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Big Switch Networks vs Cisco SD-WAN comparison

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Big Switch Networks

Read 1 Big Switch Networks review
418 views|342 comparisons
100% willing to recommend
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Cisco SD-WAN

Read 86 Cisco SD-WAN reviews
18,815 views|12,923 comparisons
92% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
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Buyer's Guide
Software Defined Networking (SDN)
April 2024
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Big Switch Networks and Cisco SD-WAN based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Big Switch Networks, Juniper and others in Software Defined Networking (SDN).
To learn more, read our detailed Software Defined Networking (SDN) Report (Updated: April 2024).
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768,578 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Jason Best
A flexible solution that can be integrated with third-party solutions whilst maintaining its automated nature
VENKATESHREDDY
Straightforward to set up and has lowered expenses, but needs to work on controller compatibility
The integration, scalability, and ROI that Cisco SD-WAN provided are the main features that helped the organization advance further.
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"What I liked about the solution is the quick and easy way you can build a network data center fabric."

More Big Switch Networks Pros →

"Any technical support we needed was great.""The solution is great at aggregating the traffic and then sending it in one direction.""The regular net routing is a good feature.""The most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN are reliability and scalability.""When we have had power outages for a few hours we have had no issue with Cisco SD-WAN coming back online and functioning.""It is very stable.""It has a very good GUI.""The primary advantage we've observed is the simplification of deployment, leading to decreased IT costs and enhanced operational efficiency."

More Cisco SD-WAN Pros →

Cons
"I think if I was to say something that could be improved, it would be a multi-data center nature of the implementation."

More Big Switch Networks Cons →

"The solution needs to be more flexible around legacy devices.""The solution is very costly.""We have found that their SD-WAN has a lot of scope for improvement.""We recently found some bugs.""The solution could be more secure. Security is always a priority for us.""This solution should include a fully functional firewall at no extra charge.""Cisco SD-WAN is not as easy to deploy as the Meraki and FortiGate solutions. The zero-touch deployment could be a lot better. The deployment and initial setup are complicated and could be better.""Customers require features that are secure for endpoints, on-premises, and for the cloud."

More Cisco SD-WAN Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "The licensing cost depends on the number of switches that are going to be licensed to run the software."

    • More Big Switch Networks Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "We pay for the Cisco Customer Care support, which is a couple of hundred dollars."
  • "80 percent reduction in WAN costs. There are no MPLS or P2P circuits left in the organization."
  • "Cisco is more expensive than some competing products."
  • "SD-WAN as a service is probably something in the neighborhood of $100 to $200 a month per location."
  • "The costs are a bit on the high side."
  • "It is much cheaper than other solutions. Most of our clients are the top 500 companies, and they all have a corporate contract."
  • "The license model is too complex with too many flavors and options. You might not be able to see it from an end user's point of view, but from a telco point of view, their license model is too complex. They should have a flexible license model. If you want to have good pricing, you need to buy it for a two-year, four-year, or five-year license immediately. Some other vendors have much more flexible license models."
  • "It is going to be on a yearly basis. There are no additional costs."

    • More Cisco SD-WAN Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    What do you like most about Big Switch Networks?
    Top Answer:What I liked about the solution is the quick and easy way you can build a network data center fabric.
    What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Big Switch Networks?
    Top Answer:The licensing cost depends on the number of switches that are going to be licensed to run the software. I wasn't on the commercial side of this project, so I don't really have a lot of details, but it… more »
    What needs improvement with Big Switch Networks?
    Top Answer:I think if I was to say something that could be improved, it would be a multi-data center nature of the implementation. Meaning, having an active-active data center with multiple entrance-exit points… more »
    What do you like most about Cisco SD-WAN?
    Top Answer:When considering the most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN, the decoupling of self-monitoring stands out significantly.
    Read all 60 answers   →
    What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco SD-WAN?
    Top Answer:The product is not too expensive. It is competitive considering security features. The licensing cost is typically based on bandwidth subscription. For example, you must purchase a corresponding… more »
    Read all 47 answers   →
    What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
    Top Answer:Cisco should develop a clear roadmap, ensuring seamless integration between Meraki and Viptela. Simplifying the definition and implementation could add significant value, as it can be complex due to… more »
    Read all 57 answers   →
    Ranking
    3rd
    out of 22 in Software Defined Networking (SDN)
    Views
    418
    Comparisons
    342
    Reviews
    1
    Average Words per Review
    845
    Rating
    9.0
    1st
    out of 36 in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
    Views
    18,815
    Comparisons
    12,923
    Reviews
    29
    Average Words per Review
    533
    Rating
    7.9
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Viptela, Cisco vEdge Cloud Router
    Learn More
    Big Switch Networks
    Cisco
    Overview

    Big Switch Networks is at the forefront of the next-generation of networking technologies. By combining industry standard switch hardware (“white box / branded white box “brite box”) with intelligent SDN control software, the company is delivering next-generation data center networking fabrics for the world’s most advanced data centers looking to achieve unmatched degrees of network automation at cloud-competitive price points.

    Big Switch Networks has two data center networking solutions: Big Cloud Fabric, a data center switching fabric for OpenStack clouds or VMware virtualization environments, and Big Monitoring Fabric, a network packet broker that enables pervasive security and security, monitoring data center traffic for inline or out-of-band deployments. Big Switch is taking three key technologies: vendor agnostic switch hardware, SDN control software, and core-and-pod data center designs –and leveraging them for use in next-generation data center switching and monitoring solutions designed for use in enterprises, cloud providers, and service providers.

    All Big Switch solutions run on high-performance open networking switches from Accton or Dell Technologies and leverage centralized SDN controller software for fabric-wide control and management. Big Switch Networks has two solutions:

    Cisco SD-WAN is a software-defined WAN (wide area network) solution that provides for secure stable connections to applications for enterprises and organizations. Cisco SD-WAN works to speed up the seamless movement to the cloud. A very robust and reliable solution, Cisco SD-WAN is cutting-edge in threat security and stability of the complete network and has very low latency. Cisco SD-WAN uses Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Software as a Service (SaaS), data centers, and even the internet to smoothly advance the move to a SASE (Service Access Service Edge)-based architecture. The Cisco SD-WAN dashboard gives you a complete visual of your entire infrastructure; you can see everything in real time. You will also have simplified IT operations and gain advanced network capabilities, dependability, and security. One valued feature is the overlay management protocol (OMP), which applies to your entire network to speedily connect all your company data centers. Cisco SD-WAN has a very flexible architecture and can be deployed on premises, in the cloud, hybrid, and even has multi-cloud options. Cisco SD-WAN instantly discovers, authenticates, and provisions all devices, both existing and new.

    Cisco SD-WAN simplifies the management of multiple connections across the WAN, improves the end-user experience, improves overall application functionality and performance, and is a very cost-effective solution. Cisco SD-WAN integrates well with Microsoft 365, Salesforce, and many other cloud-based business solutions. Additionally, Cisco SD-WAN optimizes connectivity and streamlines workflows for Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Azure.

    Benefits of Cisco SD-WAN

    • Increased profitability - Cisco SD-WAN will improve performance and decrease overall connectivity costs.
    • Improved productivity - Cisco SD-WAN requires less staff to manage and secure the WANs so valuable resources can be allocated elsewhere in your organization, increasing total productivity.
    • Flexible scalability- Cisco SD-WAN’s flexible and easily scalable architecture will allow your organization to address significantly greater business opportunities, helping to consistently increase revenue.
    • Enhanced security - Cisco SD-WAN offers real-time policy enforcement, ensuring that downtime and unplanned outages are kept to a minimum.

    What real users have to say:

    Cisco SD-WAN is fast with lower costs: “Using SD-WAN to combine services can result in better up time, higher speeds, and much lower costs.”

    Cisco is a brand you can trust: “Cisco is an industry leader, so customers have a high level of trust with the brand - more so than with some newcomers that might have some more revolutionary solutions, but no name recognition.”

    Cisco SD-WAN offers load-balancing and real-time traffic monitoring: “Load balancing is a feature that allows us to take the best of our links and distribute the load intelligently, always with an eye on the end-customer experience.”

    Sample Customers
    A10 Networks, Edge-Core Networks, Blue Coat Systems, BlueData, Broadcom Corporation, Canonical, Check Point Software Technologies, Citrix, Dell, FireEye, Garland, Hortonworks, Mirantis, Nexenta, Riverbed
    Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
    Top Industries
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm16%
    Computer Software Company16%
    University8%
    Government8%
    REVIEWERS
    Comms Service Provider44%
    Computer Software Company18%
    Financial Services Firm12%
    Manufacturing Company6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization35%
    Computer Software Company15%
    Financial Services Firm6%
    Comms Service Provider5%
    Company Size
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise10%
    Large Enterprise70%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business42%
    Midsize Enterprise15%
    Large Enterprise43%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business15%
    Midsize Enterprise42%
    Large Enterprise43%
    Buyer's Guide
    Software Defined Networking (SDN)
    April 2024
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    Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Big Switch Networks, Juniper and others in Software Defined Networking (SDN). Updated: April 2024.
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    Big Switch Networks is ranked 3rd in Software Defined Networking (SDN) with 1 review while Cisco SD-WAN is ranked 1st in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions with 86 reviews. Big Switch Networks is rated 9.0, while Cisco SD-WAN is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of Big Switch Networks writes "A flexible solution that can be integrated with third-party solutions whilst maintaining its automated nature". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Cisco SD-WAN writes "A solution for integrating services to enhance up-time, performance and lower costs". Big Switch Networks is most compared with Gigamon Deep Observability Pipeline, Ixia Network Packet Brokers, APCON, Cumulus Networks and Pica8, whereas Cisco SD-WAN is most compared with Fortinet FortiGate, Meraki SD-WAN, VMware SD-WAN, Juniper Session Smart Router and Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform.

    We monitor all Software Defined Networking (SDN) 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.