Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway and Cisco Secure Client compete in the business VPN solutions category. Cisco Secure Client has the upper hand with higher user satisfaction, particularly in feature richness and support, despite its higher cost.
Features: Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway integrates well with Azure services, offers high scalability, and is ideal for businesses already using Azure. Cisco Secure Client is known for extensive security features, high reliability, and robust performance.
Room for Improvement: Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway users report limited support, occasional performance issues, and complexity. Cisco Secure Client users seek an improved installation process, better compatibility with non-Cisco devices, and user-friendly interfaces.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway's deployment receives mixed reviews due to complexity and requiring Azure expertise, with adequate customer service. Cisco Secure Client's deployment is straightforward but needs Cisco-specific knowledge, with higher-rated customer service.
Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure VPN Gateway offers competitive pricing and good ROI for Azure-centric environments. Cisco Secure Client is more expensive but valued for its comprehensive security measures, providing worthwhile ROI by reducing security risks and breaches.
The solution provides significant cost savings, transitioning expenses from CapEx to OpEx.
Cisco offers very high-quality customer service.
Cisco technical support is difficult, and it requires lots of contracts.
Over the years, there's been a decline in the quality, mainly in areas such as the experience level of support engineers and the time taken to address and escalate issues.
Prioritization of tasks can also be challenging, impacting the timely resolution of problems.
In a recent incident, I had an issue with the SharePoint API. It relates to documentation, specifically the lack of up-to-date documentation because Microsoft is moving away from the traditional SharePoint REST API to Microsoft Graph.
A smaller firewall can handle fewer sessions, while a larger one can handle tens of thousands of sessions.
The scalability of Cisco Secure Client depends on the hardware I choose.
Regarding scalability, Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) rates as excellent because we can scale out by simply buying more licenses from the vendor.
The process was very efficient to scale the solution, which supports a high level of scalability.
I would rate the stability ten out of ten.
The stability is really good, and I would rate it up to nine.
Regarding the performance of Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect), I have not seen any issues because performance-wise it functions properly.
Azure VPN Gateway is very stable due to reliance on Microsoft's own network.
I am using Intune for deployments, and it's not easy to create an automated deployment where users do not need to register server addresses.
Vendors offer more features, such as a kill switch.
Cisco's security portfolio, including Secure Client and the firewalls, is falling behind.
The instructions on how to integrate P2N and P2S type networks into Azure VPN Gateway could be improved, though it is a constantly evolving process.
Palo Alto and Fortinet provide free VPN connections, but Cisco Secure Client (including AnyConnect) requires a license purchase.
I perceive the pricing to be a seven, however, I have perpetual licenses.
The pricing seems to align equally with other competitors like Palo Alto during a competitive situation.
The pricing is somewhat high but acceptable, considering it replaces the need for physical network equipment, leading to cost savings.
The price of Azure VPN Gateway should be rated five from a purely invoice aspect.
Beneficial for businesses needing secure access outside the office.
Additionally, it gives the user flexibility of working from anywhere, which is a major feature we are looking at.
Cisco Secure Client's AnyConnect VPN's reliability has been absolutely wonderful, as well as the ability to connect from any network, regardless of location.
It simplifies the process of deploying a VPN connection, replacing all the physical network elements with a software appliance.
The primary function of Azure VPN Gateway allows for designing subnets from existing networks, whether they are physical or virtual networks within Azure or other cloud instances.
Cisco Secure Client, including AnyConnect, provides secure remote access, enabling employees to connect to company networks from different locations. It offers reliable connections, strong encryption, and multi-platform support, making it suitable for secure and efficient remote work.
Cisco Secure Client, including AnyConnect, is crucial for organizations seeking secure remote access. Its reliable connectivity, combined with robust encryption and multi-platform support, ensures employees can access company resources seamlessly. Users benefit from its easy-to-use interface, seamless integration with existing infrastructure, and enhanced security features like endpoint protection and network visibility. This client helps maintain operational efficiency and safeguards sensitive data, making it highly valued in diverse professional settings. Despite its benefits, some users report disconnection issues, a complex configuration process, and high resource consumption.
What are the most important features?Cisco Secure Client, including AnyConnect, is widely adopted across industries such as healthcare, finance, and education for its secure remote access capabilities. Healthcare organizations use it to protect patient data while providing remote care. Financial institutions rely on its encryption standards to secure sensitive transactions. Educational institutions integrate it to provide secure access to online learning resources, ensuring data privacy for students and staff.
A VPN gateway is a specific type of virtual network gateway that is used to send encrypted traffic between an Azure virtual network and an on-premises location over the public Internet. You can also use a VPN gateway to send encrypted traffic between Azure virtual networks over the Microsoft network. Each virtual network can have only one VPN gateway. However, you can create multiple connections to the same VPN gateway. When you create multiple connections to the same VPN gateway, all VPN tunnels share the available gateway bandwidth.
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