Cisco IOS Security Reviews and Ratings

Rating: 7.2 out of 10

Score

7.2 out of 10

Reviews

4 Reviews

Cisco IOS Security leading the pack

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

May 3, 2021

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

There are a few IOS Security features that our organization uses. We use port security with limiting MAC addresses as well as keeping them sticky. We also use IOS security for AAA via 802.1X as well as RADIUS device management authentication, authorization, and accounting. We also have hardening features to secure our platform.

Pros

AAA
Port-Security
Device Hardening

Cons

More features could be added

Likelihood to Recommend

When it comes to security on the edge of your network (downstream) Cisco's IOS security features provide pretty much everything you need when it comes to securing your network, network devices, and access. I would absolutely recommend Cisco switches due to many reasons, but a big reason is security.

Thomas Osborne

Network System Administrator in Information Technology at CentralSquare Technologies (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

Cisco IOS Security rating

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

November 26, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Using Cisco IOS Security is used in our organization in securing the network from multiple areas, starting with implementing authentication to access the network and port security to block unauthorized users to the access list to block specific traffic depending on source IP, destination IP, Used Protocols and many more factors. Cisco IOS security is used by the Network team on the organization network to support the whole organization users. to secure the organization assets ( devices, data, user identity, ...etc).

Pros

Authentication.
Access lists.
Port security.

Cons

Needs many lines to configure a detailed access list.
No seamless integration between Cisco IOS and LDAP for authentication and need something in middle like Radius.

Likelihood to Recommend

Cisco IOS Security is great when there isn't enough budget to acquire advanced security solutions like ISE. We can use the Cisco IOS security features to secure our network as much as we can, we can do authentication using Radius, Port Security, and access lists to secure our traffic while eliminating the attacker from accessing our network.

Girgis Hady

IT Network Manager in Information Technology at WadiDegla (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

12 years of experience

Basic security features to protect your business

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

November 12, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Cisco routers with iOS security in our remote offices around the world. This solves the major problem of having remote sites connected to the Internet: you can protect them from attacks with a simple and easy to deploy a solution like iOS security.

Pros

Using Cisco IOS security features, you can set up a zone-based firewall to protect the internal network, separating a DMZ if necessary, to deploy services that should face the internet.
Because Cisco iOS security is available in different router models, you can apply the same security configuration in each of the remote locations you have. With that, you can basically deploy a configuration template for every remote office or plant, regarding the size of the site.
Because Cisco iOS security is embedded in the OS, it doesn’t require too much hardware resources to run effectively. This gives you the opportunity to have the same level of security in a small router as you would have on a big one.

Cons

Cisco could provide an initial set up script for those are not used to the CLI (Command Line Interface). With that initial script, people could easily deploy the security features instead of having to learn how to use the commands.
The web interface that Cisco provides with the routers, although it’s useful to set up the security features, it could also have some sort of tutorials to help people understand the main concepts of iOS security.
You have to license iOS security separately from the main OS. For that reason, sometimes it tends to be a little expensive if you have a small business.

Likelihood to Recommend

If your business has branch offices or stores with all the same standards, Cisco iOS security is a good solution to standardize the deployment of those remote sites but if you need a more robust or specialized or customized solution for each branch, remote office or store maybe Cisco iOS security is not for you and you should search for another kind of product.

Eduardo Viero

IT Infrastructure Specialist in Information Technology at RANDON S.A (5001-10,000 employees)

Vetted Review

15 years of experience

Cisco ios is the best

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

December 21, 2015

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We utilize Cisco IOS in all aspects of our environment. From our local onsite network, to our remote datacenter and cloud deployments, to our customer networks we provide consulting services for. Cisco IOS provides an established solid foundation for the network and allows us to implement new technologies without a fear that the network will be able to support it. We know that with a Cisco network, it can handle anything we can throw at it.

Pros

QoS. Cisco Quality of Service is top notch and handles prioritization of voice and video without issue.
Ease of implementation and configuration. Once you have a device configured, it is easy to use that configuration as a template for the rest. Export your config, update, the IP Address and Name at a minimum, then deploy to the next device.
Longevity! Sometimes it can be difficult to upsell a current Cisco client due to aging hardware. I have gone into a network that has 12 year old switches still running strong. I have only seen this with the Cisco brand. At that point, the upsell is the newer features and not the age of the device.

Cons

CLI is great for those that know how to use it. It is my preference. Cisco is also excellent at providing training and documentation. They have excellent GUI tools for switches and wireless. The only thing lacking is a solid GUI for routers. CCP is Java based and can be a little buggy at times.
Pricing. Cisco is a rock solid device but they charge accordingly. Sometimes it can be hard to be competitive. You have to work with your account manager and obtain deviations to be competitive with other products.

Likelihood to Recommend

If I have my choice, I will always use a Cisco device. It is appropriate and excellent for all networks. However it might not be appropriate for all budgets. They do have a SMB series that is appropriately priced and compared to other SMB products, it is a fairly decent product.

Steve Davis

Network Engineer in Information Technology at Diamond Technologies, Inc. (11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

Reseller

8 years of experience

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Reviews and Ratings

Basic security features to protect your business

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

November 12, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

Using Cisco IOS security features, you can set up a zone-based firewall to protect the internal network, separating a DMZ if necessary, to deploy services that should face the internet.
Because Cisco iOS security is available in different router models, you can apply the same security configuration in each of the remote locations you have. With that, you can basically deploy a configuration template for every remote office or plant, regarding the size of the site.
Because Cisco iOS security is embedded in the OS, it doesn’t require too much hardware resources to run effectively. This gives you the opportunity to have the same level of security in a small router as you would have on a big one.

Cons

Cisco could provide an initial set up script for those are not used to the CLI (Command Line Interface). With that initial script, people could easily deploy the security features instead of having to learn how to use the commands.
The web interface that Cisco provides with the routers, although it’s useful to set up the security features, it could also have some sort of tutorials to help people understand the main concepts of iOS security.
You have to license iOS security separately from the main OS. For that reason, sometimes it tends to be a little expensive if you have a small business.

Likelihood to Recommend

Eduardo Viero

IT Infrastructure Specialist in Information Technology at RANDON S.A (5001-10,000 employees)

Vetted Review

15 years of experience