We embedded and tested ‘ThousandEyes Internet and Cloud Intelligence’ on the Catalyst 9000 access switches; discover our top three findings:

There was a time when your IT team didn’t have to look far beyond your own backyard to solve problems affecting your business. These days, it’s different. The use of cloud-based apps and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is prevalent. More people than ever are working from home networks and via public clouds. One survey projects that 80% of customer experience apps will be in the cloud by 2023.

The Internet is your network now. All of it. So, if a business-critical issue comes up—whether it’s a failed checkout in your app or a glitchy chatbot—you need a kind of networkwide omni-visibility to see and fix it.

Until recently, it was difficult to achieve what every business needs now to compete in the digital space: expanded visibility network-wide. Penetrating vision into today’s vast, interdependent data ecosystem is vital because it allows you to quickly isolate and fix problems that have real, bottom-line consequences for your business.

Our Customer Zero team, whose mission is to improve the quality of our solutions by putting them to use in production environments, has been building out its Internet and network visibility capabilities for some time and delivering compelling results so you can navigate today’s fast-evolving digital arena, and thrive there.

Top 3 Test-Drive Takeaways

It’s no exaggeration to say that you need eyes in a thousand places to quickly find and fix the issues that can result in a poor digital experience. The solution that provides this level of visibility is, rather fittingly, called ‘ThousandEyes Internet and Cloud Intelligence’. We embedded and tested this tool on the Catalyst 9000 access switches that often connect our customers’ networks. You likely use these in your own networks, so our top three findings will have deep import for you.

1. Cutting through blind spots in the digital ecosystem provides you with a critical business edge.

When an issue arises for your business—say your customer app isn’t loading, or your shopping cart can’t ring up a sale—the problem often lies in a blind spot. With ThousandEyes on our access switches, we found that we could drill down to every twist and turn in the digital journey, illuminating all the places where an issue can hide—whether it’s a third-party payment service, SaaS provider, VPN, or even your customer’s Internet Service Provider (ISP).

“In the past, if you suspected that your slow-loading app was an ISP issue, there was no way to prove that to the service provider,” says Dean Sanders, network systems engineer, Customer Zero. “Now, you can show them the ThousandEyes dashboard and say: ‘We know where the problem is—it’s here. And we’re speaking to the right people to get it resolved.’ Having that capability is nothing short of amazing.”

This level of Internet and network visibility translates quickly into dollars when you can get that app back up and running—hopefully before customers even notice a glitch. And certainly, before you lose a single sale.

2. Network-wide visibility gives you a handle on key metrics like Mean Time to Isolation.

A solution like ThousandEyes is a boon for both your IT and business teams. To your tech engineer, it’s a relief to be able to spot the exact location of a problem. It reduces your mean time to isolation (MTTI)—as well as the time it takes your tech team to prove that their systems aren’t to blame (which is why MTTI is playfully known as ‘mean time to innocence’ in some circles).

During our test-drive, if our teams found a broken link, they could simply click a button to create a shareable link and send it straight to the service provider. “This is exciting because it gives you undisputable evidence to share,” Dean continues. “More importantly, it can help you get your issue resolved in a fraction of the time.”

The cost benefit goes beyond the revenue you save with a business-critical fix. Internet and network visibility is an incredible tool for ensuring you’re getting what you’re paying for with an ISP—as well as delivering the quality of service and optimum experience your customers and teams deserve.

3. Penetrating vision across the digital ecosystem is your secret weapon to keep operations running smoothly.

With network-wide visibility in your toolkit, you can also gain insight into the apps and platforms your teams rely on to get their work done. “ThousandEyes gives us a clear picture of the performance of applications you use every day, like Office365 or Webex,” says Dean. When you can rapidly pinpoint and fix issues with these vital SaaS services, you can rest assured that your team will be happier and more productive.

See Internet and network visibility in action

 Good news for you: We’ve now embedded ThousandEyes directly in Cisco Catalyst 9300 and 9400 series switches. So, chances are, your team can get a taste of its capabilities right away. And if you’re a Premier or DNA Advantage customer, you can take the basic version for a test-drive, too.

Think of expanded visibility network-wide as a virtuous circle of happiness for all involved—IT teams, business leaders, and ever-more discerning customers and end users.

It’s all about delivering the stellar digital experience that everyone expects today, no matter how complex the playing field.

Get started with ThousandEyes + Cisco Catalyst 9000.

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