Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] vs SolarWinds AppOptics comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Quest Software and SolarWinds are both solutions in the Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability category. Additionally, 86% of Quest Software users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of SolarWinds users who would recommend it.

Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Read 22 Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] reviews

86% willing to recommend

SolarWinds AppOptics

Read 9 SolarWinds AppOptics reviews

4,118 Views
2,594 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

SolarWinds AppOptics

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] and SolarWinds AppOptics based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Datadog, Dynatrace, Splunk and others in Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability.

To learn more, read our detailed Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

September 2026

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Helped 913,924 peers since 2012

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

Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SolarWinds AppOptics

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (56th), IT Infrastructure Monitoring (62nd), Cloud Monitoring Software (44th)

Featured Reviews

Anton Kasimov

Consultant at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Drill-down monitoring shows us the entire transaction chain, from the front end to back end. It needs HTML5 interface.

I want to see a new interface that contains HTML5 features. The current version of Foglight (on-premise edition) is so fusty in comparison with leaders of Gartner APM Quadrant - i.e. Appdynamics, NewRelic, Dynatrace. If you try to compare SaaS and on-premise Foglight versions you can see differences in UI-design. It's my subjective experiences, but SaaS version looks more modern. Hope this helps

Read full review

John Yuko

Assistant Manager ICT - Projects at I&M Bank Ltd

Unique features allow consolidating and combing metrics into a single dashboard, but don't monitor mobile solutions

I would like to see more granular information provided on Unix applications. Also, the integration with Unix services should be a bit more straightforward in terms having an agent to retrieve your credentials rather than having to enter or save them for SSH on SolarWinds. From the outset, we had to set some commands to log into the search console, and they are saved on the solution, which presents a challenge in terms of exposure. The solution is unable to monitor APK solutions completely because we'd then be forced to break down the APK and provide the APIs or go through the source code. They don't have a module that can analyze an application that is maybe under-used.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"FxV is valuable as we can playback the session."

"Foglight has been our go to monitoring tool for several years in the DB2 and Oracle space."

"The extensive monitoring tools embedded in Foglight are a real asset."

"The most valuable feature is drill-down monitoring, which shows us from one interface the transaction chain from the front end to back end."

"Foglight Enterprise was the most scalable and easy to deploy tool."

"Foglight is the best overall solution we use, but it doesn't do everything we need or doesn't provide the best solution to everything we want to monitor."

"The product has improved the way we respond to database issues as it has made us more proactive."

"Having standard monitoring features and a central repository saves us a lot of time and reduces risk of incidents."

More Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] pros

"The product has a great dashboard."

"The sum solution, NTA, and DPA."

"Technical support is always live and they're supportive."

"The reporting of the solution is very good."

"SolarWinds AppOptics does far more than what an individual may realize; it is not just a SIEM tool."

"I have found the most valuable feature is application performance management."

"It's a solid application."

"Some of the most valuable features of SolarWinds are the topology discovery and network performance analysis."

More SolarWinds AppOptics pros

Cons

"My only complaint from Foglight for monitoring is that you only get a plot for five minute average for metrics like CPU and Memory, on the application side I can see metrics more quickly at 15 seconds for metrics like active sessions, heap. I would like to see the same for CPU and memory."

"I think installation and setup needs little more improvement especially when you are installing with external database."

"South African skill is scarce"

"We have not realized a good ROI on the product due to the fact that we were not able to monitor our core application which runs on Webmethods."

"Being able to incorporate other bespoke monitoring into Foglight would have made the tool even more useful."

"We had issues with deployment in the beginning until we had an expert guide us through the process."

"It needs a more intuitive way to create and implement custom "Cartridges" to be deployed through out a Federated environment."

"We are running a Webmethods stack (Software AG) and Foglight is unable to instrument. We are in a POC with Dynatrace and it was able to instrument with little effort."

More Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] cons

"I'd like to see the ability to use other internal instrumented applications as filters in the overview/aggregation screen."

"Because of its inability to monitor mobile solutions, I would rate this solution as a seven out of ten."

"The solution should be more user-friendly."

"AppOptics would benefit from having a much more centralized view."

"In terms of the technology, I think they need to put some more advanced troubleshooting into SolarWinds, in terms of AI capabilities. That's the next generation, especially in the cases of APIs which have already adopted AI capabilities into their products."

"We had a stability issue with a portion of the installation (Sequencer) when it was first introduced and have chosen not to install that specific function."

"I would like to see more integration with other tools that are available on the market."

"The support is not too bad, but also not very good—it's quite standard."

More SolarWinds AppOptics cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Foglight can be expensive I would go with the pricing at a three year deal."

"I recall it being a very expensive solution relative to function and stability."

"Since the product split – the licensing is a bit more complex."

"The price is expensive for us."

"I believe the current licensing cost is reasonable."

"Since it's a negotiable rate, I would rate the pricing as a five out of five."

"Mostly, it's a perpetual license. We don't have any customers using the subscription right now—it's mostly a perpetual license that the customers purchase. The licensing is based on the number of elements, whereas other solutions are node-based."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

20%

Marketing Services Firm

13%

Construction Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

13%

Outsourcing Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	13

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	7

Comparisons

Splunk AppDynamics vs Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Compared 21% of the time

Dynatrace vs Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Compared 15% of the time

Oracle Enterprise Manager vs Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Compared 14% of the time

Broadcom DX Application Performance Management vs Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Compared 14% of the time

Workspace ONE Intelligence vs Quest Foglight for APM [EOL]

Compared 4% of the time

More Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] Competitors

New Relic vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 9% of the time

OpenText Real User Monitoring vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 7% of the time

Zabbix vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 6% of the time

Dynatrace vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 6% of the time

Splunk AppDynamics vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 4% of the time

More SolarWinds AppOptics Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

September 2026

Download Quest Foglight for APM [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

September 2026

Download SolarWinds AppOptics product report

Also Known As

Foglight, Dell Foglight

AppOptics, SolarWinds TraceView, Librato

Overview

Manage your application infrastructure by monitoring the IT components that affect application performance.

Quest Software

SolarWinds AppOptics offers powerful network performance monitoring and application insights, aiding enterprises in optimizing operations.

SolarWinds AppOptics provides comprehensive tools for network and application performance management. This platform enhances real-time monitoring capabilities, offering topology discovery and hop-by-hop performance analysis. With a focus on minimal configuration, users gain extraordinary visibility into service-oriented architecture applications and are equipped to identify performance issues efficiently. The dashboard's integration capabilities streamline application performance data, empowering organizations with robust reporting features. The deployment is popularly on-premises, yet improvements are desired in pricing strategy and integrations with existing tools.

What are the important features of SolarWinds AppOptics?

Topology Discovery: Facilitates understanding of network structure and connections.
Real-Time Monitoring: Delivers current data to monitor system performance live.
Heat Maps: Provides visual insights into network traffic patterns and performance metrics.
Pathview Monitoring: Enables tracking and evaluation of network performance per segment.
Integration Capabilities: Supports metrics integration for comprehensive system monitoring.

What benefits and ROI should users expect?

Efficiency in Issue Resolution: Swift identification of network bottlenecks and performance issues.
Enhanced Reporting: In-depth reports facilitating data-driven decisions.
Increased Visibility: Comprehensive insights into application and network activities.
Minimal Configuration: Quick setup enabling immediate utility and productivity.

SolarWinds AppOptics is widely used in network operations within enterprises, also extending to server and application monitoring. Deployed to track servers and network devices, it aids in analyzation of logs and data across environments, and is essential for service management. Specific industries benefit from detailed deployment inventory and management portfolios enabled by AppOptics.

SolarWinds

Sample Customers

Anji Automotive Logistics, Unimat, Priceline.com

TraxoCovea Insurance BTE TechnologyDatarista

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

September 2026

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