Our primary use case is for Infrastructure monitoring.
Big Data Infrastructure Consultant at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Flexible, sustainable, and a great tool on the market
Pros and Cons
- "Nagios Core is very configurable. Whatever you want, you can do it."
- "Nagios Core is a great tool for monitoring the infrastructure including MSM queues, and when we use the agent, we can add other things as well."
- "I believe Nagios Core will need to provide an option for big data platforms in the future."
- "I believe Nagios Core will need to provide an option for big data platforms in the future."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
Nagios Core is a great tool for monitoring the infrastructure including MSM queues, and when we use the agent, we can add other things as well.
What is most valuable?
Nagios Core is very configurable. Whatever you want, you can do it. We have multiple agents and scripts available with the Nagios Core portals and the internet. The cost is also very acceptable.
What needs improvement?
Datadog provides the compatibility to integrate with these big data platforms like Cloudera and others. These services are very efficient and they provide customer support with it. In this case, I believe Nagios Core will need to provide an option for big data platforms in the future.
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Nagios Core
March 2026
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For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Nagios Core for the past five or six years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Nagios Core is highly stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Nagios Core is scalable for our purposes.
What about the implementation team?
The implementation was completed in-house because previously it was an open source tool. We can configure it to our own needs, based on our own requirements. The only task we had to complete is creating the script and using the tool. We had alerts created for our mobile phones, email and dashboard.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
When we look at pricing version eleven requires purchasing a license. With version seven no license was required since it was open source. When you upgraded to the licensed version only then did you pay for a license
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Nagios Core a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Partner Technical Support & Escalation Manager at a tech vendor with 51-200 employees
We are using the free version, and we can monitor pretty much everything we want to
Pros and Cons
- "It is fairly easy to set up, and we can monitor pretty much everything we want to."
- "It is fairly easy to set up, and we can monitor pretty much everything we want to."
- "We're using the free version, which limits us in terms of the things that we can do. If we had the paid version, a lot of our issues would probably go away. For example, we can't isolate instances that are being built or updated with the production ones. When they're being built, on Nagios, they're showing in red. It'd be nice to be able to partition those off until they're all green, and then we can bring them into the environment. This is probably because we've got the free version and not the paid version. If we went for the paid version, it would probably allow us to do exactly what we want to or remove the restrictions that we have, but if we are able to isolate instances in the free version, it would make life much easier."
- "We're using the free version, which limits us in terms of the things that we can do."
What is our primary use case?
It is used for monitoring services on a bunch of virtual machines.
In terms of the version, we're fairly up to date. We are perhaps not the most up-to-date, but we're fairly current.
How has it helped my organization?
It provides visibility of the platforms.
What is most valuable?
It is fairly easy to set up, and we can monitor pretty much everything we want to.
What needs improvement?
We're using the free version, which limits us in terms of the things that we can do. If we had the paid version, a lot of our issues would probably go away. For example, we can't isolate instances that are being built or updated with the production ones. When they're being built, on Nagios, they're showing in red. It'd be nice to be able to partition those off until they're all green, and then we can bring them into the environment. This is probably because we've got the free version and not the paid version. If we went for the paid version, it would probably allow us to do exactly what we want to or remove the restrictions that we have, but if we are able to isolate instances in the free version, it would make life much easier.
In terms of new features, we're just using it for what it is. We are using what we've got now. We don't have any additional requirements as far as I'm aware.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for four or five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is fine. There are no concerns there. Our biggest challenge is that we get a lot of timeouts, but that seems to be because of our network setup. There are a whole bunch of spurious events being reported, but they're more timeouts in getting to the Nagios agents.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It seems to be all right at the moment. We don't seem to be having any problems with that. We have upwards of 20 users, and it is being used on a daily basis.
How are customer service and support?
I have not contacted them for a long time.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Nagios is the first one.
How was the initial setup?
From what I heard, it didn't seem difficult to set up. It was quite straightforward.
We're still rolling out and deploying new instances of VMs that we want to monitor. It's an ongoing process.
What about the implementation team?
We deployed it ourselves. Its maintenance is done by one or two people.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We are using the free version.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend it to others. It does what it is supposed to. It is pretty good.
I would rate it an eight out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Nagios Core
March 2026
Learn what your peers think about Nagios Core. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2026.
885,264 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior Software Engineer at Peristent Systems
A good solution with alerting features
Pros and Cons
- "Dashboard provides monitor of total assets."
- "The features of Nagios Core that we find most valuable are the plugins we use, we can check the uptime and see how many servers and routers and create groups accordingly."
- "Would benefit from aggregations if a particular server goes down."
- "Nagios Core would benefit from aggregations if a particular server goes down."
What is our primary use case?
We use Nagios for one of our customers to monitor all the servers, firewalls, routers, and cameras. While monitoring the server we get alerts, this enables us to raise a ticket and notify end users that we are aware of the issue before they need to notify us.
We have 80 people using the dashboard and getting the alerts. Depending on the number of servers, routers, and firewalls we are monitoring in current clusters. When one cluster goes down, it will automatically take data from another cluster.
We support 24/7 because our client is a financial company, if the critical servers go down, they would face financial issues.
What is most valuable?
The features of Nagios Core that we find most valuable are the plugins we use, we can check the uptime and see how many servers and routers and create groups accordingly. From these groups, we can check how many servers and routers go down.
We also like the alerting features. One of the dashboards they provide monitor total assets and how many are up and how many are down.
What needs improvement?
If we need to process quicker, we use third party plugins to avoid downtime.
Nagios Core would benefit from aggregations if a particular server goes down.
Comparing Nagios UI and Nagios Core, in Nagios Core we need to do some coding while Nagios XI has everything in UI. If you go with Nagios XI the developer task is minimized because they help provide the UI. With Nagios Core, we need to log into the Linux servers and we need to change that particular directory. We need to write a code for each and every server.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Nagios Core for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We deploy Nagios on a cloud, so there are features like plugins. The help desk tickets plugins so we can monitor the lock files as well from main server and create dashboards.
The security-related features also are there to monitor antivirus and install or not on each and every server.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We were working with ELK. Due to costing we switched to Nagios Core because it is free for the alerting feature.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of Nagios Core is straightforward. We installed as per the steps mentioned in Nagios' documentation. It can be deployed in a day.
What about the implementation team?
I completed the installation myself.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Most of the features in Nagios Core are free. Most plugins are free.
What other advice do I have?
When considering Nagios Core you should consider how many servers, firewalls and routers you need to monitor. Then determine which services need to be monitored by Nagios Core and how many service alerts are needed so you can create clusters and keep your gig size and RAM size accordingly.
I would rate Nagios Core a 7 out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Information systems manager at Golfera
It's a stable solution for infrastructure monitoring, but it's complex to set up and use
Pros and Cons
- "Nagios Core is stable."
- "Nagios Core is stable."
- "The dashboard and monitoring features could be improved."
- "Nagios Core is not easy to use, so I don't recommend it for everyone."
What is our primary use case?
I'm primarily using Nagios Core to monitor infrastructure like servers, virtual machines, and telephone usage like IP-DECT antennas. I don't use all of Nagios Core's data functionality. I only use the monitoring features.
What needs improvement?
The dashboard and monitoring features could be improved.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've been using Nagios Core for about five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Nagios Core is stable.
How was the initial setup?
The Nagios Core setup is complex, but I can handle it all myself.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Nagios Core seven out of 10. Nagios Core is not easy to use, so I don't recommend it for everyone.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Support on banking at Aithent
Helps to monitor server applications
Pros and Cons
- "We use the product to monitor server applications."
- "The tool needs to improve the integrations."
What is our primary use case?
We use the product to monitor server applications.
What is most valuable?
I am impressed with the product's alerts and reports.
What needs improvement?
The tool needs to improve the integrations.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The tool is stable. I would rate its stability a six out of ten.
How was the initial setup?
The tool's setup is straightforward.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I would rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate the product a six out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Systems and Virtualization Engineer at Altelios Technology Group
Beneficial plugins, large community support, and reliable
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of Nagios Core is it allows us to develop and add as many plugins as we want."
- "The scalability of Nagios Core is very good, we can add as many hosts as we like, and we can work with the concept master and client, making it very scalable and easy to use."
- "Nagios Core could improve by adding a user interface. If you want the user interface you have to use Nagios XI."
- "Nagios Core could improve by adding a user interface. If you want the user interface you have to use Nagios XI."
What is our primary use case?
We use Nagios Core to detect any issues in our infrastructure, software, system service, and network issues. It is a centralized monitoring service.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of Nagios Core is it allows us to develop and add as many plugins as we want.
What needs improvement?
Nagios Core could improve by adding a user interface. If you want the user interface you have to use Nagios XI.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Nagios Core for approximately eight years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Nagios Core is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of Nagios Core is very good. We can add as many hosts as we like, and we can work with the concept master and client. It's very scalable and we have added the SentryOne as another layer. It's become very easy to use.
This solution is used by two engineering and three technicians. It is not used for end-user.
How are customer service and support?
We use the open-source version of this solution and there is a large community that can provide support for any of our issues.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I am using SCOM in parallel to Nagios Core, it's a monitoring solution by Microsoft. However, I prefer Nagios Core.
How was the initial setup?
Nagios Core is deployed in a Linux operating system and it is simple to do. For a medium-sized infrastructure, the deployment can take a day.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The enterprise version has technical support. The version we are using is free.
What other advice do I have?
The free version of the solution does not have an interface, but the paid version does.
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate Nagios Core an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network Engineer at a retailer with 1,001-5,000 employees
Efficient and easy to manage with good stability
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is quite efficient."
- "The solution is very complete and mostly easy to manage."
- "It would be nice if the company offered a sales or contract manager that was dedicated to our company so that we would have some sort of link to Nagios, and if we had issues or questions, we'd be able to contact them directly."
- "It would be nice if the company offered a sales or contract manager that was dedicated to our company so that we would have some sort of link to Nagios, and if we had issues or questions, we'd be able to contact them directly."
What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution for monitoring ops for computers and our server. We're considering adding other device monitoring as well and at points of sale.
What is most valuable?
The solution is quite efficient.
The system's alerts are quite good.
The solution is very complete and mostly easy to manage.
What needs improvement?
The latest version is a bit more difficult. There have been some changes that have not really improved the solution.
We have a new manager coming in, and they will watch and see over the course of the year if the solution needs any specific improvements. We're still in the process of testing the solution.
The implementation and deployment might need to be slightly improved.
It would be nice if the company offered a sales or contract manager that was dedicated to our company so that we would have some sort of link to Nagios, and if we had issues or questions, we'd be able to contact them directly.
It would be good if the solution had some sort of alarm system to alert managers to any issues. We get good alerts, they just need to get to the right person more efficiently.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've used the solution over the last 10 months or so. It's been almost a year. We initiated the product in 2020.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the solution is quite good. We haven't had any issues per se. It's been reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We haven't had any issues with scalability. If a company needs to expand it, it should be able to.
We have about 100 hosts and about 10 servers at this point and maybe 19 at the point of sale.
How are customer service and technical support?
We don't really have technical support from the solution. We rely instead on learning the solution and focusing on documentation if we need assistance. There's also a community online that's quite helpful.
Their documentation is very complete and they have pretty good policies in place.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We did previously use a different solution. We still use it. It continues to monitor our network. We have a new CTO that is looking to make changes. We're evaluating more economical options.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is initially a little bit complex.
The process took several months. Originally, we were using Linux systems.
What about the implementation team?
We didn't have installers or another company assist us. We handled the implementation ourselves.
What other advice do I have?
We're just customers and end-users. We don't have a business relationship with Nagios.
We're using the latest version of the solution.
We're still in the early days in terms of usage. We're still feeling the solution out and testing it for its acceptability within the greater framework of our organization's requirements. We're looking to test it at the point of sale to see how successfully it operates.
Overall, I would recommend the solution to other organizations.
I would rate the solution eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Network Operations Center Manager at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Open-source, good reporting and online documentation, but the GUI needs improvements
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features are the reports and the way it generates the report in a graphical manner."
- "The most valuable features are the reports and the way it generates the report in a graphical manner."
- "The scalability needs improvement, it's not scalable at this time."
- "This solution is not scalable at all. If you want to add an AI, or if you wanted to monitor different types of metrics, you won't get the most out of it."
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features are the reports and the way it generates the report in a graphical manner. The creating availability, the ratios, the uptime, downtime, and the outages.
What needs improvement?
Most of the issues have been covered through Nagios XI, but they could select some of the small features that are in the paid version and include them as part of Nagios Core.
Especially the graphical user interface in terms of configuration when you add in hosts, you have to use CAC and CLI to add hosts. You could use the GUI to add hosts instead.
The scalability needs improvement, it's not scalable at this time.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Nagios Core for a couple of years.
We are using the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Nagios Core is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This solution is not scalable at all. If you want to add an AI, or if you wanted to monitor different types of metrics, you won't get the most out of it.
It's not scalable, which is important these days when you want to see more data and how your network is performing.
How are customer service and technical support?
We have not contacted technical support. Most of the online documentation is helpful.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is pretty straightforward.
I can't say how long it took to deploy as we had several deployments at the same time, but it was not a problem at all. We didn't have any issues.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We are using the open-source, unpaid version.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend it for small network deployments or if you have other open source applications or other metrics like utilization, CPU. So if you're running alongside other open source applications and in the small space, it works. But anything beyond that is not recommended.
I would rate Nagios Core a six out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Updated: March 2026
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