F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) OverviewUNIXBusinessApplication

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is the #4 ranked solution in top SSL VPN tools, #7 ranked solution in top Network Access Control (NAC) tools, #10 ranked solution in top Remote Access tools, and #12 ranked solution in top Access Management tools. PeerSpot users give F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) an average rating of 8.2 out of 10. F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is most commonly compared to CyberArk Privileged Access Manager: F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs CyberArk Privileged Access Manager. F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 71% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a computer software company, accounting for 14% of all views.
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Download the Network Access Control (NAC) Buyer's Guide including reviews and more. Updated: March 2023

What is F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)?

F5® BIG-IP® Access Policy Manager® (APM) is an access management proxy solution for managing global access to the enterprise networks, cloud providers, applications, and application programming interfaces (APIs). Through a single management interface, BIG-IP APM consolidates remote, mobile, network, virtual, and web access. BIG-IP APM can also serve as a bridge between modern and classic authentication and authorization protocols and methods. For applications which are unable to support modern authentication and authorization protocols, like SAML and OAuth with OIDC, but which do support classic authentication methods, BIG-IP APM converts user credentials to the appropriate authentication standard supported by the application.

Key features of BIG-IP APM are (but not limited to):

• Support for Identity Aware Proxy (IAP) enabling Zero Trust application access
• Context-based authorization with dynamic L4/L7 ACLs
• Integration with third-party MFA solutions
• DTLS 2.0 mode for delivering and securing applications
• SAML 2.0 identity federation support
• Support for OAuth 2.0 authorization protocol
• SSO support for classic authentication (Kerberos, header- based, etc.), credential caching, OAuth 2.0, SAML 2.0, and FIDO2 (U2F)
• AAA server authentication and high-availability
• Integration with leading IAM vendor products (Microsoft, Okta, Ping Identity)
• BIG IP Edge Client and F5 Access integrate with VMware Horizon ONE (AirWatch), Microsoft Intune and IBM MaaS360
• Risk-based access leveraging third-party UEBA and risk engines (HTTP Connector)

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) was previously known as F5 Access Policy Manager.

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) Customers

City Bank, Ricacorp Properties, Miele, American Systems, Bangladesh Post Office

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) Video

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) Reviews

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Sr. Architect at a media company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Great tech support and a straightforward initial setup
Pros and Cons
  • "We have seen a return on investment from F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager. It provided access at a time when we didn't have it."
  • "F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has room for improvement in integration with other products."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use cases of F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager are straightforward for what we wanted to do. 

How has it helped my organization?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has improved our organization by giving us a secure connection for certain types of traffic flows. 

What is most valuable?

The F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager feature I find the most valuable is the login. 

What needs improvement?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has room for improvement in integration with other products. 

Buyer's Guide
Network Access Control (NAC)
March 2023
Find out what your peers are saying about F5, Cisco, Aruba Networks and others in Network Access Control (NAC). Updated: March 2023.
686,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager for eight years. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager is scalable. We have somewhere between six and seven hundred people using it daily. Their roles vary. Some are writers, while others are administrators. It all depends on how we deploy it and who's going to use it. 

The staff required to deploy and maintain F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager is minimal. 

We do potentially have plans to increase usage of the solution. I'm currently investigating other projects that could benefit from it. 

How are customer service and support?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager's technical support is great. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager does the same thing as a firewall would do, so I have used a range of different solutions like it. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward. How long deployment takes depends on the project. It roughly takes about three months for us to hash out everything.

What about the implementation team?

We deployed F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager in-house. 

What was our ROI?

We have seen a return on investment from F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager. It provided access at a time when we didn't have it.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I would prefer not to disclose numbers, but on a scale of one to five, I would give F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager a four for cost. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did not evaluate other options because F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager was integrated with the previous product we were using. 

What other advice do I have?

The advice I would give to others looking to implement F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager is this: do your homework on it to make sure it's going to definitely fit your use case.

On a scale of one to 10, I would give  F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager an eight overall. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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PeerSpot user
Director of consulting at a marketing services firm with 51-200 employees
Real User
Top 20
Reliable, good for portal access, and can expand well
Pros and Cons
  • "The portal access was very good."
  • "The initial setup was complex."

What is our primary use case?

I primarily used the solution for portal access.

It was scalable.

The solution is stable and reliable. 

What is most valuable?

The portal access was very good.

What needs improvement?

The initial setup was complex.

They could do a better job on the reporting and how we can use the data, provide more detail on the reporting logs, and show how we can export them and have graphical views. The reporting doesn't have graphical views, which makes things hard. You have basic reports that you can export, however, it's not that easy to use. The reporting needs to be improved a bit.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used the solution for a couple of years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It was very stable, the solution itself. However, the underlying software, the LTM software, had an issue when we deployed with the failover. The APM itself, the access policy manager, I find the solution a great, great tool. It's very stable. We used it for years and we deployed it for approximately more than 100 applications at the same time which is why it took so long to implement.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

For the organization I was working for, there are different solutions being used. I would say, in terms of the number of users, F5 was around 10,000.

It was scalable enough for our purposes.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I did not use something previously, however, after using this solution I did use a different product.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was not easy. It was pretty complex.

I was the integrator. I worked as an integrator for the solution. I worked as an expert and it still took six to nine months to implement that.

Maintenance requires a team. It's not one person. It's a team that is managing not only APM. They were managing a component like a load balancer. They were managing network components. They were managing many other components. That team was a big team of maybe 15 to 20 people working across different profiles.

What about the implementation team?

I worked as an integrator and would implement the solution for clients.

What other advice do I have?

I’d rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Network Access Control (NAC)
March 2023
Find out what your peers are saying about F5, Cisco, Aruba Networks and others in Network Access Control (NAC). Updated: March 2023.
686,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Engineer at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
Reseller
Top 20
Reliable and scalable but needs better reporting
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is stable and reliable."
  • "The solution is quite costly."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for access management.

What is most valuable?

The solution is stable and reliable.

The scalability is good.

What needs improvement?

The solution is pretty technical.

The initial setup is complex. 

The solution is quite costly.

The solution could offer better reporting.

The management aspect of the solution needs improvement. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for one year. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is stable. I haven't noticed any bugs or glitches and I haven't seen it crash or freeze. It seems to be reliable and the performance is good.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution can scale if a company needs to expand it. It's not a problem.

How are customer service and technical support?

I've been able to work with technical support in the past and I have had positive experiences. When we have issues, they help. We are satisfied with their services. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not very straightforward or easy. It's complex. 

What about the implementation team?

I can handle the initial setup myself. I do not need the assistance of an integrator or consultant. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is expensive. It's not a cheap product.

You do need to pay extra for certain features and services. 

What other advice do I have?

Our company didn't use F5 ourselves, however, we sell F5 products. We're resellers.

Overall, I would rate the solution at a seven out of ten.

I'd recommend this solution to other users and companies. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: reseller
PeerSpot user
Senior Solution Consultant at Macroview Telecom Limited
Consultant
Top 20
Useful for remote access VPN and VPI integration with VMware
Pros and Cons
  • "The performance of the solution is valuable."
  • "The operational deployment is not great."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for this solution is remote access VPN and VPI integration with VMware, and we deploy the solution on-premises.

What is most valuable?

The performance of the solution is valuable.

What needs improvement?

The operational deployment is not great and can be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using the solution for approximately five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. Approximately 1,000 users are utilizing the solution.

How are customer service and support?

We have had a good experience with customer service and support. I rate them a ten out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We previously used Cisco ASA and House CCure. We chose to switch to this solution based on our company's needs.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a nine out of ten, and I recommend it. The solution is good, but its functionality start offering can be improved.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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PeerSpot user
Clyde Livingston - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Process Specialist at Telstra
Real User
Top 20
Easy to use, useful access remotely, but lacking stability
Pros and Cons
  • "F5 BIG-IP APM is relatively easy to use."
  • "F5 BIG-IP APM disconnects when you leave it for long enough, but that is natural for IT solutions to do. That's a little bit frustrating."

What is our primary use case?

I use F5 BIG-IP APM to connect to my company's private network and access the tools that I need.

What is most valuable?

F5 BIG-IP APM is relatively easy to use. 

What needs improvement?

F5 BIG-IP APM disconnects when you leave it for long enough, but that is natural for IT solutions to do. That's a little bit frustrating.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) for approximately a year and a half.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability of the F5 BIG-IP APM could be better.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

F5 BIG-IP APM is used within our company and we have approximately 17,000 employees.

How are customer service and support?

I have contacted the support of F5 BIG-IP APM for the initial setup only.

What other advice do I have?

I rate F5 BIG-IP APM a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Network Access Control (NAC) Report and find out what your peers are saying about F5, Cisco, Aruba Networks, and more!
Updated: March 2023
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Network Access Control (NAC) Report and find out what your peers are saying about F5, Cisco, Aruba Networks, and more!