PeerSpot user
Senior Network Engineer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Has good integration with ClearPass and brilliant support
Pros and Cons
  • "The integration with ClearPass is the most valuable feature."
  • "The meshing could use improvement but aside from that nothing else really needs improvement."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case is for basic Wi-Fi and also for the captive portal authentication with 802.1X MAC.

What is most valuable?

The integration with ClearPass is the most valuable feature. 

It also has good onboarding. It's a good product. 

What needs improvement?

The meshing could use improvement but aside from that nothing else really needs improvement. It meshes well but the product's channels need to be understood better. It's not like Cisco. You set up your indoor stuff and there are channels you must exclude from the mesh.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Aruba for the last five years. 

Buyer's Guide
Aruba Instant
April 2024
Learn what your peers think about Aruba Instant. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2024.
769,236 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is very good. I'm very impressed with it. I've been working with it for years. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Because it's Aruba, I can strap onto anything. We can use it anywhere. 

Maybe an outdoor range would be nice. 

How are customer service and support?

Their technical support is brilliant.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price is very well situated. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate it a nine out of ten. 

Since I bought this brought I would like to have Aruba Central for free.

The product technically works fantastic but if I'm going to spend a couple of thousand rands on buying an access point, I'd like to have Aruba Central for free, for the equipment that I've purchased. That would be nice without purchasing the licenses because we've already purchased the hardware.

My advice to someone considering this solution is to put it everywhere and get rid of Cisco.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Apple Technician at Solution Centre
Real User
I have been having issues creating a guest portal, using Facebook authentication , it work for a bit and stops
Pros and Cons
  • "The features I have found most valuable is that the solution creates a guest portal for guest networks, and setting up SSID authentication to the regular server."
  • "The captive portal through Facebook doesn't work."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case of this solution is to control our networks.

How has it helped my organization?

We've been using Aruba since 2014 from my office but in our country we've now deployed a couple of sites. We're actually now working on a project to deploy one of the biggest hotels in Zimbabwe.

What is most valuable?

The features I have found most valuable is that the solution creates a guest portal for guest networks, and setting up SSID authentication to the regular server. I also like the settings and the roles on the profiles, like where you can block some sites etc.

What needs improvement?

The only issue that I have encountered was the captive portal through Facebook. I found that it wasn't working, so I created a couple of cases through the Aruba portal.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for five years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Aruba Instant is stable and it's easy to manage.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. I've deployed it in different multiple environments. My office has less than 50 users. I've recently deployed it at a school, which has about 300 users. So we have quite a few sites. We do have plans to increase our usage at our hotel site, where we are working on a mobility master.

How are customer service and technical support?

We do have some challenges here and there, and then we have to seek support from Aruba. They are good.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

No, we haven't used a different solution before.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward but when I did the authentication, the capture portal wasn't coming up. Deployment took me about a day. I did everything myself, which was an advantage at the office.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We only pay for the support and the contract licenses from Aruba Instant.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did compare it to other solutions because our computers are Ruckus. We have compared Ruckus and Cisco, which became weak. Cisco, from my former research, is good in switching and dropping, but in terms of Wi-Fi, Aruba Instant is the best portal.

What other advice do I have?

Aruba is a great product. I've used it for a couple of years and it's been working well. I haven't used Ruckus but from what I've seen, licenses for Ruckus should be renewed annually. You have to purchase the license to use the product. But with Aruba, you buy the product through the distributor, so it's yours and you don't have to buy any additional licenses. The only licenses that you buy are for AirWave, which is the monitoring software, or ClearPass, which is for guest access or onboarding.

I rate this solution a nine out of ten. I would like to see an improvement with the captive portal connecting to Facebook, but the rest of the program works perfectly well. A guest portal will also be great. Some schools have a system that we're trying to integrate with Aruba, it's called 24online and it is where you create voucher systems.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Aruba Instant
April 2024
Learn what your peers think about Aruba Instant. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2024.
769,236 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Owner at Smart living
Real User
Good roaming features and very good scalability and stability
Pros and Cons
  • "The stability of the solution is very good."
  • "Technical support needs improvement. We use the forum for technical support assistance, but it's not enough. If you're talking with a technician, they're in India. They cannot give you the service that you need. Sometimes have problems with some personal services and technical support is not helpful in this area."

What is most valuable?

The roaming feature is the solution's most valuable aspect.

What needs improvement?

Technical support needs improvement. We use the forum for technical support assistance, but it's not enough. If you're talking with a technician, they're in India. They cannot give you the service that you need. Sometimes have problems with some personal services and technical support is not helpful in this area.

The solution needs to be more compatible with IoT and smart devices.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of the solution is very good.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the solution is excellent.

How are customer service and technical support?

We aren't satisfied with technical support. If you open a ticket, it's 24 hours at least before they get back to you. If you're in the enterprise-level business you can wait, you can come in next day. However, a small or medium business cannot handle the cost of the delay.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward.

What other advice do I have?

We're an Aruba reseller. Our clients are typically small and medium-sized companies.

It's a good product. If you are an enterprise business, you have your own team for every service and you have time to research, but for small companies, support is not good and you don't have the resources of an internal team that could mitigate that. 

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
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Updated: April 2024
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Wireless LAN
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Aruba Instant Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.