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Head-to-head · Data Center Fabric Software

Dell Active Fabric Manager vs NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM)

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 5 checks side by side
Higher score Dell Active Fabric Manager #6 in Data Center Fabric Software 8.7/10 Pricing on request ✓ 2 of 4 features Visit Dell
NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) #8 in Data Center Fabric Software 8.5/10 Pricing on request · 60-day trial Free trial✓ 4 of 4 features Visit NVIDIA UFM

Dell Active Fabric Manager leads on 0 checks, NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) on 1, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 5 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreDell Active Fabric Manager · 8.7/10
  • Free trialonly NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM)
  • Most featuresNVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) · 4 of 4

Dell Active Fabric Manager scores higher on our rubric for data center fabric software: 8.7 against 8.5 out of 10; our editors rank them #6 and #8.

NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) offers multi-vendor management; Dell Active Fabric Manager doesn't.

Dell Active Fabric Manager is the better fit for teams deploying Dell VLT fabrics. NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) is the better fit for infiniBand HPC fabric management.

  • Dell Active Fabric Manager fits best

    Teams deploying Dell VLT fabrics

  • NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) fits best

    InfiniBand HPC fabric management

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Dell Active Fabric Manager 8.7/10 Visit ↗ NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) 8.5/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.7 8.5
Ranking #6 in Data Center Fabric Software #8 in Data Center Fabric Software
Best for Teams deploying Dell VLT fabrics InfiniBand HPC fabric management
Pricing model Paid Paid
Starting price Pricing on request Pricing on request · 60-day trial
Free plan Not checked yet —
Free trial — 60 days
Deployment Self-hosted Self-hosted
Platforms Web Web
Support Docs Docs, Live chat
Integrations 1 integrations 5 integrations
Built for Mid-market, Enterprise Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Dell Active Fabric Manager 2/4 · NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) 4/4
Fabric automation ✓ ✓
Multi-vendor management — ✓ (best)
Fabric assurance ✓ ✓
API access Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Specs
Supported fabrics Layer 2 VLT; Layer 3 distributed core; Layer 3 Routed VLT InfiniBand
Deployment model On-premises On-premises
Our review
Pros
  • Designs Layer 2 VLT and two Layer 3 fabric types
  • Discovers fabrics, deploys switch configurations, and validates changes
  • Monitors health and performance through network, fabric, switch, and port views
  • Automates discovery, provisioning, validation and software updates
  • Streams telemetry with traffic and congestion monitoring
  • Integrates job scheduling through Slurm and IBM Spectrum LSF
Cons
  • Management is limited to Dell Networking switches
  • On-premises, self-hosted deployment requires local infrastructure
  • Pricing is handled through sales
  • Supports InfiniBand fabrics only
  • Purchase uses sales and licensing rather than published plan prices
  • No perpetual free plan; the free offer is a 60-day trial
Our verdict

Dell Active Fabric Manager (AFM) is a network automation and orchestration tool for administrators managing Dell data center fabrics. It designs Layer 2 VLT, Layer 3 Routed VLT, and Layer 3 distributed-core fabrics, with discovery and…

Read the review →

NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) is a host-based platform for operating scale-out, InfiniBand-connected data centers. It is designed for research, industrial and other high-performance computing operators managing mid-market or…

Read the review →
  1. Dell Active Fabric ManagerData Center Fabric Software 8.7Pricing on request
  2. NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM)Data Center Fabric Software 8.5Pricing on request · 60-day trial

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Dell Active Fabric Manager — where it wins

    • Designs Layer 2 VLT and two Layer 3 fabric types
    • Discovers fabrics, deploys switch configurations, and validates changes
    • Monitors health and performance through network, fabric, switch, and port views

    Where it doesn't

    • Management is limited to Dell Networking switches
    • On-premises, self-hosted deployment requires local infrastructure
    • Pricing is handled through sales

  • NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) — where it wins

    • Automates discovery, provisioning, validation and software updates
    • Streams telemetry with traffic and congestion monitoring
    • Integrates job scheduling through Slurm and IBM Spectrum LSF

    Where it doesn't

    • Supports InfiniBand fabrics only
    • Purchase uses sales and licensing rather than published plan prices
    • No perpetual free plan; the free offer is a 60-day trial
  • Dell Active Fabric Manager8.7/10 · Pricing on request

    A focused lifecycle tool for designing, deploying, and monitoring Dell VLT fabrics.

    Visit DellFull verdict →
  • NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM)8.5/10 · Pricing on request · 60-day trial

    InfiniBand fabric operations with automation, telemetry, validation and scheduler integrations.

    Visit NVIDIA UFMFull verdict →

More comparisons

All data center fabric software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update