Senior Global Product Manager at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Real User
A global scale solution providing an open architecture design with good technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "We would recommend this solution to customers looking to implement it on a global scale. We recommend the solution, not only because of the functionality or the technical support, but also because of the delivery of the solution, and the docking and upgrading capabilities."
  • "Since Cisco acquired Viptela, the stability of this solution has given problems since it is quite new."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case is providing the servicing of this solution globally. Cisco is an experienced vendor, which is the main reason we chose this solution.

What needs improvement?

An area of improvement for this solution is reducing the complexity. Currently, the solution requires people who have a very good understanding of Cisco SD-WAN. 

For example, VeloCloud can be used and is easier to understand, but it has limited functionality. It is designed like a block box where the internal architecture is hidden. With Cisco, I can see the inner workings of the architecture. Therefore, it is necessary to have a good understanding of how the solution works in order make full use of it.

An additional feature that should be included in the next release of this solution is the ability to use a local area network (LAN) behind the domain name system (DNS) box. This feature would allow for better communication protocols to be put in place.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Since Cisco acquired Viptela, the stability of this solution has given problems since it is quite new. 

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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of this solution has given problems in the past since it is quite new. 

How are customer service and support?

The customer service/technical support for this solution is very good.


How was the initial setup?

The setup of this solution is both straightforward and complex. For example, the initial setup is simple, but the design and formatting thereafter is very complex.

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

The pricing of this solution is very expensive.

What other advice do I have?

We would recommend this solution to customers looking to implement it on a global scale. We recommend the solution, not only because of the functionality or the technical support, but also because of the delivery of the solution, and the docking and upgrading capabilities.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Igor Bobrov - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of Cisco Department at MUK
Real User
Top 5
Good segmentation, high security, and flexible
Pros and Cons
  • "The initial setup is straightforward and easy to deploy."
  • "The UI has room for improvement."

What is our primary use case?

Cisco SD-WAN is used to connect users to network applications securely.

What is most valuable?

The segmentation, high security, and flexibility of the Cisco SD-WAN are the most valuable features.

What needs improvement?

The cost of Cisco SD-WAN is high and has room for improvement compared to competitors such as Fortinet which has similar functionality.

The technical support has room for improvement.

The UI has room for improvement.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cisco SD-WAN for a couple of years.

How are customer service and support?

Our engineers dislike dealing with Cisco technical support as they frequently face redirection and have to wait for months to get their issues resolved.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward and easy to deploy.

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

The price is based on the types of routers being used as well as the product licenses.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Fortinet FortiGate has a more comfortable UI and better logic than Cisco.

What other advice do I have?

I give Cisco SD-WAN an eight out of ten.

Cisco SD-WAN is mainly intended for medium to large enterprises as it provides significant benefits for organizations with distributed offices across different regions or countries.

I recommend that new users become familiar with all the features that Cisco SD-WAN offers, to enable them to complete their tasks effectively.

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
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Director at Globe Internet Limited
Reseller
Top 20
Can establish connections easily, can be managed remotely, and is stable and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "With other routing protocols, we have had to send team members to perform installations and configurations. There is a lot of work involved. However with SD-WAN, once it is installed it is fully automated, and we can do all other tasks remotely. We don't have to send staff out to the client's location. It's very independent, and we can establish SD-WAN connectivity easily. It is secure as well."
  • "The cost is too high for certain countries, for example, those in Africa. The solution needs to be more cost-effective."

What is most valuable?

With other routing protocols, we have had to send team members to perform installations and configurations. There is a lot of work involved. However with SD-WAN, once it is installed it is fully automated, and we can do all other tasks remotely. We don't have to send staff out to the client's location.

It's very independent, and we can establish SD-WAN connectivity easily. It is secure as well.

What needs improvement?

The cost is too high for certain countries, for example, those in Africa. The solution needs to be more cost-effective.

I would like to see AI functionalities added to future releases. I would also like to see endpoint protection features with encryption technology to prevent data from being copied from different locations.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been working with Cisco SD-WAN for one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Cisco SD-WAN is a stable solution. I have not seen any issues with stability. If you do the preventive management exercises, ensure that you have the right temperature, regularly perform inspections, and monitor the solution properly, then everything will work perfectly.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is certainly a scalable solution. For example, you could start with the 10G module and upgrade to 40G, 100G, or DWDM. It is handled on a module basis.

We probably have 400 to 500 users.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup can be straightforward if you have experienced staff.

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

Cost-wise, Cisco SD-WAN is comparatively high. 

What other advice do I have?

Cisco SD-WAN is a wonderful solution, and I would give it an eight out of ten. I recommend it because it is easy to establish connectivity and is an independent solution that does not require you send staff out to a client's location.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
PeerSpot user
Vice President Of Services at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Scalable with good visibility but needs native connectivity into the major cloud providers
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution can scale. We haven't had any issues doing so."
  • "Technical support could be more helpful and responsive."

What is our primary use case?

The solution is primarily just for software-defined WAN or WAN edge solutions. We use it to connect to data centers.

What is most valuable?

All the features that they have in there have been great. The solution offers good quality of service, visibility, connectivity, and security. It's all of that stuff that makes it good. That is what's required.

Cisco is finding its footing in that area, and they're getting better.

For our team, the installation is pretty straightforward.

The solution can scale. We haven't had any issues doing so.

What needs improvement?

The quality could always continuously improve. For example, we've had stability concerns in the past.

Native connectivity into the major cloud providers would be ideal.

Often, the solution does require a specialized team to come in and assist with the initial setup.

Technical support could be more helpful and responsive. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been dealing with the solution for three or four years at this point. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution could be more stable. There are issues that they've had to deal with.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution seems to be scalable so far. For all the opportunities we've been involved with, it's been good and we haven't hit a wall.

How are customer service and technical support?

We do deal with technical support from time to time. Their tech support could be better. We are not 100% satisfied with the level of service they offer.

How was the initial setup?

For us, the implementation is easy, as we are trained to handle it. The product usually requires somebody like us to come in there and help customers through this.

Deployment times vary depending on the client and the environment. It depends on how big, the opportunity, how many sites, how many branches, et cetera. All of that stuff comes into play.

What about the implementation team?

We assist our clients with the implementation process.

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

I can't speak to the costs associated with the product. We get involved with just the installations, that's all.

What other advice do I have?

We're a service partner. As implementors, we install all versions. Usually, however, when we get involved, it's always the latest version that we are installing.

I'd advise users to understand what they're getting. It's a good idea to probably do a POC to see it and make sure it meets all the requirements that the company is looking for before buying in completely.

I'd rate the solution at a six out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
it_user1232472 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Security Associate at VPS
Real User
Good solution for centralized management, but needs an option to have more SD-WAN ports
Pros and Cons
  • "The centralized management is the most important feature. We can monitor what is going on at every location in our network with just one center."
  • "I would like them to add some more SD-WAN ports. We have seen one implementation where there were four ISPs. Currently, we have a maximum of two ports for ISP in this device. Therefore, we cannot connect directly, and we need other switches. There should be some option to have more than two ports for SD-WAN."

What is our primary use case?

We have deployed Cisco Meraki devices at 107 locations to connect with the cloud for centralized management. We are using MX68, MS120, and MR33.

We are currently also considering Cisco Meraki for another project for implementation at 28 locations. We have a team of three members looking into different solutions and vendors. We're looking into the firewall, SD-WAN, and email certificate.

What is most valuable?

The centralized management is the most important feature. We can monitor what is going on at every location in our network through just one center.

What needs improvement?

I would like them to add some more SD-WAN ports. We have seen one implementation where there were four ISPs. Currently, we have a maximum of two ports for ISP in this device. Therefore, we cannot connect directly, and we need other switches. There should be some option to have more than two ports for SD-WAN. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for seven to eight months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have faced issues with one or two boxes. We replaced those boxes.

How are customer service and technical support?

Cisco provides the best support among all the vendors. It's the best in terms of technical support.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very straightforward. For one location, it would take around two days: one day for the configuration and connecting to the cloud and one day to go to the client location and deploy it.

What other advice do I have?

Cisco Meraki dashboard is very good. It's simple, and you can enable and implement everything using this dashboard. Cisco Meraki is for large enterprises.

I recommend Cisco Meraki to all my clients who have different locations and want to have a centralized location. Every architecture is moving towards the cloud. Centralized management makes accessibility easier for one person. We can know what is going on at a location and what is going into the devices. Whatever configuration changes are required, we can do them from one place. We don't have to go to the client's location. We also don't have to log in to different devices to do configuration or something like that. We can do it from one centralized management.

I would rate Cisco SD-WAN a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Chief Digital Officer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
Reseller
Stable, cutting-edge, and robust
Pros and Cons
  • "It is very stable with very good firmware."
  • "Some competitors are much faster in providing out-of-the-box solutions, more innovative solutions. In terms of innovation, in many cases, they're lagging behind."

What is our primary use case?

We implemented and currently support some clients using Cisco SD-WAN.

Essentially, everything is moving to the cloud. There is a big shift from the traditional network operator-based infrastructure to a fully cloud-native kind of infrastructure for companies. People don't want to deal with so many providers. The network provider, the cybersecurity provider, another company managing the routers and firewalls, et cetera. Everything is moving to the cloud to simplify things. The shift to SD-WAN is motivated by business reasons. It allows for cutting costs. Traditional networking forms for data centers are simply too expensive, too slow, and very time-consuming to maintain.

Today with the SASE architecture, it's very easy to immediately deploy the cloud to have one subscription for one set of services. With one subscription, you have full access to a dedicated network that is much faster than the traditional MNTL networks that traditional data centers are using. Plus, you have integrated cybersecurity and a fully dedicated private backbone that is essentially spreading across the globe. People don't want to delegate to British telecom off to Verizon anymore, handing their network into another company managing the security into another company managing the networking infrastructure. With SD-WAN, especially with solutions based on the SASE framework, they pay one subscription fee each month, and one single company is managing everything. 

What is most valuable?

In terms of technology, we are completely agnostic. In many cases, we deal with Cisco simply due to the fact that the client already has a Cisco implementation. Most of the clients started their corporate deployment 10 or 15 years ago, and therefore there are legacy systems. Some of them are built on Cisco and we found that their systems are already implemented. 

I evaluate new technologies continuously each month and we deploy, as I told you, across geographies in multiple companies. Cisco is definitely cutting edge, absolutely cutting edge in terms of robustness on the capability of the network to be very stable with very low delay. It is a proven, tried, and tested technology. It is very reliable software. It is rock solid and very stable with respect to delivering top-performance networking functions. 

It is very stable with very good firmware. In terms of traditional functionality, it's unbeatable as an offer. I would say 10 plus as a vote in terms of traditional networking.

What needs improvement?

There is much room for improvement on the cybersecurity side. For most of the clients, it is unacceptable nowadays to have too many people involved in managing the corporate network, and many clients like to see providers that can deliver a unified solution that integrates together with the network functionalities and the cybersecurity functionalities as they go hand in hand, especially in a regulated industry such as in banking, insurance, or healthcare. All governmental infrastructure must be compliant with very specific guidelines and requirements. It's not always it is possible to meet them with out-of-the-box products. You need to integrate on the top. If Cisco can work more in creating a true SASE solution known simply as an SD-WAN solution, that will be magic. That will be perfect. Right now, they need to do more of the cybersecurity side. 

Cisco is working at the moment. Unfortunately, like all traditional companies, it is very big and quite spread out. That makes it a little bit slower to react than some of the other competitors in the space. Some competitors are much faster in providing out-of-the-box solutions, more innovative solutions. In terms of innovation, in many cases, they're lagging behind.

For how long have I used the solution?

Specifically, with Cisco SD-WAN I have about five years of experience now. With Cisco, it's a long-term kind of connection with the company. We have been serving clients over the past 12 years. Always, Cisco is very present.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. There is very minimal movement and very minimal packet loss. There is very minimal delay in the network. In terms of performance, it's absolutely best of breed, and world-class. There is no discussion about that. In terms of hardware, probably is the best provider. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very scalable. From the branch office to the data center, you have so many Cisco modules, and you can cut the system the way you like. Any shape and size are available from Cisco. I don't see any provider of networking solutions with more options. It's definitely a solution where you can pinpoint exactly the specific needs of a branch, a data center, or an office, and find the right piece of hardware. There are so many sometimes it can be even complicated to choose, however, Cisco provides everything from the ground up without any problem. It's a tried and tested solution, and therefore is very well documented. 

How are customer service and technical support?

The solutions are stable, however, we offer technical support. If it's broken, you always have access to local support. Somebody from Cisco will react very, very rapidly. 

In terms of configuration, usually companies, schools, companies, providers managed service providers like us tend to manage the network. 

In terms of support, it's one of the most well-known and respected companies and universally accepted as a top player. You can trust the support they provide. 

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

The typical brands we deal with are mostly Cisco, Palo Alto, Zscaler, and, in more recent times, Check Point and Citrix.

How was the initial setup?

Typically we have on average, a team of three or four people managing Cisco systems based in New Bailey, where we have representatives specializing in Cisco Systems.

Cisco is very well-known for being easy to use. We help quite a few clients with their Cisco implementations. There are absolutely no issues in terms of performance, or setup. It's more of innovation in their architectural kind of a problem that Cisco has at the moment. They are having trouble keeping pace with the innovation in the sector. That said, it's a very good system, and easy to deploy.

What about the implementation team?

We help our clients implement the solution.

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

Being embedded with Cisco is a matter of negotiation. Therefore, the pricing depends on the negotiation and if the client is a medium-sized company or a large company. It depends on the geography. We already see different pricing when we deploy in India when we deploy New Zealand or we deploy in the Nordics, in Europe, or even in Southern Europe. Prices are always different and depend on the local offices and how big the deal is. 

Pricing varies according to requirements, accessory services, and pure hardware. 

Markets are so hyper-competitive, and pricing is converging for all top providers. If you go to Fortinet, if you go to Palo Alto, it's not that you'll find prices that are so dramatically different. Everyone is completely aligned to compete. Differentiation is not on pricing. When you deploy a system like Cisco, the main selection criteria, is not pricing.

Today, even rich companies are very careful on pricing, however, companies are very mature in terms of structuring deals. The price of a system is very well-known in the market. All the differences are made by two essential elements. One is the ability of your sales team to penetrate within a company. Sales channels are making all the difference - not technology, not anything else. The second point is innovation and quality of accessory services delivered on top of the hardware. Hardware today is a given, is like code for a nice screen. Cisco is able to provide some hardware functions and firmware functions, however, all the difference is made by ancillary services, by additional service, by all the service that you build on the top of your products, and adding a very good success manager that is handling the deployment process and can guarantee that the client is extracting true business value from IT investments. People don't spend money to buy hardware, to buy networks. People spend money to execute their corporate functions in a very effective, efficient way, in a very secure way. They don't care about Cisco. They don't care about the firewall or the router. They need to deliver products and successful expediencies and services across the globe.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

What I'm looking for is for companies - and Cisco is among them - able to provide best-of-breed technologies to support both the network implementation side and the cybersecurity side. 

What other advice do I have?

Typically, we are technology agnostic, therefore, we can support clients in implementing systems, using different kinds of technologies. Among them is Cisco.

We tend to work with hybrid deployments as the major pain point for clients is to harmonize, to have public and private clouds working together. There is no distinction for clients between public and private. Typically, they call us to organize to a single pane of glass, where they can control all the cloud, their network activities in a very simple, seamless way. The difficulty today is exactly putting together to work a very diverse kind of hardware ecosystem ranging from Google Cloud or Amazon Cloud, Azure that is growing exponentially these days, and plus all the enterprise data center, and putting all these elements together.

Sometimes after mergers and acquisitions, we have to patch together pieces of hardware from different organizations that are not even compatible. For example, very recently, we supported the MNA integration of two different companies, and they were using two completely different systems. One was based on Cisco, the other one on Fortinet and Palo Alto, and was using lots of data. That is the problem today. Unifying all the settings, all the controls using a kind of centralized control and making sure that public and private clouds are working together in a very seamless fashion.

I'd rate the solution at a perfect 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: reseller
PeerSpot user
Premnath Jaganathan - PeerSpot reviewer
Product Manager at a educational organization with 51-200 employees
Real User
Gives good ROI but setup is complex
Pros and Cons
  • "Cisco SD-WAN's most valuable feature is the ease of transition."
  • "If you don't have an in-house design team or outsource to a third party with expertise, the setup will be difficult."

What is most valuable?

Cisco SD-WAN's most valuable feature is the ease of transition.

What needs improvement?

Cisco SD-WAN's smart account stuff could be improved. People still think they're using traditional licenses, so customers need a lot of education on using SD-WAN devices, especially on the smart/virtual account side.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using Cisco SD-WAN for about two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Cisco SD-WAN's stability is good - I haven't found any issues at the operational level.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Cisco SD-WAN's scalability is good.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was complex and required us to plan ahead. If you don't have an in-house design team or outsource to a third party with expertise, the setup will be difficult.

What was our ROI?

It takes some time, but Cisco SD-WAN gives a good ROI - for example, we have had some savings in terms of transport.

What other advice do I have?

I'd advise anybody thinking of implementing Cisco SD-WAN to learn the smart and virtual account setup and the staging and installation process very clearly. This isn't just a case of buying a license or device and installing it, you need to create a lot of stuff, so you need to understand the technology before buying it, at least in a test lab or non-production environment. I would give Cisco SD-WAN a rating of seven out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Telecom and Collaboration Manager at a construction company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Comes with easy and intuitive configuration interfaces, but certain features can be better
Pros and Cons
  • "Configuration interfaces are quite easy and intuitive. Being a part of the Cisco environment, Cisco SD-WAN is quite straightforward."
  • "When you buy the equipment, they should already put it into your cloud account. It should already be set up so that we can manage with vBond. We came across an issue where it wasn't resolved in the DNS. We are using Umbrella, so we need to create a VPN IPSec tunnel to Umbrella to enable the users to browse. I would really like to see an internal built-in firewall so that we don't have to go to Umbrella. This functionality might already be there. We are quite new to this solution, and we are still learning about it."

What is our primary use case?

We are using it for load balancing our network bandwidth. We haven't implemented it yet at any office. It will be done probably in a week.

What is most valuable?

Configuration interfaces are quite easy and intuitive. Being a part of the Cisco environment, Cisco SD-WAN is quite straightforward.

What needs improvement?

When you buy the equipment, they should already put it into your cloud account. It should already be set up so that we can manage with vBond. We came across an issue where it wasn't resolved in the DNS.

We are using Umbrella, so we need to create a VPN IPSec tunnel to Umbrella to enable the users to browse. I would really like to see an internal built-in firewall so that we don't have to go to Umbrella. This functionality might already be there. We are quite new to this solution, and we are still learning about it. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Cisco SD-WAN for a week. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would say neutral at this time because I am deploying this in an office this week. It seems okay in terms of stability. It hasn't crashed since it has been up.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I am pretty sure it is going to be high. At this point, it has low usage, but we will push it to the maximum of its capacity. 

How are customer service and technical support?

I haven't contacted them.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. It is very easy to set up. Testing the deployment took a little bit of plug and play. I just plugged in two interfaces, and then it was in the cloud. It was quite easy.

What about the implementation team?

We had a consultant who helped us with all this. He was perfect and knew everything. It needs two staff members for deployment.

What was our ROI?

I am going to see ROI because we removed MPLS sites. When you remove MPLS sites, you get some benefits on the monthly fee because MPLS always has a higher price. We are already seeing some improvement in the monthly fee.

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

It is going to be on a yearly basis. There are no additional costs.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend checking the exact amount of bandwidth that you really need. We have installed double one links for our office, but you probably don't need a gig link or a hundred mega link. 

I would rate Cisco SD-WAN a five out of ten. I want to be in the middle because it is the first solution that we are testing. I don't know if it is the best or the worst. I have known Cisco, and I am pretty sure it is not the worst. They know what they are talking about. They have been working on networking stuff for a long time. I don't want to give a ten because I don't even have another solution to compare. 

To get a ten, a solution has to respond to our needs, and it should have good pricing because at the end of the day, in terms of routing and other things, all solutions are almost the same. It is the pricing that becomes the main factor.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
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 Cisco SD-WAN Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: March 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Cisco SD-WAN Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.