VMware SD-WAN Reviews

It is a valuable solution for organizations facing the challenge of managing networks across multiple locations. Its centralized console allows for easy network administration, addressing the complexity of handling numerous devices across various sites.

The centralized management proves economically efficient, making it a cost-effective choice for businesses.

One of the standout features is its ability to dynamically manage enterprise networks based on applications. Through application-based routing, organizations can efficiently direct traffic over multiple links. The solution incorporates features like link steering and forward error correction to ensure robust network performance. The seamless integration offered by VMware SD-WAN positions it as a versatile solution for evolving IT landscapes. It facilitates VPN connectivity without vendor restrictions, allowing organizations to establish VPN connections through any vendor. This flexibility eliminates the limitations associated with specific VPN protocols, offering a more adaptable solution. In the context of multi-tenancy, VMware SD-WAN stands out as a cloud-based, multi-tenant solution, catering to the needs of service providers looking to offer services to smaller customers.

There might be potential enhancements in better integration with other platforms, increased stability, and heightened security.

I have been working with it for a year.

The solution exhibits high stability; I would rate it up to nine out of ten.

The key strength of this solution lies in its scalability, especially as a cloud-based solution. In contrast to on-premise solutions where scalability often involves device replacement, cloud-based solutions provide a highly scalable infrastructure.

Setting up the system is extremely straightforward and efficient. The process is designed to be user-friendly, requiring minimal time and expertise.

The deployment process involves several steps. First, we'll configure and create profiles, segments, firewall rules, and network services within VMware VeloCloud's orchestrated unit. This configuration is profile-based, allowing us to set up and define parameters in advance. Upon registering the device with the cloud, we can pre-configure profiles. Once the device is active, it connects to the cloud, automatically downloading all the necessary configurations. Getting a site up and running typically takes just a day. The entire process is designed to be profile-centric, simplifying the management and customization of configurations. For enterprises and service providers, considering the scale and complexity, it is advisable to hire subject matter experts (SMEs) or consultants to ensure a smoother and more proficient implementation process.

If you're a service provider or managing a large enterprise, I highly recommend considering VMware, a leader in virtualization. Their cloud-based solutions, particularly in virtualization and software-defined networking, are top-notch. Overall, I would rate it nine out of ten.

Our customers are using VMware SD-WAN based on their specific requirements. One of the main use cases is for WAN connectivity and disaster recovery connections. They need secure connections and database synchronization between primary sites and disaster recovery sites. That's why we introduced VMware SD-WAN.

We primarily deal with VMware SD-WAN, and we handle services, configurations, and technicalities related to it. Our customers are quite satisfied with VMware SD-WAN, and they haven't encountered any problems. The operations are running smoothly.

One of the main reasons customers appreciate VMware SD-WAN is its comprehensive set of features. It covers network software services, starting from the underlying hardware and creating a virtualized network overlay. As a result, many customers find VMware SD-WAN to be highly beneficial for their networking needs.

VMware SD-WAN Orchestrator provides centralized enterprise-level installation, configuration, and real-time monitoring. Additionally, data flows through the cloud network, enhancing performance. The solution offers simplified operations with RapidZERO Touch provisioning and cloud management, optimizing application performance.

Security is one area where the solution is comfortable and reliable for us, especially in managing on-prem and cloud adoptions and accelerating performance through bandwidth optimization. So, it's very beneficial for us. 

There is room for improvement in the pricing. 

Another area of improvement is in terms of security. It could be better. 

Approximately, I have been working with VMware SD-WAN for the last few months. I don't have the exact timeframe since I'm new, but I know that my company has sold a significant number of SD-WAN solutions.

The stability is a hundred percent. It is a stable solution. 

Most customers are satisfied with the scalability. So it seems to be quite manageable and without problems as of now.

Most of our customers are SMBs. 

Customer service and support are good. If a customer needs support, they can open a support case through the Customer Connect portal. Our team will then work with the customer, discuss the issues, and collaborate with VMware engineers to address and resolve the problems.

Positive

The initial setup is not troublesome at all. The initial configuration and deployment are quite easy. There haven't been any issues with deployment and configuration.

We have a dedicated implementation team that takes care of deploying the solution for various events, including cloud-related setups.

For the deployment of virtualized networks, storage of servers, and clouds, we usually have a team of 10 to 15 engineers involved, so it's a collaborative effort.

The pricing can vary depending on the features and the cloud resources utilized. It may seem a bit costly when considering cloud resources, but in terms of quality and configurations, it offers significant value compared to other products.

There are additional costs to the standard license because the licensing model can vary based on the customer's deployment and preferences.

For example, there may be additional costs depending on the customer's requirements. If a customer needs 24/7 support or other specific features, we will tailor the solution accordingly to fulfill their design and requirements.

VMware SD-WAN offers competitive features and benefits for various requirements. It is especially effective for customer branch offices, remote offices, and scenarios where seamless connectivity is crucial for voice and video-sensitive applications like Salesforce, Google Mail, AWS, and Office 365. The product is highly customizable and can provide a solid foundation for networking needs.

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

VMware SD-WAN can be deployed on the cloud and on-premise. We use Microsoft and AWS as our cloud services.

The most valuable feature of VMware SD-WAN is the virtualization platform. You can use the software on any hardware. Additionally, the solution is easy to use.

VMware SD-WAN can improve on the security features.

In a future release, VMware SD-WAN could improve by adding a VPN without IPsec.

I have been using VMware SD-WAN for approximately three years.

VMware SD-WAN is a stable solution.

The scalability of VMware SD-WAN is good.

We have under 100 people using the solution in my organization.

We have vendor support from VMware SD-WAN and the service they provide is of a medium level.

Neutral

The initial setup of VMware SD-WAN is straightforward. The time it took to implement took weeks. We tried to implement the solution slowly and securely over time.

We did the implementation of VMware SD-WAN in-house.

We have approximately 10 to 15 people that maintain and support the solution.

The return on investment has not been achieved. It is taking longer than anticipated.

The solution's price combines the license and the bandwidth you used.

I rate the cost of VMware SD-WAN a four out of five.

My advice to others is that not every SD-WAN solution fits every customer or requirement. If the requirements work with the solution, I would recommend using VMware SD-WAN. It's a good solution.

I rate VMware SD-WAN an eight out of ten.

Initially, we had a scattered environment, but VMware SD-WAN helped us achieve centralization, which was beneficial.

I liked the stability and performance, as it facilitated different types of work under one centralized unit.

It made the event deployment easier and allowed us to see the centralization process of all virtualization places. It had a positive and real-time impact on our business and provided a centralized view.

Better price model would be appreciated.

I have been using it for two years. It's version 6.0.

The stability was 100%. It is a stable solution.

There are around six users in my organization using the solution. 

The initial setup was easy. Not complex.

It is expensive. It is a yearly payment. I would recommend opting for a quarterly license model. 

I would definitely recommend using the solution. I would rate the solution a seven out of ten. 

Our main use cases have been for customers who have been traditionally using MPLS lines and are now moving into a lot more SaaS-based applications to transform the WAN infrastructure. A lot of our customers have end-of-life, end-of-support devices on the WAN and they are always looking for doing RFPs on cutting edge technology. Some of them happen to use a lot of VMware and Cisco portfolios in their data centers and they are constantly trying to see what solution fits best for them.

VMware has been chosen by many of our customers who do not want to do a lot of complex routing in their environment and want a very easy-to-use solution. The most valuable features are simple troubleshooting, Dynamic Multipath Optimization (DMPO), and cybersecurity. 

DMPO is a technology that is similar to a proprietary technology that VMware has. Customers probably do not understand too much about it in detail but they know about the benefits of it in general. What it does is constantly monitors all different areas, such as latency, jitter bandwidth, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. It makes sure that if there is a case where there is a networking jitter contained in the link, it figures out how to maneuver your traffic elsewhere. This is all done automatically without customers getting slowed down on those poor links. The customers do not want to spend too much time researching these complex technologies which VMware automatically takes care of them. It benefits many IT teams by taking a lot of the burden away who are constantly juggling a hundred different other things as well.

The cybersecurity component is very important. VMware also has a lot of security components embedded into the SD-WAN, especially with the traditionally SD-WAN, and now a lot more integration through secure access with partnerships companies, such as Zscaler and other SaaS-based solutions. VMware has a lot of portfolios within themselves that can support many security use cases and if they cannot they have partnerships with industry leaders who can. For example, the Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solutions through the Zscaler partnerships can help customers who want to move from traditional VPN solutions towards ZTNA based ones.

Overall as an experience, I have found that customers like the UI/UX experience that they receive from VMware.

There are customers that have very large routing and segmentation operations who do a lot of segmentation within their network and have complex routing requirements. VMware does not provide the facilities in terms of doing a lot of operations with routing tables, such as complex routing policies. It is more about that out-of-pocket experience that customers get out of VMware. There are other technologies for this type of use case from solutions, such as Versa or other WANs. These are for customers who are wanting to maneuver or configure things themselves, similar to DIY solutions, for them going to technologies, for instance from Versa, makes much more sense because they can do a lot more with routing, complex segmentation, and complex configurations. For customers who have complex service provider requirements, VMware and other solutions cannot support a lot of those use cases.

In an upcoming release, they should allow customers the flexibility to use mobile applications where they can go and check on the information about their networks. A lot of vendors, such as Meraki, have a lot more integration with the use of portals to a mobile application. Having this feature as an alternative to logging into a laptop would be beneficial. If you are a SaaS-based company why not make a mobile application as well. You might not be able to do configurations but at least monitor while away or on vacation.

I have been using this solution for approximately four years.

The software itself is very stable which our customers really like. They do not want to have buggy software or problems. I see the customers choose VMware over others and over time because of positive experiences with use cases, it becomes a trusted vendor and they tend to trust in the name as a brand in the future.

IT vendors are getting much more stable with the code, but nowadays everybody has more attention towards SaaS technology. Networking will just become another bundle to a lot of those providing this type of solution. Many vendors are getting into SaaS solutions and in terms of documentation, code releases, and features, there are probably more advancements. In SD-WAN specifically, a lot more features are moving into SaaS-based solutions. These new solutions are going to get reviewed and push the industries even further towards SaaS solutions it is the future.

The technical support is good.

The solution is straightforward to install compared to other solutions, VMware makes setup simple. SD-WAN vendors have a kind of simplicity embedded into them, just because of the nature of the software-defined components into it. 

I have evaluated Zscaler and Versa.

The advice to others wanting to implement this solution is not to try and do everything yourself. A lot of customers choose this route and are negatively affected two years later. It is important to do a lot of proof of concepts and testing. Get the solution from a trusted service provider who can manage it for you because these technologies are really complex under the code. Having a trusted service provider who can work with you and can have a lot of benefits. If your company business is not running the WAN links, I would suggest just offload that burden to a trusted service provider because then you can focus on your business. Technologies are complex, and doing all of these operations through your own IP node is complex. A trusted service provider who knows what they are doing can offload a lot of that burden allowing for you to relax and actually focus on your main applications and business.

A lot of customers I have seen in the industry try to do all the operations themselves just because they think that it is good to insource everything. This is one of the areas that you should not be insourceed a hundred percent of your team because these technologies can be extremely difficult to do on a day-to-day basis. Service providers handle hundreds of customers and they know a lot more about what you are doing and can be very useful than if you did it by yourself.

I rate VMware SD-WAN an eight out of ten.

The platform's use cases extend to various industries, including retail, where it helps security policies around POPs and implements SASE. It also enhances network visibility and the endpoints.

VMware SD-WAN is easy-to-use and provides many different analytics, showing latency and anomalies. It has an excellent security aspect.

There is still room for improvement in support and security, especially in enhancing the SASE aspect of the platform. They could include more functionalities similar to Fortinet.

I have been using VMware SD-WAN for three and a half years.

VMware SD-WAN has good stability. 

It is a scalable platform. I have scaled from 20 sites to a couple of 1000 sites.

Although the platform's service and support are improving, there are still some difficulties in obtaining specific units due to product manufacturing constraints, particularly with hardware. Getting some units can take time and effort. It's essential to set clear customer expectations regarding this aspect.

Neutral

VMware SD-WAN is easy to set up. The deployment takes two minutes and requires one network engineer. I rate the process a seven out of ten.

VMware SD-WAN provides competitive pricing. I rate the pricing a seven out of ten.

I advise others to do a POC on trial. I rate VMware SD-WAN a seven out of ten.

We use VMware SD-WAN to connect our network globally.

The most valuable features of VMware SD-WAN are the overall capabilities and ease of use.

VMware SD-WAN could improve if the hardware could integrate the interface using ICP. Additionally, if VMware SD-WAN is used with SSE providers that use tunnels there are some issues prioritizing traffic because it cannot decrypt.

I have been using VMware SD-WAN for approximately four years.

The solution is stable with the physical connectivity.

There are occasional issues with certain devices depending on the current firmware, causing them to reboot with a different configuration. Although this does not affect the operation of the devices, it is a known issue that exists in the background.

I rate the stability of VMware SD-WAN an eight out of ten.

The solution is scalable.

The solution is used daily and is an intricate part of our business.

We have approximately 3,000 users using the solution.

I rate the scalability of VMware SD-WAN a nine out of ten.

We use a third party for support.

I have not used a similar solution prior to VMware SD-WAN.

The installation is relatively easy. We only need to plug it in and it works. However, sometimes there needs some configuration but it is not difficult.

I rate the initial setup of VMware SD-WAN a seven out of ten.

There are firmware updates that require maintenance. One person can complete the task.

I rate VMware SD-WAN a seven out of ten.

We have had some issues with firmware, it is not as flexible as I would like it to be with the configuration. We have not had any critical outages and overall it has been working well.

a customer seeking to deploy an SD-WAN environment via 2 alternate stable methods either in a virtual environment or a physical device depending upon their site-specific requirements.

It is fairly similar to other solutions. It has the capability for testing link connectivity, which is its unique feature from a control perspective.

I would like to see an on-premise NGFW embedded into the solution. They have a SASE solution that is part of the deployment model now but is more cloud-focused. It would be nice to have an on-prem all-in-one SDWAN/NGFW box for some smaller deployments that don't need or have a virtual environment nor have a need for a full SASE deployment model.

I have been using this solution for a couple of years. We generally have the version that is previous to the latest one. Our clients have cloud and on-premises deployments.

Early on, there were some issues with it, but now, it is fairly stable.

It works well, but as it gets larger, it becomes more complex and difficult to address. It is good for mid-market type enterprise deployments but not for large deployments. Our clients are small, medium, and large businesses.

I haven't used their technical support.

One of our clients was using Fortinet.

It is fairly straightforward. After you've done it once or twice, it is fairly simple.

I would advise others to understand what you're using SD-WAN for. It is not for replacing MPLS. It is about application performance, access control, and manageability of your sites. Most of our clients don't even understand why they need SD-WAN or what they're looking at in SD-WAN. They think they can just replace MPLS, which is not really the case for SD-WAN. They do it because they think they are lowering costs, which in some cases is true, but it depends on the application performance criteria and things of that nature. 

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten. They can do some improvements. There are other solutions out there that I would highly recommend over this solution, but it is not bad.