Item: Cisco Meraki Dashboard
Rating: 9
Author: Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Meraki Dashboard

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Cisco Meraki Dashboard as an SD-WAN solution. We use the tools to for alerts and some monitoring to provide insight of any issue on the different networks. We utilize tools such as Throughputs testing, port cycling, remote reboots/power cycling, ARP, packet capture and more to assist with troubleshooting and identifying issues and how to resolve.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Live uplink traffic data for packet loss and latency
traceroute and other tool to help with troubleshooting
Managing assets/networks across Meraki dashboard
easy to navigate through the interface
Easy of readability/Fonts and color scheme make it easy to read

Cons

Cloud communication could be improved
Rebooting network switch like an MS120 remotely takes more time vs MX64 for some reason
Quicker response time for status updates. Cisco Meraki Dashboard take too long to update sometimes
Uptime for all devices not just the switches but firewalls and APs would be great to have
Timeline improvements/more detail timeline

Return on Investment

When there's an issue with communication to the cloud. EX: unable to fetch configs. This due to like new device being installed or if you have to factory reset the device. This has been a negative impact.
Incorrect status. Sometimes the status of the device or network is not reflected as it should be. This has had a negative impact in the past. However, for the most part, the Status is fairly accurate.
Incident response has been very good. Anytime an issue has been reported to Cisco regarding Cisco Meraki Dashboard, the issue is quickly investigated and doesn't take long to resolve.
Customer support and Cisco's technical team has been very helpful and responsive.

Usability

There's always room for improvement. Plus, the usability depends on the network infrastructure and what tools are being used. I think API functionality is great but implementing AI features could help improve not only the usability but the workflow when using tools and navigating through the dashboard. For the most part I think the dashboard is great but could just a few tweaks.

Alternatives Considered

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access, Palo Alto Networks Advanced Threat Prevention, Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers, Cradlepoint NetCloud Engine, ServiceNow IT Operations Management and Octopus Deploy

We use multiple sources for monitoring. Cisco Meraki Dashboard helps with determining certain problems. Such as cabling testing or verifying port status. Visibility on what devices are connected and when they were last seen. Being able to use the same tools to troubleshoot things like cabling by moving the cable to another port and swiftly having a visual for connection based upon the port status. This is why Cisco Meraki Dashboard is so useful- Being able to have a visual representation of the equipment, devices, and ports.

Key Insights

Do you think Cisco Meraki Dashboard delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Cisco Meraki Dashboard's feature set?

Yes

Did Cisco Meraki Dashboard live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Cisco Meraki Dashboard go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Cisco Meraki Dashboard again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Cradlepoint NetCloud Engine, Azure VMware Solution, Zabbix

Likelihood to Recommend

Anyone in IT or has a business that needs a network solution. I also, believe that having Cisco Meraki Dashboard is best suited in a network environment with the entire or mostly the entire infrastructure is Cisco Meraki devices. If you only have a single device that utilizes Cisco Meraki Dashboard, then I don't think it's for it.

Comments

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Cisco Meraki Dashboard -- The tool for efficiency