Item: Cisco Meraki MX
Rating: 10
Author: Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Meraki MX

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Cisco Meraki MX are used in a number of scenarios in our organisation. They are usually used for small temporary offices with internet only connection. Larger MX units are used as VPN concentrators for tunneled SSID from branch offices that do not have their own internet egress.

The flexibility of Cisco Meraki MX allows for it to be used as a drop-in solution for a number of small projects that do not have the infrastructure budget for a larger deployment.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy to setup
Deployment options are flexible
Cost is very competitive. MX68 series in particular

Cons

Inbuilt wireless does not support tunnel SSID mode. This has meant not all SSID in our organisation can be deployed at a MX site.
Whilst Inbuilt switch ports support dot1x, they do not report as well on our NAC server as on a MS switch or catalyst switch.

Return on Investment

A single box (MX68CW) can replace a firewall, router, switch and wireless access point. This means significant cost savings as well as power savings for the business.
Ease of deployment. A project bought 6 units and sent them around a country. They were all deployed with zero input from the end user. Plug in internet link, provide serial number and the dashboard did the rest. This saved time and technical resources.

Simplified Management

Ease of deployment is a major factor in purchasing a number of units. We have the confidence that a unit can be sent to an office with a plain internet link and that office will be online within half an hour of plugging in the internet link. Worrying about a console or a resource is no longer a factor.

Integrations with other Cisco products

Cisco Meraki MR Wireless Access Points, Cisco Meraki MS and Cisco Catalyst Switches

Cisco Meraki MX has worked well with other Meraki products. Using the dashboard has meant deployment is simple but that does not mean features are missing. A Cisco Meraki MX can perform many roles but without the hassle of learning CLI code.

Whilst we have not gone down that path, I have no doubt that a non network engineer could at least modify some of the configuration if necessary.

Scalability

To me it is close to an ideal product as it can be moved around and deployed in any temporary office as a rapid router. I have never worked with a solution that in a single lightweight box I can have corporate wireless, dot1x secure ports and it will auto VPN back to a central concentrator with zero input from the network team once the initial deployment has happened.

Alternatives Considered

Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewalls - PA Series

For a small remote office, Cisco Meraki MX was compared to the PaloAlto next gen firewall.

Whilst the company prefers the use of PaloAlto for internet destined traffic, the office features and simplicity of management meant the Cisco Meraki MX was an easy choice for a small remote office solution. The PaloAlto did not include wireless and cellular which is included in the Meraki MX68CW.

Key Insights

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

Yes

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

Yes

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

Yes

Did implementation of Cisco Meraki MX go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Cisco Meraki MX again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Cisco Meraki MS, Cisco Meraki MR Wireless Access Points, Cisco Catalyst Switches

Likelihood to Recommend

Cisco Meraki MX is great for a short term deployment. An all in one model can combine a cellular router, wireless access point, 10 port switch (with POE). Having a cellular model means seamless failover with a wired link.

An included SFP slot on the MX68 series would be beneficial. Maybe in a newer model.

Cisco Meraki MX Feature Ratings

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Cisco Meraki MX - The All-rounder

Modules Used