HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer vs Azure Virtual Network Manager

HAHPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer8.6Visit Azure Virtual Network Manager8.2Visit

Higher score HA HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer #6 in Software-Defined Networking Software 8.6/10 Paid ✓ 2 of 2 features Visit HPE

vs

Azure Virtual Network Manager #8 in Software-Defined Networking Software 8.2/10 Paid ✓ 2 of 2 features Visit Microsoft

• HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer fits best

  HPE data-center fabric management

• Azure Virtual Network Manager fits best

  Azure virtual-network governance

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Side by side

Feature	HAHPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer 8.6/10 Visit ↗	Azure Virtual Network Manager 8.2/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.6	8.2
Ranking	#6 in Software-Defined Networking Software	#8 in Software-Defined Networking Software
Best for	HPE data-center fabric management	Azure virtual-network governance
Pricing model	Paid	Paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	—	Not checked yet
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Self-hosted	Cloud
Platforms	Web	Web
Support	Live chat, Phone, Tickets, Community, Docs	Docs
Integrations	9 integrations	6 integrations
Built for	Enterprise, Mid-market	Mid-market, Enterprise
Features HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer 2/2 · Azure Virtual Network Manager 2/2
Policy segmentation	✓	✓
Northbound API	✓	✓
Specs
Deployment model	On-premises	Cloud
Control-plane model	Centralized	Centralized
Supported protocols	BGP, OSPF, VRF, EVPN, VXLAN, Spanning Tree Protocol	TCP, UDP, ICMP, ESP, AH, Any protocols
Managed device limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Automates leaf-spine, underlay, and overlay fabric configuration Combines topology visibility, telemetry, alerts, and audit logging Integrates with VMware, Nutanix Prism, and HPE infrastructure tools	Centralizes hub-and-spoke, mesh, routing, and security policies Supports management across subscriptions, tenants, and regions Works with Azure CLI, PowerShell, Bicep, Terraform, and REST API
Cons	Designed for on-premises deployments Requires paid switch subscriptions Focused on HPE Aruba Networking AOS-CX fabrics	Cloud-only deployment limits use outside Azure environments Usage-based billing spans subscriptions, virtual networks, and active IPs Advanced capabilities add separate billing dimensions
Our verdict	HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer is software-defined orchestration software for provisioning, configuring, monitoring, and troubleshooting data-center network fabrics. It manages HPE Aruba Networking AOS-CX switches as a unified fabric… Read the review →	Azure Virtual Network Manager is a centralized cloud service for organizing, configuring, deploying, and managing Azure virtual networks. It is designed for organizations that need consistent connectivity and security policies across… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• HPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer — where it wins

  • Automates leaf-spine, underlay, and overlay fabric configuration
  • Combines topology visibility, telemetry, alerts, and audit logging
  • Integrates with VMware, Nutanix Prism, and HPE infrastructure tools

  Where it doesn't

  • Designed for on-premises deployments
  • Requires paid switch subscriptions
  • Focused on HPE Aruba Networking AOS-CX fabrics

• Azure Virtual Network Manager — where it wins

  • Centralizes hub-and-spoke, mesh, routing, and security policies
  • Supports management across subscriptions, tenants, and regions
  • Works with Azure CLI, PowerShell, Bicep, Terraform, and REST API

  Where it doesn't

  • Cloud-only deployment limits use outside Azure environments
  • Usage-based billing spans subscriptions, virtual networks, and active IPs
  • Advanced capabilities add separate billing dimensions

• HAHPE Aruba Networking Fabric Composer8.6/10 · Paid

  Centralized fabric orchestration for HPE Aruba Networking data-center environments.

  Visit HPEFull verdict →
• Azure Virtual Network Manager8.2/10 · Paid

  A centralized Azure control plane for network grouping, policy, routing, and verification.

  Visit MicrosoftFull verdict →