Microsoft .NET Framework vs NGINX Plus comparison

Microsoft and F5 are both solutions in the Application Infrastructure category. Microsoft is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.4, while F5 is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.3. Microsoft holds a 5.8% mindshare in AIS, compared to F5’s 11.4% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of F5 users who would recommend it.

Microsoft .NET Framework

Read 53 Microsoft .NET Framework reviews

1,775 Views
1,048 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

NGINX Plus

Read 31 NGINX Plus reviews

2,093 Views
1,787 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

Microsoft .NET Framework

NGINX Plus

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 2025

Microsoft .NET Framework and NGINX Plus compete in IT infrastructure and application development. Microsoft .NET Framework seems to have the upper hand in software development tools and integration capabilities, while NGINX Plus excels in managing web traffic efficiently.

Features: Microsoft .NET Framework offers extensive library support, seamless integration with Microsoft products, and flexibility in application development, which aids in rapid deployment and effective resource management. It integrates well with Visual Studio, enhancing productivity. NGINX Plus is recognized for its strong load-balancing capabilities, reverse proxy features, and performance efficiency, making it ideal for handling high web traffic.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft .NET Framework could improve its cross-platform performance and integration with non-Windows environments. Users suggest better open-source collaboration and cost-effective cloud solutions. NGINX Plus could benefit from a more user-friendly GUI, better enterprise integration, and enhanced memory management. Its pricing for scaling is also considered high.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft .NET Framework is mostly used in on-premises environments and offers extensive support and community resources, though response times can vary. NGINX Plus is valued for its flexibility in hybrid and cloud deployments and offers excellent support, with advantages in deployment due to its open-source origins.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft .NET Framework is generally free, especially for community editions, though enterprise versions may incur costs. Its integration with Microsoft products often results in a strong ROI due to productivity gains. NGINX Plus, offering a paid version with advanced load-balancing features, can be costly when scaled, yet it provides significant value for demanding environments where advanced functions are needed. ROI depends on specific organizational needs and deployment scale.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft .NET Framework vs. NGINX Plus Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft .NET Framework vs. NGINX Plus

April 2025

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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

Microsoft .NET Framework

Ranking in Application Infrastructure

4th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

NGINX Plus

Ranking in Application Infrastructure

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) (6th)

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of Microsoft .NET Framework is 5.8%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NGINX Plus is 11.4%, down from 11.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Infrastructure

Featured Reviews

Pavan Kodur

Application Architect at The Manitowoc Company, Inc.

Intuitive, easier to develop, maintain, and migrate from the old framework to newer versions

There are a few areas where they could compete better with products like React or Angular – the popular SPA (Single Page Application) frameworks. Microsoft has its own product called Blazor, but I don't think it's quite as powerful yet as React or Angular. I think that's an area for improvement. For example, HR asked me to build something that worked offline and online. Microsoft products don't really support that well, as I'd have to rely on browser databases. React and Angular are better for that. If I need something faster, I'd definitely use React. So, I see Microsoft lagging a bit in that area.

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Ritesh-Bakhru

Major Account Manager at Check Point Software

Quick installation and very easy to manage while doing orchestration or automation

NGINX cannot be a replacement for your traditional load balancer with what we use in the network today. However, with applications going toward microservices, NGINX is definitely a way forward. F5 has many traditional load balancing features, so they still need to bring some of those features to NGINX. NGINX is a very basic load balancer and cannot do as many customizations as F5. I think F5 is trying to implement those features in NGINX so they can improve the balancing on NGINX, but I think that will take some time. With the traditional F5 set up, the same OS can do load balancing, firewalls, and even policy enforcement. If we are able to bring some of those capabilities to NGINX, I think it would become a versatile solution and usage would definitely increase.

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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

"It's easy to create and integrate things."

"Microsoft .NET Framework’s most valuable features are web application development, RESTful services development, security, performance, and less memory footprint."

"When it comes to the user interface, the context is better than other tools because it is easier to use."

"The tool offers a lot of support, and there is a lot of knowledge material available, along with a lot of community groups."

"Microsoft Platform is the only viable solution when I wish to do something that is not supposed to be cross-platform."

"The solution's technical support is very good...The product's initial setup phase was easy."

"Given that it's cross-platform right now, where you can use it on Windows and Mac, that is the single most significant feature that has resulted in wider adoption of .NET."

"The solution is not limited in storage, is customizable and simple to use."

More Microsoft .NET Framework pros

"With NGINX, I appreciate its ability to route traffic geographically."

"Zero Downtime has always been a strength in recommending infrastructure web services. NGINX allows me to execute such infrastructure with less complications and the ability to switch from server to server easily."

"NGINX works much better than HAProxy in our current hardware and architecture for HTTP/HTTPS load balancing. "

"The product is resilient."

"Nginx is extremely efficient in terms of the connection rate to the CPU cycles ratio, and in terms of the bandwidth to CPU cycles."

"The flexibility of its modules allow it to be scalable."

"I need to highlight that the number one thing about NGINX is that it is free."

"When I worked in a security research center, we tested NGINX to support DoS and DDoS attacks, and its results were great."

More NGINX Plus pros

Cons

"The pricing is a bit expensive."

"You need to have the technical expertise to use this product."

"It is of great concern to us that the solution is not very powerful on cross platform, at it impedes the ability to build and scale with it."

"I would like to see more pre-built features in the MVC framework because as it is now, it's very open and you have to develop your own controls in order to use it."

"In the realm of Microsoft .NET Framework, particularly in the C# language, there have been significant developments that I find highly commendable. I am genuinely fascinated by the continuous evolution of the language, and staying abreast of the latest features in Azure is both challenging and enjoyable. Working with C# in Azure is particularly fantastic. I appreciate in .NET, as compared to Java, is the enforcement of types, providing a better experience in terms of technicalities. Additionally, the introduction of Roslyn in the past few years has brought about the concept of late .NET, which I find interesting and powerful. This allows for the transformation of symbolic code just before execution, eliminating the runtime decision-making process and enhancing efficiency. However, late .NET does come with a drawback – a delay in the last-minute computation when starting an executable. While some may find this less appealing in terms of instant responsiveness, especially in serverless cloud environments, the efficiency gained from executing strictly binary code is valuable. Despite potential drawbacks like the time required for activation, I view .NET favorably for its technical advancements and efficiency, especially in scenarios such as serverless cloud computing. It's essential to recognize the intricacies of how .NET processes code and the efficiency it brings, which some may overlook."

"If AI could be incorporated in Microsoft .NET Framework it would be helpful."

"The integration with DevOps tools, such as Azure DevOps, Jira, and GitLab, would be a valuable addition."

"The .NET open source community could be larger."

More Microsoft .NET Framework cons

"Initially, I experienced hiccups whenever I installed the application. As with any application, there were initial issues, however, after receiving support, everything was rectified."

"The center management system could be improved."

"They should do in the open source version of what they did to Advanced HTTP, TCP, and UDP load balancing."

"I would like the configuration process to be more simplified."

"I would suggest adding GUI-based configuration panels to NGINX Plus to simplify setup and management tasks."

"The solution's GUI is an area with certain shortcomings that need improvement."

"One area of improvement could be that NGINX could provide a means to generate self-signed SSL certificates."

"If NGINX brings some features for health check in the open source version, it would be better. "

More NGINX Plus cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Do your homework. Consider the partnership program."

"Microsoft .NET Framework is a free, open-source solution."

"We have an annual license, and we pay extra for extended support."

"The pricing could be cheaper."

"The solution is a bit costly when compared to open source products or open gear licenses."

"The product is not expensive."

"The product’s pricing is a bit high."

"I rate the solution's pricing a two out of ten because .NET is an open-source framework. You don't have to pay for a license."

More Microsoft .NET Framework pricing and cost advice

"HAProxy is cheaper than NGINX."

"I am not so happy with their pricing policy, but this is not the worse thing in my life. I can tolerate it."

"NGINX Plus is an open-source solution with limited additional features. When you try to get additional features in the solution, then you need to pay an extra amount to NGINX Plus."

"The cost is reasonable."

"NGINX Plus is worth it, if you need it. If you do not need the features or support, the free and open source package is more than capable. "

"There's an open-source version of NGINX that is free."

"Compared to other similar solutions on the market, I think it's over-priced."

"The price is the cost to contract support with a specialized company, usually during consulting hours."

More NGINX Plus pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Construction Company

11%

Real Estate/Law Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

17%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft .NET Framework?

Microsoft .NET Framework continually innovates, particularly in Visual Studio, which focuses on improving languages, debugging, and .NET functionality.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft .NET Framework?

The company is not paying anything for the license. I am not familiar with this area. For us, it's free.

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What needs improvement with Microsoft .NET Framework?

There may be some topics regarding connectivity and management of certificates that require attention. We are currently facing some issues.

See all answers

Which is better - IIS or NGINX Plus?

IIS is a flexible, secure, and manageable web server to host anything on the web. IIS’s scalable and open architecture can handle the most demanding tasks. From media streaming to web applications,...

See all answers

What do you like most about NGINX Plus?

It performs very well. That's one of the primary reasons we use NGINX.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NGINX Plus?

My use case involves using the free and open-source version of NGINX, making it cost-effective as I haven't incurred any costs.

See all answers

Comparisons

IIS vs Microsoft .NET Framework

Compared 21% of the time

Apache Web Server vs Microsoft .NET Framework

Compared 17% of the time

Magic xpa Application Platform vs Microsoft .NET Framework

Compared 15% of the time

JBoss Enterprise Application Platform vs Microsoft .NET Framework

Compared 15% of the time

IBM DataPower Gateway vs Microsoft .NET Framework

Compared 6% of the time

More Microsoft .NET Framework Competitors

IIS vs NGINX Plus

Compared 17% of the time

HAProxy vs NGINX Plus

Compared 16% of the time

Kemp LoadMaster vs NGINX Plus

Compared 11% of the time

NetScaler vs NGINX Plus

Compared 10% of the time

More NGINX Plus Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft .NET Framework

March 2025

Download Microsoft .NET Framework product report

Buyer's Guide

NGINX Plus

March 2025

Download NGINX Plus product report

Also Known As

MS .NET Framework

NGINX

Overview

Microsoft .NET Framework is a software development framework for building and running applications for Windows, Windows Phone, Windows servers, XML Web services, and Microsoft Azure. The software is made up of two major components: Common Language Runtime (CLR) and the .NET Framework Class Library. The CLR is the execution engine that handles running apps and the Class Library is a library of tested, reusable code that developers can call from their own apps.

Microsoft .NET Framework Features

Microsoft .NET Framework has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

Memory management: With Microsoft .NET Framework apps, the CLR allocates and releases memory and handles object lifetimes in many programming languages, so programmers are not responsible to do it.

Multitargeting: Microsoft .NET Framework targets .NET Standard, allowing developers to create class libraries that work on multiple Microsoft .NET Framework platforms.

A common type system: When using Microsoft .NET Framework, basic types are defined by the .NET Framework type system and are common to all languages that target Microsoft .NET Framework as opposed to traditional programming languages where basic types are defined by the compiler.

Side-by-side execution: By allowing multiple versions of the common language runtime to exist on the same computer, Microsoft .NET Framework helps resolve version conflicts. In addition, an app can run on the version of Microsoft .NET Framework with which it was built and multiple versions of apps can coexist.

Development frameworks and technologies: Microsoft .NET Framework provides libraries for specific areas of app development, such as ASP.NET for web apps, ADO.NET for data access, Windows Communication Foundation for service-oriented apps, and Windows Presentation Foundation for Windows desktop apps.

Microsoft .NET Framework Benefits

There are many benefits to implementing Microsoft .NET Framework. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

Language interoperability: With this Microsoft .NET Framework feature, routines written in one language are accessible to other languages, enabling programmers to focus on creating apps in their preferred languages.

Version compatibility: Microsoft .NET Framework offers version compatibility for rare occasions when apps that are developed by using a particular version of Microsoft .NET Framework happen to run without modification on a later version.

Extensive class library: With Microsoft .NET Framework, programmers have the ability to use a readily accessible Microsoft .NET Framework class library instead of having to write vast amounts of code to handle common low-level programming operations.

Reviews from Real Users

Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by PeerSpot users currently using the Microsoft .NET Framework solution.

PeerSpot user, Syed A., Principal System Developer at a government, says the solution is a “Great all in one framework with extensive stack for web applications, windows applications and mobile applications.”

A QA Supervisor at a manufacturing company mentions, “It comes with many features that you can interact with and has all of the libraries readily available, which is not available in the RPA platforms. You can create your own SSIS package. You can integrate with all of the Windows objects, which is not available in Automation Anywhere, and you need to rely on their Object Cloning technologies to interact with them.”

Brennan G., IS Technical Architect at Avara Foods Holdings Limited, comments, “It is easy to use, and it runs on a Windows platform. The .NET Framework is a very good framework. It does what I need it to do.”

Microsoft

NGINX Plus is a versatile solution that offers load balancing, caching, proxying, and API deployment capabilities. It can be deployed on private or public clouds and is ideal for building CDN solutions. The solution can also be used to secure web applications and replace web services like Apache.

NGINX has helped organizations improve functioning, reduce downtimes, and offer a DevOps-friendly solution. Its community support and documentation are highly regarded, and its configuration is more straightforward, making it a recommended choice over HAProxy.

Sample Customers

Curtin University, Rockwell Automation, Aruba Networks, Insurity Inc., City of Barcelona, Pennsylvania DCNR, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, A1 Telekom Austria AG, Eastman Chemical Company

Locaweb, AppNexus, Wix, Reliam, Montana Interactive, MuleSoft, Warpwire, Discovery Education, InkaBinka, WordPress.com, Gogo, GOV.UK, NASA

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft .NET Framework vs. NGINX Plus

April 2025

Free Report: Microsoft .NET Framework vs. NGINX Plus

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