Sentinel vs SolarWinds Security Event Manager comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Sentinel and SolarWinds Security Event Manager based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Sentinel vs. SolarWinds Security Event Manager Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"Sentinel enables us to ingest data from our entire ecosystem. In addition to integrating our Cisco ASA Firewall logs, we get our Palo Alto proxy logs and some on-premises data coming from our hardware devices... That is very important and is one way Sentinel is playing a wider role in our environment.""The log query feature has been the most valuable because it's very good. You can put your data on the cloud and run queues from Sentinel. It will do it all very fast. I love that I don't have to upload it to an Excel file and then manually look for a piece of information. Sentinel is much faster and is good for big databases.""The native integration of the Microsoft security solution has been essential because it helps reduce some false positives, especially with some of the impossible travel rules that may be configured in Microsoft 365. For some organizations, that might be benign because they're using VPNs, etc.""Free ingestion for Azure logs (with E5 licence)""The product can integrate with any device.""Sentinel uses Azure Logic Apps for automation, which is really powerful. This allows us to easily automate responses to incidents.""There are a lot of things you can explore as a user. You can even go and actively hunt for threats. You can go on the offensive rather than on the defensive.""The main benefit is the ease of integration."

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"Sentinel gave us logs to tell us what's going right and wrong in your environment so we could secure the network.""One of the most valuable features is the business intelligence engine. It's very important because it keeps track of everything that's happening and alerts us if something is different than expected. The first time I used it, I was shocked at how well it performed. Another valuable feature that I think makes this product worth the price you pay for it is that it connects to basically every system that provides some form of logging, and it's very easy to set up what triggers this.""The solution's Kusto Query Language (KQL) execution time is pretty good.""The most valuable feature is the flexible log for identifying security threats inside an application. Sentinel is very good at this.""The native integration with out-of-the box format is hassle free and allows data to be used advantageously.""The stability is phenomenal and we never had any issues with downtime or even had to restart.""The tool is simple to use.""It makes everything easier by automating some tasks and growing with our needs."

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"The most valuable feature of SolarWinds Security Event Manager is the analysis and the knowledge about the incidence that we trace.""It's easy to build rules and actions based on the logs and event types we collect with the software.""We did previously use a different solution, but SolarWinds is much better. It's easy to interact with SolarWinds. It's easy to operate, easy to configure and is generally easier compared to what we were working with before.""SolarWinds Security Event Manager has been generally working well.""The most valuable feature is the reporting.""The graphical user interface is very user-friendly. SolarWinds is a hybrid solution so you can use it across many platforms.""It performs network behavior monitoring, log monitoring, and disaster recovery monitoring.""The out of the box reports and dashboard. It was easy to trim down these windows to something we could quickly use."

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Cons
"Microsoft Defender has a built-in threat expert option that enables you to contact an expert. That feature isn't available in Sentinel because it's a huge product that integrates all the technologies. I would like Microsoft to add the threat expert option so we can contact them. There are a few other features, like threat assessment that the PG team is working on. I expect them to release this feature in the next quarter.""I think the number one area of improvement for Sentinel would be the cost.""We've seen delays in getting the logs from third-party solutions and sometimes Microsoft products as well. It would be helpful if Microsoft created a list of the delays. That would make things more transparent for customers.""If Azure Sentinel had the ability to ingest Azure services from different tenants into another tenant that was hosting Azure Sentinel, and not lose any metadata, that would be a huge benefit to a lot of companies.""Sometimes, we are observing large ingestion delays. We expect logs within 5 minutes, but it takes about 10 to 15 minutes.""We have been working with multiple customers, and every time we onboard a customer, we are missing an essential feature that surprisingly doesn't exist in Sentinel. We searched the forums and knowledge bases but couldn't find a solution. When you onboard new customers, you need to enable the data connectors. That part is easy, but you must create rules from scratch for every associated connector. You click "next," "next," "next," and it requires five clicks for each analytical rule. Imagine we have a customer with 150 rules.""I believe one of the challenges I encountered was the absence of live training sessions, even with the option to pay for them.""Documentation is the main thing that could be improved. In terms of product usage, the documentation is pretty good, but I'd like a lot more documentation on Kusto Query Language."

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"The dashboard and customer view should be improved""You need a lot of Unix scripting knowledge in order to manage the tool, which is one of the main issues that we faced.""Log source integration with Sentinel needs to be improved.""The solution does not allow outsourced authorizations.""I rate Sentinel a six out of ten for scalability.""There is a need for more flexibility in customization, especially when working with different vendors and platforms.""It is an ancient product.""Creating a drag-and-drop dashboard or workbook in Sentinel is a little more complex compared to other tools like LogRhythm and IBM QRadar."

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"I would like to have a more customizable dashboard.""The reporting could be more robust. It can be a lot more granular and that will make it a lot more useful in comparison to how it is incorporated at the moment.""It won't tell you when your backups are failing, but it will give you hints when your database is running on full recovery.""It can be difficult for users who are inexperienced with the solution.""SolarWinds should improve its correlation capabilities. The correlation does not automatically detect and reduce the events fast enough. You have to manually do a correlation report, which means the tool is not scalable in many ways.""I would like to be able to dig deeper into the visibility of events or incidents to determine whether they are malicious, such as by doing behavior analysis.""There are no multiple dashboards which would allow you to see information side-by-side.""There is no correlation made between log entries, so no threat information is presented."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "It comes with a Microsoft subscription which the customer has, so they don't have to invest somewhere else."
  • "It is a consumption-based license model. bands at 100, 200, 400 GB per day etc. Azure Sentinel Pricing | Microsoft Azure"
  • "Good monthly operational cost model for the detection and response outcomes delivered, M365 logs don't count toward the limits which is a good benefit."
  • "I have had mixed feedback. At one point, I heard a client say that it sometimes seems more expensive. Most of the clients are on Office 365 or M365, and they are forced to take Azure SIEM because of the integration."
  • "It is kind of like a sliding scale. There are different tiers of pricing that go from $100 per day up to $3,500 per day. So, it just kind of depends on how much data is being stored. There can be additional costs to the standard license other than the additional data. It just kind of depends on what other services you're spinning up in Azure, or if you're using something like Azure log analytics."
  • "I am just paying for the log space with Azure Sentinel. It costs us about $2,000 a month. Most of the logs are free. We are only paying money for Azure Firewall logs because email logs or Azure AD logs are free to use for us."
  • "Sentinel is a bit expensive. If you can figure a way of configuring it to meet your needs, then you can find a way around the cost."
  • "Azure Sentinel is very costly, or at least it appears to be very costly. The costs vary based on your ingestion and your retention charges."
  • More Microsoft Sentinel Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "We inquired about getting support from the vendor, Micro Focus, but the cost was very high."
  • "We receive a pricing discount because of our ongoing partnership with Micro Focus."
  • "Sentinel's slightly on the expensive side."
  • "The solution’s pricing is aligned with its competitors."
  • "Sentinel is a subscription-based solution."
  • "Sentinel is an expensive solution."
  • "Sentinel is moderately priced."
  • More Sentinel Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Licensing is on devices, so if you have many, then this may be high."
  • "We do a yearly license renewal. For a year, the solution costs roughly $500,000 USD. There are no costs beyond this yearly fee."
  • "The pricing model would benefit from having package deals with other SolarWinds products."
  • "Licenses can only be purchased in blocks of fifty at a time."
  • "It is in the appropriate mid-range. It is not as expensive as some of the other solutions. It is also not cheap."
  • "The price of SolarWinds Security Event Manager is reasonable."
  • More SolarWinds Security Event Manager Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Yes, Azure Sentinel is a SIEM on the Cloud. Multiple data sources can be uploaded and analyzed with Azure Sentinel and… more »
    Top Answer:It would really depend on (1) which logs you need to ingest and (2) what are your use cases Splunk is easy for… more »
    Top Answer:We like that Azure Sentinel does not require as much maintenance as legacy SIEMs that are on-premises. Azure Sentinel is… more »
    Top Answer:The solution lets us get all the logs properly and regularly monitor customer infrastructure.
    Top Answer:While it is great with Microsoft, there is a need for more flexibility in customization, especially when working with… more »
    Top Answer:The solution helps you monitor database instances, application instances, other customer application things, Linux… more »
    Top Answer:The cost is exorbitantly high. The trial version lasts for thirty days, but I found a subscription plan priced at four… more »
    Top Answer:One of the drawbacks of being so flexible is that it is also a fairly complicated software application to install… more »
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Azure Sentinel
    NetIQ Sentinel, Novell SIEM
    SolarWinds LEM, Solarwinds SIEM, TriGeo, Log and Event Manager
    Learn More
    Overview

    Microsoft Sentinel is a scalable, cloud-native, security information event management (SIEM) and security orchestration automated response (SOAR) solution that lets you see and stop threats before they cause harm. Microsoft Sentinel delivers intelligent security analytics and threat intelligence across the enterprise, providing a single solution for alert detection, threat visibility, proactive hunting, and threat response. Eliminate security infrastructure setup and maintenance, and elastically scale to meet your security needs—while reducing IT costs. With Microsoft Sentinel, you can:

    - Collect data at cloud scale—across all users, devices, applications, and infrastructure, both on-premises and in multiple clouds

    - Detect previously uncovered threats and minimize false positives using analytics and unparalleled threat intelligence from Microsoft

    - Investigate threats with AI and hunt suspicious activities at scale, tapping into decades of cybersecurity work at Microsoft

    - Respond to incidents rapidly with built-in orchestration and automation of common tasks

    To learn more about our solution, ask questions, and share feedback, join our Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Community.

    Sentinel is a full-featured Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution that simplifies the deployment, management and day-to-day use of SIEM, readily adapts to dynamic enterprise environments and delivers the true "actionable intelligence" security professionals need to quickly understand their threat posture and prioritize response.

    When TriGeo was acquired by SolarWinds, TriGeo SIM became known as SolarWinds Log & Event Manager. This product is a leading Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) product and log management solution, which provides log collection, analysis, and real-time correlation.

    Sample Customers
    Microsoft Sentinel is trusted by companies of all sizes including ABM, ASOS, Uniper, First West Credit Union, Avanade, and more.
    Faysal Bank, GaVI, Handelsbanken, ISC Mªnster, Lambeth Council, Swisscard, The Municipality of Siena, Tukes, University of Dayton, University of the Sunshine Coast
    NetSuite, EasyStreet, Legacy Texas Bank, and Energy Federal Credit Union, to name a few.
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm22%
    Computer Software Company11%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Comms Service Provider8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Financial Services Firm10%
    Government9%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider36%
    Security Firm9%
    Non Tech Company9%
    Healthcare Company9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Government14%
    Financial Services Firm9%
    Manufacturing Company9%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company21%
    Financial Services Firm16%
    Government11%
    Educational Organization11%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization67%
    Computer Software Company5%
    Government4%
    Financial Services Firm3%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business33%
    Midsize Enterprise21%
    Large Enterprise47%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business25%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise59%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business50%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise33%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise66%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business65%
    Midsize Enterprise12%
    Large Enterprise23%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business10%
    Midsize Enterprise71%
    Large Enterprise19%
    Buyer's Guide
    Sentinel vs. SolarWinds Security Event Manager
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Sentinel vs. SolarWinds Security Event Manager and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Sentinel is ranked 18th in Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) with 16 reviews while SolarWinds Security Event Manager is ranked 21st in Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) with 24 reviews. Sentinel is rated 7.6, while SolarWinds Security Event Manager is rated 7.6. The top reviewer of Sentinel writes "An automated solution that helped me detect threats in less than half the time it used to take". On the other hand, the top reviewer of SolarWinds Security Event Manager writes "A comprehensive network security with robust technical capabilities, effective threat response, and centralized management". Sentinel is most compared with IBM Security QRadar, Splunk Enterprise Security, Wazuh, Google Chronicle Suite and LogRhythm SIEM, whereas SolarWinds Security Event Manager is most compared with ManageEngine Log360, Splunk Enterprise Security, IBM Security QRadar, Microsoft Defender XDR and Wazuh. See our Sentinel vs. SolarWinds Security Event Manager report.

    See our list of best Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) vendors.

    We monitor all Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.