Item: Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services
Rating: 8
Author: Wouter Hindriks

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use the Cisco ASA 5500-X both in our data centers and on our ~300 remote locations as the primary firewall. These devices establish a site-site VPN between the data centers and the customer site and provide firewall security for all users and equipment.

Pros and Cons

IPSEC tunneling
OSI Layer3-7 security
Protocol inspection on OSI layer 4
Usage of Snort to detect and prevent intrusions

ASA software and firepower software are still disjointed

Return on Investment

Been able to deploy the same device to all our branch office
1 kind of device means 1 update cycle

Alternatives Considered

We came from the 5505 & 5520 devices, so choosing the 5500-X was a logical choice.

Support Rating

I haven't had to deal with support yet. Therefore I cannot comment of the quality of the support. I assume it's the same TAC support as for other Cisco products, and therefore I assume it's good.

Key Insights

Do you think Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services's feature set?

Yes

Did Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services live up to sales and marketing promises?

Did implementation of Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services go as expected?

Would you buy Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services again?

Likelihood to Recommend

The Cisco ASA 5500-X covers the entire range from SMB locations with the 5506 to Datacenter/Internet edge with the 5585 models. As it's the same software/management tool being used you can keep using your skills.
Be aware that as soon as you get above 25 sites, you're going to have to pay for the management center software as well.

Good firewall, but not the latest line anymore.

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco ASA 5500-X with FirePOWER Services