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NetScaler vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS)

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    NetScaler

    Score8 out of 10
    N/ANetScaler ADC is an application delivery controller.N/A

    Parallels RAS

    Score9.6 out of 10
    N/AParallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS, formerly 2X RAS), is application virtualization technology, billed as a solution to extend the life of legacy OS (like Windows XP) with its virtual desktop for any device. Maltese company 2X Software developed the technology, but was acquired by Parallels (in Seattle, WA) in February, 2015 to extend their cross-platform support solutions.

    $120

    per year per user

    Pricing
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Considered Both Products
    Cloud Software Group
    No answer on this topic
    Parallels
    Chose Parallels RAS
    Citrix has more bells and whistles within their product line, but we've actually been pleasantly surprised with the performance of Parallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS) vs our Citrix implementation. Citrix Netscaler has way more functionality than the Parallels …
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    Less expensive. Better support. Better documentation. It's easier to set up.
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    easier to deploy and understand, quicker to deploy, easy for end users.
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    In my experience, a much simpler solution, less expensive than citrix.
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    We used Citrix XenApp prior to Parallels and due to the complexity of an upgrade, it caused us to begin looking for other products. We ran into Parallels RAS and decided to give it a shot. We had a working POC within 30 minutes and launched apps within the hour. The …
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    We have evaluated other similar products on the market and based on the cost, how the product will be implemented, and features and functions, we chose Parallels.
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    Parallels is cheaper, faster in enrollemnt and easy to integrate
    Incentivized
    Chose Parallels RAS
    I'll take Parallels RAS 10 out of 10 times compared to Citrix, just for the ease of set-up and maintenance. RAS is far more user/client friendly with fewer headaches.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    93%
    Would buy again
    13 Answers
    97%
    Would buy again
    148 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    13 Answers
    99%
    Delivers good value for the price
    143 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    14 Answers
    99%
    Happy with the feature set
    150 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    92%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    11 Answers
    96%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    129 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    13 Answers
    97%
    Implementation went as expected
    145 Answers
    Best Alternatives
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    VMware Fusion
    Score7.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Azure Application Gateway
    Score8.8 out of 10
    VMware Fusion
    Score7.4 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Azure Application Gateway
    Score8.8 out of 10
    VMware Workstation Player
    Score9.9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (26 ratings)
    9.7
    (154 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.5
    (24 ratings)
    Usability
    7.4
    (6 ratings)
    8.4
    (32 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (4 ratings)
    Support Rating
    7.3
    (4 ratings)
    7.0
    (131 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (2 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.6
    (13 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (4 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (3 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (3 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    NetScalerParallels RAS
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Cloud Software Group
    Citrix Netscaler can be a powerful network appliance for environments that are fully committed and open to utilizing a network appliance that isn't made by a traditional network vendor. Administrator user experience has improved over the years and will continue to improve with the flexibility of virtual and physical appliances available for medium and large enterprises.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    Scenarios where time is a factor in having a solution in place and up and running safely and securely. Where there are older devices that ordinarily wouldn't be up to the task of running modern apps and services. Where users need to work away from the network, and security is a concern.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Cloud Software Group
    • Flexibility. NetScaler assumes its admins know a bit about networking and in-depth details surrounding the applications they are configuring access for/to. This being so, the range of configuration options is very broad allowing various versions' combinations of protocol patterns, expressions, rules etc., all to the benefit of the admin.
    • Granularity. Having such a broad range of configuration options available, while still allowing simple options to be configured simply. The GUI is well-stylized and navigation has a good flow.
    • Ease of control. For load-balancing of simple services right out of the box, NetScaler makes it pretty easy, compared to the range of options available in the surrounding GUI and under the hood.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    • The printing driver is quite excellent, both in the Parallels Client and on the HTML5 client.
    • Setup is incredibly easy; the default setup is very functional, and adding features is a breeze.
    • Speed is very acceptable in general for end-users, the clients adapt quite well to the amount of bandwidth available, and features are available to adjust further.
    • Automation through PowerShell is great.
    • Support is usually quite fast and efficient.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Cloud Software Group
    • The documentation could use an overhaul with specific examples related to the command line as well as GUI. Explanations in the documentation would also be helpful.
    • Being able to have more than just one routing table would allow the ability to leverage security.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    • Parallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS) continually improves the product but has broken some features recently. For example the web management portal lost the ability to manage user sessions after a major update. That issue was fixed in a later release
    • Multi-monitor support beyond 4 monitors (It does handle up to 4 -1080 monitors well)
    • More options around connection security and MFA. current options are sufficient but limited
    • We've noticed some performance issues with Windows Server 2019 and 2022. I'd like to see more robust support for remote applications running from those platforms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    We have been using Parallels since it was called 2X - it is a major part of how we do business. It is fairly simple to use and maintain - staff like it, we like it. It is a product that makes a promise - and it keeps it. As Parallels evolves, and clean bandwidth becomes more readily available everywhere - it just makes sense to continue to use Parallels in our environment
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Cloud Software Group
    I gave the NetScaler a 7 here because the system once configured and deployed is very easy to use. However, if you did not deploy the system and do not have the fundamental background knowledge then you will have trouble using the product in general. Overall it is a great product and service but does typically require professional services to be deployed.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    Parallels RAS was easy to setup, with great admin guides and resources. We especially liked the included Visio templates which made diagramming much easier. The reference deployment diagrams also simplified our deployment process. Our end users love Parallels RAS. Apps launch faster than Citrix, and the Parallels RAS client is far more reliable than Workspace.
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    If there are any issues with Parallels - they are usually more about the server operating systems than Parallels itself. It would be rare for us to have any reason to take Parallels offline - we schedule a reboot on the servers at 3am to keep the O/S itself fresh, but again - it is not a Parallels issue. If individual users have any issues we ask them to completely log out of parallels - which ends their session - and then back in - and that typically resolves the issue right away.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    I am giving Parallels 9/10 on this one because the only application that sometimes seems slow or has issues - is Microsoft Outlook. It is sometimes the result of a pop-up that may not show up in the published application (vs full desktop). Other than that - pages load very quickly - and it does not seem to slow down other applications that are running at the same time. Most of our users run Outlook, softphone and Teams locally - and published applications for everything else. When they do that - it is very solid.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Cloud Software Group
    Overall, our organization's experience with Citrix support is that support can be hit or miss. Oftentimes it takes multiple attempts and much longer than desirable to obtain a viable solution for issues experienced with their products. It would be great to see Citrix invest time, effort, and almighty dollars into improving their support and bug fix process across the board.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    Good support in place if required, very helpful when it comes to upgrades or any issues faced. The support team is knowledgeable, friendly, and quick to respond to issues The company also provides a range of online resources, including a
    knowledge base, documentation, and forums, which can be helpful before raising a ticket
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    Documentation is fair but sometimes a little difficult to follow
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    Overall, it was pretty simple compared to most other projects. Again, we had a strong familarity with the product so there was not much of a learning curve. Our 'biggest' issue is the end-user understanding of a 'local' application and a published application. For example - Online meetings need to run locally for camera/video to work smoothly so opening a link to a meeting from a published application continues to be an occasional issue.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Cloud Software Group
    easy to use and setup and reliable. Once the configuration was setup and running this has been really useful and easy to maintain. The other solutions seemed overly complicated and difficult to configure and get up and running with the security that we required
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    Parallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS) provides the finest end user experience while being cost-effective and reducing administrative and support man hours.
    Parallels Remote Application Server (Parallels RAS) is platform agnostic; it works with various kinds of devices (computers, phones, tablets) and several operating systems (Windows, Linux, Apple, etc.), allowing users to access it on gadgets of their choice.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Parallels
    We added our Integrated Services Staff to parallels, with filtered, published applications - in a single afternoon. We added licensing and installed the desktop client software on multiple platforms both in the office and at remote sites all on the same day - and got remote users that had never used the product up and running - very quickly.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Cloud Software Group
    • We had this set up before COVID and it saved us. We just added user licenses and scaled out our citrix farm and IT sat back and just monitored users from home.
    • Scales up and out with ease
    • Challenging to find NetScaler experts for advanced features you want to enable and use
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Parallels
    • Our customers have had dramatic cost decreases due to no longer needing IT departments to work with our software.
    • We've been able to charge more for our hosting services due to our customers saving money in the long run. Parallels Remote Application Server has more than paid for itself, and the increased income has gone right back into the business.
    • Both our customers and our company have benefited from this transition.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Parallels RAS Screenshots

    Screenshot of the console interface, showing Parallels RAS' support for on-premises, private and public cloud providers, including Azure and AWS.Screenshot of the Parallels Web Client, which is accessible from any HTML5 browser or choose one of the many local clients.Screenshot of Parallels RAS' integration with MSIX app attach for modern, dynamic app delivery.Screenshot of Parallels RAS' support for multiple MFAs for security and flexibility.Screenshot of the integrated Let's Encrypt security certificates, to issue and manage certificates in Parallels RAS.Screenshot of expression-based filtering which makes it easier to set policies in the Parallels RAS.