Group CEO at Mmusi Group
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Quick deployment, exceptional support, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is scalable, our customers are mostly South African banks and they handle mostly transactions with this solution."

    What is our primary use case?

    IBM DataPower Gateway helps to provide security and control integration.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have used IBM DataPower Gateway within the last 12 months.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The solution is scalable, our customers are mostly South African banks and they handle mostly transactions with this solution.

    How are customer service and support?

    The support for IBM DataPower Gateway has been exceptional.

    They help you depending on your severity and how you log the ticket. If it's a Tier-1 support ticket then it will get their attention. Or you can send it to your account manager for the relevant accounts to receive the help, or you escalate the ticket and you receive extra attention. They help you resolve the problem as they arise. Support with IBM and Microsoft have been more or less identical. You can receive the help you need as long as you know how to start.

    Buyer's Guide
    IBM DataPower Gateway
    March 2024
    Learn what your peers think about IBM DataPower Gateway. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    How was the initial setup?

    The implementation of IBM DataPower Gateway was very quick.

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

    BM DataPower Gateway is a great solution but when based on utilizations in the different streams others feel that this is an expensive product for one simple use case. They can achieve the same result with something cheaper.

    Most customers' use case budgets are not inlined with the price of IBM DataPower Gateway. It is too expensive.

    What other advice do I have?

    The previous CIO in IBM wanted to move away from DataPower Gateway. We are currently using ACE Platform because it does the bulk of the workload and Connect Direct. IBM was wondering why they were having IBM DataPower Gateway if they also have Connect Direct to do file transfers. They are currently re-evaluating the situation.

    I would recommend the solution to others.

    I rate IBM DataPower Gateway a nine out of ten.

    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: Partner
    PeerSpot user
    Essam Younis - PeerSpot reviewer
    SOA & BP Technical Manager at EJADA
    Real User
    Top 20Leaderboard
    Resilient high availability, easy to use, easy to install, with the best security platform available
    Pros and Cons
    • "It is easy to use, easy to install, and it's resilient for high availability."
    • "In the next release, I would like to see the product price reduced. It should be cheaper."

    What is most valuable?

    The appliance version is one of the top, most powerful products on the market.

    The most valuable features of this solution are the appliance hardware, the software embedded within the hardware appliance machine.

    This is one of the best security platforms in the market. 

    It is easy to use, easy to install, and it's resilient for high availability.

    What needs improvement?

    In the next release, I would like to see the product price reduced. It should be cheaper.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We have been implementing IBM DataPower Gateway for more than 10 years.

    We are using the latest version.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It's a stable solution.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It is a scalable product.

    This is a supported gateway. It does not have front end users. It has a number of transactions. You compare the number of transactions, for the development and product utilization.

    We have plans to continue using it in the future.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    It depends on the level of contact between you and the customer, as well as the level of severity of the ticket. If you have a critical severity, you get an excellent response. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward. It is easy to install.

    If it is an appliance, just plug and play, and to configure the network connectivity it'll take a maximum of one day.

    If it is the software it'll take a maximum of about one day.

    You only need one person to maintain this solution.

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

    It's expensive when you compare it with others. If you are going with the software then you can get a good deal, but the appliance version is expensive.

    Customers have to pay for licensing.

    What other advice do I have?

    Definitely, I would recommend this solution to others.

    I would rate IBM DataPower Gateway a ten out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Hybrid Cloud
    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Implementer
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    IBM DataPower Gateway
    March 2024
    Learn what your peers think about IBM DataPower Gateway. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
    765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Minar Baddireddi - PeerSpot reviewer
    Datapower Specialist at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
    Real User
    Top 10Leaderboard
    An easy-to-use solution for security purposes that is stable
    Pros and Cons
    • "The product is stable...The product is scalable."
    • "It is a costly product."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are using the solution for security purposes.

    How has it helped my organization?

    The solution's security feature is its most valuable feature.

    What needs improvement?

    It is a costly product. So, it is not an open-source solution, making it costly.

    In the future, I would like to see an open-source version.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using IBM DataPower Gateway since 2018. Also, I am using IBM DataPower Gateway Firmware V7.2. I am an end user of the solution.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The product is stable.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The product is scalable. In m company, six people are using the solution. I don't know if my company is planning to increase usage in the future.

    How are customer service and support?

    I rate IBM's technical support an eight out of ten.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    How was the initial setup?

    I don't know. I think I'm not suitable to speak about deployment because I am using the solution that was already deployed in my company.

    The installation is easy, especially on VMware.

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

    I didn't pay for the product. I worked in a company where we were using the tool.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?


    What other advice do I have?

    The product is easy to use.

    I rate the overall solution a nine 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.
    PeerSpot user
    CTO & Application Infrastructure Manager at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    Robust, good tools that make it easy to work with and install
    Pros and Cons
    • "What I like most is the stability."
    • "The two biggest issues of this solution are the complexity and the maintenance procedures."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use this solution for exposing services to our partners.

    What is most valuable?

    What I like most is the stability.

    What needs improvement?

    There is quite a lot that needs improvement. It's a very complex product and it takes time to get to control it and to know it. It's all about gaining knowledge in it.

    Also, the maintenance procedure of the physical machines and physical appliances is quite complicated, and there are some issues with it. Sometimes, when we deal with the maintenance process because the machine isn't booting, it comes down to working with support in the middle of the night.

    The two biggest issues of this solution are the complexity and the maintenance procedures.

    In the next release, I would like to see it easier to deeply, easier automated processes, easier maintenance, easier control, better monitoring, and I would like the information or knowledge documentation to be more accessible.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been working with IBM DataPower Gateway for six years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Its stability is one of the best features.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    We have a pretty low load. We have not had to scale it.

    We have quite a few users in our organizations.

    We don't have plans to increase usage in DataPower, only with IBM API Connect.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    We don't have local support, we are in Isreal and it takes longer.

    Technical support needs improvement. It is not always easy to connect with them.

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

    We are also using IBM API Connect.

    The differences are the portal and standards.

    DataPower is a bit easier to work with. Also the analytics. 

    It has a set of tools that make life easier when it comes to developing APIs.

    How was the initial setup?

    It's very straightforward. It has no automation and no modern tools to make it possible to develop quickly and to deploy it quickly. It's pretty much old-school.

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

    The licensing cost is very expensive.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    Other options were considered, but approximately three years ago, I reconsidered and decided to proceed with IBM.

    What other advice do I have?

    I would recommend working on the physical appliance and not the virtual one. Consider the licensing aspect, and try to evaluate it three to five years ahead.

    Also, look closely at the competition as there are now quite a few good competitors, and make sure the features suit you best.

    I would rate IBM DataPower Gateway an 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.
    PeerSpot user
    Founder, Director at perfTech Solutions Pvt Ltd
    Real User
    Top 5Leaderboard
    Is easy to implement, maintain, and scale, and does not need a separate DMC proxy
    Pros and Cons
    • "You don't have to have a separate DMC proxy because DataPower Gateway is an appliance and will take care of a lot of security features. These include data validations, encryption, as well as XML or any type of scripting or security threats that are present."
    • "The user interface or the application development perspective and customization of the tool could be a little better."

    What is our primary use case?

    We have a global banking customer who uses IBM DataPower Gateway to expose their APIs for customer use.

    What is most valuable?

    You don't have to have a separate DMC proxy because DataPower Gateway is an appliance and will take care of a lot of security features. These include data validations, encryption, as well as XML or any type of scripting or security threats that are present.

    From a security point of view, being an appliance in the DMC zone, IBM DataPower Gateway will take care of the entire security angle for the infrastructure.

    What needs improvement?

    The user interface or the application development perspective and customization of the tool could be a little better.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've been using this product for more than five years now.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It is stable, and the performance is good as well.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It is easy to scale as the product itself has the capability to install it as a cluster. So it can be scaled vertically or horizontally.

    We have a team of about 10 developers and 10 to 15 enterprise customers globally.

    How are customer service and support?

    For this particular product, the technical support is good.

    I would give them an eight out of ten because there are some stability issues related to new features that have been added. They could have tested them and released them later rather than releasing them right now.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is pretty straightforward because it's an appliance, so you don't have much complexity from an installation and configuration perspective. I would give the setup process a five out of five.

    What about the implementation team?

    We implemented it in-house. It hardly takes any time; perhaps a day or two.

    The only maintenance you need to be worried about is upgrading the patches, and you need to make sure that you apply those on time. We have two people who are responsible for the maintenance and administration.

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

    This product is a bit expensive as IBM products are costly assets. However, for enterprise customers it is a worthwhile investment.

    The licensing cost is based on the PVU and will depend upon the number of CPUs used for the virtual appliances.

    If you are buying the license based on the PVUs, then you won't have any additional costs because all of the features will be available. However, if you are not going with the product with the PVU and you're going with certain features, then you will need to add those features, specifically security features, and pay for them. That is, there are certain features that are on a pay-per-feature basis if you are not going with a PVU license.

    I would give pricing a rating of three out of five.

    What other advice do I have?

    If you are an enterprise customer, I would definitely advise that it is better to go for IBM DataPower. You won't need to have a proxy or any other security measures required in the DMC, and it is easy to implement and easy to maintain and scale.

    Overall, I would rate IBM DataPower Gateway at ten out of ten.

    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: Partner
    PeerSpot user
    Senior Solutions Architect at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    Efficient error handling features, but scalability needs improvement
    Pros and Cons
    • "Its initial setup was straightforward."
    • "They should improve the solution's clustering features."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use the solution specifically for its token validation and error-handling features.

    What needs improvement?

    They should improve the solution's clustering features. Also, they should include algorithms for correct load balancing. In addition, they should provide integration with MQ logs. We require proper documentation to understand the solution's parameters as well.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using the solution for two years.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The solution's scalability needs improvement.

    How was the initial setup?

    The solution's initial setup was straightforward.

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

    It is an expensive solution.

    What other advice do I have?

    I rate the solution as an eight. 

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Private Cloud
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Yapı Kredi şirketinde Application Infrastructure Manager at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    A robust solution with good security and troubleshooting features
    Pros and Cons
    • "The solution is robust."
    • "For the workloads that are not too high, appliance is a little bit expensive."

    What is our primary use case?

    Initially, we used IBM DataPower XI52, but have since switched versions. The operating system versions were different. We are using the appliance version.

    We primarily use the solution for the integration and security gateway for opening the services outside company.

    What is most valuable?

    The solution is robust. We use the appliance version, which comes with good security features and trouble shooting tools. So, we are happy with the IBM DataPower. We are currently evaluating the CA product, especially as it concerns the API management. As such, we may choose to use the API management modules of the CA Gateway.

    What needs improvement?

    For the workloads that are not too high, appliance is a little bit expensive. This is especially true in the development test and UAT environment, in which we can use the virtual version of the product. For live environments, we can continue to use the appliances. 

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We have been using IBM DataPower Gateway for eight years.

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

    The appliance is a bit on the expensive side for the workloads that are not too high. This is especially true in the development test and UAT environment.

    What other advice do I have?

    Improvements have already been made to the solution. For example, we wish to use the virtual version of the DataPower next year and will likely do so with all of our applications within a few years.

    When it comes to the deployment, we use the appliance version of the product with IBM DataPower. Yet, with other applications, are cloud-based. 

    I rate IBM DataPower Gateway as a nine out of ten. 

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Middleware Applications Specialist at a pharma/biotech company with 5,001-10,000 employees
    Real User
    Good control over incoming messages, with a helpful knowledge center and user community
    Pros and Cons
    • "It can look for the various security threats, productions, payload scanning, and perform routing based on the content type."
    • "Some pre-packaged connectors for integration with various applications, such as SaaS offerings, would be a useful addition."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are using it for reinforcing data security policies, routing, and doing B2B transactions. There's more B2B as well as the ESB, the enterprise service bus.

    What is most valuable?

    This is a Gateway application provided by IBM. You have a lot of controls over the messages coming in, and how you can ensure these conform to your standards.

    It can look for the various security threats, productions, payload scanning, and perform routing based on the content type.

    You have various business to business integrations and mappings.

    What needs improvement?

    It would be great if the CI/CI and DevOps components were part of this offering.

    Having some pre-packaged proposals or integration solutions would be helpful, like many of the iPass providers are now supplying.

    Some pre-packaged connectors for integration with various applications, such as SaaS offerings, would be a useful addition.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We have been working with the IBM DataPower Gateway for approximately seven years.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    With respect to scalability, the new IDG X2 appliances come with a lot of power inside these appliances so you won't have any issues. It comes with a 24-core machine, which should be powerful enough for your workloads.

    We are using the on-premises, hardware application, so scalability comes at a cost. It means that you will need to install another application and another appliance.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    We have been in contact with technical support and they are pretty quick. IBM has the proper support portals. The knowledge center and user community are up to date.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward. It is well-documented in the IBM Knowledge Center.

    Deployment takes between two and three hours for each appliance.

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

    The cost of this product varies from customer to customer and the relationship with IBM, including how many offerings from IBM are already being used.

    What other advice do I have?

    I recommend this solution. It is a good security application and it incorporates integrations and the latest security controls that are available in the market.

    I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free IBM DataPower Gateway Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: March 2024
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free IBM DataPower Gateway Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.