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Self-hosted or hosted: Compare the two

Compare: RMM and patching

N-able N-central alternative: Tenvara

N-central is N-able's RMM for MSPs managing larger, more complex networks, and it can run on your own servers or be hosted by N-able. Tenvara covers the core device work, monitoring, patching, scripts and remote control, with one agent, and adds the service desk, backup and Microsoft 365 in the same app. Like N-central, it can be hosted or self-hosted.

Tenvara: RMM and patching

The tool today

What N-able N-central does

N-able RMM for larger, complex networks, on-premises or hosted, with deep automation and SNMP. Made by N-able. This is how the vendor describes it, in our words.

  • Monitors Windows, macOS and Linux devices through agents, and network devices through probes.
  • Discovers and monitors switches, routers, printers and other devices with SNMP.
  • Patches Microsoft updates and 350+ third-party applications.
  • Automation Manager with drag-and-drop workflows and 700+ pre-built scripts.
  • Take Control for remote access, Cove Data Protection for backup, and EDR powered by SentinelOne.
  • Runs on-premises or hosted by N-able, and includes MDM for macOS, iPadOS and iOS.

Side by side

Tenvara vs N-able N-central

The RMM and patching jobs that matter most, and how each product handles them.

Agent for Windows, macOS and Linux

Tenvara Yes

One agent for all three Guide

N-able N-central Yes

Windows, macOS and Linux agents

Patch management

Tenvara Yes

OS patching plus catalogue app updates Guide

N-able N-central Yes

Microsoft plus 350+ third-party apps

Automation

Tenvara Yes

Rules, signed scripts and schedules Guide

N-able N-central Yes

Drag-and-drop Automation Manager

Remote control

Tenvara Yes

Built into the agent, in the browser Guide

N-able N-central Yes

Take Control

Run it on your own servers

Tenvara Yes

Hosted, or self-hosted with Docker Compose Guide

N-able N-central Yes

On-premises or hosted on AWS

Device and Microsoft 365 backup

Tenvara Yes

Images, folders, VMs and Microsoft 365 Guide

N-able N-central Add-on

Cove Data Protection

Add-on means the vendor sells it as a separate product or paid extra. N-able N-central details come from the vendor's own website, see sources.

The one-app pitch

What else you'd replace

Most MSPs running N-able N-central pay for several other tools beside it. Tenvara does these jobs too, on the same customer record, with one agent and one login.

See every comparison

Switching

Moving from N-able N-central

A calm move, not a big bang. Run both side by side until your team is happy.

  1. 1

    Set up customers and sites

    There is no automatic import from N-central, so add your customers and sites first. Enrolment tokens then tie each device to the right customer.

    Customers, sites and contacts
  2. 2

    Recreate your policies

    Set monitoring checks, thresholds and patch policies at global, customer and device group level. Device groups can fill themselves from rules.

    Policies, checks and thresholds
  3. 3

    Deploy the agent alongside

    The one-line install command runs from any tool that can run a script, including N-central, so you can roll Tenvara out to a whole customer at once.

    Installing the agent
  4. 4

    Bring your scripts across

    Add the scripts you rely on to the library, with parameters. PowerShell, Batch, Bash, Zsh and Python are supported.

    The script library
  5. 5

    Run both side by side, then switch

    Compare alerts and patch results for a few weeks, then remove the N-central agent customer by customer.

N-able N-central pricing

N-able does not publish N-central pricing; it is by quote.

Tenvara pricing

One subscription, per technician or per endpoint, hosted or self-hosted, with every feature in every plan.

See pricing

Questions

N-able N-central vs Tenvara: FAQ

Yes. Run it with Docker Compose on your own Linux server, or use a hosted instance. The features are the same either way.

Only with ping, port and web checks run from an agent. There is no SNMP monitoring or network discovery. Firewalls can send syslog into Tenvara security.

Yes. Tenvara reads their alerts and agent health, and shows them on each device alongside antivirus, firewall and encryption status.

See Tenvara next to N-able N-central.

A 30 minute walkthrough of the real product. Bring your list of what you use today and we'll show you where each part lives in Tenvara, and where it doesn't.

Comparison based on publicly available information as of September 2026. N-able N-central is a trademark of its owner; Tenvara is not affiliated with it. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll correct it.

Sources