F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM) vs. Symantec SiteMinder

In the current digital world we are moving into, I would recommend F5 for all SMB to enterprise organizations. There are various models to pick from. This helps secure the environment and make the network robust to any sort of attacks. I am not able to think of any reason why one should not deploy or this device is less appropriate because nowadays every small company has application / ERPs. It is also worthwhile to note in case if all your apps are being deployed in the cloud by another service provider who provides you SAAS access, in that case, you can be at ease as securing these app falls on to the provider. However, should the budget be available I would recommend deploy this and enhancing your security.

Incentivized

We currently are working to set up Single Sign On and auto provisioning with a new vendor. Symantec SiteMinder visualizes things like SAML responses and assertion attributes within the console extremely clearly. This makes making adjustments on the Vendor's side or even working with Vendor support clear and effective. The only time I would avoid trying use Symantec SiteMinder as a local IDP would be when I am trying to minimize complexity or overhead troubleshooting needs.

Incentivized

• Source and destination IP Base policy
• Source and application base policy
• Ssl VPN with load balancing and fail over policy working fine.

Incentivized

• Federation Services
• Detailed logging for troubleshooting
• Console management is clear and easy to use for less experienced techs

Incentivized

• CCU Licenses are limited by device and are not shared between APM devices
• User sessions are not stored globally, so persistence can be an issue with users all over the world
• Configuration can get complicated when split up between multiple sites

Incentivized

• Guided tutorials within the console
• Visual connection testing
• Support can be difficult to contact

Incentivized

Integration with F5 BIG-IP systems that we plan to keep using for a while.

Incentivized

If F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager usability is fine it's not hard to use if you read the documentation but it does feel dated and could use a responsive design update to modernize user interface to current standards.

Incentivized

6.5 Symantec SiteMinder's usability is high but the barrier to entry can be intimidating for an unfamiliar user. Symantec SiteMinder support can be difficult to get a hold of when needed leading to situations where you're not sure how to proceed. Overall, if you have experience with SSO, federations, SAML, and IDP's, then you will be fine

Incentivized

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager integrates extremely well with the rest of our F5 infrastructure which is a big plus and provides us with a familiar user interface, but it isn't as scalable in its current iteration as something like Zscaler Private Access.

Incentivized

We use Microsoft Windows Azure AD which can act similarly in comparison to Symantec SiteMinder. While this experience is somewhat narrow, Symantec SiteMinder seems to have more flexability/customization and caters to the crown that prefers to automate and work with linux. I am less familiar with Azure's automated abilities, however, Symantec SiteMinder allows to automate various factors that already line up with our existing Linux environment and setup

Incentivized

• Positive is that due to how much F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager can do, the F5 is the landing spot in our environment for MFA authentication.
• It has allowed a technology the company originally bought for load balancing to be used for multiple purposes.
• F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager has made the environment more trusting of F5 as a MFA.

Incentivized

• Extremely flexible/customizable partnership federations
• Consolidation of SSO settings in one place
• Requires more knowledge and therefore more time training

Incentivized