CVE vs Atera Network Discovery: 2026 Comparison
CVE is a free vulnerability assessment tool. Atera Network Discovery is a commercial vulnerability assessment tool by Atera. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best vulnerability assessment fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, company size fit, deployment model, here is our conclusion:
Security teams building vulnerability management workflows need CVE as their canonical reference layer, not their primary scanning tool. The National Institute of Standards and Technology maintains this catalog as the authoritative index of publicly disclosed vulnerabilities, which means every scanner and ticketing system cross-references it; you're essentially choosing the foundation that downstream tools depend on. Skip this if you're looking for a product that identifies vulnerabilities in your environment,that's what scanners do. CVE is the dictionary they consult.
SMB and mid-market IT teams already running Atera's RMM will find genuine value in Network Discovery because it eliminates the separate tool tax for basic asset inventory and CVE scanning. The NMAP-powered scanning integrates directly into your existing RMM workflows, cutting the overhead of maintaining a standalone vulnerability scanner. Where it falls short is in forensic depth; this is asset discovery and port-based CVE detection, not a replacement for active vulnerability assessment tools like Nessus or Qualys that fingerprint software versions and test exploitability. Worth deploying if you need continuous visibility into what's connecting to your network. Not worth it if you're already committed to a dedicated CVSS-scoring vulnerability platform.
