It is mainly used for virtual desktop delivery for remote access. We are also using it for load balancing and SSL VPN.
Competency Leader - Virtualization at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Easy to deploy and useful for load balancing, VPN, and AAA authentication
Pros and Cons
- "The load balancing and VPN features are most valuable. AAA authentication is also valuable."
- "Its GUI should be improved. Its CLI is powerful, but GUI needs more features."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The load balancing and VPN features are most valuable. AAA authentication is also valuable.
They have specific integration with the product line for application virtualization and desktop virtualization.
What needs improvement?
Its GUI should be improved. Its CLI is powerful, but GUI needs more features.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for almost eight years.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
They have the software bundle licenses. If you want to add more users, capacity, or throughput on the bandwidth, you can add licenses, and it'll get upgraded.
They also have scalability options with virtualization, and you can use those options as well. Normally, we decide on a particular model depending on the number of users and the use case.
They have different models. An entry-level model supports up to 5,000 users. A mid-range model can support up to 10,000 users, and a high-end model can support up to 40,000 users in the box in HA configuration.
How are customer service and support?
I've contacted them many times. In case of a problem or error, you can raise a support ticket online. Normally, we upload the log. After they analyze the log, they are able to identify the root cause and provide support. In case of a severe issue, they also do a remote session to analyze the issue. They are very helpful.
How was the initial setup?
It is pretty easy and straightforward. A new setup takes maybe a couple of hours.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend it depending on the use case. If you have a use case for an application controller for load balancing, web application firewall, or virtual infrastructure, you can straight away go for this solution.
I would rate Citrix ADC a nine out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Sr. Network Systems Engineer at a manufacturing company with 51-200 employees
GSLB allows me to do active/active or active/passive deployment of services
Pros and Cons
- "The GSLB feature allows us to move services between data centers. We can do this in either a planned or unplanned manner. We have experienced service provider outages at our primary data center and GSLB will kick in to automatically modify DNS records to point to a secondary data center (active/passive). We also make use of GeoIP information to point clients to the closest data center for accessing applications."
- "Unified Gateway allows me to provide secure external access to applications for suppliers and customers while requiring Multi-Factor Authentication."
- "The main areas for improvement would be around documentation and support. If a feature can be used in two or three ways, show that feature being used in all of those ways. Documentation seems to only cover the primary use case and leaves you to either run through trial and error or consult the user community. In terms of support, I have never actually had them solve any of my issues. I have always solved them myself and then provided the resolution to support."
What is our primary use case?
We use the NetScaler ADC in three primary use cases. The first is to provide load balancing services for our internal applications. The second is for Global Server Load Balancing (GSLB) to provide data center resiliency and failover of our externally accessible services, as well as proximity-based access. The third is for the Unified Gateway to securely provide external access to some of our key applications. We deploy VPX appliances running in our VMware environment.
How has it helped my organization?
The GSLB feature allows us to move services between data centers. We can do this in either a planned or unplanned manner. We have experienced service provider outages at our primary data center and GSLB will kick in to automatically modify DNS records to point to a secondary data center (active/passive). We also make use of GeoIP information to point clients to the closest data center for accessing applications.
What is most valuable?
The features I find most useful are
- Load Balancing
- GSLB
- Unified Gateway.
I love being able to terminate connections to the boxes and look at all of the packet headers to determine which way I want to send the traffic next. GSLB provides amazing ability to do active/active or active/passive deployment of services. Unified Gateway allows me to provide secure external access to applications for suppliers and customers while requiring Multi-Factor Authentication.
What needs improvement?
The main areas for improvement would be around documentation and support. If a feature can be used in two or three ways, show that feature being used in all of those ways. Documentation seems to only cover the primary use case and leaves you to either run through trial and error or consult the user community. In terms of support, I have never actually had them solve any of my issues. I have always solved them myself and then provided the resolution to support.
For how long have I used the solution?
More than five years.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate the NetScaler a nine out of 10. It is a fantastic platform to work with and the features/functionality are top-notch. The only ding would be for the documentation, but the user community is fantastic.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Senior Network Engineer at a legal firm with 201-500 employees
A stable solution to facilitate Citric remote access, with a very complicated configuration process
Pros and Cons
- "We appreciate that this solution facilitates our access to Citrix internet."
- "We would like to see some fairly large scale improvement in the configuration process for this solution."
What is our primary use case?
We solely use this solution for Citrix remote access.
How has it helped my organization?
This has allowed us to secure Citrix remote access from the internet, as it is currently the only solution available that enables this.
What is most valuable?
We appreciate that this solution facilitates our access to Citrix internet.
What needs improvement?
We would like to see some fairly large scale improvement in the configuration process for this solution.
This solution carries a high price point, which we would like to see some reduction in.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using this solution for 10 years now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We have found this to be a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This is a scalable solution in our experience.
How was the initial setup?
The setup for this solution is fairly complex.
What other advice do I have?
We would rate this solution a six out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Workplace Virtualisation Senior Analyst at AXA
Allows the user to easily scale out application delivery, and provides secure remote access
Pros and Cons
- "This solution allows the user to easily scale out application delivery, and provides secure remote access."
- "Should offer more flexible cost-effective licensing for small to medium sized organizations."
What is our primary use case?
- Load balancing business web applications
- Load balancing core infrastructure services e.g. App-V, Ivanti UWM, Citrix Storefront and Director
- Application firewall features WAF for more secure application access
- XenApp/XenDesktop application gateway with two factor authentication
- Use of MAS for analytics and centralised management
How has it helped my organization?
- Allows the user to easily scale out application delivery.
- Provides secure remote access.
- Ease of management and business continuity support.
- Powerful, reliable, and feature rich solution all in one appliance.
What is most valuable?
NetScaler MAS centralised management and analytics makes it is easy to support, manage, monitor, and maintain a NetScaler solution.
What needs improvement?
It should offer more flexible cost-effective licensing for small to medium sized organizations i.e. a pooled licensing option on entry level MPXs like 5901s.
For how long have I used the solution?
Still implementing.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
System administrator at a construction company with 11-50 employees
The solution’s simplicity is good, but its pricing should be improved
Pros and Cons
- "I like the solution's simplicity compared to Citrix's on-prem solutions."
- "The solution's pricing is a big concern and should be improved."
What is most valuable?
I like the solution's simplicity compared to Citrix's on-prem solutions. Citrix is not an easy technology, but they tend to make things very simple now.
What needs improvement?
The solution's pricing is a big concern and should be improved.
How are customer service and support?
I prefer not to contact the solution's technical support. They will not resolve the problem, and we will have to do it ourselves.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
I rate Citrix Web App and API Protection a six out of ten for the ease of its initial setup.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing an eight or nine out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
I have been working with Citrix for more than eight years. I recently discovered Parallels RAS, which is better than Citrix in terms of cost and simplicity. Unlike Citrix, Parallels RAS is an all-in-one solution, and it's easy to deploy.
Overall, I rate Citrix Web App and API Protection a seven out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Manager - Cybersecurity & Cloud Solutions at Paramount Computer Systems
Easy to manage and affordable with good security, performance, and high availability
Pros and Cons
- "High availability, performance, and security are the main pillars. It enhances the security for accessing the applications."
- "It does not have a sandbox cloud service and antivirus. It should have on-prem or cloud sandboxing and antivirus."
What is our primary use case?
It has many use cases. It is used for the high availability of the service and for connecting local sites or geolocation sites called GSNP.
We are selling all of its models. Citrix ADC can be deployed on the cloud or on-premises.
How has it helped my organization?
Citrix ADC has increased the productivity of the staff by keeping all the applications available all the time.
It also increased the security of the online application by enabling the web application firewall feature.
With the amazing scalability features of the Citric ADC, we have been able to save money.
What is most valuable?
High availability, performance, scalability, and security are the main pillars. It enhances the security for accessing the applications.
It is very user-friendly, and it works fine. The management of the device is very easy from a technical perspective.
What needs improvement?
It does not have a sandbox cloud service and antivirus. It should have on-prem or cloud sandboxing and antivirus.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
They have awesome support. I can give them a four and a half out of five.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
It has a medium level of complexity. It is not complex, and it is also not that easy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Its price is comparable to others and affordable.
What other advice do I have?
I would advise doing proper sizing and proper configuration to get the maximum benefits of this solution.
I would rate Citrix ADC an eight out of ten. Everything is very good in this solution.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
Gerente Divisional at Tecnologia Especializada Asociada de México, S.A. De C.V
User-friendly setup with content switching and integrated caching features
Pros and Cons
- "Easy, user-friendly setup with content switching and integrated caching features."
- "The only thing customers told me that could be improved is that they would like to be able to purchase and receive the products in one box, rather than two boxes. This is something related to marketing, though."
What is our primary use case?
We used this mostly for disaster recovery plan (DRP), for global service load balancing, and Citrix Access Gateway.
What is most valuable?
What I found most valuable from Citrix ADC were the Content Switching and Integrated Caching features which were the things we commonly installed for our customers.
What needs improvement?
The only thing customers told me that could be improved is that they would like to be able to purchase and receive the products in one box, rather than two boxes. This is something related to marketing, though.
For how long have I used the solution?
We were partners with Citrix for 15 years. We used it for 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I also found this solution to be stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I found it to be scalable.
How are customer service and support?
Our customers' feedback was that support wasn't the best. Cases were often on queue and there were delays in solving their issues, leading to customers getting angry. Support could be improved.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I was able to try F5 and Radware. The price for Citrix ADC here in Mexico was good when you compare it with F5 and Radware.
How was the initial setup?
The setup was easy. For the first version of this solution, it was not very user-friendly, but in the last edition we used, the setup was very user-friendly.
What about the implementation team?
We implemented it for our customers through our in-house team of 3 consultants. I think 3 people is sufficient for implementing this solution to our customers.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I was able to evaluate F5 and Radware.
What other advice do I have?
My rating for this solution is ten out of ten. I think it is the best product ever.
My recommendation is for customers here in Mexico to try it. I feel it is the best solution in the market, at least here in Mexico. My message to customers here is to try it and they'll never be disappointed with this magic box.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
IT Manager at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Easy to deploy and setup with good stability
Pros and Cons
- "It's very easy to configure."
- "The solution could be more secure."
What is our primary use case?
We have published our applications via Citrix and then given access to the business users to access those specific applications via Citrix. We have many applications where multiple users need access - whether it's an EVS or a CRM, all these have been published to Citrix. We also use the solution for the ADC. ADC is a front end, wherein I get queries, and we'll get all the requests from internal and external users as well.
What is most valuable?
The solution is easy to use. It's very easy to configure. The solution is not very difficult.
Performance-wise it's okay. The solution is stable.
The solution is easy to set up and the deployment process is quite fast.
What needs improvement?
The solution could be more secure.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution for four or maybe five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is quite stable and the performance is good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable. The stability is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have about 3,000 users on this solution. The product can scale.
How are customer service and support?
We are in constant touch with Citrix support. We get a good resolution from them. I'd say that we are quite satisfied with the level of support they provide.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I also worked with F5. We used it for a couple of years.
How was the initial setup?
The setup process is not overly complex or difficult. The installation should not take more than three to five hours so long as you have the right information on hand.
Since the solution is straightforward and stable, we only need three or four engineers to handle deployment and maintenance.
What about the implementation team?
We handled the installation ourselves. We did not need outside help from consultants or integrators. We're capable of handling everything in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is a licensing fee, and we pay it once a year.
What other advice do I have?
We're a customer and an end-user.
I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten. I've been very happy with its capabilities.
I would recommend the solution to others.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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