How to choose between N-able and Action1 for patching and remote support
Comparing remote management tools is difficult because vendors often provide vague security assurances instead of clear technical answers. This lack of transparency makes it hard to verify if solutions like N-able or Action1 are truly safe and functional before deploying them to manage updates.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Switching to alternative platforms like Datto RMM or PDQ ConnectDid this help you?
- 2Running trials and proof-of-concept testing to contrast featuresDid this help you?
- 3Requiring a VPN or always-on VPN solutionDid this help you?
- 4Sending cybersecurity questionnaires and scoring them via a rubricDid this help you?
- 5Isolating servers on a DMZDid this help you?
- 6using alternative tools like NinjaOne, Splashtop, RustDesk, or BeyondTrust/BomgarDid this help you?
- 7securing instances using IP whitelisting, firewalls, or TailscaleDid this help you?
- 8scaling back unattended sessions and relying on UltraVNC for day-to-day tasksDid this help you?
- 9using separate clients like Bitvise and ElectermDid this help you?
- 10migrating to alternatives like NoMachine, ThinLinc, RustDesk, or RemminaDid this help you?
- 11Using WSUS and BatchPatchDid this help you?
- 12Setting up a separate cache server inside the air-gapped networkDid this help you?
- 13Creating custom scripts and deploying via ODTDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Vendor says his remote access solution is secure. Is it though?”source ↗
“When pressed for further details he elaborated: >We have an encrypted signed SSL certificate that we use for the connection. The endpoint is our web service. The access to the web service requires Active Directory authentication and inclusion in a specific security group in the AD.”source ↗
“He said "we have this installed in many places and we've never had a problem." That's nice, but it doesn't mean that there won't be a problem tomorrow.”source ↗
“Currently, we use WSUS and BatchPatch to push Windows and third-party updates to our machines. While this setup works, I’m looking for something more robust.”source ↗
“I also need to figure out the best way to transfer updates into the air-gapped network.”source ↗
“I've used N-Able for around 4 years from a MSP but I think it's way behind in terms of functionaility.”source ↗
“Trialing out Action1 and Action1 is way easier to setup and patching experience seems to be a lot better.”source ↗
“Their explanation provides more questions than answers.”source ↗
“Will take a month to figure out for offline environment but after that it's not bad. Except for Office. Sometimes It work and then the next month it doesn't. I had to create my own script and deploy via ODT.”source ↗
“We have been using Bitvise to SSH access, but I've started looking at what other SSH & VNC (Combined) clients are out there open source.”source ↗
“Came across Electerm, and seems to fit the bill, but I found 1 quirk with it, it will not close the window if you tell the server to reboot.”source ↗
“I have been wanting to move away from SC for quite a while now, but can't find a suitable replacement. Mostly due to SC's Backstage functionality - I use that ALOT and I haven't found any other product that provides something similar.”source ↗
“Mostly due to SC's Backstage functionality - I use that ALOT and I haven't found any other product that provides something similar.”source ↗
“I do 90% of my SC work backstage - never seen another like it.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 4How to manage remote IT infrastructure without a dedicated team
- 4How to migrate remote management platforms without rebuilding everything
- 6Why do remote support tools keep giving generic error messages?
- 6Why is remote management software so slow and laggy?
- 33Should customer support live inside our CRM?
- 3How to remotely patch an air-gapped network without USB drives