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ConnectWise runs the MSP — RMM, ticketing, remote access and a managed security stack. WinSentinel tells you whether each Windows machine is securely configured — and fixes it when it's not. Managing an endpoint isn't the same as hardening it.
TL;DR: ConnectWise is an MSP platform (RMM via Automate/Asio, PSA ticketing & billing, ScreenConnect remote access, and a managed SOC/EDR security stack) built to run a managed-services business across many client fleets. WinSentinel is a Windows security hardening tool (audit misconfigurations, score posture, auto-fix, map to compliance) with the hardening knowledge built into the free single-machine product. They solve different problems — ConnectWise operates and manages fleets, WinSentinel hardens each Windows machine. A fully managed, fully ticketed endpoint can still be badly misconfigured, so many teams run both.
| Capability | WinSentinel | ConnectWise |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Purpose | Security hardening & compliance | MSP platform (RMM + PSA + security) |
| Security Posture Score | ✓ 0-100 with grade (A-F) | ✗ Health/risk metrics, not a config score |
| Built-in Hardening Checks | ✓ 33 audit modules out of the box | Via scripts & the paid security stack |
| Auto-Remediation | ✓ One-click fix for findings | Runs scripts & deploys patches |
| Compliance Mapping | ✓ CIS, SOC2, HIPAA, Essential 8 | Risk assessments & reporting |
| Patch Management | ✗ Flags missing updates only | ✓ Core RMM strength |
| Ticketing / PSA / Billing | ✗ Not its job | ✓ Full PSA, projects, invoicing |
| Cross-Platform | Windows-specialised (10/11/Server) | ✓ Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Misconfiguration Detection | ✓ SMBv1, BitLocker, UAC, firewall… | Only what your monitors/scripts check |
| Remote Access | ✗ Not a remote-access tool | ✓ ScreenConnect built in |
| Managed SOC / EDR | ✗ Not a detection/response tool | ✓ Sold as a security service |
| Setup Time | ✓ One command, ~30 seconds | Platform onboarding & agent rollout |
| Open Source | ✓ MIT licensed | ✗ Proprietary (contract/quote) |
| Local-Only / No Account | ✓ Runs fully offline, no signup | ✗ Cloud platform & account required |
| CI/CD Integration | ✓ GitHub Action + SARIF | ✗ Not designed for CI |
$0/forever
All security features, no limits, one machine. Full power, no account.
Pro fleet: $29/25 nodes · $79/100 nodes
Quote-based/contract
Sold to MSPs via per-endpoint or per-technician contracts across RMM, PSA and security products, typically with onboarding and minimums.
Scales per endpoint/technician + modules
ConnectWise pricing is quote-based and not publicly listed; check connectwise.com for current plans.
Many MSPs run ConnectWise to operate the business and manage client fleets and WinSentinel to keep each Windows machine securely configured. They’re complementary — closing a ticket or pushing the latest patch doesn’t turn on BitLocker, disable SMBv1, or fix a weakened UAC policy unless someone built and maintains that monitor.
WinSentinel finds the misconfigurations an RMM platform never checks by default — and fixes them in one click.
dotnet tool install --global WinSentinel.Cli
Not really — they sit at different layers. ConnectWise is a platform for running a managed-services business: RMM (ConnectWise Automate / Asio) to monitor and manage endpoints at scale, PSA to handle ticketing, billing and projects, ScreenConnect for remote access, and a security stack (SIEM/SOC, EDR and risk assessments) sold on top. WinSentinel audits how a single Windows machine is configured for security, scores it 0–100, maps findings to compliance frameworks, and one-click fixes the misconfigurations it finds out of the box. ConnectWise runs the MSP's operations and keeps fleets managed; WinSentinel hardens how each Windows machine is set up. A fully managed, fully ticketed endpoint can still be badly misconfigured, so the two are complementary rather than substitutes.
ConnectWise sells a security portfolio — managed SOC/SIEM, EDR, and risk assessments — aimed at MSPs delivering security services to clients, layered on top of its RMM/PSA platform at additional cost. Those focus on detection, response and managed monitoring across many client fleets. WinSentinel ships 33 Windows hardening modules in the free single-machine product (SMBv1, BitLocker, TPM, UAC, firewall profiles, PowerShell logging, stale local admins, LLMNR/NBT-NS, and more), scores them into one number, and remediates them in one click, mapped to CIS / SOC 2 / HIPAA. You don't buy a separate module to get configuration hardening — it is the product, and it's free on a single machine.
Management and monitoring are necessary but not sufficient. A machine can be fully managed under an RMM, fully patched and ticket-clean and still expose SMBv1, run with BitLocker off, have UAC weakened, leave the public firewall profile disabled, or carry stale local-admin accounts — none of which a patch fixes and none of which an RMM flags unless someone built the monitor or script for it. These configuration weaknesses are exactly what WinSentinel audits, scores, and remediates by default. ConnectWise keeps the fleet managed, ticketed and monitored; WinSentinel closes the configuration-hardening gap on each Windows machine.
Yes. WinSentinel produces a single 0–100 posture score with a letter grade and maps every finding to CIS Windows L1, SOC 2, HIPAA and Essential 8 controls. ConnectWise reports device health, patch status, alerts and ticket metrics, and its security services report detections and risk findings, but the core platform is RMM/PSA, not a configuration-hardening or posture-scoring product, so it does not give a built-in security score for how a single machine is set up.
WinSentinel is free for unlimited use on a single machine — all 33 audit modules, the real-time monitor, scheduled scans and PDF reports, with no account. ConnectWise is sold to MSPs via quote-based, per-endpoint or per-technician contracts across its RMM, PSA and security products, typically with onboarding and minimums. The pricing isn't really comparable because the tools do different jobs: WinSentinel Pro — which adds fleet management across many machines — is $29/mo for up to 25 nodes or $79/mo for up to 100 nodes, with annual billing saving 17%. Many MSPs run ConnectWise to operate the business and manage fleets and WinSentinel to harden each Windows machine.
Yes. WinSentinel is built specifically for Windows 10 and Windows 11 (and Windows Server). It uses native Windows APIs to audit configuration that broad cross-platform tools treat generically, which is why its hardening checks are deeper on Windows. ConnectWise RMM manages Windows, macOS and Linux across many client environments, which is a strength for an MSP running mixed fleets but means it is not a Windows-specialised hardening tool.