We performed a comparison between Azure DNS and Cisco Umbrella based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: In this comparison, Cisco Umbrella takes the lead. It is easy to deploy, has a free version and a paid version of the product, as well as good support. In contrast, Azure DNS users share mixed opinions on deployment and support.
"The best feature is the domain register. The other great feature is that whenever you create any resources, Azure DNS will automatically create a record for you."
"The initial setup is straightforward and not that complex."
"What I like about Azure DNS is that it doesn't have any issues and integrates quickly with other products. It has good integration, which is incredible. I also like that whenever you deploy private links and endpoints, Azure DNS gives you the option to select the Azure native DNS, private DNS, or go with the Azure custom DNS. It depends, but if you don't have any dependencies on the DNS, then, like many customers, you won't have DNS issues. Azure DNS is a very good solution that helps you with domains and other resources."
"From a security perspective, Microsoft is much better than other cloud providers."
"If you're running your enterprise application on Azure, it's convenient to use Azure DNS. It has native integration with other Azure solutions, and Microsoft is a globally recognized DNS provider. You also get CDN services. If you're a media company that requires on-demand data streaming, your DNS plays a vital role by working with CDN services to publish your application. It's cheaper and easier to expand your solution."
"The solution allows you to host DNS service without using Azure's servers."
"The most valuable feature of Azure DNS is it works automatically after configuration. Additionally, the solution is secure."
"Azure DNS provides value beyond its user-friendly interface and easy learning curve."
"When it comes to hybrid work it's pretty effective. We've got the agents. We can protect people inside our building and, when they're using their laptops out in the field, they're still protected. It's working well."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to filter malware sites that could infect clients or allow them to download infected files."
"The single-pane-of-glass management is really important. In today's era, administration costs and operational expenses will cost you a lot, and it reduces that as well. You don't need extra resources to manage all your parameter firewalls, looking at every single device to allow resources internal access. By just introducing the single-pane-of-glass management, it has lifted the burden off of management, especially the network management."
"You can manage and create policies based on a group of users. It can permit some URLs and block others."
"I think recently with many people working from home, Cisco Umbrella has been very useful. For example, we can manage the device and the network when the employee is not working on the local host. Cisco Umbrella is very valuable for this kind of infrastructure."
"Any time someone went off the network, the AnyConnect client had the Umbrella agent built in, and it would realize when their computer connected that they were not on the corporate network. It would monitor and they would have pretty close to the same rules that they had to follow when they were in the office, regarding what kind of website browsing they could do."
"The integration features within, for example, the Cisco VPN product and the Umbrella module are valuable."
"The most valuable thing is how easy it is to deploy. We did it with 9,000 users at my last job, and it took a week to get to all the endpoints. Doing that without having to physically touch all those endpoints was very simple."
"The process of creating a virtual mission could be improved."
"Azure DNS does provide enhanced support for applications and includes several security features to protect against threats. One of the security features it offers is the ability to detect and prevent dangling DNS records, which can be used in cyber attacks. Dangling DNS records occur when a website owner creates a domain name but forgets to remove the CNAME record, leaving the domain vulnerable to takeover by malicious actors. Azure DNS includes security measures to identify and prevent such threats, helping to keep your DNS infrastructure secure. However, if Microsoft could add more security capabilities to the DNS, that would be great to detect and identify anomalies that are happening to prevent cyber threats."
"The CDN integration could be improved."
"The DNSSEC feature is not yet available on the DNS server so it needs to be added."
"There are some latency issues that could be improved."
"The technical support can be more knowledgeable."
"Azure DNS could improve by having more updates."
"The initial setup of this solution could be less complex and require less manual configurations."
"In my experience with Umbrella support, sometimes the response times take a bit more time than we would like... sometimes, if you go through email, it can take quite a while to get a response."
"We faced an issue regarding virtual appliances (VAs) during deployment. They could improve the quality and management of the virtual appliances offered right now. You can't see much because it is a Linux machine, and they have customized it. You don't have any route access to the machine, only seeing limited things in it. When we opened a ticket, they didn't know much about VAs themselves. So, that is where it is lacking right now. I know this will improve in the long run."
"I think it's a very basic solution, and because of that, Cisco Umbrella would not be a suitable solution for large companies."
"The integration with Cisco could be better."
"I'd like to see improvement in its overall integration with all the other platforms. There's some integration between Umbrella and Meraki, but an overall Cisco problem is that there are so many different tools, and finding easy, seamless ways of connecting everything together is always a challenge."
"Its price could be better."
"If we're trying to deploy it to a Mac through Meraki, it's impossible. The method of deployment for a Mac, and the features available in Meraki, are not compatible at all."
"The API is very Cisco orientated, which is absolutely fine if you're using Cisco Firepower and SecureX kind of products, but if you want to integrate with third parties, it is a bit tricky. There are some key API connectors for the more prevalent SIEM tools. I would really like to see in Cisco Umbrella the ability to create customized reports and then assign the rights to view these reports to people within a group. I should be able to create a customized report, which is viewable by anybody who has the rights. I should be able to create groups within Cisco Umbrella, and then assign reports to groups and have those reports split out automatically only to those groups. I can kind of do it by restricting my email list, but it is a half-complete way of doing it."
Azure DNS is ranked 3rd in Managed DNS with 10 reviews while Cisco Umbrella is ranked 1st in Secure Web Gateways (SWG) with 39 reviews. Azure DNS is rated 8.6, while Cisco Umbrella is rated 8.8. The top reviewer of Azure DNS writes "Beneficial integration and security, and highly stable". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Cisco Umbrella writes "We can see all of our locations in one place and only have to make changes once for all our locations". Azure DNS is most compared with Amazon Route 53, Cloudflare DNS, Google Cloud DNS, Akamai Edge DNS and Dyn, whereas Cisco Umbrella is most compared with Zscaler Internet Access, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, Palo Alto Networks DNS Security, Fortinet FortiGate SWG and Prisma SaaS by Palo Alto Networks.
We monitor all Managed DNS reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.