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Cisco Software-Defined Access (SD-Access) vs. SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Cisco SD-Access

    Score9 out of 10
    N/ACisco's Software-Defined Access (SD-Access) provides automated end-to-end segmentation to separate user, device and application traffic without redesigning the network. Cisco SD-Access automates user access policy so organizations can make sure the right policies are established for any user or device with any application across the network.N/A

    SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor

    Score7.7 out of 10
    N/ASolarWinds Server & Application Monitor (SAM) delivers application and server monitoring capabilities. SAM allows for self-service for easy setup, 1200+ monitoring templates, and customization options, as well as integrate with other SolarWinds products.N/A
    Pricing
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—SAM pricing starts at $2,995.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Considered Both Products
    Cisco
    No answer on this topic
    SolarWinds
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    75%
    Would buy again
    6 Answers
    97%
    Would buy again
    37 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    86%
    Delivers good value for the price
    6 Answers
    97%
    Delivers good value for the price
    35 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    88%
    Happy with the feature set
    7 Answers
    95%
    Happy with the feature set
    36 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    75%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    6 Answers
    97%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    30 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    50%
    Implementation went as expected
    4 Answers
    91%
    Implementation went as expected
    32 Answers
    Features
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Application Performance Management
    Comparison of Application Performance Management features of Cisco Software-Defined Access (SD-Access) and SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Feature
    Cisco Software-Defined Access (SD-Access)
    -
    Ratings
    SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    7.1
    281 Ratings
    10% below category average
    Application monitoring00 Ratings7.0271 Ratings
    Database monitoring00 Ratings7.6235 Ratings
    Threshold alerts00 Ratings7.5276 Ratings
    Predictive capabilities00 Ratings6.6220 Ratings
    Application performance management console00 Ratings7.4244 Ratings
    Collaboration tools00 Ratings6.6152 Ratings
    Out-of-the box templates to monitor applications00 Ratings7.0261 Ratings
    Application dependency mapping and thresholding00 Ratings6.0221 Ratings
    Virtualization monitoring00 Ratings7.6239 Ratings
    Server availability and performance monitoring00 Ratings7.7274 Ratings
    Server usage monitoring and capacity forecasting00 Ratings7.5255 Ratings
    IT Asset Discovery00 Ratings6.3203 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
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    Medium-sized Companies
    Cisco ACI
    Score8.5 out of 10
    SolarWinds AppOptics
    Score7.6 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Cisco ACI
    Score8.5 out of 10
    Splunk AppDynamics
    Score8.5 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.3
    (8 ratings)
    8.8
    (282 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.9
    (10 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.8
    (33 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.9
    (3 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.0
    (3 ratings)
    Support Rating
    6.2
    (8 ratings)
    9.0
    (21 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    2.7
    (1 ratings)
    4.5
    (3 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    1.0
    (2 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (2 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.9
    (3 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (2 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (2 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Cisco SD-AccessSolarWinds Server & Application Monitor
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Cisco
    It's well suited in our corporate offices, where all our business users resides and where we can control all their accesses. What doesn't really fit well is when we have our branch fronts, where all the software domain access features aren't utilized to its fullest, due to the fact that customers and users don't really need to have all the security features that SDA provides.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    It is a well-suited software for monitoring and surveillance of your deployed nodes. The error-readability and filter options for filtering out logs and errors could be improved. But overall, it has a good UI design, is user-friendly, and is very easy to learn and access for new users.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Cisco
    • Automation, pushing template-based configuration to multiple devices in one push saves time and manpower.
    • Assurance [helps trace] issues related to devices, clients, and provide the troubleshoot as [the] best practices.
    • Segmentation, with the use of the SGT tags, we are able to achieve segmentation and micro-segmentation securely.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    • Monitor Azure Cloud Severs- We use SolarWinds SAM to monitor Active Directory and DNS on Several DCs published on Azure Cloud.
    • Monitor Hyper V and VMware - SolarWinds SAM monitors applications on both Hyper V and VMware, while also monitoring the physical host machines.
    • It also helps us monitor Warranty expiration for physical servers.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Cisco
    • Documentation: Working in this solution I realized there were missing information details about the fusion device support for nexus.
    • Fusion router: This roll in the fabric should be already integrated in the solution, right now it is configured manually.
    • Bugs: Unfortunately the solution still present a lot of bugs, mainly in the controller.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    • Custom application monitors can be a little tricky to configure.
    • Logic in custom alerts can be a little hard to follow and figure out.
    • Inability to monitor certificates on custom applications or SQL Server.
    • Can be a little slow at times with on-prem SQL server.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Cisco
    No answers on this topic
    SolarWinds
    We are heavily invested in Solarwinds products for a reason. They are generally easy to setup and run with, requiring only some interfacing with support or help articles on rare occasions. They do what we bought them to do and we can't ask for more.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Cisco
    It is difficult to start using the product due to its unfamiliar name and acronyms. ,The task should be accomplished in a specific order to ensure success
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor is quite easy to use and super versatile. It allows you to do just about anything you can through premade templates or through scripting. You can use an agent on the servers if you want to, or you can monitor through WMI or SNMP credentials. You can customize thresholds for alerting quickly, and you can configure alerts to be as complex or as simple as you want.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Cisco
    No answers on this topic
    SolarWinds
    The tool works and monitors items 24x7, it only requires maintenance a little more frequently due to security fixes in the Windows operating system.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Cisco
    No answers on this topic
    SolarWinds
    The graphical interface and the performance of the database leave a little to be desired, they could be better explored.Some functionality and screens do not work well depending on the browser used. The integrations never had any problems or caused crashes in other systems.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Cisco
    As far as my experience with SD-Access -I'd say things that can be improved are - better functionality with ISE, ease to understand licensing and better documentation for configuration (add-ons, etc), and licensing.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    I think there was only a couple times I had to open a support case for SAM and one time they got multiple engineers on the phone to get a better idea what I was trying to monitor and was able to point me in the best direction to monitor that system.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Cisco
    I rated the training an 8 because overall, it was well-structured, and the instructor was highly knowledgeable on the subject matter. The content was relevant, and I appreciated the clear explanations of complex topics. However, I felt that some sections were covered too quickly, making it difficult to fully absorb the information before moving on. Additionally, I would have liked more time dedicated to Q&A, as there were moments when I had questions but didn’t get the opportunity to ask them due to time constraints. Adding more interactive discussions or hands-on exercises could further enhance the learning experience and make it even more engaging
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    It was sufficient to read their documentation and watch videos.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Cisco
    At the beginning, we had to open a TAC case for every single step during the implementation phase.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    Make sure SNMP and WMI are configured ahead of time
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Cisco
    Automation, pushing template-based configuration to multiple devices in one push saves time and manpower. Assurance helps trace issues related to devices, clients, and provide the troubleshoot as the best practices. Segmentation, with the use of the SGT tags, we are able to achieve segmentation and micro-segmentation securely.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    Nagios requires far more manual work to configure than SolarWinds does, though that also encourages customization and perfect-fit solutions. Nagios also requires far, far fewer resources to run than SolarWinds: SolarWinds wants great gobs of memory and disk, while Nagios is refreshingly humble. Nagios starts working from the first minute, too, whereas SolarWinds needs lots of set-up time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Cisco
    No answers on this topic
    SolarWinds
    It is hard to find the recommended SQL setup and convince others that is the way you should configure the server when you set it up
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Cisco
    • Integration with other platforms in a single platform is a great advantage for the user.
    • Saves time in configuring devices on the network
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    SolarWinds
    • Ability to sunset multiple legacy monitoring platforms.
    • A single pane of glass across global locations (Enterprise Operations Console) simplifies monitoring for junior staff.
    • A single toolset allows staff from across the global environment to share knowledge and quickly set up/modify monitoring.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor Screenshots

    Screenshot of Multi-vendor application performance monitoringScreenshot of Multi-vendor server monitoringScreenshot of Application dependency mapping with AppStack™ dashboardScreenshot of Microsoft Exchange performance monitoring with AppInsight™ templateScreenshot of Microsoft IIS performance monitoring with AppInsight™ templateScreenshot of Server hardware health monitoring