Cisco Systems Reviews, Ratings & Features 2026 | Gartner Peer Insights

Enterprise session border controllers (E-SBCs) are situated at the edge of the enterprise network and provide secure voice and video connectivity to Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) trunking providers, users in remote branch offices, home workers/remote workers, and unified communications as a service (UCaaS) providers.

The name 'session border controller' is derived from the following:

Session, from Session Initiation Protocol, refers to a real-time communication connection between endpoints or users. This is typically a voice and/or video call.

Border refers to the interface between networks that do not have full trust of each other.

 Controller refers to the ability of the E-SBC to control (allow, deny, transform, end) each session that traverses the border.

The 'E' in E-SBC stands for 'enterprise.' It is intended to differentiate enterprise-focused SBCs from those aimed at carriers.

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Enterprise SBC

Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE)

Cisco Systems

SOLUTIONS ARCHITECT

We had the requirement to deploy session border controllers to terminate multiple internet and private line SIP trunks from multiple carriers.  CUBE allowed us to confidently and securely accomplish this.  With a substantial footprint Cisco telephony within our enterprise, it made sense to utilize a Cisco SBC for this connectivity.  

250M - 500M USD

1B - 3B USD

<50M USD

50M - 250M USD

3B - 10B USD

SENIOR ENGINEER

I have installed this product many many times in lot of customers, but the issue is that is not designed to do the job they created it for.
This is a normal router with added the voice part, and for that it's worst compared to other SBCs that are made for this job.
The CLI is like all other products and for that as soon as you insert a command it will be put in running config and change the behaviour of the CUBE, while all other competitors have a part where you change the config (without applying it) and in a second step you apply the changes, in this way you can prepare configuration in business hours, and then OBH you just have to say "activate", with CUBE this is not possible.

It doesn't have a web-interface to connect to and see troubleshootings, if you use this product as a centralized gateway for multiple sip services and you need to troubleshoot calls that are not working, you have to debug via CLI where all call logs are mixed together, and have to use an external tool to investigate the call issue, moreover debugging via CLI can cause block of Putty or software you use.
Other Vendor's SBCs have a dedicated web interface that shows all call in GUI, separated and graphically shown.

It has less security then other SBCs since is designed to be a router, not an SBC. 

SENIOR VOICE NETWORK ENGINEER

CUBE has been a pleasure to use through its evolution time line. 

Avaya

AudioCodes

Huawei

Patton

Cisco is a company that specializes in networking technologies, particularly Internet Protocol (IP)-based solutions. It was established in 1984 by a group of computer scientists from Stanford University. As of today, Cisco has a global workforce, continuing to innovate in various fields, notably in routing and switching. Adding to its core business, the company also delves into emerging technologies including home networking, IP telephony, optical networking, security features, storage area networking, and wireless technology. Moreover, Cisco extends its expertise to offer a sweeping range of services such as technical support and advanced services. The company sells its products and services on an enterprise level, to commercial businesses, service providers, and end-users.

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) enables people to make powerful connections--whether in business, education, philanthropy, or creativity. Cisco hardware, software, and service offerings are used to create the Internet solutions that make networks possible--providing easy access to information anywhere, at any time. 

Cisco was founded in 1984 by a small group of computer scientists from Stanford University. Since the company's inception, Cisco engineers have been leaders in the development of Internet Protocol (IP)-based networking technologies. Today, with more than 71,000 employees worldwide, this tradition of innovation continues with industry-leading products and solutions in the company's core development areas of routing and switching, as well as in advanced technologies such as home networking, IP telephony, optical networking, security, storage area networking, and wireless technology. In addition to its products, Cisco provides a broad range of service offerings, including technical support and advanced services. 

Cisco sells its products and services, both directly through its own sales force as well as through its channel partners, to large enterprises, commercial businesses, service providers, and consumers.

Reviews

Ratings Overview

Overall experience with

Favorable Review

If Cisco is your PBX, CUBE is your SBC.

Critical Review

They are not the best!

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