I use the solution in my company to implement and integrate it into the campus network on a connected mode or dual core, but the routers, like Alcatel-Lucent OmniAccess Enterprise Service Routers, are used for traffic.
Available to users at a very low price but needs improvement in the firewall area
What is our primary use case?
What needs improvement?
Alcatel-Lucent had a VPN Firewall Brick, but it did not work very well like Palo Alto or Cisco. The tool is not classified under Gartner. The tool's VPN Firewall Brick did not work well since it doesn't have an interface with the cloud to upload the last signature, so it doesn't have this mechanism. The tool's VPN Firewall Brick is an area where improvements are required.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Alcatel-Lucent OmniAccess Enterprise Service Routers for three to five years. I am an end user of the solution.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
In terms of the downtime, If I calculate and if we have a case where a customer took a lot of time to have another switch or to have another device replaced, then it is not just an hour, two or four business hours that is included in the service level agreement. It may take a week to replace one device, which is not very good for the tool.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
For scalability, we need to talk about two platforms. The first is a two or three-year-old big switch from Alcatel-Lucent, like VSS by Cisco, which is like a top of the rack along with Juniper. After that, Alcatel-Lucent introduced OmniSwitch 10K. The problem is if the customer requests that they need Alcatel-Lucent and they don't have the port number to buy or integrate into their portfolio.
How are customer service and support?
The solution's support is very great. The support team of Alcatel solution is in Bangalore, and they do their best. I rate the technical support an eight out of ten.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
The product is very easy to install.
When it comes to OmniSwitch 6200, OmniSwitch 6300, or OmniSwitch 6600, you can install it in an hour and a half quickly without any problem implementing the configuration, but it's not stable. When it comes to OmniSwitch 6400, OmniSwitch 6800, or OmniSwitch 9700, mostly the tools are limited in terms of the protocol. The switch cannot be managed to manage the power of our ethernet. For example, if we connect an iPhone to the switch, 740 watts will be required, but after six months, someone will discover that the port doesn't work anymore. Even if we configure it to push the power of a port, it will not work. It's not really, it's not, it's not work. At the same time, the problem was that the tool was very old, like Alcatel OmniPCX Enterprise PABX system. In Alcatel, there are only two types of architecture, the old and new ones. For example, on the outside, if there is a need for 24 ports to be implemented on telephony, then we implement less than that number to connect to the end of the phone, which is a very serious problem that is not resolved by the product.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The tool's price is very low. The tool doesn't have a license for switches. The tool has a license for a stack of racks, especially in the case of Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch 9900 model, it has a license. With Juniper, we don't need the license to mount the virtual switches, but it is two, three, or four models, making it a difference. For some devices, we need a license to mount some features.
What other advice do I have?
For network management, OmniVista 2500 Network Management System is a platform to monitor devices like Alcatel-Lucent switches and routers and EAP-TLS.
For BYOD, the tool made the solution for big companies. OmniSwitch 9700 is like a middle-level switch Cisco, but its functionality or features don't have a lot of functionalities. The tool doesn't have part of a proprietary protocol, so that is why the tool has a lot of problems, which is why an attack in Bangalore, India, happened. The tool has a lot of tickets opened but not resolved yet. Alcatel-Lucent OmniAccess Enterprise Service Routers are not the same as Cisco or Juniper, which I can sell.
The tool doesn't have any AI integration.
I suggest others ask about the life cycle of the devices because it is very short. If we buy a virtualized switch or the DSS or the next set of Cisco switches, and there are five years of things to be exported 100 hundred percent, then one needs to consider the Alcatel-Lucent switches have a life cycle of not five years but maybe of one or two years. If you don't have issues or problems replacing your devices, then you have to wait to replace them as per a procedure before the production goes down.
I rate the tool a five to six out of ten.
