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Aruba ClearPass vs ExtremeControl comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
4.9
Aruba ClearPass offers strong ROI through enhanced security and management, but licensing needs and industry use affect results.
Sentiment score
6.4
ExtremeControl's ROI opinions varied, with mixed views on financial returns, Wi-Fi connectivity, security benefits, and cost concerns.
Using Aruba ClearPass has resulted in less engineering time compared to other products we've used.
Owner at Channelserve
The investment is huge for enterprise clients, but Aruba ClearPass makes processes easier.
Pre-Sales Consultant at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
Having good connectivity through Wi-Fi is essential for the entire business.
Manager, Service Delivery & Support at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Aruba ClearPass support is praised for expertise, though some note improvements needed in response time and escalation processes.
Sentiment score
6.6
ExtremeControl's support is praised for problem-solving but criticized for upgrade policies, varying satisfaction levels among users.
Portnox is one level up, as their customer support is outstanding.
Chief Digital Officer at Clarity AI
We have faced delays in the resolution of production issues after raising tickets, which impacts productivity.
Network Support Engineer at HDFC Life
If Aruba ClearPass is not working, then the organization is not working because this is the access control in the organization.
Presales Engineer, Solutions Architect
If we are out of upgrades or there is a new upgrade, they sometimes require us to upgrade to provide support.
Manager, Service Delivery & Support at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
For technical support of ExtremeControl, I have no doubts that they cope with problems effectively.
System Engineer at Poczta FM
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Aruba ClearPass is praised for its scalability, supporting diverse user numbers and environments with flexibility in licensing and virtualization.
Sentiment score
7.7
Opinions on ExtremeControl's scalability vary, with some praising its capacity while others find it limited across platforms.
I believe the scalability of ClearPass is rated as ten out of ten.
Senior Security & Infra Technology Systems Engineer at BARQ Systems
Everything will be handled when you add new users because all configurations are deployed from the beginning.
Network Product Manager/ Senior Presales engineer at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
In our environment, ClearPass handles up to 100,000 users, which is better than some other NAC solutions like Fortinox that scale up to 25,000.
Network Engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
For scalability in larger environments, it can be rated a maximum of 10.
System Engineer at Poczta FM
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Aruba ClearPass is highly stable, praised for reliability, with occasional upgrade issues often due to misconfigurations, not system flaws.
Sentiment score
8.7
ExtremeControl is highly stable, with users consistently rating it 8-9/10, indicating reliable performance meeting expectations.
I have experienced more than three years without zero downtime with Aruba ClearPass.
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
There are issues with some versions, especially in integrating with AD and SSL configurations over port sixty-three.
Network Support Engineer at HDFC Life
However, there are disadvantages when it is not on-premises, as every NAC suffers from it if it is not on-premises.
Presales Engineer, Solutions Architect
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba ClearPass needs simplified licensing, UI, better integration, enhanced features, and improved support and documentation resources.
ExtremeControl requires better user control, third-party integration, on-premise enhancements, and clarity on wireless component configuration for optimal performance.
The language and policy enforcement mechanisms are not clear, making it difficult to use the product effectively.
Project Manager at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees
It is also better to improve threat intelligence for built-in threat detection and prevention.
Network Engineer at a outsourcing company with 11-50 employees
A more streamlined menu of licensing options would be helpful.
Owner at Channelserve
We rely more on the cloud for analytics rather than on-premise, and some customers prefer relying on an on-premise solution rather than a cloud solution.
Engineer at NewLogics
For their wired network, especially with third-party switching, this is where most of the features are lost.
Manager, Service Delivery & Support at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
There is also another product called UZTNA, which is said to have NAC in this solution, but it is not as advanced as our regular ExtremeControl.
System Engineer at Poczta FM
 

Setup Cost

Aruba ClearPass's complex licensing can be costly, with better affordability than Cisco, necessitating careful initial licensing understanding.
ExtremeControl offers competitive pricing for large enterprises, but may be costly for smaller ones due to minimum user requirements.
Achieving the best price requires careful selection from a menu of licensing options.
Owner at Channelserve
We cannot mix in prices, and of course, prices are going higher.
IT Network Operations Manager at KEDS
Aruba ClearPass is a premium product with higher pricing, which seems unnecessary given its complexity.
Project Manager at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees
Compared to other competitors, they have the best pricing.
Manager, Service Delivery & Support at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
The pricing of ExtremeControl is considerable; I would rate it at eight or nine.
Engineer at NewLogics
For smaller ones, they need to consider that the price for less than 1,000 users is important, as this is the minimum number of users required for a license.
System Engineer at Poczta FM
 

Valuable Features

Aruba ClearPass provides robust network access control with features like role-based management, third-party integration, and user-friendly configuration.
ExtremeControl provides robust security, seamless integration, and easy use with flexible policies and comprehensive network monitoring.
In Aruba ClearPass, you can have control of all authentication in the company.
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
The ClearPass solution has reduced the amount of engineering time compared to previous solutions, making it more efficient for our purposes.
Owner at Channelserve
The most effective feature for us is the OnGuard feature.
Senior Security & Infra Technology Systems Engineer at BARQ Systems
The biggest benefits for my customers from ExtremeControl include the ability to integrate third-party devices, integration with user databases like Microsoft Active Directory or other directory software, and it is easy to maintain by customers.
System Engineer at Poczta FM
Integrating ExtremeControl with ExtremeConnect provides an additional layer of security and control over what devices are onboarding to the network, granting full visibility.
Engineer at NewLogics
The most effective feature of ExtremeControl is that whenever any user is connected through the network, I can really dig down and check exactly what applications they have been using.
Manager, Service Delivery & Support at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba ClearPass
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
ExtremeControl
Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)
11th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of Aruba ClearPass is 19.5%, down from 24.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ExtremeControl is 2.2%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Access Control (NAC) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Aruba ClearPass19.5%
ExtremeControl2.2%
Other78.3%
Network Access Control (NAC)
 

Featured Reviews

Darko Skurla - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Enterprise Customer Solutions Specialist at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Role-based policies have simplified secure access control for all users and smart devices
I do not know about the functionality of Aruba ClearPass integration with a third party. If you ask me if there is support for Zebra and for different IoT devices, they have it. However, I do not know how to describe integration with other products. Aruba ClearPass can act as a RADIUS server and it can connect to the domain RADIUS server, for example. The biggest problem is when a customer does not know what they want with Aruba ClearPass. I can recommend Aruba ClearPass to other users because it is very stable. My review rating for this product is ten out of ten.
JZ
System Engineer at Poczta FM
Features support flexible integration and high compatibility with third-party equipment
I have a little experience with reporting and analytics tools for network visibility in ExtremeControl, but I am not a specialist. I'm not a big fan of this analytics feature because it is an in-built component, and customers usually don't use it frequently since they often don't measure it. It is not very popular among my customers right now. I would definitely recommend ExtremeControl to customers because we can support many features as they need, and we can provide a demo license for even 80 days for testing all required features, which is not a problem for us. On a scale of 1-10, I rate ExtremeControl a 10.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
7%
University
8%
Performing Arts
8%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise33
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?
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 ...
What is the biggest difference between Aruba ClearPass and FortiNAC?
I've done quite a lot of work with ClearPass, and not a lot with FortiNAC/Bradford. ClearPass incorporates a number of different functions including ClearPass Guest for creating complex wireless g...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba ClearPass?
Compared to Cisco and others, the pricing is reasonable. Licensing costs are case-specific and have been manageable.
What do you like most about ExtremeControl?
It has effectively enhanced network security and integrated with other security tools to streamline operations.
What needs improvement with ExtremeControl?
Regarding improvements for ExtremeControl, I think it is good as it is; however, some other products can support features like certificate management, which ExtremeControl currently lacks. Adding c...
What is your primary use case for ExtremeControl?
The main use cases for ExtremeControl among my customers are to authenticate the users here for the end systems in their companies and to manage authentication, authorization, and systems, and they...
 

Also Known As

Avenda eTIPS
Extreme Access Control, Enterasys NAC
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Street Crane, Robert Bosch, Molex Chengdu, Weir Valves & Controls UK, Renault, AESSEAL, Ducati, Alexander Dennis, UK Ministry of Defence, Manz
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba ClearPass vs. ExtremeControl and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
886,906 professionals have used our research since 2012.