Ivanti Endpoint Manager increases user and IT productivity by helping IT administrators gather detailed device data, automate software and OS deployments, and quickly fix user issues.
N/A
Riverbed Modeler
Score 6.0 out of 10
N/A
Riverbed OPNET Network Modeler, from San Francisco based Riverbed Technology, is network optimization technology.
There is no direct replacement for the on-prem Ivanti [Unified Endpoint Manager (formerly LANDESK Management Suite)] solution. Ivanti has a companion product called Neurons, but that is in additional cost, and requires configuration with your on-prem [Unified Endpoint Manager] instance to perform basic functions. If cloud-based is a requirement for your organization, this is likely a dealbreaker. You can implement [Unified Endpoint Manager] in a cloud instance such as AWS, but the support for this appears limited. If on-prem is not an issue for you, this is a great tool for device management. It has robust features, impressive inventory, massive customization options, and excellent vendor support. If Patch Management is a problem in your company right now, this is the first product I would evaluate.
Riverbed Modeler is well suited for wireless, wired, ZigBee, and Cisco networks. All these scenarios are efficiently designed and simulated using Riverbed Modeler, as all the devices are available in its object pallet, so we just need to drag and drop for the best scenario design in the given dimensions. The simulation results are around 95% accurate. However, it is not suited for data security, as data encryption algorithms are not available in Riverbed Modeler.
Patch(Security) is done really well. You can use roll out projects or built-in automation as well as the use of groups and scopes to design pilot and other use cases.
It takes a solid inventory of what you have of your endpoints and can do an agentless scan as well if you need to collect data that way as well.
Provisioning is rather simple and even allows you to use other products' software for the image or the built-in if you wish to do so.
Software distribution works well and has a lot flexibility built into the module.
Setup - Boy it is a pain to configure everything correctly. Be aware that you'll probably be giving an AD service account some God rights to get everything working....and security just loves that....
Cost - Boy you have to pay for everything. I suppose it lets you buy into just what you want but having repeated items go through procurement is a pain if your procurement branch is a pain.
Riverbed Modeler needs to improve the scenarios of LAN MAN WAN, as the available scenarios under all of these follow a simple area structure that's not connected to the ISP when it comes to simulation. This generates dummy traffic.
Riverbed Modeler also needs to work on the selection of result sets so that, as with most designed networks, we can select any result parameter to show. All the parameters are displayed, whether they are relevant or not. It needs to display only relevant result parameters to select.
The back-end TCP/IP model needs more clarity to expose the structure to some changes.
We are happy with the product but the support and development process is far superior to any other company we have worked with. Having a good support structure is very important in today's marketplace of products that do so many things and have so many robust options and capabilities. We are very satisfied with our contract, pricing, support and product execution.
Items are logically laid out and most are easy to find. The more advanced stuff can be trickier, but it is still not hard to find. There are a lot of options though, so remembering where some settings are, especially if you do not alter them often, can take a minute, but you will get to them fairly qiickly.
TRM\TAM support has been generally very good. Getting reported bug fixes, design changes, UX problems resolved has been a pain. It is often difficult to get problems escalated beyond the TRM\TAM level. Support is fantastic when you can get it, getting it can often require more work than it should, and that is probably our biggest issue.
It's been many years since I did a full evaluation of other products but at the time we purchased it, the main competitors were Microsoft's SMS and Alteris. SMS just looked horribly ugly and complicated (which fit in very well with Microsoft's other server tools) and Alteris looked okay but had a piecemeal approach where even a basic deployment meant purchasing a half dozen or more components. LANDesk had one bundle for all the tools we were looking for and had a great interface for presenting the data.
The only thing comparable to OPNET is Packet Tracer, which is basic and very limited. Packet Tracer in terms of tool comparison between the two is like OPNET's stone-age relative.
It comes with a costly paid license, but simulating the network before actual deployment saves a lot of costs, in case after deployment we feel performance is not good and we need to change. This would waste a lot of money, but Riverbed saves this money.
Its OPNET GURU academic edition is available free of cost, but with limited functionality, which is good for students in maximum case. This will degrade our sale of Riverbed Modeler.
A one-time investment in Modeler saves a lot of cost regarding networks, topology, designing, and provides a lifetime license with updates.
