Forescout Platform and Cisco Identity Services Engine compete in the network security category. While both offer distinct advantages, Cisco ISE appears to have the upper hand due to its robust feature set, despite the higher investment it requires.
Features: Forescout Platform boasts agentless capabilities, integration flexibility, and superior device visibility and control. Its ability to manage IoT devices effortlessly is recognized as an additional strength. Cisco ISE is valued for comprehensive policy enforcement, scalability, and advanced threat detection.
Room for Improvement: Forescout users suggest enhancements in reporting tools, user training documentation, and intuitive reporting interfaces. Cisco ISE users point out the need for easier deployment complexity, better troubleshooting processes, and more simplified workflows.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Forescout users experience a smoother deployment process and find its customer service supportive. Configurations are swift with Forescout. Cisco ISE users encounter a steeper learning curve but benefit from comprehensive customer support, despite needing more intricate configurations.
Pricing and ROI: Forescout is known for competitive pricing and quicker ROI due to lower setup costs. Cisco ISE, although costlier, promises long-term value and reliability, justifying the investment through its extensive feature set.
I rate the technical support as one out of ten.
Sometimes it's challenging to identify which support team is responsible for certain issues, which is a significant concern.
They are very poor in asset classification and should focus on improving the preauthentication profiling, especially for NAC use cases.
Pricing can be more expensive compared to other vendors, and there is a significant price gap observed, which doesn't seem justified by some specific features.
Factors like architecture, business nature, and legal limitations such as GDPR affect it.
Compared to other solutions like HPE ClearPass, Cisco is more costly, and the conversation suggests a possible forty percent price gap compared to competitors.
Cloud solutions are expensive, while on-prem setups with shared environments are cheaper but not effective.
The stability of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is poor for certain use cases, like authentication.
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is considered very reliable and stable.
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is very good at device administration.
The solution is integrated with other Cisco devices and can offer automation for an organization, making deployments more dynamic and providing real-time visibility.
Cisco ISE is an all-in-one solution that streamlines security policy management and reduces operating costs. Cisco ISE delivers visibility and access control over users and devices across wired, wireless, and VPN connections.
Identity Services Engine enables enterprises to deliver secure network access to users and devices. It shares contextual data, such as threats and vulnerabilities, with integrated solutions from Cisco technology partners. You can see what is happening in your network, which applications are running, and more.
Features of Cisco ISE
Benefits of Cisco ISE
Cisco’s holistic approach to network access security has several advantages:
Support
You can get ISE as a physical or virtual appliance. Both deployments can create ISE clusters that create scale, redundancy, and requirements.
Licensing
Cisco ISE has four primary licences. Evaluation for up to 100 endpoints with full platform functionality. The higher tiers are Partner, Advantage and Essential.
Reviews from Real Users
"The user experience of the solution is great. It's a very transparent system. according to a PeerSpot user in Cyber Security at a manufacturing company.
Omar Z., Network & Security Engineer at an engineering company, feels that "The RADIUS Server holds the most value."
“Whether I deploy in China, the US, South Africa, or wherever, I can get all the capabilities. It allows me to directly integrate with 365, and from a communications point of view, that is a good capability," says Rammohan M., Senior Consultant at a tech services company.
Hassan A.,Technology Manager at Advanced Integrated Systems, says that "The most valuable feature is the integration with StealthWatch and DNA as one fabric."
Forescout Platform provides today’s busy enterprise organizations with policy and protocol management, workflow coordination, streamlining, and complete device and infrastructure visibility to improve overall network security. The solution also provides concise real-time intelligence of all devices and users on the network. Policy and protocols are delineated using gathered intelligence to facilitate the appropriate levels of remediation, compliance, network access, and all service operations. Forescout Platform is very flexible, integrates well with most of today’s leading network security products, and is a very cost-effective solution.
Forescout Platform Features
Real User Reviews
An important main feature of Forescout is the visibility the solution offers.
One reviewer who is a Consultant at a tech services company, says, "Within three or four days, you can have complete visibility of your infrastructure on the network. Compared to other solutions, the deployment of the solution is easier and we can close the project quickly."
Users also appreciate that the user interface is clear and easy to understand.
An Instructor at a tech services company, shares, "The most valuable feature of the Forescout Platform is the large capacity it can handle. Additionally, the interface of the platform is good."
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