2021-08-17T13:19:00Z

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?

How do they compare to each other?

NC
Content Manager at PeerSpot (formerly IT Central Station)
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Real User
Top 5
2021-08-17T14:08:30Z
Aug 17, 2021


Aruba ClearPass is a Network Access Control tool that gives secure network access to multiple device types. You can adapt the policies to VPN access, wired, or wireless access.


You can securely connect different types of devices to the network and get identity access control for human or non-human entities. This helps our company to control user access to exactly what we need. I like that it can also do Mac authentication. We could then apply different policies for different types of devices.


If you need diverse network segmentation, Aruba ClearPass gives you the ability to restrict what your users can access. On the downside, it was a kind of frustrating to set up and we needed outside help for installing it. However, once we set it up, it was very easy to manage.


The standards are compatible with almost any device with 802.1X capability. It saves us from having to separate users by running multiple SSIDs. We can easily create guest accounts for visitors and specify their permission levels.


I see Cisco ISE as more suited to managing high-privilege access. With it, you can assign privileges and access levels according to the user and device, which improves the user experience since the access level is set depending on the device. We find it very useful for users that need to log in physically or via remote VPN access.


The end-to-end visibility helps implement a zero-trust-security approach. However, the integration of third-party products is limited, and the interface is not very user-friendly. Integrating with social networks could be a good idea for authenticating guests.


Conclusions


In my opinion, Cisco ISE is a very valuable product that is great for accounting, authorization, and authentication. However, Aruba ClearPass has the advantage of solving very different authentication scenarios, so in my opinion, in these days of remote and hybrid working, it has the upper hand.

Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba ClearPass vs. Cisco ISE (Identity Services Engine) and other solutions. Updated: September 2023.
735,226 professionals have used our research since 2012.
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Hello peers,  I am a Senior Network & Security Engineer at a large computer software company. I am currently researching network access control solutions. What are the differences between Cisco ISE and Fortinet FortiNAC? Which solutions do you prefer and why? Thank you for your help.
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Anne Cubarrubia - PeerSpot reviewer
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Here are the differences between Cisco ISE and Fortinet FortiNAC, two widely-used network access control (NAC) solutions designed to help secure networks: Cisco ISE is a comprehensive NAC solution that offers a wide range of features, including: User and Device Identity Management Policy Enforcement Risk Assessment Compliance Reporting Fortinet FortiNAC is a more focused NAC solution that provides visibility and control over wired and wireless devices and offers features such as: Device Profiling Policy Enforcement Asset Inventory Compliance Reporting When choosing a NAC solution, base your decision on your company's requirements and needs.
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PeerSpot’s crowdsourced user review platform helps technology decision-makers around the world to better connect with peers and other independent experts who provide advice without vendor bias. Our users have ranked these solutions according to their valuable features, and discuss which features they like most and why. You can read user reviews for the top Top 5 Network Access Control (NAC) S...
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This is based on the user's feedback. A link for Gartner report should also be available.
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As a user of Cisco ISE, I am completely not trusting this review. Cisco ISE is a buggy immature solution.
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