Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) comparison

Citrix and SonicWall are both solutions in the Remote Access category. Citrix is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.6, while SonicWall is ranked #25 with an average rating of 7.0. Citrix holds a 4.6% mindshare in VUS, compared to SonicWall’s 0.7% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Citrix users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 50% of SonicWall users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) and SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about TeamViewer, Microsoft, Citrix and others in Remote Access.

To learn more, read our detailed Remote Access Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Remote Access

March 2026

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Helped 885,880 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.2%, down from 10.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 4.6%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) is 0.7%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Remote Access Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune	9.2%
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)	4.6%
SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE)	0.7%
Other	85.5%

Remote Access

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble

Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24

Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license

The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.

Read full review

Sorin Neacsu

Technical Lead on Virtual Desktop at Orange

Has delivered consistent desktop experiences across remote locations and has supported multimedia workloads efficiently

I have utilized the HDX protocol for compression and audio-video capabilities. When users need to conduct meetings with customers or colleagues, they can use Teams solutions and open a bridge where video and audio are encapsulated within the ICA protocol, which is protected by SSL and certificates for security. This provides secure communication at good quality through the HDX protocol. HDX protocol has improved application performance as it is specifically designed for multimedia applications. If processing audio or video files, such as in telecom where discussions are recorded and then prepared as video or audio, this does not consume excessive bandwidth during the operation compared to a normal remote desktop connection provided by Microsoft. Everything is compressed and provides sufficient bandwidth for multiple people to perform similar tasks without interruption or session disconnection. All multimedia-related activities, such as playing content on YouTube, deliver a better experience with this protocol overall. I use multi-factor authentication for opening sessions to the data center where users access their machines or software. Multi-factor authentication has helped secure applications because users typically have two-way authentication software on their phones. They use a password first and then authenticate themselves through their mobile application to grant access to resources. This approach is effective because if a hacker attacks a user, they need more than just the password and username. They must also possess the device that provides authentication. The device typically has facial recognition, a password, and provides better security overall.

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Kallamuddin Ansari

Cyber Security Consultant at ProTechmanize

Remote access has become more secure and flexible but reporting still needs deeper analytics

SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) offers excellent features including Zero Trust Network Access, VPN as a service, and Cloud Access Security Brokers. One of the standout features is Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) for Software as a Service, providing visibility and control over cloud applications employees use, not only regarding whether they can use them but also regarding the actions they perform within those applications. This is especially useful in organizations utilizing many SaaS tools such as Office 365, Salesforce, and cloud storage, where consistent security policy enforcement is required, even from personal devices or remote locations. The secure web gateway feature is critical for modern-day internet security. SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) provides secure web gateway features for users accessing the internet, including URL filtering, domain filtering, blocking malicious websites, preventing phishing or ransomware threats, and enforcing acceptable use policies. SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) has had a very positive impact on our organization as our workforce becomes more distributed, with noticeable improvements including easier and more secure remote access. Previously, managing VPN clients and hardware gateways was difficult for new or non-technical users, but with SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE), users simply authenticate and get secure access to only the applications they need. There are numerous improvements I notice, such as improved BYOD security, reduced risk of lateral movements, simplified management, lower hardware dependency, and better visibility and compliance reporting. After moving to SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE), we saw a 38% reduction in VPN-related tickets. Users are no longer facing client errors, tunnel failures, and certificate issues, which saves nearly 25 hours per month on troubleshooting remote access problems. Onboarding remote users has become 60% faster, now taking only 10 to 15 minutes instead of 30 to 40 minutes. Additionally, there has been a 52% reduction in risky connection attempts primarily from devices with outdated operating systems or disabled antivirus, with zero lateral movement and a 30% drop in failed login anomalies.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Microsoft Intune helps us avoid issuing everyone company-owned devices. We provide a stipend, allowing users to bring their own devices. This approach gives us leverage against other MSPs. It also enhances collaboration because clients already covered by specific licensing can optimize their usage of Microsoft Intune."

"I like how Intune deploys the policies and makes them customizable. You can deploy it through Intune and forget about it."

"The navigation, the keys, and the settings are easy to find. It is easy to understand."

"If you need only to load a specific profile and you don't have deep security functionalities, et cetera, Intune is very nice and good."

"The biggest asset is the range of device management options available with Intune, whether it is a Windows device, a Linux device, a Mac device, or mobile devices."

"Microsoft Intune is far more efficient and faster than MECM."

"It has improved our organization through the remote management of non-domain joined devices."

"The stability is good."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"The scalability is fine. We have about 400 users, who are supported by six staff members. We use the product company-wide throughout 40 different locations, and we currently do not have plans to increase the scale of use."

"XenApp is a fast, secure and reliable solution for remote connections that is completely different than and superior to older Windows solutions."

"The feature that I like is that it is fast."

"Citrix is used by many organizations to make it possible to streamline the way different developers work together from different locations."

"If it fits your budget, no doubt you should get it, but keep in mind that there are other products out there that could give you the same for less."

"There has been a lot of improvement in the application, and we use the application for so many different things and areas of security; it is incredible what we can do with Citrix."

"The most valuable feature has to be the non-persistent desktop. If one of my users messes something up and blows away their desktop, it goes back to what it was originally, before they had an issue."

"Relative to other solutions, Citrix has fewer conditions and fewer parameters. Citrix also provides some flexibility because it can be used on any device."

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pros

"After moving to SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE), we saw a 38% reduction in VPN-related tickets, saving nearly 25 hours per month on troubleshooting remote access problems, onboarding remote users has become 60% faster, and there has been a 52% reduction in risky connection attempts with zero lateral movement and a 30% drop in failed login anomalies."

Cons

"In Microsoft Intune, there is significant slowness, and there needs to be more logs when we deploy software, parameters, or scripts to troubleshoot problems and errors in the interface, workstations, and Android devices."

"There is room for improvement in the remediation and detection modules, which are currently about eighty percent fully functional."

"Microsoft Intune can be improved by making it even more seamless for users to download their certificates."

"The only issues I have had with Microsoft Intune were with applications where if they are not an MSI file, I cannot really upload it as an application."

"The reporting functionality of Microsoft Intune is limited compared to Microsoft System Center, which offers many more reporting options."

"However, I dislike how it lags sometimes. I cannot work on multiple processes at the same time."

"The UI is not user-friendly and has room for improvement."

"The interoperability or communication with a different platform can be better. It is a two-way street. It is not only about Microsoft. The other platforms also have to be willing to share some information, but that absolutely can be improved."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"The price is currently high, and having tiered pricing would benefit companies."

"Citrix's functionality depends on you having access to Microsoft Azure. Microsoft offers a broad range of features and solutions. Overall, it may make sense for some users to move all their services to Microsoft services."

"I've recently tried to use Citrix on Ubuntu, and I don't know if this is an Ubuntu issue or a vendor issue, but you can't use Citrix right now on Ubuntu 20.04."

"Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops are not easy to set up. However, I have the experience and I can do it easily. It could be easier to set up."

"Also, there is a lot of work in optimizing desktops so that they don't unnecessarily reduce server performance."

"The product has some bugs, making it an area of concern where improvements are required."

"Licensing service installation and configuration was the biggest challenge for all Citrix solutions, but now they have fixed a lot of issues."

"Over the years Citrix has increased the pace in which new versions are released, and often the product has not gone through thorough enough testing so the consultants are left very challenged trying to resolve bugs, and obtaining post-release fixes from the Vendor (Citrix)."

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) cons

"SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) has some areas for improvement, particularly in reporting and dashboards."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's bundled with Business Premium and an E3 license, which is beneficial. If you have to pay extra, it's pricey, but with the bundled package, it's acceptable. They recently increased the Business Premium pricing, which we don't appreciate. The price increase and yearly commitment are causing some problems for us."

"There is a license needed to use the solution and we are on an annual license."

"There is a license required to use this solution. However, it was part of a bundle package. Microsoft Intune is far less expensive than other solutions, such as Workspace ONE."

"We use Defender ATP and E5 licenses."

"Microsoft Intune is not cost-effective as a standalone product."

"The price is reasonable, but they should lower it a bit to make it more competitive. It's cheaper than AirWatch and other products, but I still feel like Microsoft can make a base version or with Exchange online or a la carte only Intune version which will be useful. A customer who doesn't want to go full-fledged E3 or E5 can take out or consume an Intune solution only for their purpose, and we want to target that customer."

"It's reasonable. They're not giving it away, but it's reasonable."

"While I can't provide insights from a business perspective, it's worth noting that the pricing may differ significantly, and the discount we received might not be reflective of standard business rates."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"In the past, the prices of the product were great. With the acquisition of Citrix by your company, the prices have drastically increased. For my company, it has become a bit of a problem to sell products from Citrix."

"If you look at cost, then you must look at the number of users that you are covering. If you are only using it for some users, then it is very expensive. However, if you have a massive amount of users, then it begins to be interesting to use Citrix. Because once you are managing thousands of servers with one guy, your maintenance costs decrease per user."

"Their licensing model used to be on a per-year basis, where you would negotiate the cost per user for a year. For instance, if you had 25,000 users, you could negotiate the cost accordingly. However, they are transitioning to a subscription-based model where the cost is incurred monthly."

"The purchase price was around $300,000 USD and then the maintenance fees were 20%. There are no other additional fees."

"It is a bit costly, but enterprise class features come with a cost."

"We have more than a million seats under management so we get the best price."

"We don't have a lot to compare it to, but we certainly think whatever we pay is worthwhile at this point in time. It's very reasonable."

"Citrix solutions cost a lot in comparison with competitors, like Azure Virtual Desktop or VMware Horizon. Those solutions cost around 50 to 60 percent less, per month per user, than Citrix."

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Government

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Performing Arts

Insurance Company

12%

Security Firm

10%

Computer Software Company

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	126
Midsize Enterprise	54
Large Enterprise	168

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	44
Midsize Enterprise	21
Large Enterprise	69

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?

Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...

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What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...

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How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...

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What do you like most about Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

My focus has primarily been on publishing virtual applications.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.

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What needs improvement with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE)?

The setup cost for SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) was minimal as most of the investment was in time spent configur...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE)?

SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) has some areas for improvement, particularly in reporting and dashboards. While it ...

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What is your primary use case for SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE)?

My main use case for SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) is for remote and hybrid work access, specifically for Zero Tr...

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Compared 32% of the time

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Compared 3% of the time

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Compared 3% of the time

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Compared 36% of the time

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Compared 17% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 5% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

March 2026

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

April 2026

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) report

Download Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) product report

Buyer's Guide

Remote Access

March 2026

SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) report

Download SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE) product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace

Banyan Security

Interactive Demo

Demo not available

Microsoft

Citrix

Demo not available

SonicWall

Overview

Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based service designed for device management, security, and compliance. It supports automation and facilitates endpoint management for Windows, iOS, and Android devices, ensuring data protection and efficient policy enforcement.

Microsoft Intune offers seamless integration with tools like Windows Autopilot to automate device setup and deployment. Integrated with Azure Active Directory, it enhances policy management while providing robust reporting and analytics tools for compliance tracking. Despite its intuitive interface aimed at simplifying navigation and device security management, there are challenges such as compatibility issues with Linux and Mac, limited policy support for Android, and demands for better third-party integration. It's widely used for both corporate-owned devices and BYOD scenarios in dynamic IT environments.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Windows Autopilot: Automates device setup for rapid deployment.
Azure Active Directory Integration: Enhances user policy management.
Reporting and Analytics: Improves compliance visibility.
Mobile Application Management: Ensures app security without compromising personal data.
Cloud-Based Management: Allows management from any location.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Time Efficiency: Automation reduces time in policy enforcement and configuration updates.
Enhanced Security: Ensures data protection across corporate-owned and BYOD devices.
Improved Compliance: Advanced reporting tools enhance compliance visibility.
Flexible Management: Cloud-based nature supports management from any location.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure data protection and compliance with regulatory standards. Manufacturing sectors utilize Intune for managing a distributed workforce across global locations, while educational institutions employ it to secure and manage devices in learning environments supporting both students and faculty.

Microsoft

Enable secure, flexible work with the leader in virtual apps and desktops

Deliver desktop as a service (DaaS) from any cloud or datacenter

Get started with Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) in minutes to provide a familiar, high-performance digital workspace experience to your users. We’ll manage the infrastructure and security. You focus on your business.

Citrix

SonicWall Cloud Secure Edge (CSE), formerly Banyan Security, easy to adopt Security Service Edge (SSE) solution, enabling your workforce to securely access any resource from any device. It delivers simple, secure, zero trust access to private and internet resources for all your employees and third parties, regardless of their network location. To accomplish that, CSE combines the functionality of multiple traditional network appliances – remote access VPN, web proxy, firewall, etc. – into a unified cloud-delivered solution, improving the security posture and user experience for the entire workforce.

SonicWall

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval

Redox, Byton, Veeva, BlueVoyant

Find out what your peers are saying about TeamViewer, Microsoft, Citrix and others in Remote Access. Updated: March 2026.

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