Cisco SD-WAN (Viptela): Complete Guide
·2 min read·281 words
Cisco SD-WAN (based on Viptela, acquired in 2017) is Cisco's cloud-managed SD-WAN solution. It uses a split control and data plane architecture with vManage, vSmart, and vBond. It has been rebranded as Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN. Complete 2026 guide.
Architecture
- vManage: GUI orchestrator for central management
- vSmart: OMP (Overlay Management Protocol) control plane for overlay routing control
- vBond: onboarding orchestrator for authentication and initial rendezvous
- WAN Edge: physical devices (ISR 4000/1000, Catalyst 8000) or virtual devices (vEdge Cloud)
WAN Edge devices
- ISR 1100/4000: branch offices — see the ISR 1000 product page
- Catalyst 8200/8300/8500: next-generation WAN Edge
- vEdge Cloud: VM on AWS/Azure/GCP for cloud on-ramp
- Catalyst 8500L/M: high performance at 20-40 Gbps
Features
- Application-aware routing with SLA metrics (latency, jitter, and loss)
- Zero-Touch Provisioning with Plug-and-Play Connect
- Direct Internet Access (DIA) with Secure Access Gateway
- Cloud On-Ramp for SaaS (Office 365, Salesforce)
- Multi-tenant VPN segmentation
- IPsec + FEC (Forward Error Correction)
- SDCI (SD-Cloud Interconnect) for Equinix Fabric
Cloud deployment
- Cisco-hosted vManage (cloud-based) or on-premises vManage (VM)
- vSmart: minimum of 3 instances for redundancy
- vBond: 2 instances
Licenses
- Cisco DNA Advantage + SD-WAN feature — €1,200-3,500 excl. VAT/year per site, depending on bandwidth
- Network Advantage + DNA Advantage + SD-WAN: complete bundle
- Umbrella SIG (Secure Internet Gateway): +€590/user/year for SASE
Comparison
- FortiGate SD-WAN: native FortiOS SD-WAN at no additional cost, with comparable quality
- VMware VeloCloud: fully SaaS-based and straightforward, but less flexible
- Versa Networks: a Gartner leader, independent of hardware platforms
- Palo Alto Prisma SD-WAN: native SASE integration
Order from OPTINOC
Complete Cisco SD-WAN solution based on Catalyst 8000/ISR, with preactivated DNA Advantage + SD-WAN licenses. Cloud-based or on-premises vManage. Turnkey multisite onboarding. Request a quote for 10-500 sites, delivered within 48 hours.