Aruba VPN vs SonicWall SMA comparison

Hewlett Packard Enterprise and SonicWall are both solutions in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category. Hewlett Packard Enterprise is ranked #32 with an average rating of 6.0, while SonicWall is ranked #17 with an average rating of 9.5. Hewlett Packard Enterprise holds a 0.5% mindshare in EIV, compared to SonicWall’s 1.4% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of SonicWall users are willing to recommend the solution.

Aruba VPN

Read 4 Aruba VPN reviews

239 Views
239 Comparison Views

0% willing to recommend

SonicWall SMA

Read 15 SonicWall SMA reviews

988 Views
820 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Aruba VPN

SonicWall SMA

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

SonicWall SMA and Aruba VPN offer competitive solutions for secure remote access. Users favor SonicWall SMA for pricing and support, but prefer Aruba VPN for its robust features, making it the superior product.

Features: SonicWall SMA provides effective secure remote access, advanced threat protection, and seamless integration with existing networks. Aruba VPN offers high-speed performance, reliable connectivity, and strong encryption protocols.

Room for Improvement: SonicWall SMA could improve its mobile device support and patch management processes. Users suggest better customer documentation and more intuitive configuration options for Aruba VPN. SonicWall SMA's mobile support issues are more frequently mentioned.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonicWall SMA is recognized for straightforward deployment and responsive customer service. Aruba VPN has a steeper learning curve during deployment but comprehensive support similar to SonicWall SMA.

Pricing and ROI: SonicWall SMA users are satisfied with its setup cost and see a favorable ROI. Aruba VPN's higher initial setup cost is justified by users through long-term ROI benefits due to enhanced features and performance.

To learn more, read our detailed Aruba VPN vs. SonicWall SMA Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aruba VPN vs. SonicWall SMA

September 2025

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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 VPN

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

32nd

Average Rating

5.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SonicWall SMA

Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

17th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Universal Access Gateways (2nd), SSL VPN (6th)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Aruba VPN is 0.5%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall SMA is 1.4%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
SonicWall SMA	1.4%
Aruba VPN	0.5%
Other	98.1%

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

Featured Reviews

Prashant-Patel

Senior Presales Consultant - Networking Solutions at Mannai

A highly scalable solution that can be used to access corporate resources anywhere in the world

Currently, the connections on Aruba VPN are robust and the fastest. As it is a lighter client, it does not put any pressure or heavy connections. It's all about how much internet connection you have. Your VPN connection will work faster based on your internet connection. The authentication with Aruba VPN is faster and takes around five milliseconds. You need two or three engineers to deploy and maintain the solution at the start of a project. However, once it is set up, only one person is needed to do it. I would recommend Aruba VPN to other users. If someone has a workforce working from home or traveling, then Aruba VPN is the right solution for them. Overall, I rate Aruba VPN ten out of ten.

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Mayur_Patel

Chief Commercial Officer at InnovAge Home Care

Easy-to-manage product with efficient features for network security

SonicWall SMA facilitates and protects remote workforce access to corporate resources from any location Enhancing live tracking capabilities could improve the product, particularly in monitoring user activity and request statuses in real-time on the web interface. We have been using SonicWall…

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Aruba VPN’s stability was okay."

"Aruba VPN is lighter on machines, and users don't feel any difference in having these items installed on their PCs or laptops."

"The initial setup was straightforward."

"What I like the most about Aruba VPN is that it's great for companies with diverse network needs."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is they have IT consultants that know SonicWall."

"The performance is good."

"Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security."

"I am very satisfied with the technical support."

"I like the load balancing capability."

"I think they ask for a fair price."

"Secure Mobile Access (SMA) is easy to configure and the deployment is straightforward. However, this is mostly because of the AWS setup."

"It is faster than other security options when using remote connections."

More SonicWall SMA pros

Cons

"When around 100 to 300 users tried to connect at the beginning of the day, the appliance would crash, and the users would not be able to connect."

"It should address issues that are vital to maintaining the company's reputation."

"They could release product updates more frequently."

"There is room for improvement from the solution's security point of view."

"The product's technical support services could be improved."

"The solution could integrate better with other platforms."

"The timed synchronization between the network appliance needs improvement."

"The solution has 2FA, it will generate a token and send it to an email, but multifactor authentication is not available. I would suggest that there should be MFA integration and provided with the appliance."

"This is an expensive solution and I think that the price could be improved."

"I'd like to see the product maybe polish keyboards in Bookmark."

"The product itself is very good, but Dell needs to work on product visibility in their advertising."

"The only thing that they could try to improve is the support for enterprise customers. Normally enterprises and SMBs can create a ticket, but for enterprises, SonicWall SMA needs to provide a global view, and this is what's currently missing. It's not even a question of timing. It's a question of the global vision because currently, it's lacking. They concentrate on the topic, but not on the means and not on the global picture. In most cases, there's something wrong with the integration of SonicWall SMA with other products, so that could also be improved."

More SonicWall SMA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Customers need to buy a VPN client license."

"We do not have to purchase a separate license for Aruba VPN; it is included in the ClearPass package."

"All the costs are included in a bundled license."

"The cost of the licensing is based on the maximum number of concurrent users, and it costs a lot to add them."

"Our licenses are stackable and can be anywhere from five users to a million users."

"The platform has medium pricing."

"I don't know about the pricing of the SSL-VPN box. I know the SSL-VPN software is free. Global VPN client, by comparison, is licensed for around $150 or something like that. But the SSL-VPN software is free. It is already built-in with the box."

"This solution is priced well and we currently have the maximum number of licenses allowed."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

14%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	2

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba VPN?

The initial setup was straightforward.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Aruba VPN?

They could release product updates more frequently. The lack of updates is one reason we plan to switch to another solution.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Aruba VPN?

Aruba VPN can be valuable for supporting network work within the company, particularly for ensuring connectivity in various signal conditions. However, occasional issues may arise, such as intermit...

See all answers

What do you like most about SonicWall SMA?

Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall SMA?

The pricing for the solution could be a lot less.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?

I haven't utilized the high availability and scalability features of SonicWall SMA yet because I've never had a need to. I don't know where they can focus their energy on continuous improvements, a...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Enterprise Infrastructure VPN

October 2025

Download Aruba VPN product report

Buyer's Guide

SonicWall SMA

September 2025

Download SonicWall SMA product report

Also Known As

No data available

SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access

Overview

Aruba VPN provides secure remote access for employees working from home or remote locations. Users appreciate its ease of deployment, strong security features, and reliable connectivity, adaptable to different devices and operating systems with high performance and minimal downtime.

Aruba VPN is known for its strong security protocols and user-friendly interface, reliable performance, and seamless remote access capabilities. It integrates easily with existing systems and offers scalability and efficient technical support. Notably, it supports a large number of concurrent connections efficiently. Issues were noted during the COVID lockdown with firmware causing connection problems and compatibility problems with Windows 7, which remain under focus for improvement.

What are the most important features?

Strong Security Protocols: Ensures data integrity and protection.
User-friendly Interface: Simplifies deployment and usage for all employees.
Reliable Performance: Provides consistent connectivity with minimal downtime.
Easy Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing infrastructure.
High Scalability: Supports a large number of concurrent connections.
Efficient Technical Support: Resolves issues promptly and effectively.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in reviews?

Secure Remote Access: Allows employees to work securely from any location.
High Performance: Ensures a smooth and reliable user experience.
Cost Efficiency: Reduces the need for additional hardware or extensive IT resources.
Scalability: Adjusts to the growing needs without compromising performance.
Device Compatibility: Works across different devices and operating systems.

Aruba VPN is utilized across industries such as corporate sectors where secure remote access is critical, education institutions needing to provide students and faculty with reliable connections, and healthcare organizations requiring secure data transmission. Its adaptability and strong security make it a favored choice for dynamic and security-sensitive environments.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

SonicWall SMA is a unified secure access gateway that enables organizations to provide anytime, anywhere and any device access to mission critical corporate resources. SMA's granular access control policy engine, context aware device authorization, application level VPN and advanced authentication with single sign-on empowers organizations to embrace BYOD and mobility in a hybrid IT environment.

SonicWall

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort

Buyer's Guide

Aruba VPN vs. SonicWall SMA

September 2025

Free Report: Aruba VPN vs. SonicWall SMA

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