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Aruba Airwave vs Junos Space Network Director comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 2, 2025

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

Aruba Airwave
Ranking in Network Management Applications
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Junos Space Network Director
Ranking in Network Management Applications
20th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Network Management Applications category, the mindshare of Aruba Airwave is 4.0%, down from 7.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Junos Space Network Director is 2.5%, down from 3.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Management Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba Airwave4.0%
Junos Space Network Director2.5%
Other93.5%
Network Management Applications
 

Featured Reviews

Edward Zeng - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Network Engineer at Auckland University of Technology
Troubleshooting obstacles occur but technical support excels
My general opinion on Aruba Airwave is that it's acceptable, but it's not ideal because we are accustomed to Cisco. We didn't use Aruba much, but once you set it up, you probably don't need to worry about it too much. The version we are using is quite old now, probably around version four. I can't remember the version exactly because a lot of the products require Aruba Central, but we haven't used Aruba Central yet. I face challenges with Aruba Airwave, particularly with troubleshooting. When someone has a problem, we try troubleshooting, but the end-to-end users' messages show some details that are not always up-to-date, and sometimes the information from the GUI is not exactly aligned with what's on the website. If Aruba Airwave can apply AI capabilities, that would be even more perfect. I'd appreciate integration with Aruba Central; it would be great if they could incorporate it into Airwave.
Ibrahim Reda - PeerSpot reviewer
Network and Security Engineer at CITG - Continental Information and Telecom Group
High scalability network management with centralized control and an intuitive interface that provides efficient monitoring and configuration capabilities
A centralized platform is crucial for efficiently managing all of our switches, which were previously handled individually, leading to significant challenges. This unified dashboard simplifies tasks like simultaneous switch upgrades, streamlining the process. It enables us to create reports that monitor site statuses, including uptime and downtime, which helps us evaluate each site's monthly uptime and assess its revenue potential based on operational time.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution's initial setup process is straightforward."
"One of the main advantages is its ability to draw building floor plans and analyze Wi-Fi signal behavior in real-time."
"The most valuable features of the solution are its dashboard and simplicity."
"The solution's most valuable features are its usage, bandwidth existence, device capacity, and utilization."
"What I like best about Aruba Airwave is its orchestration feature because it saves configuration time. I also like that it allows you to do ZTP installations for new Aruba equipment."
"This solution is definitely stable."
"I would rate the stability a nine out of ten."
"It's scalable because it's licensed per device and we bought licenses with each device. I would rate it a nine out of ten for scalability."
"The most valuable feature is the management from a single pane of glass."
"It allows me to do more of the basic firewall features, like traffic management and others, in a single pane of glass."
"The most valuable feature is the technical support, as it is better than others."
"A centralized platform is crucial for efficiently managing all of our switches, which were previously handled individually, leading to significant challenges."
 

Cons

"I am not deeply familiar with the solution, so if I mention a feature, it might already exist, yet I may be unaware of it."
"The biggest problem for not using Aruba Airwave extensively now is that HP is not upgrading this tool. They're not investing money and time into it, which is why we're not using it."
"The main challenge we've faced with Aruba Airwave is its high cost, especially regarding high availability and failover licenses, which can be relatively expensive for customers. As for recommendations for improvement, considering that Aruba is planning to retire Airwave soon and introduce a new solution, it's crucial that the new product meets or exceeds the current Airwave's feature set. Customers expect a seamless transition without losing any functionality, so Aruba needs to ensure that the new solution is ready with all the essential features and capabilities from day one to avoid any gaps or dissatisfaction among users and partners."
"When upgrading hardware, there were technical issues with network interfaces and Red Hat, which required escalation to developers."
"Pricing for Aruba Airwave could be cheaper, which is an area for improvement in the solution."
"They should make it cheaper. By doing that, they can replace Cisco, which is also very expensive. If it is equivalent to Cisco in the features, with a reduced price, they can sell it more than Cisco."
"My general opinion on Aruba Airwave is that it's acceptable, but it's not ideal because we are accustomed to Cisco."
"I would like to see is “AAS”. Not only Aruba APs with central, but NAC/ClearPass, AirWave, and everything licensed as a Service."
"The upgrades are very time-consuming and difficult, and they often have to rebuild the product."
"I would like to them include network real-time performance and come up with a dashboard report."
"I would like to see Space created to fully functional, where it's got multiple modules, particularly SD-WAN working on Corporate, or maybe become part of the Orchestrator portion."
"Its interface should be improved and enhanced to offer various functions, with flexible pricing"
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing is on an yearly basis."
"Aruba Airwave is an expensive solution."
"The tool is expensive. If one is bad or expensive, and ten is very good or cheap, I rate the product's price as a six."
"AirWave is a very expensive solution. If you implement it in a wide range network, it will cost a lot. There is no option to sell it outside that price segment, which is a problem."
"The licensing cost for Aruba Airwave increased from $72 to $210 within a few months. It would be better if the pricing for the solution were cheaper."
"This product is not expensive."
"I rate the product’s pricing a five out of ten."
"It is an expensive solution."
"We would like the price to be reduced."
"Typically, Juniper is more expensive than Cisco in initial costs, but overall, the long-term licensing fees that you're going to pay for Juniper versus Cisco is going to be less."
"This product is set at a good price point."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Educational Organization
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise14
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Aruba Airwave?
They have other sensors which can manage and control all the sites. There is an IoT component where we can restrict internet services such as Facebook and YouTube. These things can also be managed....
What is your primary use case for Aruba Airwave?
For Aruba Airwave, I am using the wireless devices for the Wi-Fi for the full company with access points. This is the top product I feel, and I see in the Gartner also. It is a good product and eas...
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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Henkel, University of Findlay, University of Minnesota Duluth, University of Iowa
St. Catherine's University, OneNet, University of New Haven, Frederick County Public Schools (Maryland), America's Test Kitchen
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Airwave vs. Junos Space Network Director and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.