Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Configuration Manager comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Jamf Pro and Microsoft Configuration Manager based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about JAMF, Microsoft, Kandji and others in Mobile Device Management (MDM).
To learn more, read our detailed Mobile Device Management (MDM) Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,234 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
"There is support for Apple updates from day one. Jamf works closely with Apple, so they are ready to support new updates whenever Apple pushes them.""It's as easy as procuring the licensing for the apps and then setting it to the volume purchasing back in Jamf.""Jamf Pro allowed us to patch and manage endpoints while collecting log data to help improve operational efficiency.""Users love that instead of having to wait for tickets to be resolved, they can open an app and run a specific policy.""Smart groups and just the way MDM works are valuable. We like all the features that they have. We try to use it as much as possible, and then we have the support and community involvement to reach out to.""Jamf is stable, reliable, secure and you have lots of customization options.""The solution has good integration with Google and has high performance for our Mac fleet of devices.""I like the ability to modify it to suit our environment and the fact that, since it's an Apple-dedicated service, the integration is easy."

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"Software deployment and WSUS are most valuable.""It has the ability to perform mass distribution.""The most valuable feature of this solution is its ability to deploy patches to nearly all applications.""Endpoint Manager is valuable to our organization because it allows us to connect to our enterprise from remote locations securely. The most useful feature is its robustness and scalability. It is highly scalable and flexible, allowing us to use it in various environments. Additionally, we can specialize the policies related to each device group. This ensures that each group has access to the applications they need for their work and non-work hours.""The product is useful for patch management.""The solution is highly scalable.""This has made the management of our environment easier.""The ability to make collections and deploy to them has been great."

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Cons
"I think that there should also be more integrations with Jamf that could better the intelligence-gathering when making business decisions.""It would be great for Jamf to provide templates for commonly used tasks like updating an operating system, packaging commonly used apps like Office 365, or enabling FileVault.""For patch management in Jamf, two Smart Groups are required as patch policies cannot be scoped as of now. This is not a major issue, as there is a great workaround by using a wrapped "member of" duplicate Smart Group. However, being able to avoid two Smart Groups for patch management would be nice.""One feature or improvement that would be awesome is some sort of mobile app from Jamf that can be used to alert admins of custom alerts.""Some improvement can be made in the customer service realm, while also making additional training level courses available for online study and exam-taking.""I would like to see tighter integration with Jamf Protect in the future releases of Jamf Pro.""I think it would be best if Jamf had support tiers.""Every once in a blue moon, we wind up with a rarely-seen superbug that takes support weeks to months to solve."

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"I would like to see an agentless version of the solution.""The availability of technical support could improve.""They should improve their anti-malware policies like the SCEP policies. For instance, you can't have different policies for different servers, there is only one policy in all the servers, and everything is covered under that. For example, say you want to scan one group of servers on Saturday, and then you want to scan another group of servers on Sunday, you can't do that. You have to scan all your servers, a regular scan or a full scan, on the same day and at the same time. That's definitely one thing they need to resolve. In the next release, it would actually be nice if they included Apple products. It will also help if you can use Intune again. Their compliance reporting feature could also be better. They can maybe work a bit on that for patching now. It would be better if SCCM came with the functions of Right Click Tools built-in. If SCCM would have all those functions already built-in, we won't have to go and spend $5,000, just as an add-in from another company to get those functions.""I want the system to provide some dependency relations. I would also like to see the relationship between different machines.""The database should be made to be more stable and robust, but not so much the configuration.""There's no way to say, "I want this maintenance window to be on the second Tuesday of the month." It's strict. This window is this and that's it. You can't fluctuate.""Troubleshooting in general needs improvement. There's just a ton of logs to go through, and so finding the error log that corresponds with that you're doing can sometimes be difficult.""The product needs to improve scalability."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "I think it pays for itself to let Jamf host the server."
  • "The setup cost is in the training, which is the most important step of your journey."
  • "The cost of this solution is expensive but worth it."
  • "If you have the in-house capability to support Jamf, then paying for onboarding / JumpStart training is a no brainer."
  • "With respect to pricing, Jamf Pro is the better bet."
  • "The total ROI is worth every penny."
  • "The setup is pricey upfront for support and setup."
  • "Setup and licensing prices are getting to be too high."
  • More Jamf Pro Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Pricing and licensing are horrible. You have to not look at dollar value to use SCCM. It's super-duper expensive but it works. The acquisition cost is expensive, it's labor-intensive. But it works."
  • "Pricing and licensing are a downside of SCCM. It's expensive. I'd have to confirm this, but I think they changed the licensing to core-based instead of socket-based. It's not cheap, because you have to buy the software, you have to buy SQL. Another thing we learned from talking to Microsoft is that they provide you a license for SQL if you run it on the same box as the primary server. If you run it outside that box, you have to buy SQL. Microsoft does recommend you running it on the same box because of performance. But then, in order to run SQL, SCCM, and everything on the same box, you better have some resources. It's an expensive solution. There's no doubt about it."
  • "Overall, I think it's fine. It's pretty much in-line because there are ways to offset it with the Office 365 licensing."
  • "SCCM comes with its own version of SQL Server. If you use that SQL Server with SCCM and don't use it for another applications than you get an SQL Server for free."
  • "The licensing is good because they have various options, depending on what you are looking for."
  • "Pricing is negotiable with Microsoft, depending upon which of their packages you choose."
  • "When you compare this solution with other tools in the market you might actually find a lot of variation in the pricing and that's why people opt for the other tools rather than Microsoft tools."
  • "Its price is okay because it is part of our licensing."
  • More Microsoft Configuration Manager Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:The most valuable features of Jamf Pro for me are the device locator, which helps find missing iPads, and the ability to remotely manage and disable devices.
    Top Answer:Jamf Pro is worth the cost. You will certainly find the value once you use it every day and try to imagine your role without Jamf.
    Top Answer:There is room for improvement with Jamf Pro, especially regarding updates. After a recent update, all app icons disappeared on iPads, requiring a manual refresh for each device. This affected system… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your… more »
    Top Answer:ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily and… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Configuration Manager gives different tools in one solution.
    Ranking
    Views
    402
    Comparisons
    280
    Reviews
    26
    Average Words per Review
    556
    Rating
    9.5
    2nd
    out of 42 in Server Monitoring
    Views
    4,112
    Comparisons
    3,129
    Reviews
    28
    Average Words per Review
    455
    Rating
    8.5
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    JAMF Software Casper Suite
    Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )
    Learn More
    Overview

    Jamf Pro is a mobile device management software designed to help organizations and businesses automate Apple device handling-related workflows and processes. It features zero-touch deployment that enables users to automatically enroll new Apple devices, and also configure and deploy these devices swiftly and efficiently. It comes with inventory management capabilities, Apple mobile device management features, and an enterprise app store. Jamf Pro also allows users to deploy and access their mobile apps licenses in bulk. When it comes to using the app store, end users don’t need to ask for assistance from helpdesk agents in order to download, install, and update applications.

    Jamf Pro Features

    Jamf Pro has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

    • Zero-touch deployment
    • Management of Apple devices
    • Security for app devices
    • App Store for self-service enterprise
    • Smart targeting
    • Reports of inventory
    • Smart Groups
    • Preconfiguration of apps
    • App distribution
    • Mac imaging
    • Upgrades to app and OS
    • Management of IT inventory
    • Device enrollment (user initiated)
    • Purchasing & license management

    Jamf Pro Benefits
    There are many benefits to implementing Jamf Pro. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

    • Deployment: Fully-customizable onboarding experience. Provision the perfect Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV, all deployed seamlessly with the workflow of your choice.
    • Device management: Use configuration profiles, scripts, and policies to make your Apple devices function exactly as needed. Move beyond simple troubleshooting by automating management with patented Smart Groups technology. This is a powerful way to trigger real-time alerts and actions from inventory data.
    • Application management: Streamline app management with bulk purchasing and deployment. The solution integrates with Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager, allowing you to assign apps to users or devices without Apple ID. Deploy apps from the App Store, B2B App Store, or your own in-house apps.
    • Apple device security: Protect Apple devices by leveraging native security features. Manage device settings and configurations, restrict malware and patch all of your Apple devices without user interaction.
    • Self-service access: Give your users access to a one-stop shop for trusted apps, company resources, and shortcuts for troubleshooting tasks like password resets.
    • Inventory: Automatically gather user, hardware, software, and security device data or customize inventory specifications. The dynamic Smart Groups feature keeps track of everything for you, including software versions and warranty expiration dates.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Jamf Pro stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Some of these include its app deployment, its easy installation, and the fact that it’s lightweight but powerful. PeerSpot users take note of the advantages of these features in their reviews:

    An IT Support Specialist at Visby Medical writes, “The first most valuable feature I found was the ability to simply push out applications to devices, Mac or iPads/iPhones. It's as easy as procuring the licensing for the apps and then setting it to the volume purchasing back in Jamf.”

    Another reviewer, a Desktop Engineer at Kroger, notes, “The self-service portal to share scripts and other tasks that have extremely minimized the need for calls to our support teams, or even sharing the applications we package and allowing users to pick and choose what apps they need or want, instead of just blanket installing everything from our old environment.”

    Microsoft Configuration Manager helps IT manage PCs and servers, keeping software up-to-date, setting configuration and security policies, and monitoring system status while giving employees access to corporate applications on the devices that they choose. When Configuration Manager is integrated with Microsoft Intune, you can manage corporate-connected PCs and Macs along with cloud-based mobile devices running Windows, iOS, and Android, all from a single management console.

    New features of Configuration Manager, such as the support of Windows 10 in-place upgrade, co-management with Microsoft Intune, Windows 10 and Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise Servicing Dashboard, integration with Windows Update for Business, and more make deploying and managing Windows easier than ever before.

    Sample Customers
    Xero, National Geographic, Oxford University, Via, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Fallon, Cabela's
    Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Educational Organization26%
    University13%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Financial Services Firm6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization35%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Financial Services Firm6%
    University5%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company17%
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Manufacturing Company13%
    Insurance Company9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company12%
    Government11%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business27%
    Midsize Enterprise27%
    Large Enterprise45%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business15%
    Midsize Enterprise41%
    Large Enterprise44%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise69%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise15%
    Large Enterprise67%
    Buyer's Guide
    Mobile Device Management (MDM)
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about JAMF, Microsoft, Kandji and others in Mobile Device Management (MDM). Updated: March 2024.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Jamf Pro is ranked 1st in Mobile Device Management (MDM) with 103 reviews while Microsoft Configuration Manager is ranked 2nd in Server Monitoring with 76 reviews. Jamf Pro is rated 9.6, while Microsoft Configuration Manager is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Jamf Pro writes "Customizable with a self-service portal and a good security posture". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Configuration Manager writes "Seamless system updates, useful integration, and reliable". Jamf Pro is most compared with Microsoft Intune, VMware Workspace ONE, ManageEngine Endpoint Central, SOTI MobiControl and IBM MaaS360, whereas Microsoft Configuration Manager is most compared with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, ManageEngine Endpoint Central, Microsoft Intune, BigFix and Kaseya VSA.

    We monitor all Mobile Device Management (MDM) 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.