ExtremeCloud IQ vs Sophos Network Access Control comparison

ExtremeCloud IQ vs. Sophos Network Access Control

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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

ExtremeCloud IQ

Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)

10th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Management Applications (10th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (18th)

Sophos Network Access Control

Ranking in Network Access Control (NAC)

6th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Network Access Control (NAC) category, the mindshare of ExtremeCloud IQ is 0.6%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Network Access Control is 1.4%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Network Access Control (NAC)

Featured Reviews

Sriman L

Senior Network Engineer at Nipun Net Solutions

One of the best cloud-based wireless solutions that helps manage multiple APs from a single dashboard across multiple locations

ExtremeCloud IQ’s user interface needs to be improved, and its current bugs need to be fixed. Sometimes, AP details, like the AP firmware and the AP hostname, are not updating properly because of a few bugs in the current version, which they might fix in the next version. Compared to the central and other cloud solutions, a couple of bugs still running on these portals need to be rectified. For ExtremeCloud IQ's next releases, I expect to get all the users and the events alerts. Also, if any AP goes down, I should be able to do some scheduled reports specific to the site because it is currently in beta. If any AP goes offline, that's an event. If you want to do the filter for a specific site event, we don't have that filter option. I expect specific site-level and category-level events and alert filters to get reports.

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Abdul Basit

Assistant Manager IT at Asia Petroleum Limited

An affordable solution that provides web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering

Web protection, URL filtering, and application filtering are the most valuable features of Sophos Network Access Control Sophos Network Access Control needs improvement regarding its slow interface, loading time, and reporting. Big companies with 1,000 or 1,500 users might face difficulties using…

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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

"The feature that I like to most is unified management in a multitenant environment, where we can manage all our customers with thousands of devices (routers, switches, VPNs, and APs)."

"The support organization behind this product is extremely professional."

"The dashboards are great and the user interface is quite intuitive."

"a true controller-less approach, where each Access Point is 100% independent from the management system."

"ExtremeCloud IQ is an intuitive platform. The tool's ability to streamline network operations depends on the end customer. Sometimes it's quicker, and sometimes it takes much longer. It helps me to address network problems."

"ExtremeCloud offers features that not a lot of other vendors do like their data storage and the ability to swap licenses."

"Its configuration and deployment are the most valuable."

"HiveManager is extremely easy to use for anyone with little network experience."

More ExtremeCloud IQ pros

"I am very satisfied with this solution overall. All of the features that we use have been working successfully."

"The initial setup is very easy."

"We have had interactions with the technical support team through the Xnet platform. It's good."

"The most valuable features of Sophos Network Access Control are the quick response times to threats and reliable security."

"There is really good visibility for the appliance."

"The platform's most valuable features include robust reporting and analytics capabilities, which provide deep insights into our sales performance and customer behavior."

"I found all Sophos Network Access Control features valuable, but IP blocking is the most useful."

"Sophos Network Access Control has a useful interface, and I like its dashboard, which is very useful for us to check everything."

More Sophos Network Access Control pros

Cons

"There can be an improvement by incorporating two-factor authentication or multi-factor authentication for security. Advanced network access control features and application control features should be added to manage applications. Many customers are interested in managing data, such as setting data quotas for individual users."

"Its price could be lower. It is a simplified solution, but it has price challenges. It is costly as compared to other solutions. It has almost everything. The only thing is that MAC is not possible on the cloud, and it has to be on-premises."

"A mobile app would be awesome."

"I would like to see more security features such as NAC integrated to the solution. This would allow customers to be able to control all other users under one dashboard."

"I struggled with the documentation."

"The licensing model could be improved."

"From our perspective, we would love to see Aerohive provide faster feature enhancement in their Virtual Appliance to match the features with the cloud solution more quickly."

"The dashboard and stability need to be improved."

More ExtremeCloud IQ cons

"I would like to see mobile administration capabilities in the next release so that we can administer the device from a mobile device."

"Sophos Network Access Control requires a lot of resources to work, which is an area for improvement. Pricing could also be improved because it's costly."

"I would like to be able to fully customize the reports."

"One area in which the product could be improved is the user interface. While functional, it can be somewhat cluttered and unintuitive, especially for new users."

"The difficult thing was finding the metrics."

"There is room for improvement in pricing."

"In order to provide better management, it would be ideal with they offered better plugins for their firewall."

"The solution can improve the for applying policies. They can be complex depending don't the group they are applied to."

More Sophos Network Access Control cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are probably cheaper solutions but we invest for stability and performance for the longer haul."

"Previously, ExtremeCloudIQ provided free licensing for all the basic requirements of their customers. An advanced cloud user had to purchase advanced licenses for automation and advanced country features at the enterprise level. They have restricted the licensing, allowing only up to ten units for testing, which is challenging. This limitation becomes problematic, especially in countries like Sri Lanka or other Asian countries, where customers face economic challenges and have limited budgets. The previous free option was beneficial, but it has become tougher to manage with these new changes. They should revise their pricing structure, offering the basic features free of charge for up to 50 AP. Larger entities with more than 50 APs have the budget to support them. Still, it becomes more difficult for small and medium-sized businesses with less than 50 APs to allocate a significant budget for control and management features."

"The product pricing is reasonable."

"I am not involved in the price, but I am sure that it is not cheap."

"It is costly as compared to Meraki, Aruba, Juniper, and Cisco. Cloud IQ is an enterprise solution, whereas Meraki is specifically a single solution."

"Extreme licensing is based on the number of access points. When you buy the license for the first year, everything is included, such as access to mapping, etc. If you don't renew your software assurance for the second year, the access points will still work, but you can't use the cloud management tools."

"The pricing is so cost-effective that it leaves no room for competition with other vendors."

"ExtremeCloud IQ's pricing is high."

More ExtremeCloud IQ pricing and cost advice

"It is quite expensive."

"Sophos Network Access Control is very cheap compared to other solutions like Cisco, Barracuda, and Palo Alto."

"I rate the price of Sophos Network Access Control a five out of ten."

"Sophos Network Access Control is an expensive solution."

"It provides a moderate pricing option for all of its features and benefits."

"Sophos Network Access Control is costly but has a similar price range as CrowdStrike and Check Point. The product can get more market share if Sophos can play around with Sophos Network Access Control pricing and improve it."

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845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Educational Organization

10%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

15%

Government

Educational Organization

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?

Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...

What do you like most about ExtremeCloud IQ?

The Client 360 feature provides a comprehensive view of your clients and their activities, including the devices they use. Additionally, a feature called Network 360 offers a 360-degree view of the...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ExtremeCloud IQ?

The licensing was a challenge due to budget constraints, and I used ExtremeCloud IQ without a license for a period. The documentation and training courses were also costly, impacting how easily I c...

What do you like most about Sophos Network Access Control?

Sophos Network Access Control has a useful interface, and I like its dashboard, which is very useful for us to check everything.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Network Access Control?

I am not able to say much on the financial specifics as it pertains to the sales unit.

What needs improvement with Sophos Network Access Control?

For now, I may not be able to say exactly what needs improvement. However, continuous development in specific areas might be required.

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Product Reports

ExtremeCloud IQ

Download ExtremeCloud IQ product report

Sophos Network Access Control

Download Sophos Network Access Control product report

Also Known As

Aerohive Networks, Aerohive HiveManager, HiveManager, ExtremeCloud , ExtremeSecurity

No data available

Overview

ExtremeCloud is a resilient and scalable cloud-based network management solution offered by Extreme Networks as a subscription service.

The network is your platform of engagement for clients and staff. We have designed ExtremeCloud to provide superior user experience by empowering you and the applications that drive your business. The combination of Extreme Networks’ smart wired and wireless edges and the elasticity, resilience and scalability provided via state-of-the-art datacenters distributed strategically for worldwide availability allows you to respond to the changing needs of your business, at the speed of cloud, through a simple, multi-site aware user interface.

Extreme

Sophos NAC Provides comprehensive, easy-to-deploy network access control that protects enterprise networks from the threats posed by non-compliant, compromised, or misconfigured endpoint computers. The software solution is vendor-neutral and works with existing network infrastructure and security applications. Computers are permitted or denied access to the network, based on a centrally defined, policy-driven assessment - and isolated, quarantined for remediation, automatically remediated, or sent alerts. Administrators can define and manage policies uniquely for managed and guest computers, including checking their security status and ensuring that no unwanted applications are run.

Sophos

Sample Customers

Henry Ford Health System, Baltimore Ravens, Brandili, Federal University of Alagoas, CEDAE, Caxias do Sul, UNISC Concurrency, CenturyLink Field, Louisiana College, Cricket Tasmania Stadium, Moscow Internet Exchange

Rushmoor Borough Council

ExtremeCloud IQ vs. Sophos Network Access Control