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The global RMM tool market is projected to grow from $841.9 million in 2022 to over $2 billion by 2032.
Clearly, a growing number of IT departments are seeing the value of RMM.
Yet when budgets are tight, or management puts on the pressure to increase profitability, you might find yourself compelled to see where you can cut costs. Many IT managers have been there…
If you are looking to reduce your software bills, we’ve gathered a list of some of the best free RMM software options on the market. Most of them are open source RMM software, providing your developers with community support and the freedom to customize the code. But an important question still remains: is RMM free of charge worth the hidden costs?
Is there really free RMM software?
Great RMM solutions allow full visibility and control of all your endpoints from anywhere in the world, including:
- Reporting and analytics
- Asset and inventory scanning
- Complete activity log
They also make your action-taking abilities more robust, including:
- Remote maintenance
- Patch management
- Automation of many IT management tasks
This is a partial list of what commercial RMM offers you, of course. The search to replace that with RMM free of charge can be productive, and solutions do exist in the market. However, if you want to go the free route, you might need to be flexible about getting all your RMM needs met.
Choosing an open source RMM software is a viable choice for some. Many professionals gather in online communities to help fellow open source users, get advice themselves, and advance the software’s development together.
However, it’s important to be mindful of the hidden costs you might end up paying.
Pros & cons of free RMM software
Pros | Cons |
Free | More work for less features |
Often open source and customizable | Varying degrees of security and compliance |
May have a user support community, where you can meet like-minded professionals | Inconsistent support |
What are the “costs” of using a free RMM software?
A free remote monitoring software may be robust enough, and offer enough support, so you can serve your colleagues or clients well. While some solutions might be sufficient for your needs, here are the challenges to keep an eye out for.
More work for less features
Some of the free RMM options available in the market are more complex to set up and operate than commercial tools, yet offer less features.
Plus, unless they have a business model behind them — for example, gathering your data or eventually upselling you to a paid product — the people behind free RMM tools likely don’t have the capacity to consistently update them. Even when the business model does exist, its purpose is to lead you toward payment, not to stay in a free-forever plan.
Varying degrees of security and compliance
The same goes for security and compliance. You need to verify whether your free suppliers have the capacity or desire to keep your company, partners, and clients as safe as possible.
Some IT teams choose an open source RMM to bypass this (they simply check the code themselves), but many don’t do a thorough enough job. This certainly cannot equate to having a security team at a vendor company, whose entire business existence relies on staying secure and compliant.
Moreover, if a breach does happen, your company might be fully liable. There is no sharing responsibility with the vendor, and you won’t necessarily get their help in making things right again.
In 2023, there were 3,205 data compromises in the US alone, impacting 353.02 million people. Most businesses simply can’t take chances when it comes to IT security.
Inconsistent support
Often, free RMM software is offered with no — or minimal — support. You can circumvent this by getting community support if you choose an open source RMM.
However, there’s no guarantee if and when you’ll get help from your community, or how helpful it will actually be.
5 best free RMM software tools
To see whether this option could be the path for you, let’s explore five of the best free RMM software tools. Take note that most of these are open source RMM software tools.
ITarian
ITarian includes open source RMM software that offers a centralized console with remote access to endpoints and files, so IT teams can resolve issues from anywhere.
ITarian aims to stay up to date with industry trends and technologies, and is therefore continuously evolving. It helps companies do the same with plenty of customization, including alert parameters, dashboard, and integrations. All this is powered by strong security and compliance features.
- Is it really free? ITarian offers a partially free remote monitoring software for an unlimited number of administrators. You can also get a 30-day free trial for the entire platform.
- Open source? Yes.
- How often is it updated? According to the release notes, ITarian was updated three times in 2023. As of July 2024, it hasn’t been updated since. This goes for the entire platform, not specifically the free RMM software part.
Tactical RMM
Tactical RMM is a free RMM open source tool that was built with Djando and Vue. Its features include remote desktop control, file browsing and downloading, command execution, Windows patching, automated scripts, and software and hardware inventory, among others.
It can’t compete with the established commercial RMMs, but it offers the core features a small business might need.
That said, the company is transparent about the fact that as a self hosted, free RMM software, it only offers the potential for regulatory compliance. It is the responsibility of the users to take the action needed to comply. Learn more in the FAQ.
- Is it really free? Yes, but a Mac and Linux agent access isn’t included.
- Open source? Yes.
- How often is it updated? It was updated 16 times in 2023, according to the release notes. As of July 2024, Tactical RMM has been updated six times this year.
OpenNMS Horizon
Horizon is the free open source RMM version of OpenNMS. This is where OpenNMS releases features that will later be part of the full platform — perhaps to test them and get its community’s feedback.
This likely distinguishes Horizon among the free RMM tools, as you get the latest technology even before paid customers do. That said, you need to be mindful, as these features might not be fully developed. Your team might end up as the ‘guinea pigs’.
Some of the features you’ll have access to include remote business service monitoring, performance monitoring, alarm generation and correlation, data collection, inventory management, plus plenty of customization and scalability.
- Is it really free? While the full OpenNMS platform starts at $12,000/year, Horizon is indeed a free version of that.
- Open source? Yes.
- How often is it updated? The changelog doesn’t share release dates. As of July 2024, Horizon’s product page indicates that the last update was released in February of this year, even though the same page claims there’s a “rapid release cycle.”
Pandora FMS
Pandora FMS is an open source RMM software that helps you remotely monitor servers, logs, networks, clouds, security, and UX. It also offers inventory management, configuration management, and ITSM.
It specializes in accurately analyzing each data point, including data sources, and the challenges and opportunities the data provides.
- Is it really free? Pandora FMS is on our free RMM tools list because it offers free access, no trial needed, to its almost complete set of features, which cost over 2,000 euros/year. The free version is limited to 50 agents or 600 modules, with a few modules excluded.
- Open source? Yes.
- How often is it updated? There were 10 updates in 2023 across the Pandora FMS platform, according to its changelog. As of July 2024, there have been four updates so far this year.
ManageEngine OpManager
ManageEngine OpManager is a network monitoring platform that helps you stay on top of your network’s performance, get to the bottom of why issues are occurring, and take efficient action. It does so with deep visibility across routers, firewalls, servers, storage devices, and more.
Its free RMM software version also offers network, server, and visualization monitoring, plus alerts and alarms. The software aims to help you stay proactive and in control of your IT infrastructure.
- Is it really free? The free edition gives you access to all the features of the professional edition, but only up to 3 network devices.
- Open source? No.
- How often is it updated? ManageEngine OpManager publishes its release notes without dates, making it challenging to understand the consistency of updates.
Is free RMM software really the best choice for you?
If your operations are small enough to only require the basics, some free open source RMM software tools will do the trick, so there’s no need to pay.
However, you may need a more meaningful tool, but if the budget is tight, you don’t really have a choice — and you’re not alone. According to a 2023 report, IT spending is still growing across industries, but at a lower rate.
Therefore, you do the best you can. Perhaps that means choosing an RMM free of charge, even if it doesn’t give you everything you need. Over time, your budget could grow, or you’ll show initial results that prove the tool’s necessity, and you’ll be in a position to upgrade.
However, if you need a robust tool and you can shift the budget to include it, or if you can make a business case this year for an RMM that will have a true impact on operations and profits, then a paid tool could be the better way forward. Think of it as an investment in your team, your clients, and your profitability. When it comes with a free trial period, you can even go ahead secure in the knowledge that it is risk-free
What would increasing efficiency 10X be worth to your company?
Atera’s RMM solution is built to give you the visibility and automation you need to create proactive IT management. In fact, we’re still building Atera — updating it with new features every month based on customer feedback.
While Atera can’t compete on price with the best free RMM software products listed above, it outshines as a global leader in remote IT management, serving well-known brands across industries. There’s a 30 day free trial (no credit card required) that gives you full access to the platform, including:
- Real-time monitoring and alerts
- IT automation
- Patch management
- Server monitoring
- Reporting and analytics
- Integrated remote access with Splashtop and AnyDesk
- Software installations
- Advanced remote maintenance
- Asset and inventory scanning
- Complete activity log
- SNMP monitoring
- IT documentation
- Custom assets
- Linux remote monitoring and management
Plus, many other features for comprehensive IT management.
If you’re ready to turbocharge your IT efficiency, explore Atera’s RMM features absolutely free for 30 days (no credit card required). Start your free trial.
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