I have Smittybuilt Stainless on my '03 2500 CTD. They are still rust free even though I have lived in an area where roads are salted in winter, for the last 7 yrs. Before that I lived in northern Alberta. They are simple to install from what I remember. Replaced the factory body mount bolts with the supplied hard ware.
They are also solid, I know this because I was forced to cut a corner once over a windrow of ice. The nerf bar rode over the ice and lifted the passenger side of the truck, protecting the rocker panels.
After 13yrs on the truck, the only issue has been the plastic step on the driver's side is partially cracked. Not broken off, just has a crack in the plastic itself.