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Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs Aruba Orchestrator comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
7.5
Fortinet FortiGate is valued for affordability, cost savings, enhanced security, operational efficiency, quick implementation, and long-term ROI benefits.
Sentiment score
7.4
Organizations achieved 25% ROI from Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN by eliminating costly MPLS, enhancing efficiency, and reducing costs.
Sentiment score
7.4
Aruba Orchestrator offers financial benefits and cost-effectiveness, with ROI typically realized by the third or fourth year.
Clients are now comfortable and not wasting productive hours on IT support.
The automation part is giving us a cost benefit and speed; we can react faster.
It's a very useful tool to mitigate and protect your enterprise.
I have seen a return on investment and financial benefit from using Aruba Orchestrator.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Fortinet FortiGate's customer service varies, with praise for responsiveness but criticism for slow, sometimes inadequate technical support.
Sentiment score
7.4
Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN support is efficient and responsive, though post-acquisition agent knowledge needs improvement, especially on licensing.
Sentiment score
7.8
Silver Peak's support is praised for training and responsiveness, though documentation and expertise during outages need improvement.
I would rate their support for FortiGate a nine out of ten.
They offer very accurate solutions.
The quick resolution of issues with Fortinet FortiGate is due to the support of the company and the fact that the equipment is easy to work with.
Aruba's technical support is very responsive.
I can harness the power of the teacher model without lowering my top and laser focus.
The technical support of Aruba is very supportive and excellent.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Fortinet FortiGate scales well for diverse enterprises, though planning and licensing are crucial to avoid hardware limitations.
Sentiment score
7.4
The Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform offers seamless scalability and performance for large enterprise implementations with extensive user support.
Sentiment score
7.6
Aruba Orchestrator effectively scales for enterprises, handling up to 1,000 users, with positive feedback on its adaptability.
They scale up really well from smaller models like the FortiGate 40 and 50 to bigger sites with the FortiGate 100 for more throughput - up to enterprise datacenters.
The variation comes in terms of the interfaces and throughputs, but from a security perspective, you get the same benefit, irrespective of whether you have an entry-level unit or an enterprise.
We determine sizing based on multiple factors: number of users, available links, traffic types, server count, services in use, and whether services will be published.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiGate is generally stable and reliable, with minor issues arising from new features, firmware updates, or hardware constraints.
Sentiment score
8.2
The Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform is stable with high user satisfaction, though custom deployments can present occasional issues.
Sentiment score
8.8
Aruba Orchestrator is highly rated for stability, reliability, and consistent performance, making it excellent for stable operations.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
We have not had any problems with the operating systems or maintenance of subscriptions.
It is very stable, with no significant issues.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiGate needs enhancements in firmware, usability, integration, support, reporting, VPN, cloud integration, and documentation for seamless use.
Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN needs better documentation, enhanced integration, improved tools, security features, and technical resources for optimal use.
Aruba Orchestrator needs stronger security, better cost-efficiency, user-friendliness, and improved integration with third-party analytics and training resources.
By providing an integrated solution, users would have access to all features and functionalities within a single window, eliminating the need to navigate through multiple windows.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
The constant daily revisions necessitate meticulous identification of the relevant documents to prevent the use of outdated information that could jeopardize our environment.
I would also like the management of EdgeConnect appliances to be incorporated into Aruba Central Cloud Central.
The security could also improve.
The price should be improved as it is very high.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers competitive pricing with upfront affordability, simple licensing, and long-term value, despite potentially high renewal costs.
Aruba EdgeConnect offers competitive pricing with flexible licenses, valued for affordability and ease of deployment, yet some licensing enhancements needed.
Aruba Orchestrator has a mid-range subscription pricing model under $1,000, with yearly costs and varied user satisfaction.
The most expensive part is the renewal of the license subscription.
FortiGate is priced lower than Palo Alto.
Last year, I renewed the support for three years, which can sometimes be expensive but depends on the security benefits and how it helps us.
The licensing is not too expensive, however, it is also not cheap.
It is an affordable product and yet still a bit expensive.
Regarding my experience with the pricing and setup costs, I find it expensive software compared to others.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate delivers robust security features and intuitive management, offering scalable and affordable network protection solutions.
Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform enhances connectivity and performance with advanced features, intuitive interface, and robust security.
Aruba Orchestrator streamlines WAN optimization and SD-WAN integration through a user-friendly interface, enhancing management, security, and network visibility.
The firewall, IPS, and VPN functions are the most valuable features.
FortiGate provides solid protection against viruses, malware, and other threats.
In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable.
Additionally, it integrates perfectly with Aruba ClearPass, offering a robust security solution, covering network admin, access control, authentication, and authorization.
Many features are valuable for automation, connectivity, and throughput.
Integration capabilities with cloud and on-prem environments help my organization maintain a hybrid approach.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
357
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (2nd), WAN Edge (1st)
Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Pl...
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
7th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
22
Ranking in other categories
WAN Optimization (2nd), WAN Edge (7th)
Aruba Orchestrator
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
9th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 20.9%, up from 20.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform is 7.1%, up from 5.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Aruba Orchestrator is 0.7%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
 

Featured Reviews

Jorge Martínez - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers good SD-WAN capabilities and integrates easily with Fortinet devices
I am not part of the initial setup or deployment process since I work in presales. The setup or deployment is quite easy, as you can do a one-touch deployment that automatically connects to the FortiManager cloud when you connect it to a broadband or dynamic IP, allowing you to start the configuration from that point. We usually sell it for on-premises setups. It's on the cloud only when the client has virtual machines or their own service. Sometimes they have a service on the cloud like AWS, but it's more difficult to sell now because AWS has an e-commerce option where you can buy FortiGate directly. The only thing you need is someone to manage and configure.
JOHN UNAMBA - PeerSpot reviewer
Integrated security features and robust support improve network management
The solution was installed across two branches for a financial institution. One location had a data center, and the other was a branch office. For SaaS applications, traffic broke out from EdgeConnect directly to the cloud. Applications using the data center were channeled through the MPLS link…
Aneesh K - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides complete internal visibility from LAN to Wi-Fi, resulting in higher stability and easier troubleshooting
Aruba has plenty of solutions showcased at this event. Perhaps they offer their firewall, which we are not currently utilizing—the LAN switching, ClearPass, and Wi-Fi. ClearPass is is still on-premises, but the switching, Wi-Fi, and security features are included. It has some capabilities, like automation intelligence, which they call AI operations. So it is helpful. Our time spent on troubleshooting will be significantly reduced with it. Another useful feature is that we can inquire about the health data from Aruba Central and receive the necessary answers. Aruba Central simplifies management. Yes, deployment will be much faster than on-premises setups, where you need many hardware gateways. With just an access point or minimal hardware, deployment will be quicker. Troubleshooting with it has also made it much more straightforward. A group of ten people should be more than sufficient to manage an extensive infrastructure. Aruba is providing better support. They are also improving their email services. They are up to market standards, so we choose to go with them. We were looking for a direct vendor, but they didn't meet our requirements. Aruba Orchestrator is meeting our current expectations and standards, so we are sticking with them. We don't have any issues because we have been with Aruba for many years. We don't mind moving from one vendor to another. We are simply transitioning from one rental type to another with Aruba. I prioritize enhancements in AI functionality over other features. There are several implementations, with AI being the primary focus. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
15%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Legal Firm
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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What do you like most about Silver Peak NX?
The tool's most valuable feature is bandwidth optimization.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Silver Peak NX?
It is an affordable product and yet still a bit expensive.
What needs improvement with Silver Peak NX?
One area for improvement is the Intel support integration. The security could also improve.
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
Silver Peak NX, Silver Peak VX, Silver Peak Unity EdgeConnect
Silver Peak Unity Orchestrator, Unity Orchestrator
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya
Group Dekko, Kingston Technology, American Student Assistance, Ares Management, Charlotte Metro Credit Union, Colonial Savings, Community Bank, Denali Credit Union, Bed Bath & Beyond, Breweries of Cameroon, Carnival Australia, Coastal Beverages, Toshiba Electronics, Tru Blu Beverages, WAXIE Sanitary Supply, Charleston Area Medical Center, Community Health Plan, Healthcare Company, Mercy Health, Linklaters, Miles & Stockbridge, Thomson Snell & Passmore
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Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs. Aruba Orchestrator and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.