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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    GNS3

    Score8 out of 10
    N/AGNS3 is an open source software which visualizes, plans, tests and troubleshoost network environments across any vendor platform at scale - without the need to directly interact with the network hardware.N/A

    Paessler PRTG

    Score8.4 out of 10
    N/APRTG 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.

    $2,149

    per year

    Pricing
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    PRTG 500
    $2,149
    per year
    Hosted 500
    $2,149
    per year
    PRTG 1,000
    $3,899
    per year
    Hosted 1000
    $3,899
    per year
    PRTG 2,500
    $8,099
    per year
    Hosted 2500
    $8,099
    per year
    PRTG 5,000
    $14,199
    per year
    Hosted 5000
    $14,199
    per year
    PRTG 10000
    $17,899
    per year
    PRTG Enterprise
    Custom Pricing
    subscription license
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsGNS3 is a free open source software.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Considered Both Products
    GNS3
    No answer on this topic
    Paessler
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    98%
    Would buy again
    41 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    98%
    Delivers good value for the price
    40 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    42 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    93%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    28 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    38 Answers
    Features
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Network Performance Monitoring
    Comparison of Network Performance Monitoring features of GNS3 and Paessler PRTG
    Feature
    GNS3
    -
    Ratings
    Paessler PRTG
    7.3
    67 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Automated network device discovery00 Ratings7.260 Ratings
    Network monitoring00 Ratings9.666 Ratings
    Baseline threshold calculation00 Ratings8.557 Ratings
    Alerts00 Ratings8.867 Ratings
    Network capacity planning00 Ratings6.348 Ratings
    Packet capture analysis00 Ratings6.234 Ratings
    Network mapping00 Ratings5.447 Ratings
    Customizable reports00 Ratings5.857 Ratings
    Wireless infrastructure monitoring00 Ratings6.249 Ratings
    Hardware health monitoring00 Ratings9.164 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Auvik
    Score8.8 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    No answers on this topic
    PingPlotter
    Score8.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    Nmap
    Score8.7 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.7
    (68 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.9
    (5 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.3
    (7 ratings)
    Support Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (19 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    GNS3Paessler PRTG
    Likelihood to Recommend
    GNS3
    If you want to design a network that contains devices from different vendors and you want to implement and monitor this network and make sure of the stability of this network before actually implementing it physically, then this is the right program. It allows you to design a complete network with different components and from different vendors with the possibility of integrating various devices and also linking them with network monitoring programs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Paessler
    integrates seamlessly with Windows servers via WMI and PowerShell, providing deep insights into resource usage, performance metrics, and system health. It's excellent at tracking CPU, memory, disk space, and event logs, enabling rapid troubleshooting and proactive maintenance. PRTG Network Monitor also effectively monitors Fortigate devices, providing detailed data on firewall health, traffic patterns, bandwidth utilization, VPN status, and security alerts. This visibility helps detect and resolve network security issues promptly.
    Incentivized
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    Pros
    GNS3
    • The possibility of applying integrated labs that simulate reality by more than 90%.
    • It enables the addition of different network devices from all vendors with the possibility of integration between them.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Paessler
    • Switch monitoring and finding out if there are communication issues or throughput alerts are reached
    • Big picture view of the whole infrastructure and what is functioning and what is not
    • Uptime tracking is great and lets us know for how long a device is down or overall uptime
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    GNS3
    • In my opinion, the program consumes a lot of device resources, especially when using the iOS version.
    • The program does not contain network devices, so you need to search for the network devices that you need and add them manually.
    Incentivized
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    Paessler
    • Licensing on a per entity basis can be cumbersome for devices which have a ton of monitoring points like network switches\routers. Each sensor may count against a license, which could be a lot of you were monitoring every TX\RX of an SFP for example
    • A better method to easily template\copy monitors across devices
    • The navigation in the web GUI could be a little more straightforward in terms of the hierarchy
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    GNS3
    No answers on this topic
    Paessler
    I would renew it because the platform has brought us many technical and economic benefits that make the cost-benefit ratio very good. Additionally, to do so does not require large investments in training, licensing or infrastructure, and at the administration level, extensive knowledge is not required to be able to bear it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    GNS3
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    GNS3
    No answers on this topic
    Paessler
    PRTG does everything we need it to do and more. Ease of use, ease of management and maintenance and clarity of monitoring of hundreds of different types of device and service gives this a large advantage over other products on the market that I have tried. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who needs a network monitoring product in their environment and even to people who don't know they need a solution yet!
    Incentivized
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    Implementation Rating
    GNS3
    No answers on this topic
    Paessler
    It's very important that de project's teams have different member of the TI. We have learned too late the importa of Security Analyst at the design architecture moment. We have to rebuild part of the implementation for made this big mistake.
    Incentivized
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    Alternatives Considered
    GNS3
    No answers on this topic
    Paessler
    PRTG offers more versatility in monitoring when compared to the other solutions we tested. The other solutions were also limited as far as customization options, which made them less adaptable to our networks. When compared to Auvik, for instance, we prefer PRTG as it offers immediate notifications through the desktop client - not limited to email notifications as with Auvik. We also appreciate the fact that PRTG can be self/on-prem hosted vs Auvik's cloud model. This makes for an easier deployment and less firewall adjustments to allow traffic to cloud-hosted solutions.
    Incentivized
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    Return on Investment
    GNS3
    • Reducing spending on physical equipment
    • Improving the quality of output work
    • Developing the efficiency of the work team
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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