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Manufacturing · head to head

Kepware Server vs Oden Technologies

Kepware Server logo

Kepware Server

Manufacturing

Industrial connectivity server translating 150-plus PLC protocols into OPC UA, formerly KEPServerEX

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Oden Technologies logo

Oden Technologies

Manufacturing

Process analytics for continuous production, strongest in plastics extrusion and moulding

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kepware Server the base server is the small part of the bill; driver suites are priced by protocol family, and a mixed-vendor plant buys several, which is how a connectivity layer alone reaches tens of thousands of dollars.; Oden Technologies the depth is in plastics and continuous processing, so a discrete job shop with short runs and frequent changeovers does not generate the repetition the analysis needs and will get little from it.
  • They diverge on capability: Kepware Server covers 150-plus device drivers, Oden Technologies covers High frequency data collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kepware Server and Oden Technologies actually diverge.

Attributes where Kepware Server and Oden Technologies differ
AttributeKepware ServerOden Technologies
PlatformsWindows, LinuxWeb, API

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Kepware Server

  • 150-plus device drivers
  • OPC UA server
  • IoT Gateway
  • DataLogger
  • Redundancy Master
  • Security Policies
  • Configuration API
  • Kepware Edge

Only in Oden Technologies

  • High frequency data collection
  • Reference run analysis
  • Scrap and yield analytics
  • Line and plant dashboards
  • PLC and historian connectivity
  • Alerting on process drift

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Kepware Server

  • Feeding a historian from a mixed plant of Allen-Bradley and Siemens PLCs without writing per-protocol driversnot Oden Technologies
  • Publishing CNC machine state from FANUC and Haas controls to an OEE system over MQTTnot Oden Technologies
  • Bridging legacy serial Modbus devices into an OPC UA architecture during a phased controller replacementnot Oden Technologies
  • Running redundant collection servers so a cloud analytics pipeline does not lose data during Windows patchingnot Oden Technologies

Oden Technologies

  • A plastics extrusion plant losing material to scrap when settings drift between shifts and operatorsnot Kepware Server
  • A moulder that wants to know which parameter combination produced its best historical run of a given partnot Kepware Server
  • A continuous processor whose historian holds years of data that nobody has turned into operating guidancenot Kepware Server
  • A multi site group wanting comparable line performance figures across plants that currently report differentlynot Kepware Server

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Kepware Server

  • The base server is the small part of the bill; driver suites are priced by protocol family, and a mixed-vendor plant buys several, which is how a connectivity layer alone reaches tens of thousands of dollars.
  • KEPServerEX to Kepware Server 7 is a migration rather than an in-place upgrade, and driver entitlements do not always transfer cleanly, so budget for revalidating every channel.
  • The full driver portfolio is Windows-only; the Linux product, Kepware Edge, supports a subset of drivers and is subscription-licensed by tag count, so an edge-first architecture cannot simply reuse the Windows configuration.
  • Three names have been in circulation for the same lineage, and quotes, forum answers and integrator experience still mix KEPServerEX, ThingWorx Kepware Server and Kepware Server, which produces mismatched proposals.
  • It is a translation layer with no storage, contextualisation or visualisation of its own, so it is always an addition to a historian or platform purchase rather than a substitute for one.

Oden Technologies

  • The depth is in plastics and continuous processing, so a discrete job shop with short runs and frequent changeovers does not generate the repetition the analysis needs and will get little from it.
  • It depends on fast process data from PLCs or a historian, so a plant with older machines that have no controller data must pay for instrumentation before the software does anything, which is the opposite of a low friction rollout.
  • Realising the benefit requires process engineers who can act on the findings, and a plant without that capability ends up with analysis nobody converts into standard operating conditions.
  • Pricing is per line and not published, so a plant with many small lines pays in proportion to line count rather than to output value, and the economics favour fewer high value lines.
  • It overlaps with historian and SCADA investments a plant may already have, and buyers frequently have to justify why an existing AVEVA or Ignition estate cannot be made to do a version of the same job.

Pricing, plan by plan

Kepware Server

On request
  • Kepware Server$undefined/year
    • Base server as a perpetual licence with annual maintenance, or subscription
    • Driver suites priced by protocol family and bought separately from the server
    • Advanced plug-ins such as IoT Gateway, DataLogger and Redundancy Master licensed individually

Oden Technologies

On request
  • Oden$undefined/year
    • Per line data collection and analytics
    • Reference run and yield analysis
    • Connectivity to PLCs and historians

Which should you pick?

Choose Kepware Server if

  • You need 150-plus device drivers.
  • You work on Windows, Linux.
  • You also want opc ua server.
Kepware Server review

Choose Oden Technologies if

  • You need high frequency data collection.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want reference run analysis.
Oden Technologies review

Questions people ask

Is Kepware Server or Oden Technologies better?
Neither clearly leads. Kepware Server starts at On request and Oden Technologies at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kepware Server or Oden Technologies?
Kepware Server starts at On request and Oden Technologies at On request.
Does Kepware Server or Oden Technologies run on more platforms?
Kepware Server runs on Windows, Linux. Oden Technologies runs on Web, API.
What is Kepware Server best used for?
Kepware Server is most often used for feeding a historian from a mixed plant of allen-bradley and siemens plcs without writing per-protocol drivers, publishing cnc machine state from fanuc and haas controls to an oee system over mqtt, bridging legacy serial modbus devices into an opc ua architecture during a phased controller replacement, running redundant collection servers so a cloud analytics pipeline does not lose data during windows patching. Of those, feeding a historian from a mixed plant of allen-bradley and siemens plcs without writing per-protocol drivers and publishing cnc machine state from fanuc and haas controls to an oee system over mqtt are not what Oden Technologies is typically brought in for.
What can Kepware Server do that Oden Technologies cannot?
Kepware Server covers 150-plus device drivers, OPC UA server, IoT Gateway, DataLogger. Oden Technologies covers High frequency data collection, Reference run analysis, Scrap and yield analytics, Line and plant dashboards.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Kepware Server: Is KEPServerEX discontinued?

The name is. KEPServerEX and ThingWorx Kepware Server have been unified into Kepware Server, currently version 7, and the older names are being retired.

Oden Technologies: Is it suitable for a machine shop?

Not really. It is built for continuous and repetitive high volume processes, not short run discrete machining.

Kepware Server: Is a perpetual licence still available?

Yes for the Windows server, with annual maintenance. Kepware Edge on Linux is subscription-only.

Oden Technologies: Does it need a historian?

No, it can collect directly from PLCs, but it will read from an existing historian where one is present.

Kepware Server: What drives the price?

The number and type of driver suites, not the number of tags on the Windows product. Kepware Edge is priced by tag count.

Oden Technologies: What is the main measurable outcome?

Scrap reduction and throughput improvement on repeated products, rather than labour savings.

Kepware Server: Can I evaluate it before buying?

Yes. The runtime works for two hours at a time without a licence, indefinitely, which is enough to prove connectivity but not to run production.

Oden Technologies: Will it work on machines without PLC data?

No. Those machines need instrumenting first, and that cost belongs in the business case.

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