Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs FortiMonitor comparison

Cisco and Fortinet are both solutions in the Network Monitoring Software category. Cisco is ranked #40 with an average rating of 8.0, while Fortinet is ranked #14 with an average rating of 8.3. Cisco holds a 0.9% mindshare in NMS, compared to Fortinet’s 0.7% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Fortinet users who would recommend it.

Cisco Provider Connectivity...

Read 24 Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance reviews

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1,083 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

FortiMonitor

Read 15 FortiMonitor reviews

1,331 Views
731 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Cisco Provider Connectivity...

FortiMonitor

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 9, 2025

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance and FortiMonitor compete in the network reliability and performance management category. Although users are satisfied with Cisco’s pricing and support, FortiMonitor's feature-rich offering gives it an overall competitive edge.

Features: Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance provides comprehensive network protocol monitoring, fault detection, and SLA validation. FortiMonitor includes advanced analytics, cloud compatibility, and proactive alerting, offering greater flexibility across various network environments.

Room for Improvement: Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance could enhance its user interface, expand integrations beyond Cisco, and improve mobile app functionality. FortiMonitor should address its complex billing system, refine reporting tools for greater clarity, and improve ease-of-use for non-technical users.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance is optimized for seamless integration within Cisco ecosystems, supported by reliable customer service. FortiMonitor’s cloud-native model facilitates agile deployment across multiple environments, with customer service noted for its responsiveness and efficiency.

Pricing and ROI: Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance offers a cost-effective setup with advantageous ROI through integration capabilities and no hidden fees. FortiMonitor, despite higher initial costs, provides significant ROI thanks to its extensive feature set and adaptability, justifying its investment with added functionalities and service potential.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs. FortiMonitor Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs. FortiMonitor

April 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

Cisco Provider Connectivity...

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

40th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (45th)

FortiMonitor

Ranking in Network Monitoring Software

14th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

IT Infrastructure Monitoring (15th), IT Alerting and Incident Management (8th), Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM) (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance is 0.9%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of FortiMonitor is 0.7%, down from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

Sylvain Germe

Application and Network Performance Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees

Highly scalable, responsive support, but lacking new features

This solution is geared towards on-premise setups, and would not be useful if the company plans to move to the cloud within the next two years, such as Google Cloud for example. If the goal is to monitor bandwidth at remote sites and identify performance issues because the network is under the control, this solution is useful. However, if a company primarily uses cloud-based servers and does not manage the internet connection of its remote sites, the solution becomes less useful. I rate Accedian Skylight a seven out of ten. I have a positive opinion of the tool, but it can be challenging to set up. It is also limited in its applicability to certain use cases. I am familiar with the engineers behind the solution and have a good impression of them. However, I am not pleased with the fact that the company removed many features and raised prices after it was acquired by Accedian.

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JaimeVasquez

Commercial Manager at IT-Experience

Monitoring capabilities keep operations running smoothly and alerts enhance proactive system management

We use FortiMonitor to monitor the infrastructure of our customers. We check on what is happening with their operations, monitor bandwidth, ensure configurations are appropriate for the customer, and identify if anything is going wrong The most valuable features of FortiMonitor are its redundancy…

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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

"It is about finding operational problems. When sites go down, we try to determine who is at fault. While there is not much finger-pointing, the solution is just trying to analyse when there is an outage and where do we start looking to fix it. The very nature of why organization chooses to use the solution is to accelerate the meantime to resolution and find where problems lie to get them rectified as quickly as possible."

"The feature I used to like the most was its ability to decode layer seven protocols, although this is becoming less useful now that encryption is so widespread."

"One valuable feature we have is real-time monitoring for connection issues."

"If [the problem] is something related to HTTP or VoIP, then I can have a quick look into the protocols, a process which gives me some good ideas..."

"What I like most about Accedian Skylight is that it's a UI application, so using it is easy. I also like that the support for Accedian Skylight is helpful."

"Capturing traffic [is very interesting]. Currently, with our configuration, we don't capture the payload of the packets, just the header. But when we want the body, the payload of the packets, we can do a PCAP, and then analyze it within Wireshark."

"The response times, with the performance, are really interesting too, where you can see the packet loss."

"I always have the Skylight dashboard on one of my screens... Now you can create your own dashboard, specific to an application, specific to a server, or to something else."

More Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance pros

"The product's initial setup phase is easy."

"The tool continuously improves, adapting to support new vendors and technologies. Importantly, it automates the process, triggering alerts when devices require attention, and eliminating the need for manual intervention."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is what the devices are used for. We have big backups for our Cradlepoint solutions, but FortiMonitor is a great routing device and we love working with them."

"The solution helps to see client infrastructure. It has many boxes and blinks green or red when the station goes up or down. We have different domains for the device groups that we monitor."

"FortiMonitor has a very intuitive dashboard, which makes it particularly helpful for analyzing traffic, alerts, and other information."

"The most valuable feature of FortiMonitor is user monitoring. We are able to see if the user is following the policy or not from their system. Additionally, the solution integrates well with Fortinet FortiGate and has centralized management."

"FortiMonitor offers comprehensive monitoring capabilities, allowing me to track network traffic in and out effectively."

"Fortinet's customer support is very good."

More FortiMonitor pros

Cons

"Some of the Skylight applications are a little newer, and they're still moving through initial revs. There are certain bugs, but nothing is insurmountable... It will just take a little bit of time for their user interface to get a little bit better."

"Human resource costs can be high when dealing with connection issues."

"There should be an option to update and upgrade the solution to the new version without having to re-buy it. I have clients switching to other solutions. The old solution is great, but if you change your license to a new one, you have to almost re-buy it completely."

"The UI interface of Accedian Skylight could improve."

"It needs the possibility to export data because it is not easy to see larger data sets, e.g., for one month. It would be interesting to export data into a PDF or dashboard to keep a history of the situation."

"It's a bit slow. When I execute a query, something general with a short timeframe that covers one month, for instance, and I do not specify the IP source or IP destination, it can take ages because it has to query the whole database."

"This solution is expensive compared to some others."

"The Accedian Skylight user interface still has room for improvement."

More Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance cons

"FortiMonitor could be improved by making it more convenient for smaller workloads, such as when configuring a few branches."

"Sometimes, during high CPU usage, we cannot access FortiMonitor and must refresh it."

"Additionally, there are no AI features in FortiMonitor, which might be an area for enhancement."

"The tool's price in Vietnam is high, making it an area of concern where improvements can be made."

"There is room for improvement in the FortiMonitor report. It is not ideal for showcasing to tech customers or managers, especially when trying to display high CPU usage from logins within a specific range of months or the most recent month."

". Enhancements in the dashboard, such as clearer alerting, maintenance window management, software version tracking, and better visualization, would be beneficial."

"FortiMonitor's monitoring could be much better. It should be like, in Palo Alto."

"FortiMonitor could be improved by making it more convenient for smaller workloads, such as when configuring a few branches."

More FortiMonitor cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing of Accedian Skylight is really good. The sensors are low cost. Their model to analytics for sensors is by license, endpoint, or session. With the probes for their analytics, if they get deployed virtually, they are free. The licensing is only based on flows. So, you can effectively deploy probes everywhere in your network. Then, if you want to look at a specific type of traffic, you can enter into it with a very low cost license. You can just use things like spam ports, mirrors, TAPs, and aggregators to optimize what sort of traffic you send to these analysis tools. Then, if you want to start looking at more, you can up your licensed as you go. You are not getting forced into expensive appliances or subscription models."

"If you look into Riverbed, it's a licensing nightmare. You need to pay for every type of analysis... If you don't look into licensing, Riverbed and SolarWinds are pretty comparable. But if you look into licensing it would not be smart to go for either of them. On the pure, bare-metal basis, it's the same. But when you get the bare metal and a few basic licenses, then you need all those other licenses just to be sure that there's no issue... One of the great things about Skylight is you have them all, and you actually need them all."

"It's not for free, clearly. But on the other hand, it offers very interesting functionality. We pay around €100,000."

"Pricing is a little bit expensive."

"It provides value and the cost is not huge."

"The solution was previously well-regarded, but after being acquired by Accedian, the prices have significantly increased. This has made it challenging to sell the product due to its high cost. It is an expensive solution."

"The pricing is cheaper than other competing products, which is better for our budgets."

"The price is competitive overall, depending on the type of customer."

More Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance pricing and cost advice

"Compared to other solutions, FortiMonitor is a very expensive solution."

"On a scale from one to ten, I rate the pricing a nine since it is a good solution that is available at a cheap price."

"We have a large customer base for Fortinet, and the additional buying power got us really great discounts."

"In terms of licensing, while it may not be the most expensive option on the market, it's relatively cost-effective. You can obtain licenses at a lower cost, with the calculation being straightforward. For example, if you onboard around 5,000 devices, you'll need approximately 5,000 licenses, as each device typically counts as one license."

"There are additional costs needed for certain functionality, such as scalability."

"FortiMonitor's price is very high."

"The price of FortiMonitor is approximately $200 annually for 225 users. The price is competitive."

"The tool's pricing model in Vietnam is a bit high. I rate the product price as an eight out of ten."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

39%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Government

Computer Software Company

29%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Accedian Skylight?

Human resource costs can be high when dealing with connection issues. I require more tools to file and resolve these issues efficiently.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Accedian Skylight?

I had prepared for COC and the client. I work as a vendor for a client using Flow Mount for network performance monitoring. I focus on resolving client-side issues related to Packy Performance and ...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Accedian Skylight?

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

See all answers

What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

I have a clear bias because I work for Panopta. We aren't a fit for everyone, but I can confirm that Panopta is a lot less work to stand up and maintain. It's also a lot easier to use and onboard n...

See all answers

What do you like most about FortiMonitor?

In FortiMonitor, we're linked up with our Netgear, CactusServer, and NOC. It's really valuable because everything's migrating to one dashboard for us system engineers. We can keep an eye on traffic...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for FortiMonitor?

FortiMonitor does save time but not significantly on costs, as there are still expenses related to procurement, installation, and licensing.

See all answers

Comparisons

ThousandEyes vs Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

Compared 43% of the time

SolarWinds NPM vs Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

Compared 15% of the time

NETSCOUT nGeniusONE vs Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

Compared 11% of the time

Dynatrace vs Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

Compared 9% of the time

Zabbix vs Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance Competitors

ThousandEyes vs FortiMonitor

Compared 21% of the time

Datadog vs FortiMonitor

Compared 19% of the time

SolarWinds Network Device Monitor vs FortiMonitor

Compared 17% of the time

Zabbix vs FortiMonitor

Compared 15% of the time

PRTG Network Monitor vs FortiMonitor

Compared 10% of the time

More FortiMonitor Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance

May 2025

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance report

Download Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance product report

Buyer's Guide

Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM)

April 2025

Download FortiMonitor product report

Also Known As

Accedian Skylight, Accedian SkyLIGHT PVX, SkyLIGHT PVX, SecurActive, Performance Vision

Panopta

Overview

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance offers real-time application and network performance monitoring, VPN management, and network diagnostics across multiple sites.

Organizations use Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance for active and passive monitoring, stress testing, and troubleshooting performance issues. Deployed both on-premise and in the cloud, it supports IT infrastructure, security, and analytics with end-to-end performance measurement across cloud data centers. The modern, intuitive interface features TWAMP for real-time traffic accuracy and standardized reports, along with insightful dashboards for circuit performance, latency, jitter, and throughput monitoring.

What are the most important features?

TWAMP: Provides real-time traffic accuracy and standardized reporting.
Insightful Dashboards: Monitor circuit performance, latency, jitter, and throughput.
Security Integration: Compatible with tools like Splunk for enhanced security.
Application Support: Facilitates comprehensive network performance analysis.

What benefits or ROI should users look for in reviews?

Quick Corrective Actions: Immediate response capabilities for performance issues.
Easy Navigation: User-friendly layouts simplify monitoring and troubleshooting.
Comprehensive Analytics: Advanced tools for in-depth network performance insights.
Cloud and On-Premise Options: Flexible deployment to meet different needs.

In industries like finance and healthcare, Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance ensures robust performance monitoring and quick diagnostics for VPNs and internet lines. It aids in maintaining the integrity and security of data transference, facilitating active and passive monitoring, stress testing, and performance troubleshooting across geographically dispersed locations, ensuring seamless operation and compliance with industry standards.

Cisco

FortiMonitor is a comprehensive, SaaS-based digital experience monitoring (DEM) platform that helps organizations modernize their performance-monitoring tools. It provides visibility into endpoint application performance and digital experience—no matter where the user resides or where the application is hosted.

Fortinet

Sample Customers

T-Systems, Thomson Reuters, Bordeaux Metropole, CGI, Citadelle Regional Hospital Center, Lorraine Institute of Oncology, Luxembourg Institute of Health, Groupe BPCE, Group S, Splitpoint, Horus-Net, Audatex, Indexis, Province de Liège, EASI, Spie Batignolles, Faymonville

SONY, GoDaddy, HCL, ING, ARMOR, billboard

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs. FortiMonitor

April 2025

Free Report: Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs. FortiMonitor

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Provider Connectivity Assurance vs. FortiMonitor and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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