Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy) vs. PRTG Network Monitor

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
This Introductory course is extremely helpful for anyone who plans to take one of the Networking Academy courses which utilizes the powerful simulation tool.N/A
PRTG
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
PRTG Network Monitor is the flagship offering from German software company Paessler, for monitoring local and wide area networks (LANs & WANs), servers, websites, apps, and more.
$1,750
perpetual license
Pricing
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
PRTG 500
1,750
perpetual license
PRTG 1,000
3,200
perpetual license
PRTG 2,500
6,500
perpetual license
PRTG 5,000
11,500
perpetual license
PRTG XL 1
15,500
perpetual license
PRTG Enterprise
Custom Pricing
subscription license
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsCourse is offered free through Cisco Networking Academy.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Network Performance Monitoring
Comparison of Network Performance Monitoring features of Product A and Product B
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)
-
Ratings
PRTG Network Monitor
7.1
55 Ratings
15% below category average
Automated network device discovery00 Ratings7.449 Ratings
Network monitoring00 Ratings7.754 Ratings
Baseline threshold calculation00 Ratings6.747 Ratings
Alerts00 Ratings7.755 Ratings
Network capacity planning00 Ratings6.739 Ratings
Packet capture analysis00 Ratings5.528 Ratings
Network mapping00 Ratings7.639 Ratings
Customizable reports00 Ratings7.448 Ratings
Wireless infrastructure monitoring00 Ratings7.438 Ratings
Hardware health monitoring00 Ratings6.952 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

NinjaOne
NinjaOne
Score 9.2 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
PRTG
PRTG
Score 8.6 out of 10
PingPlotter
PingPlotter
Score 9.4 out of 10
Enterprises
PRTG
PRTG
Score 8.6 out of 10
Nmap
Nmap
Score 8.8 out of 10
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User Ratings
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Likelihood to Recommend
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.5
(55 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.5
(17 ratings)
User Testimonials
Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy)PRTG Network Monitor
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco
Cisco Packet Tracer is a very good option for technical educational institutes interested in the field of networking. Instead of setting up a real lab with real equipment that costs thousands of dollars, it can be dispensed with, and using Cisco Packet Tracer as a very good alternative, trainees can practice any time any where.
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Paessler
If there are a number of different protocols and devices to monitor PRTG is really an all in one solution. There are network specific solutions, telephony solutions, server solutions, etc - but this tool can do anything. Even if you don't use this tool as your main "monitoring solutions" every IT professional should have access to this tool for at least troubleshooting purposes. If you are looking for something specific built for a task you may be able to find [a] more direct and easy tool to use that would be easier and quicker to setup as customization is not needed.
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Pros
Cisco
  • Real time data monitoring
  • Packet analysis
  • Network geolocation design
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Paessler
  • Very, very configurable. You can create all kinds of monitors for all kinds of things. Plus it has loads of suggestions out of the box. It can get complicated but monitoring is complicated. Pretty decent interface and good support - active community.
  • I really liked how easy it was to add alerts by SMS. So easy to setup.
  • I like their sizing models (for purchase). We're actually small enough that we are free. But it's not free as in stripped down - it's free because we don't use many "sensors" and don't honestly have the need.
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Cons
Cisco
  • CLI, It would be great if we can use multiple tapes in a single window.
  • It is limited to Cisco products only, there is no integration with other companies.
  • Improve UI customisation and writing settings.
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Paessler
  • The probe service can be quite resource-intensive. This can cause false-positive readings from some sensors sometimes.
  • The software gets updated very regularly. Whilst this is usually a good thing to fix bugs etc, it does meantime downtime of the monitoring quite often while they are installed.
  • The ability to create Maps from Libraries. Very specific issue but a lot of people have been asking for it for years and it is still not available.
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Likelihood to Renew
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Paessler
It is now an essential tool for monitoring and maintaining the health of our network and systems.
Read full review
Usability
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Paessler
The tool is very intuitive to use and it is Windows-based (everybody knows how to use Windows) so it's easy to get into. Every time is setup in a hierarchy so if you have a good initial hierarchy design, it will really reduce administrative effort down the road.
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Support Rating
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Paessler
I am giving this a 6 simply because I have never had to contact support. The online documentation is adequate for most things, and the user-maintained knowledgebase is excellent. The few times I have run into issues that were not easily resolvable with intuitive UI, I was able to find the answers that I needed either in the PRTG-provided documentation, the knowledgebase, or with a quick online web search.
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Alternatives Considered
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Paessler
I have deployed and tested three products for evaluation I found [PRTG Network Monitor] very easy to deploy, the deployment literally took not more than one hour including basic configuration and network discovery. After deployment few configuration changes and creation of maps, reports and little tweaking is required. [Then] it would go through its process of recommendation that took some time to complete, while [on] other hand other software's took lot of time to install and configure. And features were also missing, which resulted in decision in favor of [PRTG Network Monitor].
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Return on Investment
Cisco
  • Reduce the cost of expenditures
  • Increase flexibility
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Paessler
  • The ability to analyze multiple pieces of information in one place, especially with historical data, has saved our IT department time and headaches. It would be so much more difficult to trace an issue without PRTG, just relying on event logs and an open task manager window.
  • The cost is not cheap, so it's an expense that hits the bottom line like everything else. Figure in hardware costs as well, ideally a server outside of your main environment.
  • I keep saying this, but the historical data piece is worth so much. There's really no good way to collect all of that information in one place without something like PRTG. And that definitely saves time and money in the long run.
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ScreenShots