Ruckus Wireless Reviews

We are a Credit Union with over 100 employees. We utilize the Ruckus Virtual SmartZone appliance and about 25 R600 access points to provide a secure wireless solution across five branch locations. The Ruckus solution is used as a guest network for third-party vendors while onsite, as well as by staff members to access corporate data.

With a quality enterprise wireless solution, our employees are more mobile than ever. They experience significantly better performance at longer ranges with the R500 access points, compared with our previous wireless solution. Information Technology staff can quickly issue guest passes for vendors and the instructions are very straightforward, requiring very little effort to get connected.

Our staff maintain a wide gamut of products and we needed a wireless solution that works reliably and has all of the features we needed (walled garden, client isolation, 802.1x with dynamic VLAN, guest passes, etc.) at a cost that wouldn’t break the bank (literally). The quality of the hardware and low cost of maintenance are primary driving factors, and Ruckus exceeds in this space by providing great hardware and a low annual operating expense. 

The Virtual SmartZone appliance is easy to use and quick to deploy, which helps to ensure our staff is focused on actionable results instead of constantly fiddling with wireless configuration or contacting support to resolve troublesome issues.

While the Virtual SmartZone appliance has improved in the last few years, it isn’t without issue and the performance of the Web page leaves something to be desired.

Additionally, Ruckus seems to have removed the built-in help from the appliance, urging the user to log on to the support web site to obtain it. This is simply a nuisance if one wishes to look up what a particular field on the configuration page does, for example.

We are using Ruckus Wireless in different Zomato corporate offices (restaurant search and discovery service). We are using ZoneDirector 1200 and ZoneDirector 3000 with ruckus APs (R600, R700, R300).

Before Ruckus we had to buy additional devices for client performance and monitoring, but now we can do all such monitoring and improve our client performance.

• Integrated WiFi client performance tools
• Sophisticated user access controls
• Easy and understandable controls and interfaces

APs should be more adaptable to denser client regions and, most important, the logs on the ZoneDirector should be classified into groups, such as type of logs and alerts.

We are a Ruckus Big Dog reseller. We sell and install into small retail shops that want to market their free public WiFi hotspot, manufacturing environments where new obstacles are constantly introduced, offices that need LAN-like WiFi, hotels, and event centers that need high capacity installations with 200-500 people per AP.

It requires very little maintenance (unlike competitive products we have sold) and provides a consistently great WiFi environment.

BeamFlex works great in changing environments by bouncing WiFi signals around obstacles.

They need more products in the lower-end range for smaller clients.

Very stable. We have this in very dense environments (like stadiums and manufacturing floors). The only issue we had is that Apple devices hate band-steering so you should setup separate 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz SSIDs.

No issues with scalability. The product scales very well and eliminates co-channel interference. Very easy to add licenses to the controller to scale larger or add redundant controllers.

Technical support is about a seven out of 10.  Not bad, but not wow. Better than most. We don’t need support often.

• Cisco enterprise - expensive and complicated, more APs needed to cover an area.
• HPE Colubris - unreliable.

Pretty straightforward, if you know what you’re doing with wireless. The only thing that is tricky is understanding that the controller does not get installed on a trunk port (different than most other solutions).

Pricing is very competitive for an enterprise solution. 

Licensing: Always carry the support contract on the controller (not needed on APs).

Just about everything out there. It was between Ruckus and Aerohive, but ultimately, Ruckus BeamFlex performed better with our testing (fewer APs needed, worked around obstacles in changing warehouse environments, supported high density).

It's a very good product, excellent technology that requires fewer access points than competitors, it's easy to manage, and cost competitive (compared with other enterprise WiFi solutions).

Try it by using the virtual controller or the unleashed product (controller equivalent on an AP).

I was an executive with a managed services company specializing in high density WiFi deployments. We designed, installed, and managed wired and wireless networks primarily in student housing environments. This included apartment style housing and dormitory housing. Many of our installations were cinder block and steel constructions with known WiFi inhibitors.

As a tech company, we used Ruckus in our own internal system which resulted in 100% up time on our network. This ensured our Internet service was always up, allowing us to serve our customers 24/7.

Reliability. We rarely had access points fail in the field. They were rock solid, durable, and had the best signal penetration from any we tested.

The cost can be prohibitive for many as it is a high-end product in the WiFi market.

We thoroughly tested every wireless access point on the market to ensure the success of our deployments. We intentionally selected Ruckus Wireless as our product of choice due to its robust capabilities, antennae array, ZoneDirector controller system, and support. While they were not the cheapest products on the market, they were ideally designed for the harsh WiFi conditions in which we needed them to function.

We are in the wireless ISP business. Among others, we deploy Ruckus Wireless equipment on several sites of our backbone and backhaul network. Performance and quality of Ruckus Wireless APs and switches is more than satisfying.   

• Tremendous throughput and easy installation, configuration, and monitoring.
• Comprehensive availability and performance of monitoring and reporting for WISP network monitor.
• Analyzes real-time, in-depth network performance.

Wi-Fi with more than basic connectivity to improve operational efficiency and engage customers. The Ruckus Location-Based Services (LBS) Solution is the highlight that enables businesses to enhance the way of interaction with their customers on the basis of precise location.

I would like to see more detailed network performance, monitoring, and reporting tools or information. This would improve the deployment of multi-site networks and help administrators to progress on a timely efficient manner.

There is some strain with Ruckus because of various buyouts involving the company used for data centers and the cluster.

I don't have any problems or improvements to suggest for this solution. I would rate it as nine out of ten.

We primarily use the solution for wireless connectivity.

The solution has many innovative features. 

The stability is good.

We find the implementation process simple and straightforward.

The performance and connectivity are good.

Technical support has been really bad since Ruckus was acquired by another company.

The pricing needs to be more clear and licensing could be less expensive. 

We've been using the solution for more than five years. It's been a while. 

The solution is stable. There are no issues with bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable. 

We have more than ten customers on Ruckus currently.

Since Ruckus was acquired, I have heard that support is not as good. Even as integrators, we couldn't get the support we needed. Therefore, we've started to move away from this product.

We've worked with Cisco, Aruba, and Huawei as well. We have system integrators for all these three solutions. We also have used it in our offices.

As integrators, we have to know how to install it, and about configuration, as well as how to handle portal access and everything. We have to install it in our own organization first before putting it in the customer space. That's why we have the capabilities to implement it and it's not too hard for us.

It was a straightforward installation. Actually, other than Ruckus, all other installations are a little bit tricky. Ruckus was really good when I installed it five years back. Recently, if you go for Cisco or even Aruba and Huawei, they have some tricky configurations. With a controller, there is a different configuration. If you wanted to use it as a standalone solution, there is a different configuration as well.

Specifically, Cisco is very bad when it comes to installations. It can take three to seven days to sort out issues, to convert to emails, and to put in a support request, then they will help and everything. Though you will get good support from Cisco support, the process is not good. Aruba is definitely good. Ruckus is the easiest.

We have 4% of our team dedicated to Wi-Fi and Network. We that three engineers, that include me, plus a manager.

As implementors, we are able to help our clients with the initial setup.

After all of the acquisitions and mergers, the pricing has been a bit of a mess. They need to work to fix it.

There are no subscription fees for Ruckus.

We are integrators.

We are using the latest version of the solution. 

Laptops and phones, all kinds of wireless devices, are at every office these days. Having a Wi-Fi network is really important. You need it as well to connect to meetings and IoT solutions.

Due to evolving technologies in Wi-Fi, we are now getting more than one GBPS throughput. Even on the LAN, for accessing the applications, having something that can increase or guarantee connectivity is crucial.

Ruckus, as a company, offers an absolute good product. The features they came up with weren't even offered by Cisco. The performance that we were getting made it so that we have replaced Cisco in a number of use cases. However, once support dropped off, we started to shift to Huawei and back to Cisco. We also occasionally work with Aruba.

I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten. It's the best solution on the market.

However, due to the issues surrounding support, I would not necessarily recommend Ruckus. I'd likely recommend Aruba, which is also quite good. Aruba has very good support. They have very good access points and different models with different licenses. Overall, it is really good.

The initial setup is pretty straightforward. Typically, the customer has the know-how to configure and put the products up by themselves. It's a pretty straightforward process.

When we buy this product for our customers, we have noted in the past that this product has an excellent signal.  

Ruckus is a bad solution in general. It's pretty old and outdated.

When the customer wants to change that technology of the AP from the solution of old technology to new technology, they need to change the controller and the AP, and this is the point that tends to break the solution. It's hard to update.

We also work with Cisco and Aruba. We offer all three to our clients and they tend to choose which one they want to work with, or which has the best price point for them.

The initial setup is very easy and most customers handle it themselves. They can do the setup and configuration as it is not overly complex or difficult.

Typically, the client handles the implementation themselves, however, we can assist as necessary.

The customers don't seem to mind the cost of the solution. Typically they decide to go with it based on the cost.

We're partners and resellers. We used to have a relationship with Ruckus, however, it was purchased by Broadcom, and we don't have any business relationship with them.

It's important for us to present to our customer with some options. However, normally, our customers have a specific budget. In this case, we only move with the needs of our customers. In terms of Meraki, Ruckus, Aruba, et cetera, all work fine. We don't have problems. We don't have interference, or need a box reset, or face other kinds of problems.

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