In a technology-driven workplace employee management can become a headache when the tech they use for work cannot be supervised. The lack of management leads to security threats like data loss, data theft, device loss, and the overall hassle of getting applications and updates on these devices.
The problems multiply when you have employees on the field, especially for larger organizations device management is always a hurdle. The solution to solving all your management woes and simplifying the work for your IT team is an MDM solution.
Why are MDM’s so effective?
- Ease of remote management – An organization may have employees working remotely, working on several shifts, working on field or maybe just a lot of employees in office, MDM’s help manage your workforce effectively through policies that meet your organizational standards.
- BYOD support– Bring your own device is now a trend in a lot of companies, it saves the initial investment for the company but managing them can be difficult as mixing work life and personal life can often turn ugly. MDM’s allow for containerization of the work data leading to an effective management of the devices without intruding into the employee’s personal life.
- Increase network security – It can be an accident, a malicious software, a planned attack or an inside job, security threats can come from anywhere. A strong security policy on corporate devices implemented via an MDM solution can save your company data and money.
- Improved regulatory compliance – Several countries have strict data privacy and regulatory compliances in place and as a organization it important to ensure that you work within these guidelines. MDM’s help in adhere and monitoring the adherence to these guidelines by the employees.
- Reduced IT needs – The IT management of a company can be small and work much more efficiently with an MDM solution in place. Managing devices, data, network usage, all from a single console, it’s never been easier.
Hexnode MDM
Hexnode is a San Fransico based enterprise mobility and endpoint security company. The Hexnode MDM platform for unified desktop, mobile, and workplace IoT management has been used in over 105 countries–from SMBs to large corporations and governments.
Hexnode always prioritizes the delivery of a user-centered solution for the management of endpoint. Hexnode sets the industry standards and always stays a step above the rest of the vendors who still follow the legacy device management approach. Zero-day support for the new OS updates and features is the cherry on the cake.
Sure MDM
Sure MDM is the MDM service from an United States based company called 42gears founded in 2009. The company provides enterprise mobility solutions and gained reputation for their endpoint management solution. They are a company that aims to scale and extend with the rapidly changing workplaces and businesses.
42gears provides certain security applications that are included in most MDMs as additional products. These include SureFox, SureLock and SureVideo. Like Hexnode MDM, Sure MDM also provides a free 30 day trial for customers to test their platforms.
Hexnode MDM vs Sure MDM : Why Hexnode MDM is the popular choice
Meets Requirement
Hexnode and SureMDM support platforms like iOS, iPadOS, macOS, Android, FireOS, and Windows. ChromeOS is already available on Sure MDM while Hexnode has confirmed it as their top priority. Sure MDM lacks the support for tvOS which is available in Hexnode MDM. The extent of available features supported is where Hexnode outshines the competition with its performance.
The kiosk features like digital signage, secure browsers etc are available as separate add-on products in Sure MDM while it comes bundled with Hexnode. The ability to lock down devices into multi ap kiosks and web app kiosk are missing in Sure MDM. The blacklisting and whitelisting of application in windows devices can also be a deal-breaker.
The feature support for macOS takes a major hit due to missing feature configurations like VPN, Firewall, CardDAV, CalDAV, LDAP, Kernel extensions, Firewall, screensaver, smart card authentication etc. The missing features for iOS devices include the ability to configure APN and VPN, the management of CardDAV, CalDAV and LDAP.
Ease of use and Setup
Hexnode’s step by step setup guide will help any user in setting up their organization quickly without any external support. The addition of the getting started wizard along with the simple and easy to navigate UI will aid migrating users and new users alike.
Sure MDM lags behind in terms of UI design, but they do have a new UI setup in beta so hopefully things pickup soon. Certain bugs and drawbacks in the UI especially while managing groups are also expected to be fixed in the near future.
The ability to configure user groups and dynamic groups in Hexnode MDM are a major incentive to choose the vendor over Sure MDM. The ability to apply policies to groups that dynamically change based on preset conditions is the level of automation that simplifies your IT management needs.
The capability of app management through App groups is missing in Sure MDM. It can become a challenge for users as it becomes harder to push apps in bulk. It also doesn’t support the downgrading of apps to previous versions which can become a frustrating task to execute manually.
Quality of Support
Sure MDM provides a live chat support for its users with prompt replies to assist users. It falls short in execution where the support staff usually sends you the related help documents rather than help you through your queries. The support staff often feels uneducated on the software as they fumble to address your questions.
The standard support option is only available for 8 hours a day 5 days a week. They also have 2 premium support options to cover your enterprise needs but it increases the monthly premium for your service by a good percentage.
Hexnode has always been praised for its unmatched customer support. A 24/5 dedicated live chat support team comes bundled with any Hexnode MDM license. There is no question too big or too small for the team of MDM experts. Any and all concerns will be addressed in a jiffy and are especially helpful if you don’t want to go through those extensive help documents for answers.
Hexnode has been dubbed as one of the friendliest vendors not just because of the chat support but also because of the customer success managers that always puts the customer first. Hexnode’s service doesn’t just end at purchase. They provide services like feature development on customer request and is always available to lend a helping hand, definitely someone you would love to do business with for the long term.
Product direction
Sure MDM is an MDM on the rise, they are focusing on customer complaints and are working hard to rectify their shortcomings. The lack of feature support for macOS and iOS devices are still a cause of concern for current and potential users. A little more effort towards feature support over marketing the product would be helpful in helping them compete with the top vendors.
Hexnode is more focused on rolling out a complete and perfect solution for device management. They add features requested by customers and new features available to the current software and aims to make it a polished service rather than a feature crammed service where you end up paying a lot more for features you don’t need.
Plan Pricing
Plan pricing is another area where Hexnode is miles in front of Sure MDM. Small and medium businesses prefer Hexnode for their low rates starting as low as $1 per month. Large scale businesses prefer Hexnode for their bulk discounts and offers.
Sure MDM is priced on the higher side which can be a dealbreaker even considering the additional rarely useful features they provide. Entry-level plans start at $3.99 and go all the way up to $7.99 per device per month while Hexnode charges $1 to $5.8 per device per month. Sure MDM also provides a lot of their features as separate products like SureLock, SureVideo etc which will cost you extra. The availability of only 2 plans on Sure MDM often leads to customers paying for a load of features they won’t use.
| Feature | Hexnode MDM | Sure MDM |
| Firewall | ✅ | ❌ |
| CardDAV, CalDAV, LDAP | ✅ | ❌ |
| tvOS | ✅ | ❌ |
| ChromeOS | ❌ * | ✅ |
| iOS multi-app kiosk | ✅ | ❌ |
| Dynamic Groups | ✅ | ❌ |
*Releasing Soon
What our customers had to say about Hexnode
Don’t just take my word for it here is what customers had to say:
This tool is so easy to use and to setup policies, no complex settings everything is at your finger tips ready to create your policy. Enrolling a device is just scanning a qr code! Its that simple. App catalog is amazing! so sleek and looks really appealing.
easy to push apps to elementary teachers. the selections are unlimited. I get all devices in one website
Great feature set for price point. It meets our tribal requirements without paying for features we don’t need or won’t use.
Hexnode MDM has the upper hand against Sure MDM in almost all aspects of the product and is developing at a rapid pace which Sure MDM is lacking. When you are looking for a long-term solution you need something comprehensive and scalable like Hexnode MDM, the reports the analytics and the accolades speak for itself.
