Device42 vs. FireScope DDM

Automatic Discovery & Dependency mapping tools (i.e. ADM, ADDM, DDM, IDDM) provide company-wide benefits that extend beyond the walls of IT. From migration planning insights to easier audits, driving automation via webhooks and interfacing via RESTful APIs, and assisting with daily ITSM tasks, choosing the right Application Dependency Mapping product can really pay dividends.

Device42 provides agent-less services and application discovery based on native Windows (WMI) and Linux (SSH) protocols. Agent-based versions are available for sensitive and/or often-disconnected devices. Device42 augments this native protocol-based deep application and services discovery with NetFlow, then further supplements with Nmap.

In contrast, FireScope’s primary data collection method relies on SPAN ports and/or port mirroring (a form of packet capture), which if not already configured at your location can be complex, expensive, and time consuming to configure – and in some cases, impossible. Should you be unable or unwilling to use packet capture, the alternatives require agent deployment or else can be limited in functionality.

Another critical distinction between FireScope and Device42 is that Device42 provides everything you need right out of the box: a built-in, comprehensive CMDB that catalogs details about what you have running in your environment, automatically maintained by the discovery and dependency mapping engine, which records additions and changes across your infrastructure as they happen.

For a complete solution from FireScope, customers must purchase a CMDB product from another vendor, and by doing so cannot enjoy the benefits that fully-integrated solutions tend to offer, ranging from guaranteed interoperability and out-of-the-box functionality, a single source to turn to for updates and support if necessary, and more.