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Network Performance Monitoring Tools: CA vs. Micro Focus
Users review CA Spectrum and Micro Focus Network Node Manager.
IT Central Station
December 28, 2017
3 Min Read
Many enterprise IT departments have professionals analyzing network performance by tracking utilization of bandwidth, latency, packet loss, and router and switch efficiency. Network performance monitoring tools address these issues by providing vital and reliable data about the state of the network, allowing enterprises to effectively manage the health of their networks.
According to the IT Central Station user community, CA Spectrum and Micro Focus Network Node Manager are ranked as top network performance management applications. In this article, real users weigh the pros and cons of each product, sharing their insights with other enterprise tech professionals looking to make a similar investment.
CA Spectrum
Frank T., an OSS manager at Telefónica UK/O2, wrote that CA Spectrum provides a helpful consolidated view.
“Spectrum is what I like to call a good CMDB [configuration management database] product. Once you have discovered the devices, you have a good CMDB to use to populate other tools. You can create custom attributes via the Model Type Editor and use Spectrum as your ‘single pane of glass,’ which contains all the info a NOC/support team needs (e.g., you can import device reference numbers, circuit refs, addresses, contact numbers, etc.), so all the info is in one place. This can all be populated via REST API at discovery time.”
Edgardo S., head IT operations at ICBC Argentina, described how CA Spectrum’s unified monitoring capabilities has helped his company:
“With Spectrum, we are implementing a unified monitoring system. We have also purchased CA APM and Agile Central to complement Spectrum and have an ambitious plan to integrate these systems. This will increase the effectiveness of the IT department and will give us the comprehensive view we want to make better decisions that support our business needs.”
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However, Kevin K., manager of monitoring service delivery at American International Group, said the integration of CA Spectrum with CA Unified Infrastructure Management could be better:
“The biggest issue is [that] our integration right now between UIM and Spectrum is lacking. It does not allow us to pass all the details. There is a new integration, which has the new version of UIM. I hope it clears up everything.”
Micro Focus Network Node Manager
Torgeir S., a network consultant at a healthcare company, likes Network Node Manager’s root-cause analyzer:
“[The] most valuable function would have to [be] the internal causal engine and its root- cause analyzer, which keep us updated on critical errors and incidents in our network environment. Secondly, the multi-vendor capability (we have approximately 150 different device types from some 10 vendors). Our NOC is heavily using and dependent on the product for quick action and troubleshooting network issues.”
A senior system specialist at Tieto Finland described how the product helps his company:
“It gives us an overview of the network. How is it performing? Are there some problems? It allows us to see what happened in the past. It helps us to solve our network problems and it helps us to solve customer problems to whom we are providing IT services. I would say that it self-tested, the time it took us to repair those problems.”
Binu J., a senior solution architect/OSS at Etisalat, said the product could use better scalability:
“It has improved our workflow, which is now easier with the solution. However, it's not an enterprise-scalable solution. We are serving over 500 managed customers and 10 to 50 customers are being added every month. There are limitations to the number of tenants and groups we can add.”
You can read additional network performance management product reviews from the IT Central Station community.
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