Aruba Airwave and Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN compete in the network management and orchestration category. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN appears to have the upper hand with superior networking and security features, ideal for large enterprises.
Features: Aruba Airwave offers Clarity and Visual RF for valuable network insights and multivendor support. It's known for orchestration features that enhance monitoring and troubleshooting. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN provides hybrid networking, application-level routing, and centralized management, ideal for a reliable and secure network environment.
Room for Improvement: Aruba Airwave could improve integration with other platforms and reduce costs with better error diagnostics. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN requires improved security features and simplified integration, with calls for an improved licensing model for more straightforward use.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Aruba Airwave primarily operates on-premises, offering consistent service quality but faces limitations in varied environments. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN provides flexibility with hybrid and cloud options, making deployment more varied. Both have strong customer support, with Cisco's support being regarded as quicker.
Pricing and ROI: Aruba Airwave is seen as high-cost but sometimes cheaper than Cisco, offering ROI through reduced troubleshooting time. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is one of the more expensive solutions, with a complex pricing model requiring extended licenses for better deals. Both are long-term investments; Aruba offers cost-effective multivendor management, while Cisco's expense is justified by extensive features and reliability.
Angie was very kind and communicated well in both Spanish and English, making it pleasant to connect with her.
The principal third-level support is very good.
Cisco's ongoing reorganizations have affected the quality of technical support, which varies depending on the engineer handling cases.
The technical team is very competent.
Aruba Airwave is fully scalable, as we have a large number of tenants using the network with approximately six thousand end users.
Cisco SD-WAN is highly scalable and can be expanded to more than 10,000 sites.
The ease of configuration and features like zero-touch provisioning enhance the scalability of Cisco SD-WAN, especially in disaster recovery situations.
I have found Aruba Airwave to be stable.
While some software-related issues and bugs were encountered, they did not cause the whole environment to crash.
When upgrading hardware, there were technical issues with network interfaces and Red Hat, which required escalation to developers.
When attempting to copy a floor plan, it does not copy well, so I often have to redraw the walls.
Now, they change frequently, making it difficult to obtain long-term support.
Including more features like integrating with Splunk for monitoring vulnerabilities would help eliminate the need for other SOC solutions.
The pricing of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is rated between eight and nine out of ten, where ten is the most expensive.
Its pricing is justifiable due to the comprehensive solution it offers.
It is also relatively cost-effective for smaller businesses when using the Meraki version.
Aruba Airwave provides good visibility, offering extensive data on network dynamics, such as access point connections, usage, signal strengths, and potential interference from neighboring Wi-Fi networks.
It provides near real-time monitoring using AIMON and AURO protocols, which is robust with multiple models and brand support.
The most helpful feature I noticed, yet did not utilize, allowed us to add our Cisco switches for monitoring.
It also provides robust security features, including port security, analysis, mirroring, and multiple other security solutions.
With Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, I can automate processes, ensure network assurance, and configure network settings.
Security is standard compliant, eliminating config drift that was prevalent before manual configurations.
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN serves to connect remote offices, reduce MPLS costs, and facilitate cloud and internet access while providing secure connectivity and centralized management for hybrid networks.
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is leveraged for secure connectivity, load balancing, VPN, centralized network management, and migrating from traditional networks to SD-WAN. It supports hybrid networks, enabling centralized management across branches and data centers, improving security, and optimizing bandwidth usage. Industries such as banking and retail benefit from its capabilities for secure and efficient network management.
What are the main features of Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN?
What benefits should be considered in reviews?
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN's implementation in banking enhances secure transaction communication between branches and data centers. Retailers utilize it to ensure steady connectivity for point-of-sale systems and inventory management. Organizations benefit from centralized management, making it easier to handle networks across multiple locations.
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