Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Nagios XI vs Wireshark 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

Nagios XI
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
58
Ranking in other categories
Network Monitoring Software (14th), Server Monitoring (10th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (19th), Cloud Monitoring Software (21st)
Wireshark
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
63
Ranking in other categories
Network Troubleshooting (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Network Management solutions, they serve different purposes. Nagios XI is designed for IT Infrastructure Monitoring and holds a mindshare of 3.6%, down 3.8% compared to last year.
Wireshark, on the other hand, focuses on Network Troubleshooting, holds 13.4% mindshare, up 11.7% since last year.
IT Infrastructure Monitoring
Network Troubleshooting
 

Featured Reviews

Amir  Said - PeerSpot reviewer
Effective alerting enhances network monitoring experience with an easy setup
We love Nagios XI due to the fact that JPS Web is very useful. JPS monitors the modem and performs switching, monitoring the computer, and performing switching. We implement some applications and traffic monitoring. The alerting system is very effective. For instance, if we have an alarm on some RAM storage if the traffic is cut or dropped.
Vijay Duggal - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides detailed traffic analysis and helps troubleshoot issues
There is a disadvantage when it comes to sampling intervals. While the solution supports sampling as fine as one millisecond, it requires a copy at that interval. My Python script allows me to achieve a granularity of up to ten microseconds, but I can't go beyond that. When dealing with provisioning on both issues, it would be beneficial if I could go down to the microsecond level, if not the nanosecond. Additionally, I've heard from a colleague that Wireshark might be less effective in the voice domain.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most useful aspect of this solution is the ability to customize it for the client agent."
"The most valuable feature of Nagios XI is customization. We can customize based on our requirements. We can do modifications and implement a lot of scripts. Additionally, it is easy to use."
"Nagios is a custom API manager, and we can expose custom APIs for our integration. This is a great feature."
"It is an open-source platform with valuable features for performance and stability."
"The dashboard allows you to see what's going on in the overall system."
"BPI: It allows defining peripherals to map business criticality for efficient monitoring, as required."
"The most valuable features of Nagios XI are you can customize it based on your use case and requirements. It is flexible and easy to integrate with our systems. You can customize the solution by adding additional features using code."
"The most valuable feature is its support for different types of devices, where it can use all of the equipment that you need."
"I can save the traffic and analysis when I want to. Also, it's especially helpful to follow the stream (TCP, UDP, etc.)."
"The strongest feature of this solution, is the ability it gives us to carry out deep-packet inspections on our network, particularly when a function isn't performing as it should."
"It is a stable product. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"Wireshark saves a lot of time, especially with network troubleshooting."
"The transmission and reception issues are valuable."
"Wireshark is a good tool to start with network analyzing and packet capturing."
"The filter option provided by Wireshark is its most valuable feature...Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The session-level filtering features are valuable."
 

Cons

"Nagios XI can improve its GUI for users with a new look."
"I would like a much easier GUI so that I can delete events and logs, which will free up a lot of space."
"We often need to develop custom plugins to get Nagios to work the way we want it to work because the features we need are not always available in Nagios."
"The user interface needs improvement. Many tools have poor user interfaces, making them hard to manage and navigate."
"Improve the documentation, examples, and best practices, therefore users can understand how to do things."
"The pricing has recently risen. I know they've changed what is covered under the license, however, it doesn't change the way we use it and adds nothing to our experience, and yet we now have to pay more."
"We'd like to see more integration capabilities."
"The tool's AI model needs to be fixed."
"Wireshark could be improved by adding more monitoring features."
"Wireshark is restricted when any sort of encryption is involved, such as XSL encryption or DLX."
"The solution’s user interface could be improved."
"Sometimes I need to use tcpdump when I need to check the packets on CLI."
"Wireshark's UI isn't easy to handle and doesn't have as nice a view as Omnipeek."
"It needs the ability to follow multiple interfaces for specific traffic from different network zones/virtual networks. It would help to understand how any packet is going through the network."
"A room for improvement in Wireshark is its ease of use for beginners. It could be better. Another room for improvement in the tool is for it to provide more details about the traffic load. At the moment, Wireshark is adequate for me, so there isn't anything I'd like added to it in its next version."
"You need good network connectivity to download during the setup, otherwise, it might take a while."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Nagios Core does not have any payment, but Nagios XI requires payment for the license."
"It is good to contact experts for advice about what is the best solution for your specific infrastructure and enterprise."
"This solution is very expensive, at approximately $5,000 USD when I purchased it, which is why I haven't upgraded my version in several years."
"The licensing fees for this solution are approximately $3,000 USD per year."
"Nagios XI is an expensive solution."
"Licensing costs are reasonable."
"You can grow into the higher-priced scale as they learn how to utilize the features for Nagios XI."
"Nagios XI is open source."
"The solution is open source so is free."
"It's a stand-alone tool. If there is a commercial license for it I am unaware of it."
"We are using a freeware version of this solution, so there are no licence costs involved."
"Wireshark is free of charge, and there's no license involved."
"I've never personally had to pay for it, making it a highly valuable internet resource that's accessible for use. While they offer some paid versions, our firm has utilized the free version for the past three years."
"Wireshark is free software, so you can download it and use it for free with no licensing fees."
"Wireshark is open source and gives great value and functionality to the network investigation."
"I am using the free version of this solution."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which IT Infrastructure Monitoring solutions are best for your needs.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user174738 - PeerSpot reviewer
May 31, 2015
Nagios vs. Zabbix vs. PRTG vs. Spiceworks vs. Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor
I have researched a quite a few network monitoring tools which can be used for various monitoring purposes of not only the servers, but the intermediate routers as well. There are majorly three types of these softwares. Ones which are completely open-source, you can do almost anything you want…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
18%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Nagios XI?
It is an open-source platform with valuable features for performance and stability.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nagios XI?
The pricing for the Nagios XI product is good and better than other solutions. I would give it a four or five.
What needs improvement with Nagios XI?
The user interface needs improvement. Many tools have poor user interfaces, making them hard to manage and navigate.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Wireshark?
Wireshark is priced at a medium range, not too high, not too low. The pricing could be more flexible, and they might make it more expensive. That said, compared to other products, it is competitive.
What needs improvement with Wireshark?
The speed of the Internet could be improved, especially its performance. Performance can sometimes be a challenge due to numerous factors.
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Nagios has over one million users globally, including AOL, DHL, McAfee, MCI, MTV, Yahoo!, Universal, Toshiba, Sony, Siemens, and JPMorgan Chase.
Comversion, ADP, Talbots
Find out what your peers are saying about Zabbix, Datadog, Auvik and others in IT Infrastructure Monitoring. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.