Likelihood to Recommend When it comes to security on the edge of your network (downstream) Cisco's IOS security features provide pretty much everything you need when it comes to securing your network, network devices, and access. I would absolutely recommend Cisco switches due to many reasons, but a big reason is security.
Read full review Due to the high price that SolarWinds has, I do not recommend it for small companies. And if I recommend SolarWinds in large companies with complex infrastructures where constant monitoring and review of the network is required, this system is very complete and helps everyone in the technology team, both network administrators, database administrators, Security Administrators, and Server Administrators are all very happy with this system.
Read full review Pros Authentication. Access lists. Port security. Read full review monitoring notification systems virus attack monitoring ability to shut down systems when it senses an imminent threat Read full review Cons Cisco could provide an initial set up script for those are not used to the CLI (Command Line Interface). With that initial script, people could easily deploy the security features instead of having to learn how to use the commands. The web interface that Cisco provides with the routers, although it’s useful to set up the security features, it could also have some sort of tutorials to help people understand the main concepts of iOS security. You have to license iOS security separately from the main OS. For that reason, sometimes it tends to be a little expensive if you have a small business. Read full review Steep learning curve. Usually takes a bit to get the scans to run easily in a new environment. Could have more reporting options. Read full review Support Rating Cisco has the best Support team that gives us 24/7 support as we need. Cisco has huge detailed documentation for design, implementation, and troubleshooting all areas of the IOS security. There are many communities discussing all Cisco devices and solutions for studying groups and for customers to share their stories, technical problem and solutions.
Read full review SolarWinds offers live chat support for all its products built-in. So if you are working on something you can just reach out to someone at that time, and usually get an answer pretty quick. If you are trying to get something done it's a lot better than submitting a ticket and waiting for the email response.
Read full review Alternatives Considered I also like HP Procurve. It is my choice when the customer cannot afford Cisco. Cisco is better all round but HP is the only other [product] I will use if I have a choice.
Read full review Threat Monitor is very new on the scene. Its obviously not at the same level as some of the established vendors yet. We also deploy Alienvault for example and its nowhere near the same level as this, however the cost model between these two products reflects that. Alienvault however does have a physical footprint on the environment, whereas Threat Monitor doesnt. If you have the paitence to wait, Threat Monitor will surely only improve over time.
Rob Bates Public & Private Cloud Senior Engineer
Read full review Return on Investment Cisco iOS security helped our business deploy a relatively safe solution for a small amount of money. If you don’t have enough budget to invest in a robust and expensive firewall solution, you can safely use Cisco iOS security to protect your branch or remote office without compromise your network. Because Cisco iOS security uses a simple command-line based interface, you can deploy standardized scripts and keep the operational costs low. Read full review The positive impact that this system has on our company is that it has saved us a lot of expenses when it comes to investigating what the bank's network and systems are. This saving translates into administrators' time when it comes to finding the problem quickly, expeditiously, and effectively. It has helped us a lot and we have even required fewer hours from external providers when it comes to solving a problem. Read full review ScreenShots SolarWinds Threat Monitor Screenshots