Infoblox DDI Reviews

The utilization of Infoblox DDI is quite varied and multifaceted within our organization. One of the primary ways in which we utilize this tool is for IT management purposes, specifically in the area of IPAM (IP Address Management). We utilize Infoblox DDI as a secondary DNS system to complement our primary DNS setup. Furthermore, we also leverage the capabilities of Infoblox DDI for NTP (Network Time Protocol) purposes, ensuring that our network devices are in sync with each other. Additionally, we use it for DHCP in our environment, we have to use dynamic IP addresses. We use it for DHCP and our some clients and IoT devices.

The most valuable feature of Infoblox DDI is its IP Address Management (IPAM) tool. This tool allows for the effective management of IP addresses and provides the capability to detect duplicates, hence its moniker "discovery." Another feature that I find particularly useful is the integration of DNS, which can be seamlessly integrated with your existing primary DNS server, making the overall experience much more seamless and efficient. Also mostly used NTP server in many airport data centers and infrastructure.

Regarding an upcoming release of Infoblox DDI, I would like to see an improvement in the existing integration with Ansible/Teraform. Currently, the integration is not up to par and requires further enhancements.

Additionally, the GUI can be slow, it could be improved.

I have been using Infoblox DDI for approximately five years.

The solution is stable.

We have 10 clients using infobox DDI and each client, maybe around 30 users.

Infoblox DDI has room for improvement in regard to its support system. Recently, I encountered an issue and opened a case with them, however, it has been a month and I have yet to receive any response from their support team. This lack of communication can be problematic and is a potential area for improvement for Infoblox DDI.

I rate the support from Infoblox DDI a seven out of ten.

Neutral

The initial setup of Infoblox DDI is easy. In a large environment, the implementation could take one day. However, if it is a smaller environment, it will only take hours.

Despite the high cost of the solution, I would suggest considering the size of the environment in which it is being utilized. If the domain is relatively small, I would not recommend purchasing this product as it may not be worth the investment. However, for larger environments, particularly airports, where Infoblox DDI is commonly used and can prove to be a worthwhile investment. For those in small environments, it might be more appropriate to consider alternative options, such as utilizing a Windows server for the NTP server requirements.

The license of the solution is expensive, not including the hardware.

If someone were to approach me for advice regarding the use of Infoblox DDI for the first time, I would suggest that it is an ideal solution for managing IP addresses, DNS, and NTP in medium-sized and large environments. This product is known for its ease of setup and has proven to be one of the most reliable and effective solutions in the market, as it is being used in many airports across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Qatar. It is a highly recommended solution for anyone looking to efficiently manage large IP addresses and large network space. Additionally, NTP, which is an important aspect of network management, is effectively managed by Infoblox DDI. In conclusion, it is a top-quality solution that one should consider.

I rate Infoblox DDI an eight out of ten.

The purpose of this solution is to work with different main services already existing on the customer side, such as Microsoft's DHCP server and DNS server. While these services are mostly covered by Microsoft, Infoblox addresses the limitations and improves them significantly. For example, working with the DHCP server is more efficient and easier with Infoblox. 

Similarly, managing DNS services is much better in Infoblox compared to Microsoft. Infoblox excels in resolving DNS queries quickly and efficiently, and its management capabilities are superior. Infoblox focuses on DNS security, which is their main area of expertise. They want to host the DNS server in their system to enhance and secure DNS operations. 

This is their competitive advantage in the market—providing superior DNS security and management capabilities, not just managing security but also securing and controlling DNS records.

Infoblox excels in managing DNS, DHCP, and IP addresses. Additionally, they prioritize DNS security, which is crucial for the security department. 

While DNS, DHCP, and IP address management are typically handled by the networking or systems department, Infoblox provides advanced security features that cater to the security department's needs as well.

There is some room for improvement in setup and the pricing model. 

We recently started again this year with Infoblox for our customers. I worked with it in 2016-2017, when I handled the technical part. Now I have shifted to sales and solution architecture.

Infoblox DDI is a stable solution. There was one product, Advanced DNS Protection, that was recently mentioned. It is another solution from Infoblox. About five years ago, there were some stability issues, especially with the hardware version. 

Whether it was hardware or a virtual appliance, the hardware version was not stable. However, they have made significant improvements and resolved many hardware issues. Currently, we are only selling the DPI (Deep Packet Inspection) product. So, I haven't encountered many cases where stability became a concern as they have addressed the hardware issues.

So far, based on the product we have installed for our customers, I would rate it a nine out of ten. But it also depends on the specific product implementation. Since we primarily sell the virtual solution, which integrates well with the customer's virtualization system, it provides added stability.

Infoblox DDI is a scalable solution. It's a scalable solution in general. I would rate the scalability an eight of ten. 

In the past five to six years, Infoblox DDI's technical support has been average. However, I can't comment on their current support as we haven't needed to contact them for technical assistance. We have been relying on their professional service support during the implementation phase. The professional service team has been responsive and quick in addressing our queries. But I can't provide a definitive answer on their technical support as we haven't yet opened a support case with Infoblox.

We are using support from a third-party provider, not directly from Infoblox. Infoblox does provide its own support. What I meant was that during the ongoing implementation phase, we are primarily relying on the professional service support from Infoblox. 

We haven't transitioned to their regular technical support yet, as the professional service team is still involved in the project. So, once the professional service is done with the implementation, we will switch to Infoblox's regular technical support.

Setting it up is not easy. It's not difficult, either. It requires certain configurations to be done, but once the admin understands how it's done, it will be easy to deal with. But it does take some time to become familiar with it in general.

Infoblox DDI can be deployed on the cloud or on-premises, or if you want, even in organizations that don't have a window for the internet.

Deployment time depends. If it's a fresh installation, it won't take much time. But mostly in Infoblox DDI, the implementation includes migration, which can be a tough part, especially when migrating from Microsoft to Infoblox. It requires a dedicated tool from them to migrate the DNS server and DSCB from Microsoft. So that's the main challenge. But if you start from scratch, it will take not much time.

Additionally, if the customer doesn't have a DNS server from Microsoft, it's easier. So, if they focus on resolving integration troubles, that would make Infoblox a better solution.

In general, integration with third-party vendors has become complex now because they use custom APIs. So integration with other third parties is not a big deal now.

I would say the pricing falls between average and expensive. It's not a cheap product. 

I would rate it as an eight out of ten, with one being a low price and ten being a high price. 

There are some additional actions that may incur additional costs. For example, one of the additional costs is the Enterprise Reporter license. It is an additional license required for reporting purposes. Infoblox DDI itself doesn't include reporting capabilities, so a dedicated solution is needed, which requires an additional license.

There are many features that were previously added one by one. For any single feature, an additional license was required. But now, since they have switched to a subscription-based model, you can get a lot of services and features in one license. So there's no need to add an additional license. It's less complicated now. That's the only thing I remember from the enterprise reports or reports enterprise that remains the same. 

I really recommend this type of solution because I'm sure most of our customers are using Microsoft DSCB and DNS, but there is no security for that because Microsoft doesn't have this type of security solution. 

We are really focused on the security part, especially the DNS security part because there are a lot of attacks using DNS nowadays.  Infoblox DDI is working hard on the end of security. So, I don't believe Microsoft can provide this. Therefore, I highly recommend people use solutions like Infoblox.

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.