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ManageEngine M365 Security Plus vs OpenMetadata

A side-by-side editorial comparison of ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

ManageEngine M365 Security Plus vs OpenMetadata: at a glance

FeatureManageEngine M365 Security PlusOpenMetadata
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score5.05.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesmicrosoft-365, security-auditing, on-premises, dependency-upgradesdata-catalog, lineage, connectors, data-quality
Last editorial update3mo ago4h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is ManageEngine M365 Security Plus?

An on-prem M365 auditing tool whose releases are mostly dependency hygiene.

M365 Security Plus is an on-premises Java application for auditing and alerting on Microsoft 365 activity, shipped as numbered builds a few times a year. The last two builds are typical of the pattern: 4821 upgrades the bundled JRE from Java 8 to 11 and refreshes 7-Zip and Jackson libraries, while 4820 carries the only real functional work in the window — mailbox backups to local, shared, or NAS repositories, PST splitting for large exports, bulk mailbox selection from CSV, and audit logs that show object names instead of GUIDs. Security fixes appear in nearly every build.

Read the full ManageEngine M365 Security Plus trajectory →

What is OpenMetadata?

OpenMetadata 2.0.8 widens Hex, Sigma and BigQuery coverage while 2.1 waits in release candidates.

OpenMetadata is still in 2.0.x maintenance mode, shipping a release every one to two weeks. 2.0.8 on November 13 is the broadest yet: Hex and Sigma ingestion now build data models and column lineage, BigQuery date-sharded tables can be grouped into one logical table, Power BI and Snowflake ingestion stop leaving stale or runaway jobs, and MCP authentication and access controls were tightened. The 2.1.0 line sits at rc2, whose only published change is a tag-resolution fix.

Read the full OpenMetadata trajectory →

ManageEngine M365 Security Plus vs OpenMetadata: editorial side-by-side

M5.0

An on-prem M365 auditing tool whose releases are mostly dependency hygiene.

◆ Current state

M365 Security Plus is an on-premises Java application for auditing and alerting on Microsoft 365 activity, shipped as numbered builds a few times a year. The last two builds are typical of the pattern: 4821 upgrades the bundled JRE from Java 8 to 11 and refreshes 7-Zip and Jackson libraries, while 4820 carries the only real functional work in the window — mailbox backups to local, shared, or NAS repositories, PST splitting for large exports, bulk mailbox selection from CSV, and audit logs that show object names instead of GUIDs. Security fixes appear in nearly every build.

◆ Where it's heading

Two forces set the release agenda, and neither is a roadmap. The first is Microsoft: deprecated cmdlets forced an audit rewrite onto Get-MessageTraceV2, and a tenant configuration change broke onboarding until build 4817 patched around it. The second is the supply chain — Log4j, Tomcat, Bouncy Castle, Zulu JRE, and now the Java 8 to 11 jump, all tracked build by build because on-premises customers inherit whatever the vendor bundles. The product work that does land clusters around the Backup module, which is the one area growing rather than being maintained.

◆ Prediction

With the JRE finally past Java 8, Tomcat 9 is the next end-of-life dependency in the bundle, and the Backup module's steady additions suggest export and retention options continue there.

O
OpenMetadata
ANALYTICS
5.0

OpenMetadata 2.0.8 widens Hex, Sigma and BigQuery coverage while 2.1 waits in release candidates.

◆ Current state

OpenMetadata is still in 2.0.x maintenance mode, shipping a release every one to two weeks. 2.0.8 on November 13 is the broadest yet: Hex and Sigma ingestion now build data models and column lineage, BigQuery date-sharded tables can be grouped into one logical table, Power BI and Snowflake ingestion stop leaving stale or runaway jobs, and MCP authentication and access controls were tightened. The 2.1.0 line sits at rc2, whose only published change is a tag-resolution fix.

◆ Where it's heading

Each 2.0.x release repairs connectors and lineage that 2.0 left incomplete, and the fixes increasingly touch accuracy (correct table identity, lineage that ends at the right model) rather than crashes. MCP keeps appearing in the security sections, which suggests OpenMetadata expects AI tools to read the catalog and is locking that path down before 2.1.

◆ Prediction

A 2.1.0 final is the next visible step, since two release candidates are out; the entries do not yet say what features 2.1 adds beyond the fixes backported to 2.0.x.

Alternatives to ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata

Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either ManageEngine M365 Security Plus or OpenMetadata.

See all ManageEngine M365 Security Plus alternatives → · See all OpenMetadata alternatives →

Recent activity from ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 21h agoOpenMetadata2.0.8: Hex and Sigma lineage, BigQuery shard grouping, MCP auth
  2. 23h agoOpenMetadata2.1.0 rc2: fix for tags removed when resolving tag tasks
  3. 14d agoOpenMetadata2.1.0 rc1 appears, with notes covering only a UI fix
  4. 17d agoOpenMetadata2.0.7: Pub/Sub, SQL Server and Unity Catalog connector fixes
  5. 23d agoOpenMetadata2.0.6: ingestion accuracy, safer upgrades, multi-pod fixes
  6. 1mo agoOpenMetadata2.0.5 restores metadata lost to 2.0 ingestion regressions
  7. 3mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4821: bundled JRE moves to Java 11
  8. 4mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4820: NAS backup targets, PST splitting, readable audits
  9. 5mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4817: tenant configuration unblocked
  10. 7mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4816: Export Graph data-access fix and Log4j upgrade
  11. 9mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4814: Duo SDK update before certificate expiry
  12. 10mo agoManageEngine M365 Security PlusBuild 4811: proxy, scheduler, and SSL launch fixes

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is ManageEngine M365 Security Plus better than OpenMetadata?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. ManageEngine M365 Security Plus and OpenMetadata are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to ManageEngine M365 Security Plus?

Top ManageEngine M365 Security Plus alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "ManageEngine M365 Security Plus alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/manageengine-m365-security-plus for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to OpenMetadata?

Top OpenMetadata alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "OpenMetadata alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/openmetadata for the full list with editorial commentary on each.