As you navigate the IT Asset Management (ITAM) solutions landscape, two prominent options come to the forefront: Snipe-IT vs. Snow Asset Manager. Effectively managing IT assets throughout their lifecycle is key to optimizing resource utilization, controlling costs, and ensuring compliance.
In this blog post, we’ll comprehensively compare Snipe-IT and Snow Asset Manager, scrutinizing their unique attributes, strengths, and limitations. We’ll also introduce you to a powerful contender in the ITAM space: InvGate Asset Management—a solution equipped with distinctive features and capabilities designed to align with your organization's specific needs seamlessly.
Join us as we explore and analyze these ITAM software alternatives to unearth the ideal choice that seamlessly aligns with your organization's unique requirements.
Table of contents
- TL;DR
- What is Flexera One?
- What is Lansweeper?
- Considering InvGate Asset Management as an ITAM solution alternative
TL;DR
- Flexera One receives praise for empowering critical business decisions through valuable software insights but some users encounter time-consuming resolutions for recurring issues and complexities during system setup.
- Lansweeper offers hassle-free SaaS deployment and comprehensive asset tracking with efficient software visibility. However, it faces challenges with limited scalability for large enterprises and potential delays in scanning updates.
- On the other hand, InvGate Asset Management provides comprehensive IT asset and inventory management through seamless data integration from various sources. Additionally, it enhances operational efficiency with features like CMDB Map Builder, automation capabilities, and native service desk integration.
Most looked-at features by buyers
When assessing IT Asset Management solutions, potential buyers carefully consider various crucial features to identify the best option that aligns with their specific requirements and business needs.
Here are some key factors that buyers take into account when selecting a customized ITAM solution for their organization.
- Comprehensive insights into IT infrastructure - The platform should provide a comprehensive view of IT asset status, performance, and usage, empowering users to make informed decisions and optimize their infrastructure. Additionally, the solution should include reporting and analytics features.
- Unified IT Asset and Inventory Management - Buyers seek a solution that provides a unified IT asset inventory feature, allowing them to effectively monitor and manage their entire inventory of IT assets from a single platform. The solution should facilitate automated asset discovery and capture essential information such as hardware specifications, software versions, and ownership details.
- Automated management and proactive notifications - The solution should allow the creation of automated workflows for routine tasks such as software updates, patch deployments, and system maintenance. Users can ensure efficient operations and respond timely to critical events by automating these tasks and receiving proactive notifications.
- Proactive cost management and financial optimization - The ideal solution incorporates financial data, contract lifecycle management, licenses, and other pertinent information to understand operational costs and optimize financial resources comprehensively.
- Software management optimization - Buyers look for a feature that enables them to track software installations, ensure proper Software License Management, and identify instances of over or underutilization.
- CMDB Map Builder - This functionality enables users to define and document relationships between different components, such as hardware devices, software applications, network connections, and dependencies. Visualizing these relationships helps organizations better understand the impact of changes, assess risks, and plan for effective Incident Management and Change Management.
- Enhanced cybersecurity compliance - Buyers prioritize a tool that continuously monitors assets and their security status, assisting them in proactively identifying and addressing security risks.
- Service desk integration - Integration with help desk software facilitates seamless information flow between Asset Management and IT Service Management processes. This integration improves communication, streamlines workflows, and enhances overall service delivery.
- Remote management with integrated tools - Integration with popular remote desktop tools allows IT teams to diagnose issues, apply patches, perform software installations, or conduct system updates remotely, eliminating the need for physical presence.
- Flexible deployment options - Users prefer a platform that offers flexibility in choosing deployment models, including cloud-based, on-premise, or hybrid solutions.
What is Flexera One?
Flexera, previously known as InstallShield and rebranded in 2009, is a well-known company specializing in technology Asset Management solutions. Based in Itasca, Illinois, United States, Flexera has been at the forefront of providing comprehensive technology tools since its establishment in 1987. Their wide range of offerings includes managing software and hardware assets, optimizing cloud spending, identifying and managing vulnerabilities, and ensuring compliance with open-source software regulations.
Flexera One, a powerful Software as a Service (SaaS) solution developed by Flexera, combines IT Asset Management and Software Asset Management (SAM). It takes a holistic approach by providing a unified and centralized view of IT assets across various environments, including on-premises, cloud, and edge infrastructures.
This platform is designed to help organizations optimize their IT spending, effectively manage and secure their cloud infrastructure, mitigate risks, ensure compliance with regulations, and provide valuable insights and analytics.
What users like from Flexera One
Flexera One has garnered positive customer feedback, as indicated by reviews from reputable sources like Gartner. Let's delve deeper into the specific advantages that have been highlighted.
- User-friendly interface with extensive visibility - Users have expressed appreciation for the user-friendly nature of Flexera One. The software's intuitive interface and streamlined navigation make it easy for users to comprehend and operate. Moreover, it provides comprehensive visibility, interpretation, and coverage of software consumption, enabling users to clearly understand their software usage.
- Responsive to business requirements - Customers have lauded Flexera One as an exceptional Software Asset Management tool that effectively addresses the unique needs of businesses. The software has proven to be adaptable, ensuring a smooth experience that aligns with users' specific demands.
- Exceptional customer support - Reviews consistently highlight the platform's outstanding customer support. Users have expressed satisfaction with the prompt assistance they receive and the attentive nature of the support team. Customers feel heard and supported, contributing to their overall satisfaction with the product.
- Facilitating vital business processes and decision-making - Users have emphasized Flexera One's ability to provide valuable software insights that support critical business processes and decision-making. The software equips organizations with the tools and data to optimize their strategic planning and improve operational efficiency.
What users don’t like from Flexera One
While Flexera One has many strengths and positive aspects, it is not without its share of customer concerns and criticisms, as revealed in reviews from reliable sources like Gartner. These reviews have shed light on recurring issues raised by users.
- Complex configuration for licensing models - Customers have mentioned that configuring the product to achieve a satisfactory view of more complex licensing models requires significant effort. The complexity involved in obtaining accurate insights into licensing can be challenging and may benefit from streamlining and simplification.
- Challenges during setup - Several customers have reported facing difficulties while setting up the system, even with assistance from Flexera's support team. Despite seeking help, users still encountered problems, indicating a need for improvements in the setup process.
- Recurring issues and time-consuming resolutions - Users have expressed frustration with the time it takes to resolve these problems, negatively impacting their workflow efficiency. Addressing these recurring issues and optimizing the resolution process would enhance the overall user experience.
- Support team challenges and data quality concerns - Some users have faced difficulties when interacting with the support team. Additionally, concerns have been raised about the quality of the provided data.
What’s Flexera One’s argument over Lansweeper?
Flexera One's argument over Lansweeper revolves around several key aspects that highlight the advantages and differentiating factors of Flexera One as compared to Lansweeper. These arguments can be summarized as follows.
- Comprehensive Software Asset Management solution - Flexera One positions itself as an exceptional SAM tool that goes beyond basic asset tracking and provides comprehensive visibility and interpretation of software consumption. It emphasizes facilitating vital business processes and decision-making through valuable software insights, enabling organizations to optimize strategic planning and improve operational efficiency.
- User-friendly interface and extensive visibility - Flexera One is praised for its user-friendly interface and streamlined navigation. It offers extensive visibility into software usage, enabling users to understand their software consumption clearly. This emphasis on usability and comprehensive visibility sets Flexera One apart from Lansweeper, which may have a busy graphical user interface and limited historical software views, hindering ease of use and access to crucial software data.
- Responsive to business requirements - Flexera One is lauded for its adaptability in addressing the unique needs of businesses. It aims to provide a smooth experience that aligns with users' specific demands, emphasizing its flexibility and ability to meet the dynamic requirements of organizations. This differentiates Flexera One from Lansweeper, which may have limitations in scalability and the ability to cater to large enterprise companies with complex IT infrastructures.
- Licensing model configuration - Flexera One may offer a more streamlined and simplified approach to configuring licensing models, addressing the complexity involved in obtaining accurate insights into licensing. This aspect is highlighted as an area where Lansweeper may require significant effort to achieve satisfactory views of more complex licensing models.
What is Lansweeper?
Lansweeper is an IT Asset Management and network discovery solution available both as a cloud service and an on-premise installation. It provides a diverse array of features and capabilities that enable businesses to efficiently manage and enhance their IT assets, enhance network visibility, and streamline IT operations.
Since its introduction in 2004, Lansweeper has emerged as a trusted and reliable solution for organizations looking to gain a deep understanding and control over their IT infrastructure.
What users like from Lansweeper
Lansweeper has received praise and positive feedback from satisfied customers. Let's explore some of the notable benefits that have been highlighted by analysis from sources such as Gartner.
- Efficient resource utilization - Lansweeper operates with minimal resource usage, ensuring optimal system performance and smooth operation.
- Accurate scanning capabilities - The platform excels in precise scanning, ensuring comprehensive and reliable detection of devices and software across the network.
- User-friendly interface - The software features an intuitive interface with pre-configured security reports, making it easy for users to navigate and utilize.
- Simplified deployment - Lansweeper, being a SaaS solution, simplifies the implementation process by eliminating the need for individual software installations.
- Remote server management - Lansweeper enables convenient remote administration of servers, simplifying tasks and allowing centralized monitoring of server status.
- Comprehensive asset monitoring - Lansweeper diligently tracks and records all devices entering the network, providing organizations with a thorough overview of their IT infrastructure.
- Customizable reporting - Lansweeper offers built-in reporting capabilities that can be customized to meet specific requirements, empowering organizations to generate comprehensive reports and gain valuable insights into their IT assets.
- Agentless operation - Lansweeper operates without the need for installing agents on devices, simplifying management processes and reducing potential conflicts.
- Asset placement visualization - Users can create visual maps to effectively manage and track the placement of assets, particularly beneficial for complex buildings or large facilities.
- Enhanced software visibility - The software provides complete visibility into deployed software, enabling organizations to manage their software assets and optimize license usage effectively.
- Cost-effective solution - The platform offers competitive pricing, delivering robust IT Asset Management features while providing cost savings for organizations.
What users don’t like from Lansweeper
While Lansweeper possesses various strengths and positive characteristics, it is not impervious to customer concerns and criticisms. Evaluations from reputable sources like Gartner have shed light on the most common issues raised by users. Here are alternative explanations for each point.
- Automatic deletion of assets from the database - Assets deleted from the system in Lansweeper are automatically removed from the database, which some users find problematic. They prefer the option to retain deleted assets for reference or historical purposes.
- Limited tracking of asset changes - Users have expressed the need for enhanced tracking of asset changes and history in Lansweeper. The current system offers limited tracking of asset-related items, such as monitor connections or IP usage, displaying only the most recent scanned information.
- Busy Graphical User Interface (GUI) - Some users find the platform’s GUI overwhelming due to the abundance of visible options. Simplifying the interface by organizing specific options into collapsible menus could result in a cleaner and more streamlined user experience.
- Lack of historical software views - Lansweeper's database does not support historical views of software, preventing users from accessing previous software data and impeding their ability to track software changes over time.
- Limitations in scalability - Although the software functions effectively for small organizations, it may not offer the same level of suitability and effectiveness for large enterprise companies with complex IT infrastructures that require scalable solutions.
- Challenges with custom querying - Users often encounter difficulties when creating custom queries in Lansweeper, especially when dealing with complex query structures. This process typically involves a steep learning curve and demands technical expertise.
- Complexity and accuracy issues with the reporting module - The tool's reporting module may require users to possess a fundamental understanding of relational databases to effectively utilize its capabilities. Users often feel that additional training or database knowledge is necessary for optimal use. Additionally, occasional inaccuracies in reports necessitate users to verify and cross-check the provided information.
- Challenges with the licensing system - Lansweeper's new licensing system may require organizations to pay for more assets than they actually need, imposing a minimum starting requirement of 2000 assets. This aspect may be viewed as a drawback, especially for smaller-sized organizations.
- Delay in scanning updates - Despite frequent scanning, the software may not always provide real-time information, leading to outdated data. Consequently, users must invest additional manual effort to ensure data accuracy.
- Limited availability of Internet of Things (IoT) firmware information - Lansweeper lacks comprehensive details on IoT device firmware, making it challenging for users to retrieve and monitor firmware information through the platform.
- Complexity of Patch Management - The Patch Management feature, known as deployment packages, can pose challenges for some users in terms of effective patch deployment and software update management.
- Outdated dashboards - Some users perceive the dashboards in Lansweeper as outdated. Despite ongoing efforts to modernize them into a more cloud-based console, users desire a contemporary and visually appealing dashboard experience.
- Limited regional support - In specific regions like Argentina, the availability of Lansweeper partners may be limited, affecting the accessibility of local support or services and potentially causing inconvenience for users in those regions.
What’s Lansweeper’s argument over Flexera One?
Lansweeper's argument over Flexera One centers on several key aspects that highlight the advantages and differentiating factors of Lansweeper in comparison to Flexera One. Here are the arguments that Lansweeper may present.
- Efficient resource utilization - Lansweeper prides itself on operating with minimal resource usage, ensuring optimal system performance and smooth operation.
- Precise scanning capabilities - Lansweeper excels in accurate scanning, offering comprehensive and reliable detection of devices and software across the network.
- Simplified deployment as a SaaS solution - Lansweeper's Software-as-a-Service model simplifies the implementation process by eliminating the need for individual software installations.
- Agentless operation and asset placement visualization - Lansweeper operates without installing agents on devices, simplifying management processes and reducing potential conflicts. Furthermore, users can create visual maps to effectively manage and track the placement of assets, which is particularly beneficial for complex buildings or large facilities.
- Enhanced software visibility and cost-effectiveness - Lansweeper provides complete visibility into deployed software, enabling organizations to effectively manage their software assets and optimize license usage. Additionally, Lansweeper offers competitive pricing, delivering robust IT Asset Management features while providing cost savings for organizations.
- Patch Management and Remote Server Management - Lansweeper offers Patch Management features known as deployment packages, simplifying effective patch deployment and software update management. Additionally, it enables convenient remote administration of servers, simplifying tasks and allowing centralized monitoring of server status.
Considering InvGate Asset Management as an ITAM solution alternative
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InvGate Asset Management is a comprehensive solution for managing IT assets that offers a range of features and functionalities to streamline processes. Here are the main features it provides.
Efficient management through automation and alerts
InvGate Asset Management allows for automating processes and setting up alerts, ensuring proactive IT management. By creating automated alerts, you can monitor contract expirations and promptly notify relevant parties, reducing manual effort and minimizing the risk of oversight. This automation streamlines operations and allows you to focus on critical tasks, improving overall efficiency.
Improved cybersecurity compliance with asset monitoring
InvGate Asset Management's asset monitoring capabilities help establish and enforce device health rules, ensuring proactive cybersecurity compliance. By quickly identifying instances of non-compliance, you can take immediate action to adhere to cybersecurity policies and safeguard your IT infrastructure.
Optimization of software efficiency and cost reduction
InvGate Asset Management enables the identification and measurement of paid software usage, facilitating efficient software management. By gaining visibility into software utilization, you can reallocate underutilized licenses, reduce unnecessary costs, and maximize returns on your IT investments. This optimization of software efficiency helps you make the most of your software resources.
Enhanced IT Asset and Inventory Management
InvGate Asset Management consolidates data from various sources, such as operating systems, cloud service providers, and Mobile Device Managers (MDMs), making IT and non-IT Asset Management more efficient. It provides a comprehensive view of your infrastructure, including assets, locations, and personnel, saving time and improving overall management.
A holistic view of IT operations through native service desk integration
InvGate Asset Management seamlessly integrates with InvGate Service Management, creating a native integration that connects tickets with devices and people. This integration offers a comprehensive 360° view of your IT operations, making management more efficient. Connecting service tickets to relevant assets and personnel streamlines workflows, improves communication, and enhances issue resolution.
Proactive cost management
InvGate Asset Management allows for directly integrating financial data, contracts, licenses, and other crucial information into the system. This integration provides a complete understanding of operational costs, empowering proactive and informed financial decision-making.
Streamlined operations with CMDB Map Builder
InvGate Asset Management includes a CMDB map builder tool that provides a clear and comprehensive overview of your IT ecosystem. By visualizing relationships between different components, you can identify potential impacts on operational continuity and proactively mitigate risks. This visibility helps reduce service times, improve operational efficiency, and ensure smoother IT operations.
Flexible deployment options
InvGate Asset Management recognizes the unique requirements and industry regulations of organizations and offers flexible deployment options, allowing you to choose between a cloud-based or on-premise solution. This flexibility ensures that you can implement InvGate Asset Management in a manner that aligns with your specific needs and compliance standards.
Effortless remote management with native integration
InvGate Asset Management natively integrates with popular remote desktop tools, enhancing remote management capabilities. This integration provides direct access to devices for troubleshooting and maintenance, enabling efficient resolution of IT issues and uninterrupted operations.
Detailed insights into IT infrastructure
InvGate Asset Management provides detailed and actionable information about your IT assets, including their status and usage. These comprehensive insights enable effective management and optimization of your infrastructure, improving operational efficiency.
Next steps
Choosing the right IT Asset Management solution is crucial for optimizing IT service delivery and ensuring the long-term success of your organization. It is essential to invest sufficient time and resources in evaluating different options to find a solution that perfectly aligns with your specific requirements.
In addition to comparing Flexera One vs. Lansweeper, you should explore other ITAM software alternatives like InvGate Asset Management.
To get a firsthand experience of how InvGate Asset Management can benefit your organization, explore our live demo!
