Scanopy is for IT teams and MSPs who want a dedicated network diagram automation tool which works alongside their existing monitoring platform. Faddom is for enterprise IT teams mapping application dependencies for data center migrations and cloud transitions. Discovery, the four topology views, pricing, and licensing are where the two differ, including Faddom's trade-offs.
Scanopy vs Faddom: head to head
| Scanopy | Faddom | |
|---|---|---|
| DiscoveryProtocols used to find devices and map connections | SNMP LLDP CDP ARP TCP/UDP | NetFlow/sFlow [23] |
| ServicesNo No service awareness Basic Common port detection Yes Application-level fingerprinting | Yes240+ types | Basicapp dependencies [23] |
| Network ViewsWhich topology views the tool produces from discovery. L2 Physical switch ports and links L3 Subnets, VLANs, routing Workload VM/container host nesting Application Service-dependency / app grouping Yes supported Tag ? unverified Greyed not supported | Application view is automatic, inferred from observed traffic (NetFlow/sFlow); does no network-layer L2/L3 topology. [23] | |
| Live UpdatesWhether diagrams update automatically after the initial scan | Yes | Yes |
| Open SourceOSI OSI-approved open source license Source available Source code available, restricted license No Proprietary | OSI AGPL-3.0 | No |
| PricingStarting price or pricing model | Starts at $11.99 monthly, unlimited hosts | Free up to 50 servers then from $19,000/yr [24] |
| Also IncludesCapabilities beyond network diagramming | Docker Visualization | — |
How they compare
Faddom and Scanopy both map application dependencies, but they get there from opposite directions and they don't fully overlap. Faddom is a dedicated agentless application dependency mapping (ADM) platform: it observes network traffic (NetFlow, sFlow, or a packet copy) and automatically infers which servers and services depend on each other, aimed at data-center migrations and cloud moves. It produces no Layer 2/3 network topology: there are no switch-port or subnet maps. Scanopy maps L2 and L3 network topology, workloads, and applications, with the application view being user-defined grouping on top of automatic service discovery.
The trade-off is automatic app-dependency inference versus network topology and price. Faddom's free tier covers 50 servers, but paid plans start at $19,000/year, which puts it out of reach for SMB and mid-market budgets, and it needs NetFlow/sFlow or port mirroring to capture traffic. Scanopy is flat monthly with unlimited hosts, commercially self-hostable, or free under AGPL-3.0, needs no traffic-capture setup, and adds the network-layer views Faddom lacks. If you need automatic, traffic-derived application dependencies for a migration and can fund the price floor, Faddom is the better fit. If you need network topology plus application grouping in one affordable tool, Scanopy is.
On the application view, Faddom infers the dependency map from observed traffic with no user-defined grouping; Scanopy has you define the application grouping yourself on top of automatic service discovery. If you want the dependency map derived automatically and you can set up traffic capture, Faddom does that and Scanopy does not. Scanopy covers all four views, at flat pricing, and is self-hostable.
When to choose which
Choose Scanopy when: Choose Scanopy for network topology over application dependency mapping: automatic L2, L3, workload, and application views, per-host service detection, flat pricing regardless of host count, and a free, self-hostable Community edition. It sits alongside your monitoring stack rather than replacing it.
Choose Faddom when: Mid-to-large enterprise IT operations teams planning migrations or cloud moves who need an automatic picture of application dependencies without deploying agents. The public pricing and 50-server free tier make it evaluable without a sales process, which is unusual for ADM.
This is a focused, two-tool comparison.Weighing other options too? See the best Faddom alternatives. For all 13 tools side by side, see the full network documentation tools comparison.
Sources
Started as a homelabber, now deep in SNMP MIBs, Layer 3 topology, and service fingerprinting - building the network documentation tool I wished existed.