Auvik vs. PRTG: Can Your Tier 1 Techs Handle the Next Network Outage?

It’s Monday morning, and a network alert comes in notifying your team that something’s down. User complaints are already starting to roll in, and the ticket lands with a Tier 1 technician who knows their way around IT but isn’t exactly a network engineer.

What happens next? Can they see what’s happening, trace the problem, and start troubleshooting? Or do they need to escalate the ticket to the one person who knows the network inside and out?

When comparing Auvik vs. PRTG Network Monitor, the real question is how easily your team can put network information to work when something goes wrong. Both tools give you plenty of data, but they take different approaches to how network information is organized, accessed, and used by technicians.

PRTG gives administrators extensive control over what gets monitored and how that information is presented. Auvik takes a more automated approach, giving technicians a continuously updated view of the network alongside the tools they need to investigate issues.

With Paessler’s acquisition of UVnetworks in May 2026, the comparison has become even more interesting. 

In this article, we’ll look at how Auvik and PRTG compare when it comes to setup, network visibility, troubleshooting, and day-to-day usability, including what PRTG’s new UVexplorer capabilities bring to the table.

Key takeaways

• Auvik helps your Tier 1 techs troubleshoot more issues on their own. Live network maps, built-in troubleshooting tools, and Auvik AI help them figure out what went wrong without always calling in an expert.
• PRTG has stepped up its game with UVexplorer. It now offers automated network mapping, configuration backups, and change tracking, but requires a separate extension and scheduled discovery.
• Your licensing model affects how much of your network you can see. Auvik charges per network device, while PRTG charges per sensor, meaning you have to be more selective about what you monitor.

Auvik hands the whole team the same live map; PRTG hands a skilled admin the controls

In Auvik, the first hour looks the same for the engineer and the help desk

Getting started with Auvik is fairly straightforward. You install a lightweight collector on your network, and Auvik automatically discovers connected devices and builds a visual map of how everything fits together.

That map shows Layer 1, 2, and 3 connections and continuously updates as your network changes. You also get more than 50 preconfigured alerts, so you can start monitoring common network issues without having to build every alert from scratch.

From there, your technicians can click into a device and access the information and tools they need to investigate an issue, including:

• Configuration backups and comparisons to see what changed and when.
• Syslog data to review device events and identify potential problems.
• Remote terminal, browser, and tunnel access to connect to devices without switching tools.
• Device details and network connections to understand where a problem might be coming from.

Because Auvik supports unlimited users, you can give your entire IT team access to the same network information. Your senior engineer and your newest help desk technician are working from the same map, rather than relying on separate dashboards or documentation.

There is a tradeoff, though. While you can customize Auvik’s dashboards and alerts to suit your needs, you don’t have the same freedom to design an entirely custom monitoring environment from the ground up as you get with PRTG. But that’s also part of the appeal: with Auvik, your team can spend less time tinkering to build the “perfect” monitoring setup and can jump into resolving network issues faster.

In PRTG, that same picture exists only once the admin has built it, and it is only as deep as they want it to be

With PRTG Network Monitor, you have plenty of control over how your monitoring environment is built. But someone has to make those decisions, and a lot of them come down to how you set up your sensors.

PRTG operates on a sensor-based model. Each sensor monitors a specific metric, such as bandwidth usage on a switch port, CPU utilization, or device availability. Paessler generally recommends planning for 5-10 sensors per device, although the actual number depends on what you need to monitor.

PRTG includes automatic device discovery and predefined sensors to help you get started. From there, you can fine-tune your monitoring environment with:

• Customizable sensor thresholds to define when a particular metric should trigger a warning or error.
• Drag-and-drop dashboards to organize monitoring data around your team’s priorities.
• PRTG Map Designer to build visual representations of your network and monitoring data.
• Custom sensors and API access to monitor specialized systems or create integrations that fit your environment.

For an experienced network admin, this flexibility is a plus. You can build a monitoring environment around your infrastructure, customize what gets measured, and decide exactly how information is presented to your team.

The catch is that customization takes time and expertise, and the rest of your team relies on what your PRTG admin builds. If you’ve got a dedicated expert to configure and maintain the environment, that level of control can be well worth it. But if network troubleshooting falls to a mix of senior engineers, IT generalists, and help desk technicians, a more standardized approach may be easier for everyone to work with.

For most IT teams, Auvik gives you all the network visibility and troubleshooting tools you need right out of the box. You can monitor device health, performance, and traffic, track configuration changes, and troubleshoot issues without building everything yourself. PRTG gives you more room to customize, which can be a big advantage only if you have highly specialized monitoring requirements (like proprietary applications or equipment requiring highly customized monitoring) and the expertise to manage them.

“We did look into PRTG. Auvik was easier to get configured and it was easier to understand the data. Overall, it was more than just user-friendly and had a good price scheme.”Tim O., PeerSpot reviewer, internal IT, construction

Setup task	Auvik	PRTG Network Monitor
Discovery	Automated from the collector	Auto-discovery, then the admin prunes and places sensors
Topology map	Generated and updated continuously	Built in Map Designer or generated by UVexplorer on a schedule
Alert thresholds	64+ preconfigured, adjustable	Sensor defaults, tuned per sensor by the admin
AI-assisted troubleshooting	Built-in Auvik AI helps techs interpret alerts and figure out what to do next from day one	AI features focus on monitoring setup and anomaly detection; troubleshooting guidance is in early access
Config backup	Automated, native	Via UVexplorer extension (separate install)
Remote access to a device	Terminal, browser, tunnel from the device page	Not included; use a separate tool
Adding a site or client	Install a collector; map and alerts in about an hour	Add a probe, then decide which sensors to buy and place
Adding a technician	Add a user (unlimited)	Add a user; they inherit the admin’s dashboards and maps

With Auvik, a Tier 1 tech can work the ticket before escalating; with PRTG, that depends on what was built

Let’s say employees on the second floor of your office suddenly lose connectivity. A ticket comes in, and your help desk technician is the first person to pick it up.

They know there’s a network issue, but they don’t know whether it’s a switch, an upstream connection, or a recent configuration change causing the problem. Can they investigate it themselves, or do they need to bring in a network engineer?

Here’s how that same ticket could play out in Auvik and PRTG.

The ticket in Auvik: the alert lands on the map with the path, the config history and a terminal one click away

With Auvik, your technician can start investigating right from the alert. Instead of piecing together information from multiple screens or tools, they have a visual starting point and a clear path to follow.

Here’s what that troubleshooting process might look like:

1. Find the affected device: The alert identifies the device, which your technician can locate on Auvik’s continuously updated network map. They can see how it connects to the rest of your infrastructure and whether other devices may be affected.
2. Trace the network path: Using Auvik’s Northstar feature, they can follow the network path hop by hop to understand where connectivity may be breaking down.
3. Check what changed: Configuration history and comparisons help identify recent changes that might explain the outage. They can also review syslog messages from the device page for additional clues.
4. Investigate or take action: If the issue calls for a closer look, they can open a remote terminal, browser, or tunnel from the same interface, without switching to another tool.
5. Look back in time: Auvik’s map history lets them revisit what the network looked like when the problem started, helping them spot changes that might otherwise be missed.

Not every issue is something a junior technician can resolve. But having this information readily available means they can do meaningful troubleshooting before involving someone more senior.

As Jeff Davis, Director of IT explains in Auvik’s Standard School District case study:

“The automation of the network mapping enables junior network specialists to resolve issues directly.”Jeff Davis, Director of IT, Standard School DistrictSource: Auvik case study (full quote continues with escalating config work to a more skilled person)

“It helps them and reduces the number of cases escalated to senior network resources.”ITeam (MSP); pull the speaker’s name and title from the PDFSource: Auvik case study PDF, July 2025

Auvik AI: An extra hand when your tech needs it

Auvik AI takes that troubleshooting process a step further. Introduced in April 2026, Auvik AI helps your technicians make sense of network issues and figure out what to investigate next. It uses information from your actual environment (including network topology, device metrics, and alerts) to provide guidance that’s relevant to the problem at hand.

Its capabilities include:

• Alert prioritization: Helps your team identify which issues deserve attention first.
• Troubleshooting guidance: Uses network context to suggest possible causes and next steps.
• Device-specific command assistance: Recommends commands your technician can review and approve before execution.
• Hardware lifecycle visibility: Flags devices approaching end-of-life or end-of-support so your team can identify potential risks.

Back to our second-floor connectivity issue. Auvik AI can help your technician make sense of what’s happening and figure out what to check next. It can even recommend commands to run, but your technician stays in control. Nothing gets executed without human approval.

PRTG is taking a different approach to AI. Its features help admins fine-tune their monitoring setup, from recommending sensors and spotting similar ones to establishing baselines for unusual activity. That’s useful for making sure you’re monitoring the right things.

The difference comes down to when AI lends a hand. PRTG helps you set up smarter monitoring. Auvik AI helps your team figure out what to do when something goes wrong.

The goal isn’t to eliminate escalations altogether, but to help your Tier 1 technicians resolve more issues independently and give your senior engineers better information when an escalation is necessary.

“You don’t need to be a networking person to run the networking infrastructure.”Doug Murray, CEO, Auvik

“Auvik has empowered our entry-level technicians to solve more tickets on their own.”Brandon Timmons, Network Administrator, City of Fort Smith, Arkansas

The same ticket in PRTG: the alert names the sensor, and what comes next depends on the install

Now, let’s look at that same second-floor connectivity issue in PRTG.

Your technician gets an alert that a switch is down or an interface has stopped responding. PRTG is great at monitoring specific metrics, so they’ll likely have a pretty clear starting point. But what happens next depends on how PRTG has been set up.

If your admin has built useful dashboards and maps, your technician can see related devices, check dependencies, and start narrowing down the problem. PRTG also offers customizable alerts, clear warning and error states, and mobile push notifications.

With the addition of UVexplorer, PRTG now offers automated topology mapping, dependency information, and configuration change tracking. We’ll get into that in the next section.

Here’s the catch, though: Your technician’s troubleshooting experience is only as good as the setup they’ve inherited. If those dashboards and maps weren’t built with Tier 1 troubleshooting in mind, they may need to dig around or escalate to someone who knows the environment better.

And unlike Auvik, PRTG doesn’t currently offer the same built-in, context-aware troubleshooting guidance to help your technician figure out what an alert means or what to try next. Its AI features are more focused on helping admins fine-tune monitoring, rather than walking techs through an active issue.

PRTG also lacks Auvik’s built-in remote terminal and tunnel capabilities, so investigating or fixing a device configuration usually means jumping into another tool.

If you’ve got an experienced PRTG admin who’s built a great monitoring environment, that might work just fine. But when that person isn’t available, your team may end up stuck because they don’t have access to the knowledge that lives in one person’s head.

For MSPs managing dozens of client networks, this can become an even bigger headache. A consistent troubleshooting experience helps your NOC technicians get further with each ticket, regardless of who originally set up the monitoring.

“PRTG proved to be too complicated for one person to set up and use. It took too much care in feeding.”Michael U., PeerSpot reviewer, internal IT, education

Why this matters more in 2026: the network person is the bottleneck

When your most experienced network engineer is also the only person who intimately understands your network, every escalation becomes another item on their to-do list. And as Auvik’s 2026 IT Trends Report highlights, IT teams are under growing pressure to manage complex environments with limited resources.

By making network information accessible to your entire team, Auvik helps remove that dependency. Your Tier 1 technicians can use the live map and Auvik AI to investigate and resolve more issues independently, helping reduce mean time to resolution and freeing up senior engineers to focus on the complex problems that require their expertise.

PRTG UVexplorer adds automated network mapping, but still lacks Auvik’s integrated troubleshooting tools

One important development makes the Auvik vs. PRTG comparison a little different in 2026.

On May 26, 2026, Paessler announced its acquisition of UVnetworks, bringing automated network discovery, topology mapping, and configuration management into its portfolio through PRTG UVexplorer.

It’s a meaningful addition that addresses several areas where Auvik previously had a clear advantage, but there are still some important differences in how the two platforms work.

What UVexplorer closed: automated topology, dependency views, config backup and change tracking

Previously, creating detailed network maps in PRTG largely depended on administrators building them using Map Designer or other tools. UVexplorer changes that.

Using protocols like SNMP, WMI, and SSH, UVexplorer can automatically discover your network and generate Layer 2, Layer 3, and port-level topology maps. It also adds capabilities that help your team:

• Understand network dependencies: Trace upstream connections to investigate potential causes of an outage and identify downstream devices that could be affected.
• Back up and compare configurations: Capture device configurations and compare startup and running versions to identify differences.
• Track network changes: Detect changes between discovery runs, helping you understand how your environment has evolved.
• Bring topology into PRTG: Export discovered devices and maps into PRTG to complement its existing monitoring capabilities.

These are definite improvements. As Jason Teichman explained in the acquisition announcement: “Monitoring tells teams that something is wrong. Topology helps them understand why.” 

What UVexplorer didn’t close: it is a separate install on a schedule, the sensor model is unchanged, and there is still nothing to act with

Now, the “but.” UVexplorer gives PRTG a much stronger picture of your network, but getting that picture still involves a different workflow.

Unlike Auvik’s continuously updated map, UVexplorer runs scheduled discoveries that produce point-in-time snapshots. It’s also a separately priced extension that requires installation alongside PRTG, rather than a native feature available from the start.

There are a few other distinctions worth knowing:

• Deployment: UVexplorer is installed separately on the PRTG core server and, according to Paessler’s documentation, isn’t compatible with PRTG Hosted Monitor.
• Licensing: PRTG still uses sensor-based licensing, so adding UVexplorer doesn’t change how you plan or pay for monitoring coverage.
• Remote troubleshooting: UVexplorer adds visibility and configuration management, but PRTG still doesn’t offer Auvik’s integrated remote terminal and tunnel capabilities.
• AI assistance: Paessler has identified AI-assisted root cause analysis as a future capability, while Auvik AI already provides troubleshooting guidance and device-specific command assistance.

For your team, the distinction comes down to what happens after an issue is detected. With PRTG and UVexplorer, you can build a much clearer understanding of your network, but technicians still work across separate capabilities and tools to investigate and address problems.

With Auvik, the live map, configuration history, alerts, and remote access are available together, with Auvik AI helping technicians determine what to do next.

Auvik still has the advantage when it comes to helping technicians act on that information from one place, but UVexplorer has made PRTG significantly better than it used to be at showing your team what’s happening across the network.

Capability	Auvik	PRTG before UVexplorer	PRTG with UVexplorer
Automated L2/L3 topology	Yes, continuous	No (Map Designer, user-built)	Yes, on scheduled discovery
Dependency / blast radius view	Yes	No	Yes
Config backup and compare	Yes, native	No (third-party)	Yes
Change tracking	Yes (config and map history)	No	Yes, between discoveries
Real-time map updates	Yes	n/a	No, point-in-time snapshots
Available in the cloud-hosted edition	Yes	n/a	No (per Paessler KB)
Remote terminal / tunnel	Yes	No	No
AI troubleshooting guidance	Yes	Sensor setup and anomaly baselines only	Root cause guidance positioned as future
Licensing basis	Per network device	Per sensor	Per sensor, plus UVexplorer
Separate install or price	No	n/a	Yes, both

Table 2: What changed with UVexplorer. Plain text in cells, no check marks, so it survives LLM extraction and screen readers.

Auvik was built for many sites from the start; PRTG is now investing in MSPs too

MSPs have been a big part of Auvik’s world since the beginning. And when you’re responsible for keeping dozens (or hundreds!) of client networks running, you need tools that make life easier for your technicians, not another layout of work to manage.

For MSPs managing multiple client networks, Auvik uses a collector at each client site to automatically discover devices and generate a live network map, typically within about an hour. Your NOC technicians can jump between client environments through a global dashboard, with unlimited users working from the same interface. That means less time getting new clients set up and more time keeping their networks running.

PRTG has expanded its focus on MSPs, too. In 2025, Paessler introduced a dedicated MSP program in Europe, followed by North America in April. Its MSP edition includes 10,000-sensor licensing packages, remote probes for individual client sites at no additional charge, multi-tenancy, and scheduled reporting. Both on-premises and hosted deployment options are available.

The difference comes down to how much work goes into managing each client environment. With PRTG, adding a new client involves deploying a probe and selecting the sensors needed to monitor that network, giving you plenty of control but also more setup and maintenance.Auvik automates more of that work and gives your technicians a consistent experience across clients. When your NOC is juggling tickets from multiple customers, this can make a meaningful difference.

Auvik’s per-device pricing means nobody rations visibility; PRTG’s sensor pricing makes coverage a decision

Auvik and PRTG also take different approaches to licensing, which can influence how much of your network gets monitored. Auvik charges per network device, with visibility into the connected devices and infrastructure behind it. That means your Tier 1 technicians and senior engineers can work from the same network picture without having to allocate individual sensors to every metric they want to investigate.

PRTG licenses by sensor. Each sensor monitors a specific metric, such as bandwidth usage or CPU utilization, so your team needs to decide which devices, ports, and metrics warrant coverage. This gives you more granular control over what you’re monitoring, but it also makes visibility a consideration when planning your sensor allocation.

With Auvik, broad network visibility is built into the licensing model. With PRTG, the level of visibility depends on the sensors you choose to deploy.

For a closer look at how these models work in practice, check out our Auvik vs. PRTG pricing comparison.

Auvik vs PRTG: side by side

Factor	Auvik Network Management	Paessler PRTG (Network Monitor / Hosted Monitor)
Best known for	Automated network mapping and management for IT teams and MSPs	Sensor-based monitoring of networks, servers, applications, cloud, IoT and OT
Deployment	Cloud-hosted; collector per site; map and alerts in about an hour	On-premises (Windows) or PRTG Hosted Monitor; probes per site or client
Network map	Automated Layer 1/2/3 topology, updates continuously; Northstar path view; map history	Map Designer (user-built), or PRTG UVexplorer (automated, scheduled discovery, separate install)
Configuration management	Automated backup, side-by-side compare, restore, native	Via PRTG UVexplorer (backup and compare); previously third-party
Alerting	64+preconfigured alerts, customizable; syslog on the device page	Sensor thresholds with defaults; highly customizable per sensor; many notification methods incl. SMS
Troubleshooting tools	Remote terminal, remote browser, tunnel from the device page	Monitoring and visibility; no built-in remote access to devices
AI	Auvik AI: alert prioritization, troubleshooting guidance, command assistance, lifecycle risk; human approves actions	Sensor recommendations, similar-sensor detection, anomaly baselines; AI-assisted root cause analysis positioned as future
Customization	Standard dashboards and alerts with customization options	Drag-and-drop dashboards, custom sensors, scripting via API
Beyond the network	Network-first; server and endpoint monitoring available	Servers, applications, databases, cloud, virtual, storage and web in one tool
Interfaces	Browser-based	Web, desktop, iOS and Android apps
Licensing	Per network device; quote-based; unlimited users and sites	Per sensor (roughly 5 to 10 per device); free edition up to 100 sensors; Enterprise Monitor above ~1,000 devices
MSP support	Multi-site / multi-client by design; global dashboard	MSP program (2025), MSP edition in 10,000-sensor packs, remote probes, multi-tenancy

So, which solution makes more sense for your team? The answer comes down to who’s doing the troubleshooting, how much customization you need, and how much time you want to spend managing your monitoring setup. Here’s where each tool fits best.

Auvik is the best fit for:

IT teams where network tickets land on generalists or the help desk

Whether you have a dedicated network engineer or your IT team wears multiple hats, Auvik’s live map, remote troubleshooting tools, and Auvik AI help less experienced technicians investigate and resolve issues before escalating.

IT teams that want the map, config backup and remote access in one place, with nothing extra to install

Automated topology mapping, configuration backups, syslog, and remote access are available together from the start, without requiring separate extensions or extensive setup.

IT teams that need the map to reflect the network right now, not the last scheduled discovery

Auvik continuously updates its network map and maintains a history of changes, so your technicians can investigate what’s happening now and compare it with what the network looked like before an issue started.

MSPs whose NOC needs to close network tickets without escalating to senior engineers

With a consistent interface across clients, unlimited users, and access to network paths and configuration history, NOC technicians can handle more tickets independently and provide useful context when escalation is necessary.

PRTG is the best fit for:

IT teams that have a PRTG owner and want to design their own monitoring

If you have the expertise and resources to configure sensors, build dashboards, and maintain custom network maps, PRTG gives you considerable control over your monitoring environment.

IT teams that need servers, applications, databases and cloud in the same tool as the network

PRTG covers servers, applications, databases, cloud infrastructure, and more within the same platform, making it a strong option for organizations that want broad infrastructure monitoring.

IT teams that must run on-premises, or want a free tier to start

PRTG supports on-premises installation and offers a free edition with up to 100 sensors, which may be sufficient for smaller environments.

MSPs standardizing on Paessler’s MSP program with PRTG expertise on staff

Paessler’s MSP program supports multi-client monitoring through sensor packages, remote probes, multi-tenancy, and scheduled reporting. It’s a practical fit for MSPs with administrators who can configure and maintain monitoring across client environments.

See how far your Tier 1 team can get with Auvik

When every network issue ends up on your senior engineer’s desk, even routine tickets can slow your team down. Whether you’re managing an internal IT environment or supporting dozens of MSP clients, giving your technicians the right information and tools can make a big difference.

Auvik brings an automated network topology mapper, network configuration backups, and network traffic analysis together in one place, so your team can investigate issues without piecing together information from multiple tools. Auvik AI takes it further, helping technicians understand alerts, identify what to investigate, and determine which commands to run next.

Want to see what your Tier 1 team could handle with Auvik? Book a demo or start a 14-day free trial to explore the platform for yourself.

Still weighing your options? Explore why IT teams choose Auvik or learn more about Auvik as a PRTG alternative.

Frequently asked questions