We performed a comparison between Cisco ACI and Meraki SD-WAN based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Software Defined Networking (SDN) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."We will improve our organization using the automation."
"Having a lot of racks and switches with a single point of configuration which can be done with automation on one platform using one API. This makes everything work faster."
"This solution is easy to configure, and it is done in an object-oriented manner."
"Micro-segmentation is the solution’s most valuable feature."
"It's improved the static configuration of our data center switching environment. But it's added some challenges to our ability to operationalize it and make it easier for people to manage."
"It has benefited my organization by saving us a lot of time."
"With its programmability, you can do stuff to policies to make them more flexible, allowing you to connect devices in new ways."
"What's most valuable in Cisco ACI is that it isn't like the legacy infrastructure where you have a lot of complexity in a TTR architecture. What I like most about Cisco ACI is that you can control those devices from a single console, even if you have three hundred devices. You can manage the entire infrastructure from a single point of contact, so Cisco ACI is a time saver. Another exclusive feature of Cisco ACI is its API interface that lets you enhance automation within the environment. You can manage your entire data center from a single interface through Cisco ACI. If you want to upgrade three hundred devices in one click, you can do that, and within one hour, all three hundred devices will be upgraded. I also like that Cisco keeps enhancing the product by adding different features, so there have been five major releases of Cisco ACI. Another valuable feature of the solution is that it's more user-friendly than Aruba and Juniper."
"I can manage it very well and in a very easy way."
"t is very stable based on our experience and the application performance has been superb."
"The most valuable feature is application performance monitoring and being able to browse packets dynamically based on priorities."
"The advantage you have with Cisco Meraki is that they take a lot of that complexity out of the backend."
"The product does have a variety of features we can work with."
"Meraki SD-WAN is a scalable solution because changes are being made to the solution, enabling it to work in different environments."
"The most valuable features of this solution are load balancing and the security possibilities you have."
"The solution is scalable."
"I would like for there to be more information about it available. While using the ACI in the graphical interface, I would like if there was something that explained every step that you can click and it will tell you what you are doing in more detail."
"There were issues when upgrading venues and registering devices."
"Better troubleshooting features would be helpful. In ACI, it can be a big mess, a real headache to troubleshoot a single issue... The troubleshooting part, and the information that ACI gives you, sometimes don't give you a proper, inside picture of what's going on within the fabric."
"I think that technical support tickets should be escalated sooner."
"I would like for ACI to manage all of the devices."
"Deploying Cisco ACI was a little complex because we needed to add a lot to the fabric. You need to configure some servers, connect everything, make templates, and deploy switches. It takes five people to deploy and maintain."
"The initial setup was fairly complex and it looks terrifying when you first log in. That's one thing about ACI. It takes a bit to wrap your mind around how it works. It's not overly complicated once you understand the concepts, but someone who has never worked with anything like ACI, will initially find it difficult to grasp the complexity of it."
"It would be great if ACI would include the next generation firewall feature."
"Meraki offers the client basic security, it is not the same as what FortiGate is offering."
"An area for improvement would be to add 4G bonding and allow Meraki devices to support dual 4G SIM cards."
"Technical support could be more knowledgeable and responsive."
"We have had some problems doing the implementation."
"Meraki could make better use of virtual connect."
"I would like to see more functions added to the next release of Meraki SD-WAN."
"I would like improved stability in Meraki SD-WAN."
"Scalability could be improved. Yes, you can add more than 300 or 400 sites onto it, but because it's not a true SD-WAN and, effectively, it's just a Multi-VRF, it's all hub and spoke at that point. That's the nature of the design, but that's what keeps it simple to administer. So, it's a trade off."
Cisco ACI is ranked 2nd in Software Defined Networking (SDN) with 97 reviews while Meraki SD-WAN is ranked 1st in Software Defined Networking (SDN) with 61 reviews. Cisco ACI is rated 8.0, while Meraki SD-WAN is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Cisco ACI writes "Stable, easy to extend, scalable, and has a host-based routing feature". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Meraki SD-WAN writes "Very stable security, great service, and the best for VPN management". Cisco ACI is most compared with VMware NSX, Cisco Secure Workload, Akamai Guardicore Segmentation, Nuage Networks and Cumulus Networks, whereas Meraki SD-WAN is most compared with Cisco SD-WAN, VMware SD-WAN, Omada Cloud SDN, Cradlepoint NetCloud and Nutanix Flow Network Security. See our Cisco ACI vs. Meraki SD-WAN report.
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