Software Alternatives & Startups

SolarWinds NPM VS lsof

Compare SolarWinds NPM VS lsof and see what are their differences

SolarWinds NPM

Advanced network monitoring for on-premises, hybrid, and cloud. Download a FREE 30-day trial of SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor (NPM) today!

Rating
0 reviews
lsof

Lsof lists open files for running UNIX processes. It is a

Rating
0 reviews

Which is more popular?

Monitoring Tools popularity
97% vs 3%
alternatives listed
240+ vs 22

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

SolarWinds NPM
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lsof
Website solarwinds.com people.freebsd.org
Company Startup from the United States
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

SolarWinds NPM 5 features
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lsof 0 features
  • Comprehensive Monitoring
    SolarWinds NPM provides detailed insights into network performance by tracking metrics like bandwidth usage, latency, and packet loss. It supports a wide range of devices and vendors, making it versatile for varied network environments.
  • Customizable Dashboards and Alerts
    The platform offers highly customizable dashboards and alerting mechanisms, allowing users to tailor notifications and visualizations according to their specific needs.
  • Scalability
    SolarWinds NPM can scale to support large and complex network environments, making it suitable for both small businesses and large enterprises.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The software has an intuitive, web-based interface that makes it easy for users to navigate and utilize its features without requiring extensive training.
  • Robust Reporting
    SolarWinds NPM includes advanced reporting capabilities that help administrators analyze network trends, generate compliance reports, and present data to stakeholders.

Possible disadvantages

  • Cost
    The initial cost and ongoing maintenance fees for SolarWinds NPM can be significant, particularly for small businesses or non-profits with limited budgets.
  • Resource Intensive
    The software can be resource-intensive, requiring robust server infrastructure to operate efficiently, which may necessitate additional investments in hardware.
  • Complex Configuration
    Setting up and configuring SolarWinds NPM to fit specific network environments can be complex and time-consuming, often necessitating a steep learning curve or professional assistance.
  • High Volume of Alerts
    While customizable, the alert system can generate a high volume of notifications, which could lead to alert fatigue if not properly configured.
  • Limited Integration with Some Tools
    Although SolarWinds NPM integrates well with many systems, there are some third-party tools and platforms with which integration is less straightforward.

No features have been listed yet.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

SolarWinds NPM
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lsof

Overall verdict

  • SolarWinds NPM is generally considered a robust and effective network monitoring solution. It is well-suited for enterprises of various sizes seeking detailed insights into their network performance. However, its cost, particularly for larger deployments, and the complexity of setup for the most comprehensive monitoring can be a drawback for smaller companies or those with limited IT budgets.

Why this product is good

  • SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor (NPM) is often praised for its comprehensive set of features that allow users to monitor the health and performance of their network infrastructure. It provides real-time alerts, customizable dashboards, and in-depth reporting capabilities. Its intuitive interface and ease of deployment make it accessible even for teams without extensive technical expertise. The tool is especially useful for identifying and troubleshooting network issues quickly, leading to reduced downtime and improved network reliability.

Recommended for

    SolarWinds NPM is recommended for medium to large enterprises with complex network architectures that require detailed monitoring and reporting. It is particularly beneficial for IT teams looking to proactively manage and optimize their network infrastructure to ensure high performance and reliability. Industries with critical network uptime requirements, such as healthcare, finance, and large-scale IT services, may find this tool especially useful.

Overall verdict

  • lsof (List Open Files) is a mature, battle-tested Unix/Linux utility that reliably reveals which files, sockets, and resources are opened by processes, making it an indispensable diagnostic tool for system administrators and developers.

Why this product is good

  • Provides comprehensive visibility into open files, network sockets, pipes, and devices tied to running processes
  • Extremely useful for troubleshooting 'device busy' errors, port conflicts, and locating processes holding onto deleted files
  • Highly portable across many Unix-like systems including FreeBSD, Linux, macOS, and Solaris
  • Long history of stable, well-maintained releases with extensive documentation and community support
  • Powerful filtering options let you query by user, process, port, file, or network connection

Recommended for

  • System administrators diagnosing resource and file-locking issues
  • Developers debugging network connections and socket usage
  • Security professionals investigating suspicious process activity and open network ports
  • Anyone needing to identify which process is using a specific file, directory, or port before unmounting or killing

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

SolarWinds NPM 2 videos + Add
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lsof 2 videos + Add

SolarWinds NPM: Your Complete Network Monitoring Solution

More videos

  • - Overview of Quality of Experience Dashboard in SolarWinds NPM

8 Basic lsof Commands Every Sysadmin Needs to Know

More videos

  • - HakTip - Network monitoring in Linux with lsof

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
SolarWinds NPM
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lsof
97% 97%
3% 3%
0% 0%
100% 100%
100% 100%
0% 0%
93% 93%
7% 7%

User comments

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

SolarWinds NPM no reviews yet
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lsof no reviews yet

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Alternatives to SolarWinds NPM and lsof

When comparing SolarWinds NPM and lsof, you can also consider the following products.

  • Datadog

    See metrics from all of your apps, tools & services in one place with Datadog's cloud monitoring as a service solution. Try it for free.

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  • htop

    htop - an interactive process viewer for Unix. This is htop, an interactive process viewer for Unix systems. It is a text-mode application (for console or X terminals) and requires ncurses. Latest release: htop 2.

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    Track, record, alert and visualize performance and availability of IT resources

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  • Sysdig

    Sysdig is an open source, system-level exploration that capture system state and activity from a running Linux instance, then save, filter and analyze.

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    Cloud-based quality testing, performance monitoring and analytics for mobile apps and websites. Get started with Keynote today!

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  • vtop

    vtop is a graphical command-line tool that uses unicode braille to chart CPU and memory usage.

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