Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

RRDTool VS Spanning

Compare RRDTool VS Spanning and see what are their differences

RRDTool logo RRDTool

High performance data logging and graphing system for time series data

Spanning logo Spanning

Spanning provides data backup and recovery solutions for companies running cloud applications.
  • RRDTool Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-09-30
  • Spanning Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-04

RRDTool features and specs

  • Efficient Data Storage
    RRDTool uses a round-robin database structure, which ensures a constant disk footprint by overwriting old data points, making it space efficient.
  • Time Series Data Visualization
    It provides robust graphing capabilities for time series data, making it useful for monitoring trends and patterns over time.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source, RRDTool can be used and modified freely, offering flexibility and customization options to fit specific needs.
  • Built-in Aggregation
    RRDTool automatically consolidates data over time, reducing the need for manual computation and maintaining performance as data scales.
  • Broad Integration
    It is widely supported and can be integrated easily with other tools and systems, such as MRTG and Cacti, enhancing its functionality.

Possible disadvantages of RRDTool

  • Steep Learning Curve
    The tool can be difficult to learn for new users due to its complex command-line interface and diverse set of options.
  • Limited Data Flexibility
    Once a database is created, its size and structure are fixed, meaning changes require a new database setup and could result in data loss.
  • Requires Manual Setup
    There is no automatic data import or setup, requiring users to define configurations and scripts manually, which can be time-consuming.
  • Outdated Interfaces
    The graphical interfaces can appear outdated compared to more modern software, which may not meet current user interface expectations.
  • Performance Limitations
    RRDTool may face performance constraints when dealing with very high-frequency data updates, as it is optimized for a consistent update interval.

Spanning features and specs

  • Automated Backups
    Spanning provides automated backups for cloud applications like Google Workspace, Office 365, and Salesforce, ensuring that user data is consistently saved without manual intervention.
  • Easy Restore
    The platform offers easy restore options, allowing users to quickly recover lost or corrupted data, thereby minimizing downtime and the risk of data loss.
  • Security and Compliance
    Spanning includes robust security features and compliance certifications, ensuring that backed-up data is secure and adheres to industry regulations.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The service comes with an intuitive interface that makes it easy for users to manage their backups and perform restores, even without extensive technical knowledge.
  • Comprehensive Coverage
    Spanning supports multiple cloud platforms, providing a comprehensive solution for organizations using various cloud services.

Possible disadvantages of Spanning

  • Cost
    The service can be expensive for small businesses or individuals compared to other backup solutions, especially when multiple user licenses are required.
  • Limited Customization
    While it offers essential backup and restore functionalities, the platform may lack advanced customization options that might be available in other specialized backup solutions.
  • Dependency on Cloud Services
    Spanning's effectiveness is inherently tied to the availability and performance of the cloud services it supports, which could be a limitation if those services experience downtime or issues.
  • Integration Complexity
    For organizations with complex IT environments or legacy systems, integrating Spanning with existing infrastructure might require additional time and resources.
  • Feature Set
    Some users may find that Spanning’s feature set is limited compared to more advanced or niche backup solutions that provide additional functionalities and options.

RRDTool videos

Cacti - The RRDTool-based graphing solution

More videos:

  • Review - Building Network Monitoring Systems with RRDtool

Spanning videos

Spanning Backup for Office 365: Product Demo

More videos:

  • Review - Review: Spanning BackUp and Discount Code
  • Review - Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) for CCNA R/S (200-125) and ICND2 (200-105) Candidates

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to RRDTool and Spanning)
Monitoring Tools
32 32%
68% 68
Backup And Disaster Recovery
Time Series Database
100 100%
0% 0
Log Management
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using RRDTool and Spanning. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Spanning might be a bit more popular than RRDTool. We know about 3 links to it since March 2021 and only 3 links to RRDTool. 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.

RRDTool mentions (3)

  • Seeing through hardware counters: a journey to threefold performance increase
    For anyone interested in how the graphs were made: https://oss.oetiker.ch/rrdtool/ Happy to see people still using RRD after all these years. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • One of the longest standing soundness holes in Rust -- Diving Deep: implied bounds and variance
    (I actually implemented the firmware for this... Using the Arduino port for ESP8266 because I was impatient, but discovered that either my DHT11 modules are junk or I'm misusing them, because the humidity measurement drifts as they keep running. I need to write the Rust+rrdtool app meant to receive the reports and then do some comparative tests between the DHT11 and some BME280s, and between the current firmware... Source: about 3 years ago
  • Arizona in October is solar bliss
    Nice! This is giving me some ideas. Here's what my old school rrdtool-based system looks like:. Source: over 3 years ago

Spanning mentions (3)

What are some alternatives?

When comparing RRDTool and Spanning, you can also consider the following products

TimescaleDB - TimescaleDB is a time-series SQL database providing fast analytics, scalability, with automated data management on a proven storage engine.

ManageWP - ManageWP is a service for bloggers, site owners and web based companies helping them manage multiple WordPress sites from one dashboard.

MRTG - MRTG (or Multi Router Traffic Grapher) is an open-source network monitoring tool.

CrashPlan - CrashPlan for Small Business backup software offers the best way to back up and store business & enterprise data securely - offsite, onsite & online in the Cloud.

Ganglia - Scalable distributed monitoring system

Backblaze - Backblaze's remote backup automatically backs up your data to our secure datacenter.