Item: Cisco Optical Networking
Rating: 9
Author: Danny Roy

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Cisco Optical Networking is very useful when it comes to your network management. From designing the network to implementing, integrating, maintaining, and troubleshooting the network, it easily covers all the hassle. Installing upgrades and monitoring becomes very easy and you can perform bulk actions that apply to the complete network in one go.

The problem it solved is that it saved a lot of my time and money which I can now use on my other tasks. My network is Secure, reliable, and scaleable so I can work worry-free on any project.

My scope on this is to scale my network whenever I want and that's the biggest plus for me.

Pros and Cons

Time and cost saving
Network security and scalability
Network monitoring and easy management
Enhanced bandwidth

Network automation features can be a very big plus
Cost can be a bit better
The whole thing can be made a bit more user friendly and a little less complex
Some self explanatory functions can be added to assist new users

Most Important Features

Network scalability
Network security
Network monitoring and reliability

Return on Investment

The best impact it had was to lower my network maintenance cost by the time span of more than a year
It might look a bit pricey at the beginning, but along with time, you'll feel that you're actually saving a lot of your time and money in terms of network management

Alternatives Considered

Haven't used any other yet as my company was already using it when I joined, so don't really have any feedback here on this topic.

Key Insights

Do you think Cisco Optical Networking delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Cisco Optical Networking's feature set?

Yes

Did Cisco Optical Networking live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Cisco Optical Networking go as expected?

I wasn't involved with the implementation phase

Would you buy Cisco Optical Networking again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Microsoft 365, Cisco Packet Tracer (part of Cisco Networking Academy), Cisco Webex DX80 (discontinued)

Likelihood to Recommend

Based on my experience, I think it's a goldmine for the experienced professional and a hectic job for newbies. I recommend newbies to have some experience and then jump to Cisco Optical Networking so that they can easily understand what they paid for and take the best out of it.

It's best for network scalability so I highly recommend it to those who intend to scale their network in the near future however, if you know that your network will remain the same and you don't require it, there are cheaper options within Cisco.

Cisco Optical Networking - A goldmine for pros

Modules Used

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Optical Networking