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Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
2nd
Ranking in WAN Edge
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (4th)
Versa Unified Secure Access...
Ranking in Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions
11th
Ranking in WAN Edge
12th
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (14th)
 

Featured Reviews

Samuel Romero - PeerSpot reviewer
Feb 17, 2023
The initial setup is complex, and the price is high, but it is scalable and stable
Cisco products are rated to handle the heat and are very rugged, making them a good corporate standard. They are slightly more expensive than some other products but are still an affordable corporate-grade solution. We have had some issues with the ISO versions of the SD-WAN, but the FlexVPN solution has since resolved them. Cisco SD-WAN is a good, solid product, but requires a certain skill set to use. We cannot simply switch from Peplink to Cisco as the two are different. The upgrade to iOS 11 has fixed any issues we had with the product, and it has been reliable for the past four years.
Hassam_Uddin - PeerSpot reviewer
Dec 22, 2022
A helpful solution to lower our costs with valuable security features
We mainly implement this solution for SD-WAN service, a next-generation firewall, and UTM It has improved our organization because we use SD-WAN for optimizing connectivity, and it has helped lower our costs by replacing legacy WAN links with a modern WAN architecture. The granularity when it…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution can scale. We haven't had any issues doing so."
"The primary advantage we've observed is the simplification of deployment, leading to decreased IT costs and enhanced operational efficiency."
"You can easily scale the product."
"One of the most valuable features is that they have multiple SD-WAN options: you have Meraki for simple management solutions, you have Viptela, and you have the option of having any type of WAN interfaces. Presently, you can also have a single combined solution for both WAN as well as for voice, so you can have a voice bundle as well. These are major unique points of this solution."
"SD-WAN is very stable - once it's deployed, you can just forget about it, it runs by itself."
"This solution comes with comprehensive technical support."
"Cisco SD-WAN's most valuable feature is the ease of transition."
"Cisco SD-WAN is a very good product."
"Their dashboard is also a good point for us and the customer. The solution is very clean and easy."
"Versa is a good centralized solution, where you're setting up your infrastructure in a data center type thing."
"The most valuable aspects of the solution are the next-generation firewall features and geo-blocking capabilities."
"The most valuable features are the main steering and the firewall. The security features and SD-WAN features are also quite good."
"It's very powerful, especially for engineering teams."
"Our customers are very satisfied with this solution. They have not mentioned any areas for improvement."
"Versa FlexVNF is a scalable product because it does not have any hardware dependencies. This makes it a versatile solution that can be easily integrated with any firewall."
"The product has a dynamic VPN feature for SD-WAN."
 

Cons

"We don't have any issues with this solution other than the price."
"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."
"The product needs to have more understanding staff in their support team. The tool needs to provide support in every stage of deployment. We did not get the expected support from their team. The product is also not easy to use."
"The solution could be a bit cheaper."
"We have had some problems with the licensing model, and it is something that should be improved."
"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."
"Customers require features that are secure for endpoints, on-premises, and for the cloud."
"The initial setup is really complex."
"The interface could be simpler."
"Another thing that should be improved in Versa are their firewall features."
"We've had the odd occasional stability issue with software upgrades."
"Future releases should contain AI for the voice feature."
"The VPN feature is relatively new. It came out two releases ago, and they're still fixing that up."
"There are limitations when you connect from multiple locations. It does not work as expected. If you have more than 400 users, then it will choke. It will not perform as expected."
"We are thinking about how to make customers consolidate the loads to an SD-WAN network so that the customers can have bigger chunk from the SD-WAN side so that customers can have critical data be transferred with NPS VPN and non-critical data or some labeled traffic can be transferred by the SD-WAN network. I think it's a very important direction for digital transformation."
"Certainly, there are areas that require enhancement, and the current focus is on improvements. Presently, I believe that the emphasis should be on enhancing user interface (UI) features, particularly over end devices. The issue arises when attempting to log in to Versa from other devices, as the UI is not device-specific. Consequently, guiding someone to log in to Versa antivirus becomes challenging. Despite the absence of issues on the website, the lack of a login scope impedes graphical representation of user data or databases. Since work databases support only a limited range of features, I recommend augmenting features for end devices to address these limitations."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Cisco SD-WAN could improve, it is expensive. The cost of the solution is approximately 30 percent higher than competitors."
"In the Russian market where we operate, this solution is expensive."
"The license consists of an annual fee."
"The product is not too expensive."
"There is a monthly subscription to use this solution."
"The pricing of this solution is very expensive."
"Licensing is on a subscription basis."
"It's costly. The cost is high compared to competitors."
"I find Versa a little more expensive than VMware in terms of remote access and secure web gateway elements."
"It is not very expensive because of the white box support. Its hardware is much cheaper than other products. With the support for x86 and white box, it is one of the most cost-effective platforms that are currently available."
"While I cannot provide too much commentary on the price, I feel it to be fair for the moment."
"It is neither cheap nor expensive. I rate the pricing a five out of ten on a scale where one is cheap and ten is expensive."
"The price is expensive but it makes sense for the market."
"We provide subscriptions for our customers on a yearly, not monthly, basis."
"Price wise, it's more expensive than is the competition. I would give pricing a rating of three out of five."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
40%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Retailer
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco SD-WAN?
When considering the most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN, the decoupling of self-monitoring stands out significantly.
What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
Customers collaborate with ISPs and currently work with three ISPs, using options like LSM VPN and MPLS VPN to reduce line costs. They are considering moving from their current setup to an MPLS VPN...
What do you like most about Versa FlexVNF?
Versa is a good centralized solution, where you're setting up your infrastructure in a data center type thing.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Versa FlexVNF?
Both Versa and VMware are cheap in terms of the router. I find Versa a little more expensive than VMware in terms of remote access and secure web gateway elements.
What needs improvement with Versa FlexVNF?
We've had the odd occasional stability issue with software upgrades, etcetera. They don't support certain other third-party applications, which can be a bit limiting at times, whereas VMware seems ...
 

Also Known As

Cisco SD-WAN
Versa FlexVNF, FlexVNF, Versa Titan
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
CenturyLink, RCN Business, Colt Technology Services
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs. Versa Unified Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) Platform and other solutions. Updated: September 2024.
801,394 professionals have used our research since 2012.