Item: SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM)
Rating: 10
Author: Aaron Coody

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use it to back up our Cisco Networking configs and recover or do mass changes when needed. I can keep multiple config copies in case I need to revert back to a previous version or reference changes for troubleshooting purposes. This has cut my recover and troubleshooting times in half.

Pros and Cons

Backup Cisco configs
Change highlights
Recovery of configs

I like it just the way it is.

Return on Investment

It's greatly reduced our downtime.

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager

We aren't using it for multi-vendor tasks. We are only using it for Cisco config backups. We probably could benefit from this if we were to implement some other vendor products such as Juniper or Palo Alto. But as of now there are no plans to do so, but you never know we could change our minds.

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager Compliance

We're not currently using it for this, but we are planning on doing it in the future. My plan is to go through the recommendations that are presented and try to implement them as best I can without hurting our core network. Since we are a private company that's not publicly traded, we don't necessarily have to adhere to all the standards.

SolarWinds Product Portfolio

SolarWinds Network Device Monitor

This product gives us a single pane of glass to manage and monitor our products. I love it. It allows me to navigate from netflow to config manager to ipam all within seconds. This also allows me to quickly troubleshoot and provision equipment and configs in our environment. I really can't be happier.

Alternatives Considered

I tried to setup a rancid server early on but I found it cumbersome to keep up to date and configured for all our networking products. When I found NCM from SolarWinds I was ecstatic to download and try. When we got the demo version, we quickly purchased shortly after.

Other Software Used

Duo Security, BeyondTrust Remote Support (formerly Bomgar), Microsoft Teams

Likelihood to Recommend

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager helps me quickly recover from a Cisco hardware failure. I really like how easy it is to recover the configs and also chose the most appropriate version. I can store a simple baseline in case I need to give a base config to a vendor or I can have the whole config available in a matter of seconds.

Users and Roles

1 - so far i'm the only one that uses NCM in our environment. I handle everything dealing with the infrastructure. I'm in charge of making sure our configs are up to date, backed up, and easily accessible so when a failure occurs we can recover quickly. I also handle the virtual environment.

Support Headcount Required

1 - I'm a jack of all trades master of none. Network config manager is really a product that i like to call a "Ronco" product. you set it and forget it to some extent. i have reports that i get daily to ensure that my configs are backup and saved. I also have a command that runs weekly to write the configs on the networking equipment incase i forget when i'm making changes.

Business Processes Supported

config backups
config recovery
config change log

Innovative Uses

Future Planned Uses

push bulk config
backup non cisco configs

Likelihood to Renew

I simply love this product for what it does. it backups our configs and stores them so i don't have to worry about if we have current configs. It allows me to recover from a cisco failure in a matter of minutes rather than hours. I only have to copy and paste instead of recreate. so the maximum downtime we have is the time it takes to get the physical hardware replaced.

Products Replaced

Key Differentiators

Product Features
Product Usability
Vendor Reputation

we've been using solarwinds Network performance monitor for a while and wanted something with that would have a smooth transition to back up our configs. when we learned that solarwinds had network config manager it was a no brainer for us and we jumped on the opportunity to purchase it with our existing package.

Evaluation Lessons Learned

i wouldn't change anything. i fell in love with network configuration manager from the word go. it was easy to setup and use and provided us with a lot of valuable configs and different versions of configs to compare and see where we may have differed from site to site. it was a great experience.

Implementation Rating

it was a fairly easy implementation and everything was pretty straightforward. only challenge we had was getting all the snmp communities updated on the networking equipment.

Implementation Details / Implementation Partner

Implemented in-house

Implementation Phases

Implementation Issues

not all snmp communities were the same

Support Rating

everytime i have to call into solarwinds for support that are very knowledgeable and well versed in their products. i have never had an issue with a support engineer not knowing or at least not knowing how to find the information to fix my problem. i can't be happier with their support.

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) Customer Support Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Immediate help available Support understands my problem Support cares about my success Quick Initial Response	None

Bug Resolution

Exceptional Examples of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) Support

i don't have a specific time where they went above and beyond, but i will toot their horn and say they always strive to give the best support that they can to their customers. i think that mentality will always make them a cut above other vendors that have similar products.

Usability

overall usability is easy and simple. you use the discovery element and if all your snmp communities are setup right in your equipment network config manager will have no problems downloading your configs. if you decide to you don't need them for a particular device you simply tell it not to backup using ncm. it's that easy.

Usability Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using Familiar	None

Easy Tasks

setup
use
exporting configs

A wonderful product for config management and recovery

Overall Satisfaction with SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager