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NetBox.dev vs SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager 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

NetBox.dev
Ranking in Network Automation
9th
Average Rating
7.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.9
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
IP Address Management (IPAM) Tools (6th)
SolarWinds Network Configur...
Ranking in Network Automation
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (15th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Network Automation category, the mindshare of NetBox.dev is 4.1%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager is 7.1%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Automation Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager7.1%
NetBox.dev4.1%
Other88.8%
Network Automation
 

Featured Reviews

TM
Consulting Engineer at Racing Victoria Limited
Works as an IP asset management platform but improvement is needed in report automation
I recommend the tool to others. I would suggest ensuring that whoever is working on the deployment is fully dedicated during that time. It's important not to be distracted. In my experience, when someone's focus is split, we encounter a few issues. I rate the overall product a seven out of ten.
AB
MD at Thembanet
Flexibility and reliability enable effective network monitoring with integrations and compliance reporting
The flexibility and reliability of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager are particularly valuable. It allows for a significant amount of integrations, including with collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams and Telegram, as well as ServiceNow and Microsoft BI. The solution facilitates compliance reporting through an NCM module, effectively generating out-of-the-box reports on software vulnerabilities and outdated software versions. Additionally, the real-time change detection feature significantly reduces the time to resolve issues by allowing alerts to be tracked through to resolution. The use of templates helps in deploying configuration standards, preventing configuration errors.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I find NetBox. dev's interaction and user-friendly GUI most valuable. It makes editing and removing items easy for users. Moving away from spreadsheets has been a benefit for our clients. It saves them a lot of time and makes everything accessible."
"The installation is straightforward."
"The feature that I really enjoy is the ability to script changes across all of your devices."
"SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager improves the mean time to repair significantly, bringing measurable benefits to customers."
"The scanning features have proven to be highly valuable, particularly due to the comprehensive information they provide."
"Compared to other vendors, like NetBrain, managing the solution is easy. They made it very user-friendly."
"The solution's view is very nice, and they have a great customized dashboard."
"I use it for monitoring the entire network for the company. We oversee nodes down, we oversee devices heading up to crossing the threshold for CPU usage. We oversee power so power backups on the switches, we oversee if they're down or if they're failing. We oversee any node down or any router from any vendor."
"The most valuable Real-time fault detection is beneficial as it enables the identification of changes made to a device's configuration through the SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. This makes it easy to pinpoint which configurations were added or removed, potentially causing network issues. Such changes are saved in logs for future reference."
 

Cons

"The tool should improve report automation."
"The only thing that requires some experience, and training doesn't fix, is how to set up your custom policy-based reports to check compliance."
"Our experience has shown that most of the problems we've had with SolarWinds NCM are related to software issues."
"I'd like to see additional features like support for devices that don't use CLI for configuration backups, expanded inventory support for other vendors beyond Cisco, and compatibility with newer SD WAN devices. These enhancements would further improve the product's versatility and utility for users. we hope for future enhancements, especially in supporting security devices that lack CLI backup options."
"I would like to see more integration tools. Something like dialysis, for example."
"For each device, when you open the network performance monitor, it will give you all of the information about the device, but many of the natural configuration management features are not on that page."
"Its customer service response could be faster."
"The solution could improve by being more secure."
"It would be great if they include a network service manager, network performance manager, or a privileged assessment in the next release."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The price of the solution is high compared to other solutions."
"We have to pay additionally for its support and maintenance."
"The pricing is good."
"You have a base license for 50 devices, and then you can add more licenses as you go."
"I have a yearly subscription."
"With a minimal bundle, we pay about $3000 a year in licensing costs. If you have multiple devices in your network, you must buy the bundle, which is 100% identical for your infrastructure. If you have 15 devices, you need 15 licenses, for example. That's one bundle. You don't pay for anything over and above that."
"In Africa, the cost is a major factor in decision-making for many companies. As a result, some companies may choose cheaper solutions, even if they are open-source, over more expensive ones, such as SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. However, as an engineer, I believe that the functionalities and services offered by SolarWinds justify the cost. Nonetheless, many companies in Africa may still view the prices as unaffordable."
"Pricing is reasonable and competitive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise8
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with NetBox.dev?
The tool should improve report automation.
What is your primary use case for NetBox.dev?
We use the tool as an IP asset management platform, focusing on managing IP addresses. It also helps to manage assets.
What advice do you have for others considering NetBox.dev?
I recommend the tool to others. I would suggest ensuring that whoever is working on the deployment is fully dedicated during that time. It's important not to be distracted. In my experience, when s...
What do you like most about SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
The configuration compliance aspect of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager allows for easy comparison of configuration settings across branches, ensuring adherence to security guidelines and b...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
The licensing costs of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager are expensive, but considering its reliability, feature enhancements, and support, it is worthwhile.
What needs improvement with SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager?
NCM could benefit from enhanced automation capabilities — for instance, enabling workflow-based configuration automation tasks. While regex and command-line scripting are available, they require sp...
 

Also Known As

No data available
SolarWinds NCM
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
United Lincolnshire Hospitals, Air Rarotonga, NetSuite, Thai AirAsia, REA Group, 335th Signal Command, Agilisys, Marine Expeditionary Force
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