Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Nessus VS NetBox

Compare Nessus VS NetBox and see what are their differences

Nessus logo Nessus

Nessus Professional is a security platform designed for businesses who want to protect the security of themselves, their clients, and their customers.

NetBox logo NetBox

NetBox is an open source web application designed to help manage and document computer networks. NetBox was developed specifically to address the needs of network and infrastructure engineers.
  • Nessus Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-21
  • NetBox Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-15

It encompasses the following aspects of network management:

IP address management (IPAM) - IP networks and addresses, VRFs, and VLANs Equipment racks - Organized by group and site Devices - Types of devices and where they are installed Connections - Network, console, and power connections among devices Virtualization - Virtual machines and clusters Data circuits - Long-haul communications circuits and providers Secrets - Encrypted storage of sensitive credentials

Nessus features and specs

  • Comprehensive Vulnerability Coverage
    Nessus offers an extensive database of vulnerabilities, allowing it to identify a wide array of security issues across different environments, including networks, operating systems, applications, and devices.
  • Regular Updates
    Nessus regularly updates its plugin library to include the latest vulnerabilities, ensuring that it can detect new threats as they emerge.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The Nessus interface is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, making it accessible for users of varying technical expertise.
  • Customizable Scans
    Nessus allows users to customize scans to focus on specific areas, devices, or types of vulnerabilities, providing greater flexibility and precision.
  • Extensive Reporting and Analytics
    Nessus offers detailed reporting and analytics capabilities, helping users understand the state of their security posture and prioritize remediation efforts.
  • Automation Capabilities
    Nessus supports the automation of scanning and reporting processes, which helps maintain ongoing security assessments without requiring constant manual intervention.
  • Integration with Other Tools
    Nessus integrates well with other security tools and systems, such as SIEMs, making it a versatile component of a broader security ecosystem.

Possible disadvantages of Nessus

  • Cost
    Nessus can be expensive, particularly for smaller organizations or those with limited budgets, as licensing fees can add up based on the number of assets being scanned.
  • Resource Intensive
    Nessus scans can be resource-intensive, potentially impacting network performance and requiring significant computational resources to conduct thorough assessments.
  • False Positives
    Like many vulnerability scanners, Nessus may sometimes produce false positives, which can lead to unnecessary remediation efforts and wasted resources.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its user-friendly interface, fully leveraging all of Nessus's advanced features and capabilities can require a significant learning curve.
  • Limited Free Version
    The free version of Nessus, Nessus Essentials, is limited in its capabilities and is intended for individual use or small networks, which may not be sufficient for larger organizations.
  • Potential Over-Reliance
    Organizations might become overly reliant on Nessus for vulnerability management, potentially neglecting other important aspects of a comprehensive security strategy.

NetBox features and specs

  • Open Source
    NetBox is open-source software, which means you can use and modify it freely without having to pay for a license. This can significantly reduce costs and allows for customization according to specific needs.
  • Comprehensive IPAM and DCIM
    NetBox includes both IP Address Management (IPAM) and Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) functionalities, offering a single platform to manage diverse aspects of network infrastructure.
  • Extensible via API
    NetBox provides a robust API that allows integration with other tools and systems, enabling automation and enhanced functionality through scripting and third-party applications.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The web-based user interface is intuitive and easy to use, even for those who may not have extensive experience with network management tools.
  • Active Community and Support
    NetBox has an active community of users and contributors, which helps in quickly addressing issues, sharing knowledge, and contributing to the continuous improvement of the software.

Possible disadvantages of NetBox

  • Initial Setup Complexity
    The initial installation and configuration of NetBox can be complex and time-consuming, potentially requiring a good understanding of Python, PostgreSQL, and other dependencies.
  • Resource Intensive
    As a web-based application, NetBox can be resource-intensive, requiring a capable server environment to run efficiently, which might not be suitable for very small-scale deployments.
  • Steeper Learning Curve
    Despite its intuitive interface, the broad set of features and functionalities might overwhelm new users, leading to a steeper learning curve.
  • Limited Built-in Reporting
    NetBox has limited built-in reporting capabilities, which might necessitate additional tools or custom reports to meet specific reporting needs.
  • No Built-in Alerting
    NetBox does not have built-in alerting mechanisms for tracking changes or unusual activities, so additional monitoring and alerting systems may be required.

Analysis of NetBox

Overall verdict

  • Yes, NetBox is considered a good tool for managing complex networks and data centers. Its strong community support and continuous development contribute to its robustness and reliability in production environments.

Why this product is good

  • NetBox is a popular open-source tool for network automation and management, favored for its comprehensive features such as IP address management (IPAM), data center infrastructure management (DCIM), and its extensibility through plugins and a REST API. It provides a user-friendly web interface and is highly customizable, making it suitable for various network configurations and workflows.

Recommended for

    NetBox is recommended for network engineers, system administrators, data center managers, and IT professionals who need an effective solution for managing IP addresses, network devices, and cabling infrastructure in medium to large-scale operations. It is particularly advantageous for those looking for an open-source option with a strong community backing.

Nessus videos

LABS 17 Vulnerability Analysis Using the Nessus REVIEW

More videos:

  • Review - What is Nessus? | Explaining vulnerabilities in a Web Application
  • Review - Getting Started with Nessus Vulnerability Scanner - 2018

NetBox videos

Accessing NAPALM via the NetBox API

More videos:

  • Review - Network to Code NetBox with Jeremy Stretch and John Anderson
  • Tutorial - Netbox Global Review- How To Earn Money Browsing The Internet

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Nessus and NetBox)
Security
100 100%
0% 0
Monitoring Tools
56 56%
44% 44
Web Application Security
100 100%
0% 0
Log Management
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Nessus and NetBox

Nessus Reviews

Best Burp Suite Alternatives (Free and Paid) for 2023
The main functions of Nessus are asset discovery, web scanning, prioritization, policy management, and vulnerability assessment. It enables organizations to tailor scans based on individual preferences, ensuring compliance with Center for Internet Security (CIS) benchmarks and other top-notch practices. Security teams can generate reports on various vulnerability types,...
Burp suite alternatives
Nessus is the best alternative choice for burp suite. It is a popular vulnerability scanner software. It can scan a wide range of technologies including operating systems, databases, network devices, web servers, hypervisors, and critical infrastructures. The output of the scan can vary in various formats such as plain text, XML, Latex, and HTML. Nessus provides additional...
Source: www.educba.com
10 Best Tenable Nessus Alternatives For 2021 [Updated List]
Answer: Nessus features a wide product line that includes the Nessus Cloud, Nessus Manager which is suitable for vulnerability management on-premises, Nessus Professional runs scans on client devices, such as a laptop. There is also Nessus Essentials, which is a free version of the tool that caters to general consumers.
Best Nessus Alternatives (Free and Paid) for 2021
Built for security practitioners by security professionals, Nessus Professional is the de-facto industry standard for vulnerability assessment. It was built by Tenable Network Security. Nessus performs point-in-time assessments to help security professionals quickly and easily identify and fix vulnerabilities, including software flaws, missing patches, malware, and...
16 Tresorit Alternatives
Nessus is a flexible and straightforward remote security scanning tool that effectively scans a computer and gives an alert when it discovers some issues. The software is pro-efficiently discovers vulnerabilities that hackers could access your operating system via a connected network. Nessus is the name of pride in delivering services that are always up to the mark. Nessus...

NetBox Reviews

11 NetBox Alternatives
NetBox is a resource modeling application that is specially designed to automate networks and empower network engineering as well. It manages all the needs of networks and works under the license of Apache 2.
The 10 Best IP Address Management Tools for Linux
NetBox is certainly one of the best open-source IPAM solutions reviewed by our editors. It comes with a simple but elegant user interface that packs a serious punch in terms of functionalities. NetBox was initially developed by the network engineering team at DigitalOCean and has since evolved into a full-fledged IP management application. It is very popular among...
12 Open Source/Commercial Software for Data Center Infrastructure Management
NetBox is an open-source IP address management and data center infrastructure management platform, which was created by the network team at DigitalOcean to store the information about your networks, virtual machines, inventories, and many more.
Source: www.tecmint.com
Best IP Address Management Tools for Linux
NetBox is an open-source web based IP address management and data center infrastructure management application. It was developed more particulary to address the requirements of network and infrastructure engineers.
Source: www.tecmint.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, NetBox seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 21 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Nessus mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Nessus yet. Tracking of Nessus recommendations started around Mar 2021.

NetBox mentions (21)

  • Share your greatest free tools
    Netbox. https://netbox.readthedocs.io/en/stable/ Your “Source of Truth” for your network. NetBox is an infrastructure resource modeling (IRM) application designed to empower network automation. Initially conceived by the network engineering team at DigitalOcean, NetBox was developed specifically to address the needs of network and infrastructure engineers. NetBox is made available as open source under the Apache... Source: about 3 years ago
  • What do you use to track disks and other hardware?
    Currently we are using [SnipeIT](https://snipeitapp.com/) to track our disks, hardware and machines, and [Netbox](https://netbox.readthedocs.io/en/stable/) to track physical layout and locations. Source: about 3 years ago
  • What does a longer career related to computing infrastructure look like?
    You might find it educational/interesting to have a look at Netbox. It's a fairly well respected piece of software that manages network hardware and configuration. Source: about 3 years ago
  • How does proper documentation look like?
    You could take a look at netbox . It’s a little hard to set up at first but worth it in the end IMO. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Web Application That Shows Switch Ports Mapping
    However I'd suggest that Netbox is the more modern and functional solution to this problem. Source: about 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Nessus and NetBox, you can also consider the following products

Qualys - Qualys helps your business automate the full spectrum of auditing, compliance and protection of your IT systems and web applications.

phpIPAM - phpipam is an open-source web IP address management application (IPAM).

Burp Suite - Burp Suite is an integrated platform for performing security testing of web applications.

RackTables - Racktables is a nifty and robust solution for datacenter and server room asset management.

OpenVAS - The Open Vulnerability Assessment System (OpenVAS) is a framework of several services and tools...

DCImanager - DCImanager is a platform for managing physical equipment. Connect any physical equipment to a single platform. Use the platform to manage your servers, switches, PDU as well as physical and virtual networks.