Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization provides intuitive management with a focus on stability, offering enterprises reliable network routing, switching, and wireless security capabilities, enhancing connectivity across networks with comprehensive support.
| Product | Mindshare (%) |
|---|---|
| Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization | 8.7% |
| VMware NSX | 28.5% |
| Cisco ACI | 28.3% |
| Other | 34.5% |
Cisco's solution ensures efficient network control through its intuitive management dashboard, providing robust support. It significantly benefits enterprises by elevating capabilities in routing, switching, and wireless network security, thus enhancing branch and data center connectivity. Users incorporate Cisco products for seamless implementation, addressing both networking and security needs effectively.
What are the key features of Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization?Retail industries use Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization to boost connectivity across branches and data centers via comprehensive Cisco devices. Network implementations are common in settings like government, campuses, and hospitality, offering network management and enhanced security support, encompassing hybrid strategies with on-premise and cloud integration through platforms such as AWS or Azure.
Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization was previously known as Cisco NFV.
| Author info | Rating | Review Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Consultant Sales Engineer at BT Al-Saudia | 4.0 | I rely on Cisco Enterprise NFV for its user-friendly management dashboard, essential in sectors like government and hospitality. Despite its effectiveness, improved compatibility with other vendors would enhance its value. We have experienced ROI through this solution, deployed via Alibaba. |
| Sr.Network Engineer at Alghanim Industries | 3.5 | I value Cisco ENFV for its stability, scalability, and ease of management in my hybrid setup. My main concerns are the high cost of SDN hardware and the need for more cloud optimization and uniform SD-WAN integration versus competitors. |
| Engineer at Mzinga | 4.0 | I use Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization primarily for managing network security, which is its most valuable feature. While we considered other solutions, we chose Cisco for its availability. Improving mobile number trimming could aid information access on tablets. |
| Director - Head of Technical Division/Operations; Infrastructure Solutions at a computer software company with 201-500 employees | 3.5 | I've used this Cisco product for hosting services for years. Scalability is good, but as a software solution, it's less stable than hardware. Technical support can be slow. My advice is to have a solid design before implementation, and I rate it 7/10. |
| Network System Engineer at VSIS | 4.0 | I appreciate Cisco NFV's stability and excellent support. However, I desire more product models for scalability and improved performance, including modular upgrades. Despite these points, I recommend this good solution, rating it 8/10. |
| Presales Consultant - Enterprise Networks at Cubit technologies LLC | 4.5 | I use Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization for IT infrastructure, enjoying its routing, switching, and wireless network security features. However, the orchestration aspect could be improved. I haven't previously used or considered alternative solutions, nor specified a cloud provider. |
I rely on Cisco Enterprise NFV for various sectors like government, campuses, and hospitality. It is a crucial foundational layer that is mandatory before delivering other services.
The most valuable feature is its user-friendly management dashboard. It is easy to use and covers everything in one place, making management tasks easy.
There is room for improvement in enhancing compatibility with other solutions and vendors. Better integration capabilities could provide more value, especially in scenarios where a mix of solutions is in use.
I have been using Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization for three years.
I would rate the stability of the solution as a seven out of ten.
I would rate the scalability of the solution as an eight out of ten.
The technical support is excellent. I would rate them as a nine out of ten.
Positive
I would rate the easiness of the initial setup as a ten out of ten. The deployment time for Cisco Enterprise NFV varies based on the scenario. In smaller setups, it can take a couple of hours, but more complex scenarios might require more time.
The deployment was handled by a system integrator.
We have seen ROI from using the solution.
Like any Cisco product, Cisco Enterprise NFV is on the expensive side.
Overall, I would rate Cisco Enterprise NFV as an eight out of ten.
We use it as a hybrid. We are mostly deploying Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization on our on-prem data centers. We mostly work on-prem for the hardware infrastructure. We have a little bit on the cloud, especially with AWS or Azure.
In terms of most valuable features, we are enterprise level and we are using Cisco products for our data centers, for our WAN connectivity, and for our branches since we are a retail industry. We are a huge branch and we are connecting everything through Cisco. I have experience with Cisco Routers, especially from the lower end to higher end to ASRs, ISRs, Catalyst 6500, NSX 7000, but I have not gone through 9000 or 799 with the ACI feature.
In terms of what could be improved, I would say the cost. The SDN hardware especially is much too expensive, specifically 799 and 9000, which act like a spine and those spines are connecting to the leaves. The architecture itself is very expensive compared to NSX where we have flexibility with the virtual environment for the same purpose controlling east-west traffic, policing, profiling, and everything is done on both the features. But the Cisco hardware is much too expensive.
Performance-wise in the data center with 30G, 40G, 100G, you need to know how specific data can be sent to that 100G if you are using FCP only for the same traffic. Whereas with VMware or even Broker, they have tested 10G or even 100G with the interfaces and they give 100G performance. But with ACI, with your chip set for the FC, we still have not actually seen that the performance is productive. So the cost for the data center could be reduced.
Other things are fine because we have SDN now with Repeller and Cisco is very good here. Umbrella is good. I think it's progressing towards the cloud. The WAN is good. But on the SDN data center, software defined data center, it should be considered in comparison to partners.
I have been using Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization for more than 15 years.
Again, from the WAN perspective, especially for enterprise, it is stable.
Compared to other vendors where we have a router going up with abrupt changes, Cisco is stable.
From a WAN perspective and as an enterprise solution, yes, it is scalable. No problem with the scalability.
Technical support is good. I would say five out of five.
We get all the cost value from local partners - there are multiple Cisco partners. But because of the NDA, we cannot disclose anything else.
It is always good to work with Cisco products. We love to work with Cisco. But I respect other products as well.
On a scale of one to ten, I would rate Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization a seven as I have gone through the documentation compared to other virtualizations like NSX.
To bring that score up, there could be more optimization on the cloud, especially SD-WAN, which we have gone through but still I think needs way more optimization compared to partners or competitors like VMware, VeloCloud and the other vendors and SD-WAN leaders. Cisco needs to improvise for more optimization because we have on-prem and we have cloud. It's a mixed solution and Cisco is a mixed solution with images, as well as the storage. The solution should be a uniform solution, where we have only one vendor, like others that have their own platform and are using their own optimization, such as Gartner, which is top compared to Cisco.
Additionally, they should have a little bit more security on the SD-WAN side. I think Umbrella should be integrated. I think they started more integration on the SD-WAN device like a SASE kind of solution, which can be replaced for a remote access kind of solution.
I would recommend Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization, as it is easy to start, stable, and scalable on the enterprise network. These are the three key components for good performance. It is easy to manage, easy to maintain, and stable. If you set up everything alright, it will give years without any issues.
I use the security solution for managing the network.
Network Security is one of the most valuable features of Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization.
One of the things that can be improved is trimming all mobile numbers so that it aids in swiftly acquiring information for tablets or any necessary solution.
I have been working with Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization for the past seven years.
The stability is also high and I would rate it 10 out of 10.
I would rate the scalability of Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization a 10 out of 10.
It is extremely easy to deploy. Prior experience dictates the time required for the deployment. My experience spans about two days. The deployment, was it done internally.
The deployment was performed internally, by us, within our own premises. Almost four to five people are required for the maintenance and deployment.
We evaluated other options, but chose Cisco because of its availability.
Overall I would rate it 8 out of 10.
Our primary use case is hosting services.
Cisco is in our portfolio, which is one of the reasons that we keep working with them.
This is a software solution, which is less stable than a hardware solution by definition.
I have been working with this Cisco product for two or three years.
Scalability is not a problem.
We have been in touch with technical support and have found that sometimes, cases are prolonged. They are not always resolved in a timely manner.
My advice for anyone who is implementing Cisco Enterprise NFV is to first have a good, solid design, prior to starting the implementation.
I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.
We are a solution provider and this is one of the products that we implement for our clients. It is used to help manage networks and services.
The most valuable features are stability and support. The support system that they have in place is very good and they are easy to reach.
I would like to see the principle scan introduce more models, to help with scalability issues. Some other competitors have more options.
On a smaller scale, there is not much variation in the product. The customer has a choice of a small number of categories.
The performance could be improved.
It would be helpful if they offered modularized upgrades, such as additional memory or a faster processor.
I have been working with Cisco products for about ten years and more specifically, the Enterprise network Functions Virtualization for the past year.
The product is always running and it is stable.
Our customers for this solution vary in size.
The support from Cisco is very good and I am satisfied with it.
The complexity of the initial setup depends on the environment and requirements. If you get certified then it will be straightforward and you can set it up to do whatever the client wants. The deployment will take at least a couple of hours, and perhaps up to four or five hours for a more complex configuration.
We implement this solution for our customers and one junior engineer is enough to handle the deployment.
There is a separate charge for support.
My advice to anybody who is considering this solution is to first review the technology on the market. There are several things to plan for, including integration with other products.
Overall, I feel that this is a good product and I recommend it.
I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.
The solution is used for IT infrastructure like wireless LAN or WAN.
Routing, switching, and wireless network security are the valuable features of Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization.
The solution's orchestration part could be improved.
Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization is a stable solution.
The solution's scalability presents no challenge.
The solution's technical support is amazing.
Positive
The solution's initial setup is easy.
The cloud-based solution's deployment takes very few days.
Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization is an expensive solution. The solution is expensive for some customers, but enterprise businesses or bigger customers can afford it.
Overall, I rate Cisco Enterprise Network Functions Virtualization a nine out of ten.
