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SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS) vs. Remote Desktop Services

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)

    Score8 out of 10
    N/ADameWare Remote Support from Austin IT company SolarWinds is remote administration software for the remote control of desktops, laptops, and servers behind or outside the firewall, allowing registry editing, restart services, logging activity, account and password management, and more. The mobile app also provides access from a phone or tablet. DameWare Remote Support licensing is per technician, the number of end-user remote machines is irrelevant; one technician may receive a license for…

    $520

    one-time fee

    Remote Desktop Services

    Score7.7 out of 10
    N/ARemote Desktop Services from Microsoft is virtual desktop and remote user session technology.N/A
    Pricing
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Editions & Modules
    Dameware Mini Remote Control
    $370
    one-time fee
    Dameware Remote Support
    $520
    one-time fee
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsDameWare Remote Support and Mini Remote Control are licensed based on the number of technician users that use the software for remote administration. There are no limits or restrictions for the number of end-users supported or the number of remote endpoints/computers supported. As you buy higher counts of licenses, the per-seat pricing goes down giving you a reduced total price.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Considered Both Products
    SolarWinds
    Chose SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)
    It's there when you need it, no getting ready or looking for it. Just log on in the morning and it's there all day. No connection issues, firewall issues, relying on users to punch buttons. The performance is great and the service is reliable.
    Incentivized
    Microsoft
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    11 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    8 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    11 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    8 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    91%
    Happy with the feature set
    10 Answers
    88%
    Happy with the feature set
    7 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    78%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    6 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    90%
    Implementation went as expected
    9 Answers
    88%
    Implementation went as expected
    7 Answers
    Features
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Remote Administration
    Comparison of Remote Administration features of SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS) and Remote Desktop Services
    Feature
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)
    8.6
    65 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Remote Desktop Services
    4.7
    5 Ratings
    51% below category average
    Screen sharing10.053 Ratings8.35 Ratings
    File transfer10.050 Ratings4.75 Ratings
    Instant message8.347 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Secure remote access with Smart Card authentication8.716 Ratings6.02 Ratings
    Access to sleeping/powered-off computers9.035 Ratings1.12 Ratings
    Over-the-Internet remote session8.548 Ratings6.95 Ratings
    Initiate remote control from mobile9.025 Ratings3.74 Ratings
    Remote management of servers & workstations9.158 Ratings8.34 Ratings
    Remote Active Directory® management7.239 Ratings8.64 Ratings
    Centralized management dashboard8.238 Ratings2.23 Ratings
    Session record8.55 Ratings2.23 Ratings
    Annotations7.94 Ratings00 Ratings
    Monitoring and Alerts8.75 Ratings3.13 Ratings
    Multi-platform remote control7.131 Ratings00 Ratings
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    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
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    Medium-sized Companies
    Remote Desktop Manager
    Score9.6 out of 10
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    Enterprises
    BeyondTrust Privileged Remote Access
    Score9.1 out of 10
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    User Ratings
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.3
    (66 ratings)
    7.8
    (20 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.0
    (13 ratings)
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    9.0
    (10 ratings)
    8.4
    (5 ratings)
    Availability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    5.0
    (9 ratings)
    3.0
    (1 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    5.0
    (8 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS)Remote Desktop Services
    Likelihood to Recommend
    SolarWinds
    I feel like this is a very robust solution that I would recommend to anyone who relies heavily on remote support. Most of the colleagues I work with already use SolarWinds products to one extent or the other. I feel the price for the solution is very fair and a good value for the product.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    This is well-suited if you need to log in to a remote machine on occasion to make updates or change configurations. It is also good for a production environment or for environments where people need to log in to use common applications, so you don't need to install the application on each individual client.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    SolarWinds
    • Troubleshooting computers remotely without the need for the user to even be around.
    • Install software that needs to be installed manually without having to travel.
    • Viewing what the user is doing specifically that triggers the issue, making replicating issues way simpler.
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • When you connect with RDS, everything looks and feels (and is) exactly like you're sitting at that desktop. This is great for us and for users.
    • You can sign in with RDS and the desktop will be the same as when you left it (if you choose to set it up that way).
    • Although they take some setup, RemoteApps are a very handy way to let users access a program without requiring them to actually connect to a remote desktop on the server.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    SolarWinds
    • It would be nice if the installed agent would be able to check in with the server so that I can connect to laptops, etc that have the agent pre-installed for when they are off network.
    • DameWare could do better with the mobile app. I cannot connect in from the outside with the mobile app to provide quick support if needed. This kind of defeats the purpose of a mobile app. If I am on the network, I probably have access to my workstation.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Remote Desktop Services currently does not support multiple monitors on the terminal server. Unlike other applications such as Teamviewer, there's no feature to toggle between multiple screens even if they were connected to the terminal server.
    • Remote Desktop Services should provide an option to scale up or down the screen size after a connection is established. Currently you can only adjust the screen size prior to a connection is established. So you'll have to take a best guess at what display screen resolution will fit best on your screen.
    • Remote Desktop Services should offer some kind of menu to send special key strokes like Ctrl+Alt+Del to the terminal server. Currently the substitute for that particular combination is Ctrl+Alt+End. But I have yet to discover a replacement for other combination keystrokes such as Alt+PrintScrn.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    SolarWinds
    This application is one of my most used tools when it comes to supporting end users and the network as well. I don't have to run all over the place to get things done when I can access multiple computers on the network at the same time to accomplish multiple tasks in a minimal amount of time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    SolarWinds
    Because it has enhanced my ability to trouble shoot more issues during the day. Instead of having to go to each machine and spend time at the machine, I can remote in from my desktop and assist the person 90 per cent of the time. I also use it from home to remote in which saves me the time from having to return back to the workplace.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    The initial setup for Remote Desktop Services is complex, and licensing is costly. Each user connects to their virtual desktop hosted by a single server or group of servers, so a change or issue with servers quickly impacts every single user at the same time. Aside from that, users appreciate seeing their same personal desktop from any device or geographical location.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    SolarWinds
    Yes, always available.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    SolarWinds
    The application always seems responsive to me
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    There are some third party tools available that allow you to manage multiple connections.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    SolarWinds
    I use a Samsung mobile device; DameWare Mobile was working and then after an Android update it started crashing. I reported the issue to DameWare and worked with the technicians and developers to gather data for them to correct the issue. They quickly published a beta release for me to test (which corrected the crashes) and then published an update to the Google Play Store.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    As with any Microsoft Server product, support for Remote Desktop Services requires a paid support package. These are license-based and very costly, on top of the already costly product licensing. Microsoft's licensing is complicated to begin with, so setting up licensing alone essentially requires a licensing expert's counsel. There is community documentation and support available on Microsoft websites, as well as community websites.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    SolarWinds
    It was excellent
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    SolarWinds
    The videos were more than sufficient to learn the product
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    SolarWinds
    It helps greatly if you know someone already using DameWare Remote Support. I was fortunate as my tech support guys were using it at their hospital and assisted me through the purchase, download and implementation of remote support. As well as, knowing how many licenses to purchase at the time. You have to make sure that anyone assisting in IT can have access to the program with their own license.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    SolarWinds
    We previously utilized LogMeIn. They increased the pricing of their solution which made us reconsider it. I inherited LogMeIn. I am not a big fan of hosted solutions for some vital IT processes. There was convenience in LogMeIn, but there were also risks about the solution that I was never completely comfortable with. I had utilized DameWare at a previous company, so I knew what I was getting with it. It was an easy decision for me to make. DameWare is an exceptional product.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    We selected Remote Desktop Services based upon price alone. Other solutions on the market are significantly more expensive, but if your company can foot the bill you should seriously consider products that have been on the market for longer. The lack of an ability to easily upgrade farm servers has been a challenge for us - although it is still faster than updating an application on 2000+ machines. The lack of a centralized management console in 2008 R2 is also challenging, but you get by with the tools available to you. If you don't have the money to spend on Citrix or VMWare Horizon, Remote Desktop Services is a decent replacement.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    SolarWinds
    You get an 8 because of the constant initial freeze on most connections. Takes a reconnect to have it work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    SolarWinds
    • DameWare has allowed us to maintain our non-traditional approach to IT support. It allows our administrators to work from anywhere and has extended their reach to clients domestic and abroad.
    • Return on investment was realized as soon as we purchased the licenses. We don't have to maintain a large office space or overhead costs due to the flexibility it allows our administrators.
    • First call resolution has increased drastically since implementing DameWare company-wide. The user no longer has to wait to reproduce an error. We can screen share and view it as it happens and mitigate the issues.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Allowed remote users access from home
    • Shared file access for multipolar users from a centralized location
    • Cost to add additional users when maxed out
    • Purchase multiple licenses for programs to run in virtual machines. Or unable to run on a virtual machine
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    SolarWinds Dameware Remote Support (DRS) Screenshots

    Screenshot of DameWare Remote Support Management ConsoleScreenshot of Remotely Connect to Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X ComputersScreenshot of Over-the-Internet Remote Session via Secure Proxy ServerScreenshot of Connect to Remote Computers from iOS and Android Mobile Devices