
"Some parts are working okay, some of the other components aren't. Workflow isn't working properly."
"The technical support is in need of improvement."
"Symantec Client Management Suite can improve by adding more network devices."
"Some parts are working okay, some of the other components aren't. Workflow isn't working properly. Different people accepting changes and being able to close it has some issues. Putting hot fixes and installing it usually breaks the system."
"The technical support has been troubling for me. I would rate them a six out of ten."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Pricing and licensing are horrible. You have to not look at dollar value to use SCCM. It's super-duper expensive but it works. The acquisition cost is expensive, it's labor-intensive. But it works."
"SCCM comes with its own version of SQL Server. If you use that SQL Server with SCCM and don't use it for another applications than you get an SQL Server for free."
"The price model is different for every client."
"Pricing and licensing are a downside of SCCM. It's expensive. I'd have to confirm this, but I think they changed the licensing to core-based instead of socket-based. It's not cheap, because you have to buy the software, you have to buy SQL. Another thing we learned from talking to Microsoft is that they provide you a license for SQL if you run it on the same box as the primary server. If you run it outside that box, you have to buy SQL. Microsoft does recommend you running it on the same box because of performance. But then, in order to run SQL, SCCM, and everything on the same box, you better have some resources. It's an expensive solution. There's no doubt about it."
"It comes free with the Microsoft account. We have a yearly agreement, and all products are covered under it."
"I would rate the cost as eight out of ten."
"We have to pay for a license."
"The price could be better."
"The price of the solution is competitive."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Server Monitoring solutions are best for your needs.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
6%
University
14%
Government
13%
Hospitality Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise66
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...
How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SCCM?
The setup cost is considered sufficient. It is not significant enough for us to consider a change at the moment.
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Also Known As

Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM ), Microsoft SMS
Symantec Altiris Client Management Suite
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Alghanim Industries, Asia Pacific Telecom Co. Ltd, Barnabas Health, Berry Plastics Corporation, BNY Mellon, Borealis, British American Tobacco Italia S.p.A, Cabela's Inc., Carrington Holding Company, College of Science, Technology, and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago (COSTAATT), Comparex, Cybercom Plenware Oy, DHL Hub Leipzig GmbH, Dickinson Dees LLP, Farmington Area Public Schools, Fazer Group, First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, ForceTEC Co. Ltd., Frucor Beverages Ltd, Hadassah University Hospital, Hillsborough County Public Schools, Hutchison Whampoa (China) Commerce Limited, Indian River School District, Johnson County Community College, JW Marriott Hotel Seoul, Kier Group plc, Kwizda Holdings GmbH, Lake Health, Lansky Ganzger & Partner, Mobilezone, Molina Healthcare Inc., Nanyang Technological University, NASDAQ OMX Group Inc., Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology, Pima Community College, Regional council of Franche-Comt_, Shanghai Pudong International Container Terminals Co. Ltd., Siemens Professional Education, Symantec Corporation (Endpoint Security 12.1), TIVIT, Travelport, University of Oxford
Find out what your peers are saying about Zabbix, Broadcom, NinjaOne and others in Server Monitoring. Updated: April 2026.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.