Given your detailed requirements for monitoring both Cisco SD-WAN and Cisco ACI, along with deep application visibility, SNMP, NetFlow, and automation support, here are the top monitoring solutions that align well with your needs:
1. Cisco ThousandEyes + AppDynamics (Cisco Full Stack Observability)
Best for: End-to-end visibility, application performance, SD-WAN + ACI + cloud paths
Cisco SD-WAN Integration: Native integration provides hop-by-hop performance metrics, WAN health, path visualizations
Cisco ACI Monitoring: AppD agent visibility inside ACI fabric, and overlay correlation with APIC
Internet Monitoring: Synthetic transactions, BGP route visibility, DNS health, public endpoint ping tests
NetFlow / SNMP: Not primary focus, but can integrate with other tools like Stealthwatch
App Telemetry: Tracks transaction latency across tiers (e.g., app server → DB)
Automation: APIs and webhook integration with Ansible, Terraform, ServiceNow, etc.
This is Cisco's recommended full-stack observability suite—particularly strong if you're invested in Cisco infrastructure.
2. SolarWinds Hybrid Cloud Observability
Best for: Comprehensive SNMP, NetFlow, and Cisco visibility
Cisco SD-WAN Support: Monitors vManage, vEdge, WAN health, tunnels, SLA
ACI Support: Integration with APIC for topology, health scores, tenant metrics
SNMP & NetFlow: Best-in-class SNMP polling and NetFlow traffic analytics (NTA module)
Application Monitoring: AppInsight provides deep metrics for databases, VMs, and services
Scripting/Automation: REST APIs and PowerShell support
Internet Monitoring: ICMP, HTTP, TCP checks with historical trend views
Great if you want deep SNMP, NetFlow, and are managing large hybrid networks.
3. LogicMonitor
Best for: SaaS-based ease, ACI/SD-WAN visibility with modern dashboards
Cisco ACI Support: Monitors spine/leaf, APIC, tenant health, EPG status
Cisco SD-WAN: Templates for vManage, WAN edges, application route stats
SNMP & NetFlow: Built-in collectors and auto-discovery
Cloud & App Monitoring: Azure/AWS/GCP plus app stack metrics
Internet Monitoring: Pings, traceroutes, and service checks from global nodes
Automation: Native support for Terraform, APIs, and alert webhooks
Ideal for multi-vendor/cloud environments with modern UI and minimal setup time.
4. Paessler PRTG Network Monitor
Best for: Simplicity, strong SNMP and flow monitoring, affordable
Cisco SD-WAN: Via SNMP and custom sensors/scripts
ACI Support: Limited, but can be customized with REST APIs
SNMP & NetFlow: Excellent support for flows, IPFIX, and SNMP traps
App Monitoring: Includes sensors for HTTP, SMTP, FTP, etc.
Internet Monitoring: Built-in ping and latency sensors
Automation: REST API, scripting with PowerShell and Python
Budget-friendly option for small to mid-sized networks.
5. ManageEngine OpManager Plus
Best for: Feature-rich monitoring with SD-WAN/AIOps focus
Cisco SD-WAN: Templates for vManage, vSmart, vEdge with tunnel health
ACI Monitoring: Supports APIC and leaf/spine node metrics
NetFlow Analyzer: Built-in for traffic flows, bandwidth usage
App Monitoring: Monitors app response times and service availability
Internet Monitoring: Ping, HTTP, and DNS monitors
Automation: Workflow automation and REST API
Solid all-in-one solution with good UI and built-in reporting.
Summary Table
Solution SD-WAN ACI SNMP NetFlow App Monitoring Internet Tests Automation
Cisco ThousandEyes + AppD Native Native Limited Limited Deep APM Global agents APIs
SolarWinds Strong Moderate Best-in-class Full NTA
LogicMonitor
PRTG Basic Custom Basic
OpManager Plus
Recommendation
If you are:
Cisco-heavy (SD-WAN, ACI, Umbrella, AppD): go with Cisco Full Stack Observability (ThousandEyes + AppDynamics)
Need SNMP/NetFlow-heavy insights: use SolarWinds or ManageEngine
Want ease of use with fast deployment: consider LogicMonitor
