Cisco Meraki Dashboard vs. SolarWinds Engineer's Toolset

Cisco Meraki Dashboard is a great solution for managing a large number of networks across a single organization or multiple. For new projects we are able to set up the entire network in the dashboard with all of the needed settings, plug all of the devices in at our office and have them download their settings, so on the date of deployment, the equipment comes online and is ready to go immediately.

Incentivized

I have found the toolset especially useful for scanning subnets to discover devices, and for setting up temporary real-time monitors when we are troubleshooting or setting up new connections. The most useful aspect has been the ability to apply the tools to help troubleshoot and pinpoint intermittent issues. More general tools like Orion often do not have the granularity to detect issues like intermittent packet loss which are especially impactful to applications like Voice. The toolset gives us another level of capability to dig into issues.

Incentivized

• The ability to monitor any port and get accurate information on its activity.
• The ability to port cycle and reboot remotely. This is best for off-hour reboots.
• Being able to search for devices through the client page with an IP address or MAC address saves time on device searches.
• It is an easy process to add and remove devices to different organizations.

Incentivized

• Various monitoring
• Stores history
• Suggests indices
• Helps to find the SQL query text
• Helps to see what machines/users the bad queries are coming from
• Shows current blocking session

Incentivized

• Cloud communication could be improved
• Rebooting network switch like an MS120 remotely takes more time vs MX64 for some reason
• Quicker response time for status updates. Cisco Meraki Dashboard take too long to update sometimes
• Uptime for all devices not just the switches but firewalls and APs would be great to have
• Timeline improvements/more detail timeline

Incentivized

• The unifying component that is intended to be the initial interface to the tools seems clunky. I prefer to start the tools individually rather than using it.
• The port scanner could use some improvements to make it easier to use.

Incentivized

The dashboard is easy to navigate and offers many pages that are loaded with information. Cisco Meraki adds new features to the dashboard based on customer feedback and I have seen so many updates and changes that have improved upon the previous version. Most recently they have added Cisco's AI and are looking at an Automation option that will only further improve usability.

Incentivized

Very easy to use and intuitive. Just be careful with the WAN Killer...it does what it says.

Incentivized

Our organization uses it regularly. It is reliable, and we keep finding new uses for it

Incentivized

The Cisco Meraki Dashboard is of course the most user friendly and the NDFC is being modified to look similar to the Cisco Meraki Dashboard as of today.

Incentivized

I haven't compared any tools similar to SolarWinds Engineer's Toolset. This might be because I'm pretty biased when it comes to monitoring, and reporting solutions. I've found that SolarWinds provides the biggest bang for the buck in my opinion. I'm sure there are other solutions on the market that compete, but I haven't tried any of them because I've been very satisfied with SolarWinds.

Incentivized

• It's definitely allowed us to operate with a smaller team and allowed us to troubleshoot issues quicker. The Meraki dashboard with Meraki APs has helped us identify issues on our wireless network, monitor the health, and really help our remote locations out with troubleshooting and getting devices online quicker.

Incentivized

• Spend less time downloading free buggy tools
• All the tools in one spot, so you don't have to look around for tools
• Get to the solution sooner

Incentivized