Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct comparison

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2,534 views|1,506 comparisons
100% willing to recommend
IBM Logo
3,185 views|2,438 comparisons
71% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT and Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Managed File Transfer (MFT) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Report (Updated: May 2024).
772,679 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
"It enabled us to allocate staff toward other work. All the time that we would have wasted worrying about this stuff and correcting problems is put into other parts of our job. That's one of the best things about it, is that we don't waste time on these projects. We just don't have to worry about them because it lets us know if there's a problem.""Transactions transfer in close to real time. Sometimes it takes a little bit of time because of the volume that we have, but the transactions transfer in seconds to the external platform.""All of it is valuable, but the most valuable would be the ability to release medical records without having a limitation for size and not having to deal with the fax machine.""The SFTP and encryption functionality works well, and SFTP is the bulk of what we use.""Another nice feature is that you can invoke a native program from GoAnywhere. That helps you because you don't have to get fancy with agents. If a native program runs on the server that GoAnywhere is running on, like sed or perl, you can use it,""The user interface is simple.""When users say, 'I'm building spreadsheets that I would like to be uploaded on a regular basis into the IBM i,' we are able to accommodate that request within a matter of hours rather than the days it would take to create programs to do that. That is very useful. It has eliminated several dozens of scripts for us.""I like the organization of resources, specifically listing out all of our FTPs and having a name and description to easily organize them. I also like the scheduler. The organization and the scheduling, being able to create the folders and the jobs, have been really helpful."

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"Offers secure file transfers with a fast and efficient protocol for very large files.""Security is the most valuable feature of this product.""The product has been very stable.""The most valuable feature is that it provides 100% reliability for file transmission. It ensures that files get delivered in a secure manner. When you use Connect:Direct, your file 100% gets delivered to the next delivery location. If the log shows that a file got delivered, it will have all the transmitted data without truncation or other data issues.""Automation is the most valuable feature.""Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is a solution that is on the market for a very long time. There is an integrator that has been developed and evolves every year. On the roadmap, there is always a new integration. For example, it's one of the solutions in the market that out of the box can handle EBICS protocol. The file processing is done very well. By default, there are a lot of configurations that can be customized.""The Security Plus feature of this solution is excellent, and allows you to send encrypted files very securely to remote destinations."

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Cons
"If the hostname has a dash in it then it does not work.""One of the things that I wish is to not necessarily have to set up a username and password for people with whom we don't frequently share files. For instance, if I want to share files with a patient who is not somebody with whom we share files all the time, I would like them to somehow verify who they are and be able to push the file to them. I shouldn’t have to set them up as a user with a password. It should be almost like Dropbox.""When a monitor invokes a project to accomplish something, that gets logged as a job. I've had a little difficulty figuring out where to look to see the monitor's activities itself, to see if the monitor is having a problem. For instance, if an account on a secure FTP server has expired, the monitor that uses that account doesn't announce to us that it's having a problem. I want to work with them on this to get it fixed.""We are a little concerned because the maximum number of open connections allowed is 200, and we are pretty much maxed out... if they expanded the number of open connections allowed, we would be better off.""There is a function referred to as write CSV, to write a general text file. In this scenario of creating a simple text file, I ran into a situation where, if the product saw a quote or a double-quote in the data, it started wrapping all the text fields in double-quotes. The request I put in asks them to provide a feature that leaves my data alone and does not interpret anything.""In some scenarios, when you are in a cluster environment, the load-balancing capabilities of the gateway need to be improved a little. This functionality needs some improvement.""The support desk has room for improvement. I keep opening tickets and they keep telling me that they're closed, but they're not resolved.""API functionality wasn't part of our initial unit testing because it wasn't necessary then. However, shortly after implementing GoAnywhere, two different vendors approached us to do API transactions. We checked to see if GoAnywhere could do this and found that it was supposed to have that capability, but it broke down."

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"The user interface needs to be improved.""Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct could improve by adding some of the functionality that some other vendors have. For example, GoAnywhere has call agents, which are small clients that can be installed on the endpoints and can be handled by the central point on the server. If I want to do this with the IBM solution, I have to sell a lot of account addresses. The price could be unprofitable for the customer. There is some small functionality that could be implemented and could be easily done to improve this solution.""They have File Agent, which is an additional utility and a component of Connect:Direct, for automated file transmission. In that utility, there is some issue with the file name. There is a limitation on the file name, and that is being fixed by IBM.""Sometimes we face issues and can't figure out the cause of failures.""The user interface could be more user-friendly.""Technical support is the number one concern.""This solution cannot be deployed on a root_squash NFS, which limits superuser privileges.""User interface is not user friendly."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Licensing can be expensive and it depends upon which features you want to buy."
  • "Pricing is based on a one-time license."
  • "It would be good for the company to explore a modular approach to selling the product so it could be cheaper and more attractive to users."
  • "For what we pay to GoAnywhere every year, we are getting a fantastic deal. From a dollar perspective, it provides very good value."
  • "The cost of GoAnywhere versus the value it brings to our data transfer operations is reasonable... The cost is relatively expensive but, back to the car analogy, that's to be expected with a Ferrari."
  • "I get the invoices, and its price is fine and appropriate. It is well priced. Even if it was double the price, we'd use it. For us, it is indispensable. We're not going to go anywhere else. There are no additional costs. Its licensing is good. There is just one charge that we get. That's it."
  • "To have a solution like this for the price we're paying makes it cheap. Considering the time that it has saved us, and considering the development that we don't need to do, such as connectors and handling servers, the price is really affordable."
  • "HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT is very reasonably priced for the value it brings."
  • More Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Annual licensing fee."
  • "The price and licensing of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is expensive."
  • More Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:GoDrive eliminates the need to use the exchange server for file sharing.
    Top Answer:It is very attractive. In terms of the capacity of the product and functionality, it is a good price. Considering its capabilities, its price is good.
    Top Answer:Fortra needs to offer more use cases for GoAnywhere MFT during training.
    Top Answer:There is room for improvement in monitoring. We don't have good visibility tools and monitoring, so I believe there may be some enhancement needed in its monitoring dashboard.
    Ranking
    Views
    2,534
    Comparisons
    1,506
    Reviews
    9
    Average Words per Review
    763
    Rating
    9.0
    Views
    3,185
    Comparisons
    2,438
    Reviews
    3
    Average Words per Review
    456
    Rating
    8.7
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    HelpSystems GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere MFT, GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer,
    Learn More
    Overview

    GoAnywhere MFT is an award-winning managed file transfer software which streamlines, secures, and automates critical file transfers through a centralized enterprise-level solution. The software allows organizations to connect to internal and external systems and exchange encrypted data using industry-standard protocols (e.g. OpenPGP, AES, FTPS, SFTP, HTTPS, AS2, and GPG).

    This solution can save you time & money, improve security, and help meet compliance requirements.

    Key Features: 

     - Browser-to-browser or sever-to-server file transfer and encryption 

     - Security features to help meet HIPAA, PCI DSS, SOX, GDPR, and other compliance requirements

    - Cloud integration and hosted deployments

    - Secure file sharing, email, and collaboration 

    IBM's Sterling Connect:Direct is a software product that offers security-hardened, point-to-point file transfers to reduce reliance on insecure File Transfer Protocol (FTP) transmissions. It is designed for high-volume file distribution within and between businesses. The solution guarantees more reliable file movement, from batch integration and movement of large images or catalogs to synchronization with distant sites. Sterling Connect:Direct also enables hybrid cloud deployment through certified containers, allowing for simple and consistent deployment lifecycle management.

    Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Features

    Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

    • Performance capabilities such as extraordinary scalability and low latency.
    • Automated, dependable file transmission that permits unattended, round-the-clock operations.
    • Designed to run on a variety of operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, UNIX, Linux, IBM z/OS, OpenVMS, i5/OS, and HP NonStop.
    • Advanced security features with cutting-edge encryption to meet regulatory and industry standards.
    • IBM certified containers for Sterling Connect:Direct are enterprise-grade, secure product editions that are scalable, secure, easy to install, and manage update and rollback processes. They also have integrated common software services for consistent deployment lifecycle management.
    • Boosts transfer speed for large files over high-speed networks by up to four times the previous speed while reducing latency.
    • Gives existing FTP transfers the ability to retry, checkpoint, and compress existing transfers.
    • Supports a variety of network protocols, including TCP/IP, Systems Network Architecture (SNA), and an optional high-speed add-on based on Aspera FASP technology.

    Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct Benefits

    There are many benefits to implementing Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

    • High performance: Takes care of your most demanding workloads, including multi-gigabyte files to large volumes of small files.
    • Reliable file delivery: To help ensure predictable, assured file delivery, it offers automated scheduling, checkpoint restart, and automatic recovery.
    • Secure transmission of files: Maintains the confidentiality of customer information and supports regulatory compliance measures.
    • Speed up patching and installation: By deploying your solution with a certified container that contains all necessary components, you can drastically cut installation and patch time from hours to minutes.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its robust file processing and its security for file transfers. PeerSpot users take note of the advantages of these features in their reviews:

    Michele I., Business Unit Manager at Innovery, writes of the solution, “The file processing is done very well. By default, there are a lot of configurations that can be customized. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is one of the stronger MFT solutions in the market, it is available in each type of installation, and offers SaaS, PaaS, YaaS, on-premise.”

    Camilo M., Pre-sales Engineer at Dell EMC, mentions, “It's a great tool because it offers secure file transfers and it has a fast and efficient protocol for very large files.”

    Sample Customers
    McKesson City of Modesto, California Kwik Trip Northwestern University Charter Communications
    HZMO, Bank of Communications
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Healthcare Company26%
    Wellness & Fitness Company15%
    Government11%
    Comms Service Provider11%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm18%
    Healthcare Company9%
    Computer Software Company9%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm43%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Government8%
    Manufacturing Company6%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business35%
    Midsize Enterprise19%
    Large Enterprise45%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business16%
    Midsize Enterprise12%
    Large Enterprise72%
    REVIEWERS
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise86%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business13%
    Midsize Enterprise7%
    Large Enterprise80%
    Buyer's Guide
    Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct
    May 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct and other solutions. Updated: May 2024.
    772,679 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT is ranked 7th in Managed File Transfer (MFT) with 27 reviews while Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is ranked 9th in Managed File Transfer (MFT) with 7 reviews. Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT is rated 9.2, while Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT writes "Key to our workflow and our workload automation strategy, helping us trade and consume files". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct writes "Secure, fast, and 100% reliable". Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT is most compared with MOVEit, JSCAPE by Redwood, IBM Sterling File Gateway, Kiteworks and Axway AMPLIFY Managed File Transfer, whereas Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct is most compared with IBM Sterling File Gateway, Kiteworks, Aspera Managed File Transfer, Axway AMPLIFY Managed File Transfer and BMC Control-M Managed File Transfer. See our Fortra's GoAnywhere MFT vs. Sterling Commerce Connect:Direct report.

    See our list of best Managed File Transfer (MFT) vendors.

    We monitor all Managed File Transfer (MFT) 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.