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Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs TIBCO Managed File Transfer comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 15, 2024

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

Sterling Commerce Connect:D...
Ranking in Managed File Transfer (MFT)
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
TIBCO Managed File Transfer
Ranking in Managed File Transfer (MFT)
17th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Managed File Transfer (MFT) category, the mindshare of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is 5.4%, down from 8.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of TIBCO Managed File Transfer is 2.3%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Managed File Transfer (MFT) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct5.4%
TIBCO Managed File Transfer2.3%
Other92.3%
Managed File Transfer (MFT)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1955103 - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Vice President at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Has delivered robust secure file transfer with exceptional encryption features
Based on experience, the one area IBM can improve for Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is the support mechanism. While support is available 24/7 whenever required, the solution time during American hours can take longer. In general, during American hours, the resource availability is not up to the standard. However, availability of support staff during UK timings or GMT timings is very good; they are supportive and helpful. Functionality-wise, they can make additional improvements to Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct. They recently improved by adding a GUI for configurations on Windows as well as UNIX platforms, which is very helpful. However, the web client is cumbersome and not as interactive as it should be. The CLI part is comprehensive, but the GUI needs improvement.
Joshua Rule - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Integration Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Serves as a straightforward SFTP server that offers reasonably good support
I think some of the automated deployment features could use some assistance, which is an area where it currently lacks. The product needs some ability to help it with the deployment model, which is a little difficult. Some support for the area revolving around PGP protocols in the product would be helpful. I think TIBCO could try to integrate better with API management software. TIBCO is a fairly solid product, but integration with some API management software should provide a better selling point since TIBCO would have some great API management capabilities.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."
"Automation is the most valuable feature."
"The Security Plus feature of this solution is excellent, and allows you to send encrypted files very securely to remote destinations."
"The product has been very stable."
"Offers secure file transfers with a fast and efficient protocol for very large files."
"Connect Direct offers Check Point functionality to ensure data integrity during transfers."
"The solution's file transfer speed is quite high."
"For Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct, my overall rating is ten out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its ability to do centralized administration."
"They have great multi-factor authentication for extra security."
"TIBCO has its own integration tool."
 

Cons

"Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct could improve by adding some of the functionality that some other vendors have. For example, GoAnywhere has call agents, which are small clients that can be installed on the endpoints and can be handled by the central point on the server. If I want to do this with the IBM solution, I have to sell a lot of account addresses. The price could be unprofitable for the customer. There is some small functionality that could be implemented and could be easily done to improve this solution."
"This solution cannot be deployed on a root_squash NFS, which limits superuser privileges."
"Sometimes we face issues and can't figure out the cause of failures."
"The initial setup could be simpler and better."
"Technical support is the number one concern."
"They have File Agent, which is an additional utility and a component of Connect:Direct, for automated file transmission. In that utility, there is some issue with the file name. There is a limitation on the file name, and that is being fixed by IBM."
"I do not have any notes for improvement."
"User interface is not user friendly."
"The UI could be better."
"Their cloud product is not yet stable."
"I think some of the automated deployment features could use some assistance, which is an area where it currently lacks. The product needs some ability to help it with the deployment model, which is a little difficult."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Annual licensing fee."
"The price and licensing of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is expensive."
"The solution's licensing cost is too high."
"The price is very good for the complexity that the tool provides."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
32%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
6%
Media Company
5%
Financial Services Firm
27%
Healthcare Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Educational Organization
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business1
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise10
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct?
Based on experience, the one area IBM can improve for Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is the support mechanism. While support is available 24/7 whenever required, the solution time during American...
What is your primary use case for Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct?
The majority use case for Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is for file transfer, specifically secure file transfer.
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

HZMO, Bank of Communications
Endesa/Enel Group, Symantec, Visma Connect
Find out what your peers are saying about Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct vs. TIBCO Managed File Transfer and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.