Cisco DNA Center vs NetBrain comparison

Cisco and NetBrain are both solutions in the Network Automation category. Cisco is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.0, while NetBrain is ranked #6. Cisco holds a 20.7% mindshare in NA, compared to NetBrain’s 14.5% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 75% of NetBrain users who would recommend it.

Cisco DNA Center

Read 40 Cisco DNA Center reviews

3,227 Views
1,902 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

NetBrain

Read 6 NetBrain reviews

1,308 Views
855 Comparison Views

75% willing to recommend

Cisco DNA Center

NetBrain

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco DNA Center and NetBrain based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Network Automation solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco DNA Center vs. NetBrain Report (Updated: October 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco DNA Center vs. NetBrain

October 2024

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Helped 824,053 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Cisco DNA Center

Ranking in Network Automation

2nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Management Applications (1st), Network Monitoring Software (18th)

NetBrain

Ranking in Network Automation

6th

Average Rating

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Troubleshooting (14th)

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Network Automation category, the mindshare of Cisco DNA Center is 20.7%, down from 24.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetBrain is 14.5%, up from 8.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Automation

Featured Reviews

AvrahamSonenthal

Senior Network Engineer at Inside Global

Efficiently manages our wireless network and provides valuable monitoring features

The platform's biggest benefit has been in managing our wireless network. Having a single pane of glass to control all wireless controllers and access points and to monitor activity has been a significant advantage. We're a small federal agency with around 300 network devices, so automation is a minor focus. It's more relevant for larger networks. The main benefits we've seen are in inventory management and the potential for configuration automation. However, I recommend using the DNA Centre only for larger networks with over a thousand devices; otherwise, it may not be cost-effective. Before proceeding, ensure that your devices are compatible with DNA Center, as not all Cisco devices are supported. Also, investing in proper training is different from plug-and-play. I rate it an eight.

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Deborah Gamelin

Vice President at Asset Track for Cloud, LLC

Good monitoring and troubleshoot capabilities, improves overall network traffic visibility

In my organization, we had 130,000 network devices that needed to be brought into the solution and mapped. NetBrain can handle the scale but the engineers that manage those devices have to go in and update all of them to allow NetBrain permission to poll them. It can get a little stressful for everybody when you're trying to roll out new stuff when you've got other issues that have to be addressed with other devices. In some cases, our devices had no automation at all. One example is the Cisco 3650. Right now, if you went through the inventory list, you see that we have different versions running. Some are on one version, whereas others are on another version. The problem with upgrading them is that they need to be done overnight because we don't want to disrupt any network traffic during business hours. Consequently, it could take us years to upgrade the versions before we can even get them onto these new tools. This may be an internal issue but it's a big one when you have a lot of devices. Even if you had 10,000 devices, it's still an issue. You have to consider the compatibility of the device against the tool, and being able to use certain commands to upgrade it.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"People like to use the dashboards to get an overview of their network."

"We can monitor all devices and get the required information using the product."

"Cisco DNA Center provides operational support, compliance support, security vulnerability detection, and automatic scheduling."

"I think that their LAN automation is a very good feature."

"It is simple to manage and it is all done from a single dashboard."

"Automation is another key highlight. With automation, you can automate everything through a single port."

"The solution helps in user microsegmentation."

"It offers automation, security enforcement, analytics, and integration with other Cisco technologies, making it a key driver for efficient network operations and compliance with security protocols."

More Cisco DNA Center pros

"Chain management is a good feature. I don't get it on other solutions."

"This product has good network monitoring and troubleshooting capabilities."

"A reliable, time-saving tool for providing accurate layer 2 and layer 3 network mappings."

"Enables maps to be drawn out."

"NetBrain is a very simple tool."

Cons

"Requires more focus on the digital side of things."

"The weaknesses primarily involve pricing and the ongoing need for increased bandwidth and data throughput."

"It seems to be a little bit more centered toward wireless than wired. You've got more options you can do wirelessly than you can with the wired switches, but it works for what we need it to do. We would like to see a little bit more about the traffic, and we're looking at what's out there to see about that. We are looking at something that might give us a bit more insight into the actual traffic. If they had the full functionality on the wired side, as they do on the wireless side in terms of being able to view traffic and everything, it would be good."

"Cisco DNA Center was a new technology for us, at the beginning, it was not easy to do, but Cisco did a lot of training with us to a level we could handle everything. The team is managing itself now without the assistance of Cisco."

"The product doesn’t have good monitoring capabilities."

"When it comes to deploying wireless fields, integrating defaults into the DNS interface can be challenging."

"What could be improved is the licensing cost of Cisco DNA Center. It's a little bit expensive."

"The solution’s security side could be improved."

More Cisco DNA Center cons

"Each device needs to be configured to allow NetBrain to poll for the information it needs, which can be very time-consuming for a large network."

"It would be nice if the setup was a little simpler. Also, if the solution could provide more training materials for new people coming into our company so they can quickly learn how to use the functionalities."

"Support needs to improve for the installed product and some of the reporting could be more flexible to provide more complete cataloging."

"The solution could integrate more automation."

"The IP interface brief isn't consistent."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cisco DNA Center is a licensed product with multiple levels of licensing available such as basic, advanced, and essential. I don't have the exact figure, but Cisco DNA Center is costly. For example, the box has information about the essential license and costs a considerable amount of money. You need to pay extra to use advanced features in Cisco DNA Center. My company sees Cisco DNA Center as a solution that's worth the money, which is why it invested in the solution. If you want centralized management for your network, especially when upgrading it, Cisco DNA Center is perfect, but it's more suitable for a large-scale rather than a small-scale network."

"Cisco DNA Center is expensive."

"The solution is expensive."

"I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with ten being expensive."

"Licensing for Cisco DNA Center is a little bit expensive, just like any Cisco solution. Its cost could still be improved."

"The price could be better. It's a very expensive tool."

"I rate the product's pricing an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is very cheap, and ten is very expensive."

"The partnership price is notably high, but it ultimately depends on the chosen business model."

More Cisco DNA Center pricing and cost advice

"Licensing is based on a per-device basis, which means that it can get very expensive if you have a large number of devices."

"The product is expensive, but less expensive than some of the competition and worth the price."

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824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

19%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

University

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Government

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco DNA Center?

The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it gives some kind of ease in operations, especially since our company is moving from CLI to GUI-based configuration.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco DNA Center?

I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with ten being expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cisco DNA Center?

One area that needs improvement is the upgrade process. The time required for downloading and installing packages during upgrades is too long, often taking around ten hours. This is a significant i...

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Comparisons

Juniper Mist Wired Assurance vs Cisco DNA Center

Compared 9% of the time

Meraki Dashboard vs Cisco DNA Center

Compared 8% of the time

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager vs Cisco DNA Center

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiManager vs Cisco DNA Center

Compared 7% of the time

HPE Intelligent Management Center vs Cisco DNA Center

Compared 5% of the time

More Cisco DNA Center Competitors

ThousandEyes vs NetBrain

Compared 17% of the time

SolarWinds Network Automation Manager vs NetBrain

Compared 12% of the time

Forward Enterprise vs NetBrain

Compared 8% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs NetBrain

Compared 7% of the time

Zabbix vs NetBrain

Compared 7% of the time

More NetBrain Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco DNA Center

December 2024

Download Cisco DNA Center product report

Buyer's Guide

NetBrain

December 2024

Download NetBrain product report

Also Known As

DNA Center

No data available

Learn More

Cisco

NetBrain

Overview

Cisco DNA Center offers a comprehensive platform for network automation and management, providing detailed analytics, enhanced security, and streamlined operations for both wired and wireless networks.

Cisco DNA Center integrates with Cisco infrastructure to deliver efficient network automation and management, helping organizations improve network visibility, security, and control. It supports AI-driven analytics and automated workflows to enhance operational efficiency and reduce errors. Challenges include compatibility with third-party systems, steep learning curve, and complex deployment. Its interface facilitates centralized control, vital for troubleshooting, policy management, and configuration management, with support for zero-touch provisioning and SD-Access.

What are the key features of Cisco DNA Center?

Robust Analytics: Provides detailed insights into network health with AI-driven analytics.
Centralized Security: Integrates with ISE for comprehensive security management.
Automated Device Management: Simplifies device provisioning and configuration transfers.
Wi-Fi Analytics: Offers deep insights into wireless network performance.
Zero-Touch Provisioning: Streamlines new device deployments with minimal human intervention.
Scalable Segmentation: Efficiently segments network traffic ensuring security and performance.

What benefits should users consider?

Operational Efficiency: Automation reduces potential errors and streamlines workflow.
Enhanced Security: Integration with Cisco ISE bolsters security capabilities.
Network Visibility: Comprehensive dashboards and analysis tools enhance monitoring.
Troubleshooting: Real-time monitoring aids in identifying and resolving issues swiftly.

In sectors such as healthcare, finance, and retail, Cisco DNA Center is utilized for its ability to enhance security and compliance, manage large-scale networks, and provide detailed analytics for better operational decision-making. Its support for location tracking and policy automation ensures efficient network management across diverse environments.

Managing today’s networks with yesterday’s manual processes is no longer a viable solution. NetBrain’s network automation platform provides actionable insights into your network to help you make better and faster decisions - particularly when you’re troubleshooting, securing, and making changes to the network.

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

CompuCon, TD Ameritrade, Move Inc.

Buyer's Guide

Cisco DNA Center vs. NetBrain

October 2024

Free Report: Cisco DNA Center vs. NetBrain

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco DNA Center vs. NetBrain and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.

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