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A10 Networks Thunder SSLi vs NetScaler comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

A10 Networks Thunder SSLi
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
SSL/TLS Decryption (3rd)
NetScaler
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
107
Ranking in other categories
Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) (1st), Network Management Applications (5th), Web Application Firewall (WAF) (14th)
 

Mindshare comparison

A10 Networks Thunder SSLi and NetScaler aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. A10 Networks Thunder SSLi is designed for SSL/TLS Decryption and holds a mindshare of 25.0%, up 21.8% compared to last year.
NetScaler, on the other hand, focuses on Application Delivery Controllers (ADC), holds 14.6% mindshare, down 16.3% since last year.
SSL/TLS Decryption
Application Delivery Controllers (ADC)
 

Featured Reviews

CC
The SSL decryption successfully decrypts at a rate that has minimal to no impact on our end users
With the Thunder SSLi, we're better protected. We can stop use of VPN and proxies. We are better protected against dirty traffic coming back to our schools. Having a secure decrypt zone with the equipment lowers the chances that our security infrastructure could possibly miss an attack. It gives us insight into the actual traffic that a student is following. What's the value of identifying possible risks or possible intent based on unencrypted traffic where you have insight to what the student's intent may be? E.g., anonymous bully reporting. It's invaluable to be able to leverage that insight and data to maybe bring help or avert a possible bad circumstance. It's something that's very important to us that this type of system gives us insight into that. For terms of ease of use, it's fairly simple. My analysts tell me that they don't mind getting in there. It was something new that we had to throw on their plate. Every time you add a new element and a new level of complexity, your analysts will look at you like you're crazy, Our plan was originally to use our native firewalls to do the decryption. Unfortunately, that was a feature set which was added on afterward. It just ended up bogging down our system. That is the reason why we had to add the extra hardware. Once the team understood that, the UI was intuitive and a huge help. We use the solution’s Harmony analytics and visibility controller. We have been able to proactively engage and deescalate situations with it. We love Harmony’s traffic management capabilities because it is centralized management. It has a rich analytics capability. This allows us insight into the aggregate performance of all the boxes. so we can possibly leverage any resources available to enhance the environment. We love the single pane of glass traffic management. Single pane of glass is huge, centralized logging. It is the buzzword that everyone is talking about right now, except what nobody seems to take into consideration, is that an analyst only has two eyes. The administration piece of it is huge. It allows us to not just look and get the information, but also cipher it, which is actionable. Looking at logs all day is great, but you can stare in the matrix so long before you want to get in the game. This single pane of glass allows us to look at information that's actionable.
DEMİRHAN ÇAVUŞOĞLU - PeerSpot reviewer
A tool for centralized management including inventory and sales tracking
Citrix ADM has the ability to implement policies to tighten security. For instance, you can restrict access to your network from outsiders or lack necessary security measures such as antivirus programs. Additionally, there's the Delivery Controller, which allows for comprehensive monitoring and management tasks such as remote restarts, maintenance, and registration. Another essential component is the Director, which provides detailed insights into sessions, including identifying session failures, connection issues, user lockouts, etc. It presents a list of problems to address, enabling you to click on them and resolve them efficiently.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"With the Thunder SSLi, we're better protected. We can stop use of VPN and proxies. We are better protected against dirty traffic coming back to our schools. Having a secure decrypt zone with the equipment lowers the chances that our security infrastructure could possibly miss an attack."
"We have several proxies in our environment, so we localized internet traffic between these proxies. Instead of getting a really huge proxy box, according to our size, we can use three boxes and share the traffic with A10's load-balancer feature."
"Its most valuable feature is its ability to do its job accurately, effectively, and very quickly. The amount of traffic that we have going through our system is astounding... The delay with the SSL decryption turned on is almost unnoticeable."
"The advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is just its graphic user interface for beginners. The solution is nothing special, but we have to use it for the corporation. Another advantage of Citrix Web App and API Protection is that we have our copy to test things and get the know-how of it."
"The solution is very stable. We don't have any downtime or issues of that nature."
"The flexibility in configuration options is impressive."
"The most valuable features are for the ADMs and the overall monitoring environment."
"It's very easy to configure."
"The GSLB feature allows us to move services between data centers. We can do this in either a planned or unplanned manner. We have experienced service provider outages at our primary data center and GSLB will kick in to automatically modify DNS records to point to a secondary data center (active/passive). We also make use of GeoIP information to point clients to the closest data center for accessing applications."
"The MAS integration for HDX Insight has provided teams with significant visibility into network performance of the user's connection."
"The maintenance of the solution is not complex."
 

Cons

"I would like them to have a better UI (better universal design)."
"There is one thing I would like to see changed. In their features for setting things up, there is a templating system that would normally assist clients. However, we had a better time setting up the device either through the command line or through the interface and not using the templates that were pre-installed. So there is room for improvement to the templates for initial installation."
"It would be great if it supported SSL operations according to Active Directory users. For example, if we want to bypass one of the servers or a client's internet access for SSL interception, we have to do it according to the IP address. It would be better if we could do it according to the Active Directory username. A10 says they kind of support that but we haven't tested it."
"The tool needs to add a feature where we can access the network policy access manager."
"The interface could be improved, some customers struggle with that."
"We face challenges with the solution's firmware upgrades frequently."
"The solution could be more secure."
"The product could be improved by making it easier to use and easier to implement."
"I would like to see multifactor authentication added to this solution to improve the security."
"Finding relevant documentation for learning NetScaler can be challenging, especially for beginners who prefer a web interface over command-line interfaces."
"We would like the licensing model for this product to be improved, as it isn't currently very transparent. There isn't a standard package available, and each extra feature creates an additional cost."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Our licensing costs, yearly, are just under $15,000. Your initial cost of acquisition is obviously going to be more than $15,000..."
"When you purchase the equipment, you purchase the licensing and warranty. It's all fairly standard. We haven't been caught with anything surprising."
"We always pay for support. Any organization of our size who doesn't is asking for problems."
"You can do CapEx and then a yearly monthly fee, or you can do a subscription model, whether that's one month, month-to-month, or three-year subscription model."
"It is very pricey, but we get it. If you need the best, money shouldn't be a problem."
"It all depends on the features that will be used and the number of accesses."
"The solution is expensive compared to one of its competitors."
"Costly product and complicated licensing."
"It's not for startups or SOHO."
"This product is more expensive than some of the competitors."
"The pricing could be lower."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Government
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
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What do you like most about Citrix ADC?
The most valuable feature for us is the application firewalling in Citrix NetScaler, ensuring only valid traffic enters our environment.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix ADC?
After deployment, Citrix Netscaler shifted to a subscription-based license scheme for support, which is slightly more expensive.
What needs improvement with Citrix ADC?
Citrix NetScaler is a robust product, but mastering it requires significant learning and training due to its complexity. While it could be easier to manage, it is like transitioning from driving a ...
 

Also Known As

Thunder SSLi
Citrix ADC, Citrix NetScaler VPX, NetScaler Console, NetScaler Web Application Firewall
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Klein Independent School District
ABB Schweiz, Aer Lingus, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Amnet Technology Solutions, Aramex International, Ascenty, Atos, Autodesk
Find out what your peers are saying about Broadcom, Fidelis Security, A10 Networks and others in SSL/TLS Decryption. Updated: June 2025.
863,429 professionals have used our research since 2012.