As long as you understand how it works, the initial setup is very easy and you can configure the network before the devices come in, because they put them in your dashboard and you plug it in when you're ready and it automatically does the work. This is the easiest system I've used and I've worked with most of them. It saves a lot of time because they have lots of templates and abilities to clone configurations from other sites. We're consultants so we did the integration for our company, although Meraki have sometimes helped out on projects. 

Deploying Meraki Dashboard isn't simple for us because we have a complex environment. The larger MX devices are at the main campus building, and there are branch sites with other MX devices on the branches. 

The VPN is simple to set up because it's automated. There's a drop-down menu, and you select the devices you want to connect. You don't need to configure things like encryption or tunnels. Normally, I manage and configure the on-site routers individually, but I don't have to do that with Meraki. It's all automated. 

All of the equipment is on-prem, but the Meraki Dashboard management interface is up in the cloud. 

I did 99% of the setup. The only thing I had to get help with was for some of the security guys to do their stuff, but it's really easy to set up. That's the great thing about Meraki et al. It is super easy, almost just straight out of the box. You can watch an eight minute video and have an access point up and running. Getting into the nitty gritty is a little harder. When you want to start doing radio profiles and power control, that gets a little more convoluted. It's easy once you know where to look in the dashboard, though. The hard part is knowing where to find the granular stuff, but the initial setup is super easy.

I would say that once you get it really scaled out, one person can maintain it, but that's not how we do it. The security guy handles the firewall part, the voice guy handles the voice part, and I handle the wireless part.

The initial setup for the Meraki Dashboard was straightforward. It was done before I got on site for this particular job.

It’s neither easy nor difficult to set up. It’s got a moderate level of difficulty when it comes to implementation.

I rate Meraki Dashboard a six out of ten for the ease of its initial setup.

I give the initial setup a seven out of ten. 

We sometimes encounter some unexpected problems during the initial setup, particularly with some devices. We should create a reset button to connect them to the dashboard. This is definitely an issue for us, as sometimes the device is not directly connected to the dashboard. We have to restart the device. Additionally, if we change one connection, it may become static, and we need to reset the device. Therefore, we need someone to do this on-site.

Deployment takes around 30 minutes per switch and requires one person per site.

I would rate the easiness of the initial setup as an eight out of ten. The time it takes to deploy the Meraki solution can vary, but it is generally quicker than traditional setups.  It takes about a day to deploy it. For a full integration of the Meraki solution, typically two people are needed.

The initial setup is straightforward for someone with experience.

Depending on the architecture of the network the deployment can take from one hour to one working day.

The setup process is very simple. It's not overly complex. 

Meraki Dashboard was straightforward to set up.

The initial setup of Meraki Dashboard is straightforward. You only need to click on add a new device, insert its MAC address, and then it is almost done. You have to type the name you want to give to the equipment, and the IP address, and you are finished.

The deployment takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

The initial setup is very simple. We have two engineers who take care of maintenance and we have around 500 users. 

Initial setup is very complex.

The setup is easy. It's not complex. It could be more friendly. When we connect on the API, maybe we can add some more features. Other than that, it was great.

I don't have a huge environment, to be honest. If I have a big environment, I would automate that. I'm doing everything manually in a small environment, and it's straightforward and fast.

The amount of people you need to maintain the solution depends on the third party. Our monitoring or support will be two or three people. However, usually, maintenance is handled by a third party. We don't consider how many people; we do the fees, and they will do their job.

I rate Meraki Dashboard eight out of 10 for ease of deployment. It's straightforward to deploy Meraki Dashboard at a new site because you can use a template, and it's easy for me, in particular, because I have been using the solution for a long time. 

With a template, it usually takes no longer than 10 minutes if you have all the network equipment ready to go. A full setup from scratch takes about two days. Usually, a single person can set it up but it depends on the number of clients we have. If we have more clients, we might need additional staff to manage and maintain the solution. 

I believe the initial setup is easy. It is not complex.

The initial setup is very useful and easy.  It is very simple like the manager.

The initial setup was hard work because we had to implement more than 1000 access points in more than 70 independent networks. However, with the implementations done, I can now implement a new network in around ten minutes.

The tool's deployment is not complex. The deployment process involved assessing the requirements, obtaining necessary permissions for network access, and proceeding with the installation and configuration.

The initial setup is not complex. it is pretty straightforward. The steps are simple to follow, and the devices are configured very easily. 

The setup had a few different stages to take care of. The first step was to create a VPN, a branch office connection, and then a better sister location. I bought another MX to act as a backup, so we had that configured as a hot spot or a failover. Then I configured the VPN so that users would be able to work from home. That VPN configuration is probably the one thing that I did not much like about the product. It almost makes no sense that it does not have its own VPN client. You have to use the Microsoft VPN client, which is a bit of a pain. If it has to be that way there surely has to be a better way to integrate it.  

With the main Cisco stuff, you just download the VPN client and it has got your anti-virus component and your VPN client. That is just not the case with Meraki. I know they have been talking about trying to work that out and get that installed. Right now it is a sorta major glitching point.  

Simple.

It isn't hard to set up Meraki Dashboard if you have some experience with Cisco solutions. You need some knowledge about networks and firewall rules. We just followed the manual. 

It's an easy product to set up. We know the architecture and the configurations. If we don't know the concept, then it can be more difficult to set up. 

This is a small company. We can do an implementation in a day or maybe two. It's pretty fast.

The initial setup is very straightforward, it probably took a few hours to set up the first devices. After that it goes very quickly. 

The initial setup of this solution is very straightforward. You have to purchase the license for the Enterprise, and then purchase a license for each AP. Then you create a login with that license and you can build out your networks. It is easy to configure, and this includes defining your access points.

I am the only person who maintains this solution for our organization.

The initial setup is really easy. You just have to open an account. It's also really easy to add equipment.

The initial setup was very, very intuitive and easy to use, in terms of installation. We've mainly worked on the wireless access point, but there's education that's starting to happen within the NSP environment. You need to get the guys up to speed. And this is a very different way of configuring and doing things, that's the learning journey, but once we actually are up to speed on how to use it, it's much quicker than the traditional use cases. They defined all the test cases and use cases that they'd want to test after deploying. It was pretty successful from the Meraki side, but internally, it was the education side that was lacking because the guys didn't fully understand how to use it, at that stage. And that's why it took so long to deploy.

The initial setup was straightforward. The guys from the Meraki website were quite good.

The deployment took a few minutes but the congregation took a couple of days. 

The initial process is easy.

Setting up Meraki Dashboard was easy.

The setup for the product is not complex. I think it's very good.

The initial setup process is quite simple. I would rate it a 10, on a scale from one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 being the best. This solution is deployed on the cloud.

The initial setup is not a difficult process. It's pretty easy. That said, it depends on the internet connection.

We have three technical teams that are capable of handling the deployment process. They are compromised of managers and two engineers. 

The initial setup was pretty easy. You simply follow the menu, and it prompts you for the inputs, which is pretty straightforward.

I don't typically work with this solution. Just from my previous experience, it is fairly simple to set up. I don't think there are any issues.

Deployment duration depends on the complexity. It can take two to three days for complex deployments. It can take a couple of hours for simple deployments.

The initial setup was really pretty straightforward.

The initial setup is very straightforward. It's not very complex.

In terms of the length of time it takes, I won't be able to comment on the deployment part, as it's not something I handle personally. What I've heard from my implementation team is that the time compared to any other on-prem solution is pretty fast. It's really about the access points and having them share a little bit of the cloud. You can simply have a plugin-based kind of deployment scenario as well. It's not hard.

Of course, there are obviously security policies that come into play as well. That has to be done regardless of if it is on-premises or not. Security items can be complicated. That said, our team considers the setup to be easy. It's simple and fast to deploy overall.

The installation was pretty straightforward. I obtained my Meraki certification in one day.

The initial setup is somewhat complex.