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Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs Fortinet FortiAuthenticator comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 5, 2022
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Identity Services Eng...
Average Rating
8.2
Number of Reviews
139
Ranking in other categories
Network Access Control (NAC) (1st), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st)
Fortinet FortiAuthenticator
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (6th), Authentication Systems (3rd), Identity Management (IM) (7th), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and Fortinet FortiAuthenticator aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is designed for Network Access Control (NAC) and holds a mindshare of 29.9%, down 31.4% compared to last year.
Fortinet FortiAuthenticator, on the other hand, focuses on Single Sign-On (SSO), holds 11.5% mindshare, up 11.4% since last year.
Network Access Control (NAC)
Single Sign-On (SSO)
 

Featured Reviews

Vergin Mansour - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 3, 2023
Improved our security resilience and helped to consolidate different applications
The one main thing that it can improve on is the GUI. As the newest addition to the team, I struggle a little bit to get around it just because it has so many features. This is an amazing thing but the downside of it is that it's not as friendly to figure out which feature does what and how to get to it. You have to go through a lot of menus to figure out what you need. Although it's fantastic, it's full of different options that are endless, it does get a bit hectic for new users to get comfortable with it. It's taking me a while to figure out all the features and options.
Jared Carmouche - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 28, 2023
An extremely stable and scalable solution that is affordable and easy to manage
We use the solution for different clients and how they authenticate for VPN and Wi-Fi. We also use it for the captive portal and single sign-on. We use it for quite a bit for authentication The product has become a central hub for how dozens of our clients authenticate to VPN and Wi-Fi. It has…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"There are a lot of integrations available with multiple vendors. This has made the solution easier to work with."
"Assisting a larger number of users in gaining access and guiding them through the process of getting on Cisco ISE has been seamless."
"When you push out the policy, it is able to populate the entire network at one time."
"Cisco ISE scales exceptionally well."
"Cisco ISE's integration with other external identity servers like Duende is very simple and easy."
"It offers automatic profiling of phones and computers, enabling administrators to identify and categorize devices seamlessly."
"My team has gained a lot from Cisco ISE as it does also provide automation, which is a big asset in the eighth hour. After setting it up, it took a lot of the weight off in many ways. We have a co-worker, who we call the ISE Master because he's in charge of the ISE configurations. He's able to save a lot of time by being able to monitor everything from there. So it did take off a lot of time that we would waste by going individually to that different device and trying to figure out what was wrong."
"Improves switch account management."
"The feature I value the most is the one-time passwords because it helps to authenticate users so you know the timing of their usage."
"The product's initial setup phase was easy. It is also easy to deploy."
"The current version is stable...Scalability-wise, it is a fine solution"
"Intuitive interface and easy to deploy."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiAuthenticator are easy to configure, secure, and the application has good performance."
"The most valuable feature is the OTP on the mobile phone."
"For someone concerned with multifactor authentication, I'm satisfied with the product."
"Fulfilled our requirement at a good price."
 

Cons

"I would definitely improve the deployment and maybe a little bit of the support. Our first exposure to ISE had a lot of issues."
"The pricing and licensing structure are not ideal for customers."
"On the network services devices, when you click on filter, the filter comes up. However, when I type in a search and I want to click on something it defaults back to the main page. I keep having an issue with that, and I'm not doing anything wrong."
"Third-party integration is important, as well as the continuous adaptation feature which is the AIOps. It would be helpful to include the AIOps."
"The learning curve is steep and the initial setup is complex."
"I believe that Cisco can improve the way its policies are built because it's a little complex."
"It would be helpful for us to know what needs to be deployed, configured, and what changes we need to make to our devices when we don't receive the specific login which is an indication of a lack of connection or incorrect configuration."
"I'd like to see the logging be a bit more robust in terms of what it has baked in. If I want to do any in-depth searching, I have to export all the logs to an external platform like Elastic or LogRhythm and then parse through them myself. It would be nice if I could find what I want, when I want it, on the platform itself."
"We had issues trying to integrate the keys properly during the initial setup."
"The product must provide 2FA for applications."
"The only issue I encounter is that when not using FortiAuthenticator for an extended period, it's typical to encounter some obstacles in the configuration process that you need to address."
"We would like to see Linux-based operating systems be able to integrate with FortiAuthenticator to get two-factor authentication running on them. as well. This is a shortcoming that I have faced a few times already."
"The speed of deployment on the cloud could be improved. It took a few days when it should have been just two days"
"Fortinet FortiAuthenticator's initial setup process could be easier."
"I would like to see some email options for Fortinet FortiAuthenticator."
"I would like to see more support from Fortinet with tech support people who have as much expertise on the authenticator as they do on their firewalls."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are running Version 2.9 because Version 2.9 of the ISE has a persistent license — it's a one-time payment. The latest version (3.1) is only available if you do a yearly subscription."
"I think the price is okay."
"There are other cheaper options available."
"Previously, Cisco ISE had a perpetual licensing model, but now they have shifted to a subscription-based licensing system."
"Licensing has got much simpler since Cisco moved to the DNA model because we just have the three tiers, but it could always stand to be improved upon."
"It is fairly expensive and that's part of why we have implemented it in the type of 'hack' that we did, to service multiple clients."
"It has a fair price. It is better than it was before."
"Cisco is moving towards a subscription service, which would mean additional costs."
"I would rate the pricing a four out of ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive. It is not that costly. It is cheap, easy to manage, easy to install, and easy to configure."
"The product could be more competitively priced."
"I rate the product price as two or three on a one-to-ten scale, where one is expensive, and ten is cheap."
"It's not expensive."
"The cost of the license could be less expensive. The license is paid on a yearly basis."
"The pricing is fair."
"The licensing structure is cost-effective for us compared to some of the other solutions that have recurring monthly costs."
"It costs more to license the high-availability option."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
25%
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
21%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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 are the main differences between Cisco ISE and Forescout Platform?
OK, so Cisco ISE uses 802.1X to secure switchports against unauthorized access. The drawback of this is that ISE cannot secure the port if a device does not support 802.1x. Cameras, badge readers, ...
How does Cisco ISE compare with Fortinet FortiNAC?
Cisco ISE uses AI endpoint analytics to identify new devices based on their behavior. It will also notify you if someone plugs in with a device that is not allowed and will block it. The user exper...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiAuthenticator?
The platform is cost-effective as it does not require a separate license for SD-WAN functionality.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiAuthenticator?
The solution's command line interface could be improved to provide better support for low-level debugging and advanced configurations. Additionally, features that streamline user management and int...
 

Also Known As

Cisco ISE
FortiAuthenticator
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aegean Motorway, BC Hydro, Beachbody, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Cisco IT, Derby City Council, Global Banking Customer, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, Houston Methodist, Linz AG, London Hydro, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Molina Healthcare, MST Systems, New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Reykjavik University, Wildau University
Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
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