Aruba Remote Access Points vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN comparison

Aruba Remote Access Points vs. Cisco IOS SSL VPN

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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 Remote Access Points

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

11th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

9th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

SSL VPN (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Aruba Remote Access Points is 0.8%, down from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco IOS SSL VPN is 1.2%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

Featured Reviews

Theesula Majuwanagamage

Head Of ELV and ICT at Intec Systems Solution Pvt Ltd

Efficient Setup and Strong Performance Highlight Versatile Capabilities

In terms of areas for improvement in Aruba Remote Access Points, when planning for the customer's end, you need to highlight the precautions against EMF emissions and environmental emissions, as well as power management limitations. If the user is in one direction and you're transmitting everywhere, that's not good power management. Currently, all access points provide the same power requirement to the client, but we should explore what extra mile we can go. We are facing energy crises and climate issues, along with GHG and SDGs protocols. If we highlight the alignment with these protocols, it can enhance the product quality as an environmentally friendly option. Apart from that, service-wise, every unit is the same. Users can only distinguish those requirements using spectrum analyzers; otherwise, minor data delays of one or two seconds do not matter, but for high-security or high-speed needs, it becomes significant.

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Rupesh Kolhapurkar

Manager at Reliance Industries Ltd

Offers easy setup phase but needs to improve connectivity

For our company's remote workforce connectivity, the tool was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In general, the VPN functionality offered by the product was very useful during the COVID-19 situation. In terms of the product's ability to secure third-party access, the tool works very well. The most valuable feature of the product in terms of network security stems from the fact that the tool provides access to the whole network, and even if users give access to some special applications, it is still really helpful. The clientless access feature is not available for clients. My company installed the product for its clients. If the product offers a clientless access feature, then it is okay and can be very helpful for our company. I recommend the product to those who plan to use it. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is a reliable product. The product is very helpful for a work-from-home setup as the tool can be used to access our company's internal network, which Falls outside the network of our organization. I rate the tool a seven to eight out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features of Aruba Remote Access Points are the easy configuration, straightforward installation, and secure security features."

"Once we got things set up properly, we just need to do updates, and it just runs."

"The stability and performance of Aruba Remote Access Points with minimal issues in an IT environment are worth a recommendation."

"This solution is widely adopted and involves both technology and non-technical devices. It is robust, except in cases of significant power outages."

"I can use the solution from my home or any remote office to access printers, servers, etc."

"What I like best about Aruba Remote Access Points is that it's pretty easy to set up."

"Once configured and operational, they tend to function reliably, with few reported issues from clients or customers."

"Aruba Remote Access Points provide a level of protection for our IPs."

More Aruba Remote Access Points pros

"The user interface is user-friendly."

"With Cisco IOS SSL VPN, you can access your corporate data safely and securely."

"The split panel functionality is much better in the Cisco IOS SSL VPN than in the Aruba VPN."

"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an easy-to-use and straightforward solution."

"The platform provides value and benefits to our organization through efficient and effective communication."

"It is stable."

"I like to work with the CMD command line because it's easy and it doesn't take very long to configure."

"Cisco IOS SSL VPN is stable, and once we connect, we don't face any issues and can do our work."

More Cisco IOS SSL VPN pros

Cons

"It could have better monitoring features."

"I use the controller when using Aruba Remote Access Points, particularly during configuration. Hence, room for improvement in Aruba Remote Access Points is for its web UI to be easier to control."

"I don't really have any critiques at this time."

"There is room for improvement in terms of pricing. If they can be more competitive."

"Our difficulty with Aruba is that the product and the license are two different items. So, if we are adding an access point, we have to pay for two items. We have to pay to add the access point in the controller and we have to pay for the license."

"The product needs an increased level of security for the end user."

"They can add more graphical reporting systems so that network admins and system admins get more information about user usage, such as which user, what they use, and when they use it."

"There are some issues, like the VLAN capabilities and support for routing between two VMs."

More Aruba Remote Access Points cons

"Cisco has a history of problems with the area of web filtering, because of which my company sometimes had to change the vendor and the appliance."

"I would like Cisco IOS SSL VPN to provide a faster connection."

"The solution needs to integrate password-less technology so that you don't have to remember passwords each time that you log in, which is otherwise tedious. We should be able to log in as long as our system is connected to the internet."

"The pricing needs to be better."

"The configuration must be improved."

"The product costs a lot of money."

"The solution does not give us options if the connectivity to one server is not available."

"Cisco device management is quite difficult. They should work to simplify this."

More Cisco IOS SSL VPN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"In terms of pricing, we've found Aruba's offerings to be very competitive."

"Aruba Remote Access Points' pricing is good and affordable."

"You require no separate licensing to convert an access point to RAP."

"Price-wise, Aruba Remote Access Points is in the middle, so my rating for its pricing is three out of five."

"There are no other expenses than standard licenses for the product."

"Aruba pricing is not very high. They offer competitive pricing for what they provide."

"The price of Aruba Remote Access Points could be better. It is a little expensive."

"There are no pricing programs for non-profit organizations and the product is otherwise expensive by comparison."

"FortiGate does not charge the client a licensing fee, although Cisco charges clients a couple of dollars per year for each license."

"With Cisco, there is a free solution or a licensed version of the solution with a set of endpoint services."

"The platform is expensive."

"I would say it is a bit expensive, but I think it is worth the price."

"The licensing fee is expensive."

"It is an expensive product."

"My company makes payments on a quarterly basis to the vendor to cover the licensing costs attached to the product. Cisco IOS SSL VPN is an expensive product. There are no additional costs apart from the licensing costs attached to the product."

More Cisco IOS SSL VPN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Healthcare Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

Computer Software Company

21%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Healthcare Company

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Remote Access Points?

This solution is widely adopted and involves both technology and non-technical devices. It is robust, except in cases of significant power outages.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Remote Access Points?

The pricing is adequate. It is available in every range, from medium range to high range and enterprise level. Thus, it is not an issue.

What needs improvement with Aruba Remote Access Points?

To make the solution better, the cloud solution should be more integrated as it has too many different menus, and it would be preferable to have it more cohesive in one solution. The automated netw...

What do you like most about Cisco IOS SSL VPN?

The solution is pretty fast.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS SSL VPN?

The pricing for Cisco IOS SSL VPN is based on per user. For more than one hundred users, it costs about $60 per seat.

What needs improvement with Cisco IOS SSL VPN?

It's hard for me to say how Linksys could be improved. I can't think of any specific improvements needed. I believe Cisco could support easier configuration and having tools that allow for easier m...

Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) vs Aruba Remote Access Points

Comparisons

Compared 44% of the time

Tailscale vs Aruba Remote Access Points

Compared 34% of the time

Aruba VPN vs Aruba Remote Access Points

Compared 22% of the time

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Ivanti Connect Secure vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Compared 41% of the time

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Compared 26% of the time

Citrix Gateway vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Compared 20% of the time

Fortinet FortiClient vs Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Compared 13% of the time

More Cisco IOS SSL VPN Competitors

Product Reports

Aruba Remote Access Points

Download Aruba Remote Access Points product report

Cisco IOS SSL VPN

Download Cisco IOS SSL VPN product report

Also Known As

Aruba RAP

Cisco SSL VPN

Overview

emote APs connect to a controllerusing Extended Authentication and Internet Protocol Security (XAuth/IPSec). AP control and 802.11 data traffic are carried through this tunnel. Secure Remote Access Point Service extends the corporate office to the remote site. Remote users can use the same features as corporate office users. For example, voice over IP (VoIP) applications can be extended to remote sites while the servers and the PBX remain secure in the corporate office.

Secure Remote Access Point Service can also be used to secure control traffic between an AP and the controllerin a corporate environment. In this case, both the AP and controllerare in the company’s private address space.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Cisco SSL VPN solutions help you easily and securely extend the network to users who have access to the Internet and a web browser. You can customize access and extend the reach of your corporate network to individuals based on their roles, including teleworker contractors and business partners.

Cisco

Sample Customers

Trafford Metropolitan Borough

MST Systems

Aruba Remote Access Points vs. Cisco IOS SSL VPN