Aruba ClearPass Reviews

I'm not the one who deployed this solution. However, there are many use cases.

I've had no problems with it at all. It's been a breeze. Our other guy who left taught me everything, including the basics in order to implement it. 

The dashboard, the monitoring tabs, and the configuration tabs, the admin tabs is all pretty self-explanatory.

The WiFi solution, the ease of use, and the scalability are excellent. We have Infoblox for all that stuff; however, as far as authentication and stuff like that, it is very easy to use. 

The web dashboard and the policy manager are very intuitive and very easy for engineers to use. Finding what you need is pretty simple. 

ClearPass is not something that I have to get into every day, as I do with Aruba Wireless Solution or Central. The only time I really need to get into ClearPass is to troubleshoot, handle authentication problems, or add a device for SNMP access. I can't think of an area where the solution is lacking a feature or a capability. It's fine right now. 

We've used the solution for two and a half to three years or so now. 

The solution is stable and reliable. We haven't had any issues. 

The solution can scale well. It's great. 

I've never had to open up a tech support case on ClearPass. I can't speak to how helpful they would be if you reached out. 

We've used Aruba and Cisco. As opposed to Cisco ISE and their tech act solution, hands down, Aruba is far better. It was far easier to manage. I know that the Cisco ISE solutions that we had before this was a pain. It was just difficult to manage. We had to reboot it three, four times a year just to get it going. And we've had several Cisco tech cases open on it. Cisco never knew how to fix it. That's why we looked at ClearPass. Finally, we convinced the person in charge of everything. We put together a POC and afterward, everyone was like "Wow, this is great. Yeah. Let us do this, please." We switched and we love it. It was no problem at all.

I was not a part of the initial setup, however, Aruba is typically simple to set up. 

I do not deal with the licensing aspect of the solution. 

We have a VMware server that hosts this solution. It is not on the cloud. I'm not sure which exact version we're using. 

I don't know about any other tech act applications out there. That said, I know that this is a breeze if you're working with Cisco ISE. I highly recommend a swap over to ClearPass Policy Manager. It is very, very, very, very easy. That's compared to Cisco ISE. I don't know about any other managers out there or if there may be better ones out there. We like Aruba. That's all I can say.

I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. 

It is a network access control solution used to authenticate users. We use it for wifi certificate-based authentication. It is also good for automatic onboarding and fingerprinting, like automatic device classification. This allows us to control devices automatically and have role-based authentication. For example, for Windows and Mac, we can define a specific role, and it will automatically go to that role. We can also enable free wifi guest authentication.

There are so many features in Aruba ClearPass that our company hasn't even utilized all of them. It is beneficial from a security perspective because not everyone can connect to our wifi without going through an authentication process using a corporate device or a corporate email ID. The solution confirms the credentials before they can connect to the wifi.

Aruba ClearPass has a feature called ClearPass OnGuard, like an agent installed on all devices. It ensures your device complies with corporate policies, like antivirus or firewall settings. In addition, it verifies before allowing users to connect properly to our networks.

It would be good if ClearPass made it a SaaS solution. The only difficulty is that it's a security solution, and if you put a security solution on a SaaS, there could be certain challenges. That may be why ClearPass hasn't done it.

We have been using this solution for about seven years. We initially used it on-premises but have been using it on a private cloud for the last four years.

It is a stable solution.

It is a scalable solution, and we have almost 2000 high-end users.

We did not use any solution before Aruba ClearPass. This is the first NAC solution we deployed, and we are still using it.

The initial setup was okay for us. A partner managed it, and we had no troubles. The deployment took about six months because we had a lot of user migration and needed to change device authentication.

There are different licenses, like onboarding, OnGuard and access licenses. We purchase a yearly license that includes all features.

I rate this solution a ten out of ten. I would recommend Aruba ClearPass because it has all the features. It is very flexible, and you can implement any complex solution. For example, if you want to allow only Android or any complex situation, you can with Aruba ClearPass. Therefore, I can say that this is the best solution on the market.

ClearPass has been the best NAC product and market leader for a decade. It is a robust product.

The pricing policy could be more flexible. Additionally, ClearPass can be integrated with the Aruba cloud solution because many companies are moving to the cloud.

We use Aruba ClearPass for authentication purposes.

I rate the product's stability an eight out of ten.

It is a very high-end product. Its scalability is an eight or nine out of ten.

I used Cisco before. ClearPass supports multi-vendor products. On the other hand, Cisco is limited to being designed, configured, and managed for a specific device. ClearPass configures any products for authentication, device sharing, security, etc.

The configuration was very complex. It is not a product that normal users can use. A bunch of technologies are involved. There are a lot of other policies, which also include device posturing and management. There are many features involved in this product, best used by experts.

If you implement all of the modules, deployment will be perfect. Otherwise, it is not possible because it is very complex. You need to understand the entire system. Since we are just starting with this product, we need to redirect our switching and wireless traffic to the NAC solution. We need to know the network controller features and infrastructure.

The product is very costly, starting at a minimum of 500 users. No small or medium-sized business can go with it as a standard organization has more than 500 users.

Overall, I rate Aruba ClearPass a nine out of ten.

Our clients use Aruba ClearPass since it is a NAC solution.

The most valuable feature, I would say, is the cost-effectiveness of the solution when compared to others.

Regarding the improvement needed in the solution, I remember our technical team stating that the installation front of the solution was a bit difficult when compared to other solutions. So, some of the other solutions, when compared to Aruba ClearPass, are more user-friendly to install.

I have been working with Aruba ClearPass for almost five to six years. My company is a reseller of the solution. I am unsure about the version of the solution I am using since we also deal in other products.

It is a stable solution. I rate the solution's stability a nine out of ten.

It is a scalable solution. I rate the solution's scalability somewhere around seven to eight out of ten. Mostly, our organization deals with medium and enterprise-sized customers.

I rate the solution's technical support team a seven out of ten. There are no issues with the support we are receiving. I will probably have to check with the engineers who have dealt with the technical support team. Since I have never heard a complaint against the support team, I would reconsider my decision over the rating provided by me previously and rate the technical support an eight.

Positive

I rate the solution's initial setup a six on a scale where one is difficult and ten is easy. There are some difficulties when installing the solution. For our company, installation is not difficult since we are system integrators who are well-versed in Aruba ClearPass. However, one of our customers told us that it is difficult to manage the installation part of the solution.

The solutions deployment was quick because our company is well-versed in deployment. So, it took around twenty to thirty days. Usually, four L3 engineers from our company are involved in the deployment process. For the maintenance and deployment of the solution, we have a lot of people in our organization. So, our company has around 28 engineers, and we serve around 120 customers in UAE. Specifically speaking, two network engineers are handling the maintenance part of the solution.

On a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is too expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten. So, the price could be lower. The solution has a yearly based licensing cost attached to it.

I want to tell those planning to use the solution that it is a good solution where one needs to have a certain level of expertise to carry out the deployment phase. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

We are using Aruba ClearPass for authentication purposes.

The solution has been working well.

The scalability could improve.

I have used Aruba ClearPass within the last 12 months.

Aruba ClearPass is a stable solution.

I rate the scalability of Aruba ClearPass a nine out of ten.

The initial setup of Aruba ClearPass was simple.

We did the deployment of the solution in-house.

I rate Aruba ClearPass an eight out of ten.

I have a few customers that are using Aruba ClearPass.

The most valuable feature of Aruba ClearPass is the ease of deployment and integration with other equipment in the network.

Aruba ClearPass could improve the complexity of the initial usage. It takes some time to be good at it. It's not simple to build and connect the rules to the network you want to deploy them on.

In a feature release of Aruba ClearPass, they should add a more graphical way to deploy the rules.

I have been using Aruba ClearPass for approximately two years.

Aruba ClearPass is stable.

I rate the stability of Aruba ClearPass a nine out of ten.

The scalability of Aruba ClearPass could improve. It is easy to make room but some aspects are difficult.

We have approximately 2,000 to 3,000 users that use Aruba ClearPass.

The response time and the knowledge of the support could improve from Aruba ClearPass.

I rate the support from Aruba ClearPass a three out of five.

Neutral

The initial setup of Aruba ClearPass is straightforward. When you need to activate the rules it becomes difficult.

We have one person that is needed to use to support Aruba ClearPass.

The price of Aruba ClearPass is expensive. However, Cisco ISE was as expensive when we were comparing.

We compared Cisco ISE before choosing Aruba ClearPass. Aruba ClearPass is better to use, especially if you have a mixed environment from different deployers or different hardware, it scales better.

I rate Aruba ClearPass a seven out of ten.

We have Aruba ClearPass installed on a VM.

We are using Aruba ClearPass for our data needs, and authentication for local networks. We are adding some additional features to control clients using agents. We installed an agent for clients and it controls many things such as if the firewall is enabled or the antivirus is up-to-date.

The most valuable features of Aruba ClearPass are the GUI and its ease-to-do configuration. Additionally, we can troubleshoot many things in one window.

Aruba ClearPass could improve when it comes to troubleshooting, it can be difficult. Some advanced problems are difficult. 

The documentation could improve.

I have been using Aruba ClearPass for approximately five years.

The stability of Aruba ClearPass is good.

Aruba ClearPass is scalable. You can scale it in the same network, or you can scale the Aruba ClearPass server to another disaster recovery site.

We have over 10 customers using this solution. We have some large customers that have 300 companies and it's all linked. They have hundreds of users.

Aruba ClearPass has good support. The engineers are good, they solved every problem that we have.

The initial setup of Aruba ClearPass is simple. It is done through the CLI asking questions that need answers to be input. It takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Aruba ClearPass has permanent licenses. You purchase it one time and this license is yours. You don't need to refresh it for five years, et cetera. They have a couple of licenses for enabled features with not only one license.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Aruba ClearPass an eight out of ten.

A major feature that I deploy and all my customers enjoy is the On-boarding function. Once properly set-up, it is very easy to configure and maintain all on boarded devices and users associated with those devices.

The feature that I use the most is the Access Tracker. It displays all relevant information of each authentication request and troubleshooting is a breeze on how the data is displayed.

I have deployed ClearPass in a number of organizations that have been using any number of outdated and obsolete security protocols for their wireless security from WEP and PSKs to MAC based authentication and global user names and passwords. Deploying ClearPass allowed these organizations to move from weak security protocols to industry standard security protocols.

Every deployment of ClearPass I have run into a bug or a feature that is not as user friendly as it could be. This can be easily improved upon by providing documentation and guides of proper syntax inputs. I have gotten around these issues by purely trial and error.

I have used ClearPass for the past five years and have deployed all the features that ClearPass has to offer. I have deployed it in school districts, hospitals, government agencies and all major industry verticals.

It is not as user-friendly and intuitive when first using it as it takes some time to know were everything is.

I have deployed Clearpass in environments that require over 500,000 authentications per day and have not had any issues.

I have deployed Clearpass in environments that require over 500,000 authentications per day and have not had any issues

For 90% of troubleshooting and basic configuration the Technical Assistance Center has always been very good, once the issue becomes a unique case specific to the customer that’s when resolving issues may take longer the three hours. Overall, Aruba Networks is really good in supporting ClearPass.

The basic network set-up is straightforward to get it on the network. Activating the licenses and getting the subscription key for ClearPass is a bulky and compression process with very little guidance or documentation. If there is an issue with the license, the only solution to almost always call Aruba tech support. Once the licenses are sorted out an upgrade needs to happen and the size of the update is 1.4Gb or more and based on the customers network, may take a long time. Finally, after ClearPass is on-line and fully updated, the configuration and basic troubleshooting is pretty straightforward. If it’s the first time someone is looking at it there is defiantly a learning curve.

I am the system integrator if it would be done in-house. If the person that is deploying ClearPass has experience with radius servers, deploying it would take three to six times longer than to hire a system integrator. Unless the in-house IT team has the time and resources to learn to deploy and troubleshoot ClearPass out of the box, then I definitely recommend getting a systems integrator. They would know how the system works, what questions to ask and troubleshooting techniques.

There are a lot of questions need to be answered before answering the real ROI question correctly, the biggest questions are how secure is your current network? Does it meet the industry security standards? Can you afford to have your network infiltrated or have loss of data? And can you afford to lose data? If not then pricing and licensing can be worked out.

Before you buy licensing know how and way you are using clearpass. I cant count how many times a customer has perched the wrong license or to many or not enough.

It can easily handle all types of authentication methods and has a large amount of flexibility, which can cover all scenarios. However it is lacking in third party integrations and little to no documentation on customization. Aruba assumes that you have working knowledge of their CSS tags, JavaScript, REST API integration and others.

If you are looking for a NAC solution ClearPass is one of the best all in one solution it covers all authentication methods and has a large flexibility that can be easily customized to fit any scenario in any industry vertical.