Cisco ASx500 [EOL] Reviews

We use this solution as a gateway for combining some of our network's features together, such as firewalls. We are in the government sector and are struggling a bit to keep everything in order. All of the data traffic, how to prioritize each of them, how to do it without any delay, and how to protect them from being hacked into. The most important is demarcation because we share that data with people and how do we configure the end-user for protection.

One of the most valuable features is keeping our data secure.

I have been using Cisco ASx500 for approximately five years.

The solution is scalable, we have 30,000 employees using this solution.

The technical support from Cisco is not very good. In a recent experience, they asked us for 20 minutes about our project and then redirected around to other people. I need to report to this agent, I need to register to this database, there is too much involved in getting a solution. This has always been the case, they are asking us too many questions, and then when it comes down to a solution, it is at a bare minimum. This is something they can improve on, but they do not seem eager to improve. However, we do have an assigned project representative that is helpful.

The installation is straightforward.

We have a team of 10 that does the maintenance and updating that is required for the solution.

We pay approximately $15,000 a month but that includes everything together, such as hardware.

We have plans to replace this solution.

I rate Cisco ASx500 an eight out of ten.

This solution is being used for our site-to-site VPN and as our perimeter firewall.

The most valuable feature is the AnyConnect VPN. It works well for any environment that wants to use a VPN.

There is no security, such as an antivirus and URL filtering mechanism, which is something that should be improved. It is running on a Windows 7 operating system in a box, without any security features. It's not really a server firewall.

We have been using this Cisco appliance since 2007.

This solution is quite stable.

It is very scalable and used in an enterprise environment. Scaling is easy.

There are about 22,000 people using the VPN.

The Cisco technical support is okay.

To this point, we have always used Cisco. However, we are in the process of moving away from Cisco products.

Palo Alto and Check Point are easier to deploy but Cisco is more scalable.

Compared to other firewalls, the initial setup is a bit complex. I've done it many times so I find it okay but when I speak to people who have never done it before, they find it to be more complex.

The length of time for deployment depends on the environment.

I take care of the deployment myself. Deployment and maintenance only requires one person.

This product is not too expensive and there are no costs apart from the standard licensing fee. The is no additional cost for support.

All of the features work very well, although I would suggest using a product like Palo Alto for the firewall because they have the GlobalProtect security feature. Cisco is still good for the AnyConnect VPN.

Overall, it does exactly what we want it to do, considering the specific features that we want. It works well for AnyConnect and site-to-site VPN connections, but if you are using it for a traditional firewall then it is not a great product for you.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.