Lakeside Software Review: Stop IT Blind Spots in Your Complex Enterprise

Slow IT bottlenecks drain your productivity fast.

If you’re frustrated with lagging devices, mystery glitches, or constant help desk requests, you’re likely searching for a way to actually control your IT environment.

Let’s be honest—your users are getting more frustrated every day because nagging tech problems keep piling up, wasting valuable time.

That’s why I spent weeks digging through Lakeside Software’s SysTrack platform, which takes a data-driven approach to digital employee experience, endpoint monitoring, and proactive issue resolution across complex IT setups, not just surface-level metrics.

In this review, I’ll show you how Lakeside helps you finally fix nagging IT headaches with visibility and insights you can actually put to work.

You’ll find out—step by step—in this Lakeside Software review, how the platform gathers data, resolves issues, what it’ll cost, and where it stands versus top alternatives, so you can make the right call.

You’ll get the concrete facts and the features you need to pick the best-fit DEX solution—without second-guessing your decision.

Let’s get started.

Lakeside Software Overview

Lakeside Software has focused on digital employee experience since 1997. Based in Boston, they build specialist tools for IT teams to gain clear visibility into actual endpoint technology performance.

They primarily target mid-market and enterprise clients in complex sectors like finance and healthcare. What I find compelling is their intense focus on capturing real end-user device metrics, moving far beyond simple surveys to quantify what your employees actually experience daily.

Their 2024 Leader recognition from both Forrester and ISG shows real market momentum. We’ll explore how their practical AI drives this key advantage through this Lakeside Software review.

Unlike competitors that excel at broad analytics, Lakeside doubles down on its unparalleled depth of data collection. To me, it feels built for IT pros who need granular, actionable data to solve complex problems, not just another pretty dashboard.

They work with large organizations—companies with thousands of endpoints and complex IT environments that need to be properly managed, optimized, and secured for a modern workforce and its demands.

From my perspective, their strategy is about shifting your IT operations from reactive to proactive. They are heavily invested in using AI to help fix system issues before users complain, dramatically reducing helpdesk noise.

Let’s dive into their core capabilities.

Lakeside Software Features

Suffering from a confusing IT environment?

Lakeside Software features offer a comprehensive Digital Employee Experience (DEX) solution, SysTrack, designed to provide deep visibility and proactive insights. These are the five core Lakeside Software features that can transform your IT operations.

1. Comprehensive Data Collection and Analysis

Is your IT data too fragmented to be useful?

Without deep insights into your IT environment, solving problems feels like guesswork. This often leads to reactive firefighting instead of proactive solutions.

SysTrack collects over 10,000 data points every 15 seconds, giving you unparalleled visibility into device and application performance. From my testing, this feature provides the granular detail needed to identify root causes efficiently. It supports multiple operating systems, ensuring broad coverage.

This means you get a complete, real-time picture of your IT health, helping you make informed decisions quickly.

2. Digital Employee Experience (DEX) Monitoring

How do you truly measure employee IT satisfaction?

Traditional surveys don’t capture the full technical picture, leaving you blind to underlying issues. This can lead to frustrated employees and productivity loss.

This feature continuously monitors key metrics affecting the digital employee experience, going beyond simple surveys. SysTrack’s Digital Experience Score quantifies satisfaction levels, allowing you to pinpoint frustration points directly tied to IT performance. I found this crucial for understanding user sentiment.

So you can finally connect IT performance to employee satisfaction, improving productivity and morale.

3. Proactive IT Operations and Issue Resolution

Are you always reacting to IT emergencies?

Dealing with issues only after they’ve impacted users is inefficient and costly. This can significantly reduce employee productivity and increase IT workload.

SysTrack uses machine learning and an AI engine to proactively resolve complex issues before they even surface. It provides real-time notifications, and can instantly solve common problems with prebuilt scripts. Here’s what I found: this feature significantly reduces Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR).

This means your IT team can shift from reactive troubleshooting to proactive problem-solving, minimizing downtime.

4. IT Asset Optimization

Are you overspending on unused IT assets?

Without clear insights into software usage and hardware performance, you might waste budget on unnecessary licenses or premature upgrades. This impacts your bottom line.

This feature helps you optimize IT assets by showing software usage and hardware performance, identifying unused or underused systems and applications. From my testing, this is where Lakeside Software shines for cost savings. It can also automate your CMDB.

The result is significant cost savings through smarter software license management and hardware utilization.

5. Digital Transformation Support

Struggling with complex IT migrations?

Planning major IT initiatives without data-driven insights can lead to costly missteps and user dissatisfaction. This makes adopting new technologies risky.

SysTrack assists in planning, executing, and validating IT initiatives like OS migrations and cloud transitions. It provides data-driven insights to ensure technology investments deliver desired value and support remote work readiness. What I love about this approach is its ability to assess end-user experience.

This means you can confidently embark on digital transformation projects, knowing they’ll succeed and benefit your employees.

You’ll actually appreciate how these Lakeside Software features work together to create a holistic view of your IT environment, helping you move from a reactive to a proactive stance.

Lakeside Software Pricing

Hidden costs got you down?

Lakeside Software pricing follows a custom quote model, meaning you’ll need to contact their sales team for specific costs tailored to your organization’s needs.

1. Pricing Model & Cost Factors

Understanding the cost factors.

Lakeside Software operates on a custom pricing model, typically per-device licensing, which varies based on your organization’s size and specific needs. What I found regarding pricing is that it scales with your environment’s complexity, factoring in the number of endpoints and the features you require from their SysTrack platform.

From my cost analysis, this means your total cost aligns directly with your usage, avoiding overspending on unused licenses.

2. Value Assessment & ROI

Is it a worthwhile investment?

While SysTrack’s per-device licensing can be costly, its comprehensive Digital Employee Experience (DEX) features often justify the expense. From my cost analysis, it’s a more cost-effective solution compared to some competitors like Nexthink, especially for budget-conscious enterprises.

This helps your budget by providing extensive IT visibility, which can reduce operational costs and improve productivity.

3. Budget Planning & Implementation

Consider all your budget needs.

Beyond the core per-device licensing, you’ll need to factor in potential implementation costs and ongoing support. What stood out about their pricing is how they cater to large, complex IT environments, indicating that custom integration and setup might be significant.

So for your business, expect a detailed consultation to align their solution with your specific budget and IT infrastructure.

My Take: Lakeside Software’s custom pricing is built for large enterprises needing deep DEX insights, ensuring you pay for precise value rather than generic tiers.

The overall Lakeside Software pricing reflects customized value for complex IT environments.

Lakeside Software Reviews

What do real customers actually think?

Lakeside Software reviews reveal consistent themes regarding its robust monitoring capabilities and areas for potential improvement, providing a balanced look at user experiences.

1. Overall User Satisfaction

Users generally express high satisfaction.

From my review analysis, Lakeside Software’s SysTrack holds strong ratings, averaging 4.3 out of 5 stars on Gartner Peer Insights and G2. What I found in user feedback is how most users appreciate the deep insights provided, highlighting its effectiveness in IT operations.

This indicates you can expect a reliable solution for comprehensive IT visibility.

2. Common Praise Points

Deep visibility consistently wins praise.

Users frequently highlight SysTrack’s ability to provide extensive, granular data for troubleshooting and root cause analysis. From the reviews I analyzed, the proactive issue resolution is a major plus, helping IT teams address problems before they impact end-users.

This means you can expect powerful tools for diagnosing and preventing IT issues.

3. Frequent Complaints

GUI and complexity are common issues.

Several reviews mention that while functional, the graphical user interface could be improved, and drilling down into data can be complex. What stands out in user feedback is how the agent resource usage is sometimes noted as a concern for system performance.

These issues are typically minor and don’t negate the software’s core benefits for most users.

The overall Lakeside Software reviews show strong confidence in its core capabilities, with minor opportunities for UI enhancements.

Best Lakeside Software Alternatives

Navigating the DEX market can be tricky.

The best Lakeside Software alternatives include several strong options, each better suited for different business situations and priorities regarding digital employee experience.

1. Nexthink

Prioritizing proactive issue resolution and higher user satisfaction?

Nexthink often stands out for its strong proactive resolution capabilities and insightful analytics, making it a powerful alternative for those prioritizing immediate action and employee feedback. From my competitive analysis, Nexthink provides slightly higher user recommendation rates compared to Lakeside’s robust data collection.

Choose Nexthink if proactive IT and high user recommendation are your top priorities over pure data depth.

2. ControlUp

Seeking responsive vendor support and ease of deployment?

ControlUp excels when your primary concern is highly responsive service and support, coupled with straightforward integration and deployment. What I found comparing options is that ControlUp delivers superior ease of integration and support, which can be critical for smooth operations, though its data depth may vary.

Consider this alternative if fast deployment and strong ongoing vendor support are more crucial than comprehensive data points.

3. Riverbed Aternity

Managing large enterprise environments with network focus?

Aternity is often the choice for larger enterprises, especially those already invested in the Riverbed ecosystem or requiring robust network performance monitoring. Alternative-wise, Aternity offers comprehensive monitoring for large-scale deployments, often integrating seamlessly with existing Riverbed infrastructure.

Choose Aternity if your enterprise needs expansive monitoring and strong network integration capabilities.

4. Liquidware (Stratusphere UX)

Requiring extremely detailed diagnostics and troubleshooting?

Liquidware’s Stratusphere UX provides incredibly detailed diagnostics, excelling in user, machine, and application workload analysis. From my analysis, Liquidware offers deeper troubleshooting capabilities in specific niche areas, though it may come with a higher upfront cost compared to Lakeside’s broad insights.

Your situation calls for this alternative if granular diagnostics and user-centric workload analysis are paramount.

The best Lakeside Software alternatives really come down to your organization’s specific priorities and IT environment, beyond just feature sets.

Lakeside Software Setup

Thinking about a smooth software rollout?

Lakeside Software implementation involves deploying agents and configuring dashboards, with complexity varying based on your environment. This Lakeside Software review will set realistic expectations for your setup.

1. Setup Complexity & Timeline

Is implementation straightforward or complex?

Lakeside Software’s SysTrack involves deploying lightweight agents to endpoints and configuring data collection. What I found about deployment is that while initial setup requires some technical expertise, the platform scales to hundreds of thousands of endpoints, influencing your overall implementation timeline significantly.

You’ll need to plan for initial configuration and system integration, with timelines depending on the size and complexity of your deployment.

2. Technical Requirements & Integration

How will this fit into your existing IT?

Your technical team will handle agent deployment across various operating systems, ensuring network connectivity for data collection. From my implementation analysis, integration with existing tools is crucial, leveraging direct and API-enabled connections to platforms like ServiceNow, Splunk, and Microsoft.

Prepare your IT team to manage agent rollouts and facilitate integrations with your current IT ecosystem for full functionality.

3. Training & Change Management

Will your team easily adopt this new system?

Users might find the extensive data rich but the interfaces less intuitive initially, requiring a learning curve to navigate and drill down into specific issues. From my analysis, proper training and familiarity with the interface are key to fully leveraging SysTrack’s deep insights for troubleshooting and proactive resolution.

Invest in the provided self-paced online courses and customer success resources to maximize user adoption and system utilization.

4. Support & Success Factors

What kind of help can you expect during setup?

Lakeside provides robust customer success programs including architect implementation guidance and structured support with defined Service Level Objectives for various severity levels. What I found about deployment is that their proactive support aids significantly in troubleshooting and ensuring a smooth journey from deployment to ongoing optimization.

You should leverage their training, customer success, and support programs to ensure a successful, efficient implementation and long-term value.

Overall, Lakeside Software setup requires a practical approach to deployment and training, with vendor support being a key success factor for leveraging its deep insights.

Bottom Line

Should you invest in Lakeside Software?

My Lakeside Software review shows a platform that offers unparalleled depth for mid-market to enterprise organizations seeking to master their digital employee experience.

1. Who This Works Best For

Large enterprises focused on digital employee experience.

Lakeside Software’s SysTrack is ideal for mid-market to enterprise-level organizations with complex IT environments and a strong need for deep, real-time insights into endpoint performance. From my user analysis, companies struggling with digital friction and high IT costs will find its comprehensive data invaluable.

You’ll succeed with this if your business is undertaking digital transformation or managing large remote workforces.

2. Overall Strengths

Unmatched data depth and proactive insights.

The software excels by collecting an extraordinary volume of real-time endpoint data, fueling an AI-driven engine for deep insights and proactive issue resolution. From my comprehensive analysis, its ability to identify and resolve issues before impact leads to significant cost savings and improved productivity.

These strengths allow your IT teams to shift from reactive troubleshooting to strategic, data-driven optimization.

3. Key Limitations

Interface requires a notable learning curve.

While powerful, some users find the graphical user interface (GUI) and drill-down complexity challenging, despite its rich functionality. Based on this review, the SysTrack agent can sometimes be resource-intensive on machines, which is a consideration for some deployments.

I’d say these limitations are a trade-off for the comprehensive data and insights you gain, not deal-breakers for its target market.

4. Final Recommendation

Lakeside Software earns a strong recommendation.

You should choose this software if your business needs robust, AI-driven visibility to optimize digital employee experience, reduce IT costs, and support major IT initiatives. From my analysis, this solution shines in complex enterprise environments where deep data is critical for strategic decision-making.

My confidence level is high for large organizations prioritizing comprehensive DEX management and proactive IT.

This Lakeside Software review demonstrates significant value for large, complex IT operations, providing the depth and proactive insights needed for digital employee experience excellence.