Overview
Q. What is Cisco Catalyst
™ SD-WAN for Government?
A. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government is a highly secure, cloud-scale architecture that is open, programmable, and scalable and meets security controls mandated by federal, state, and local governments via FedRAMP and StateRAMP authorization entities.
Q. How is Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government different from the Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN commercial offering?
A. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government has the same ease of use as the commercial cloud with a solution deployed specifically for the U.S. government in the GovCloud. A limited set of hardware (TAA++), feature set, and different licensing are offered for this deployment. Additionally, this offering has security controls including FIPS 140-2/140-3 compliance and secure communication over TLS 1.2 and 1.3 based on the hardware devices used.
Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government is continuously monitored using security and compliance processes such as penetration tests and vulnerability scans and is reviewed on a regular cadence with the federal agencies that participate in the continuous monitoring exercise.
FedRAMP Program and the Cisco Catalyst FedRAMP solution
Q. What is FedRAMP?
A. FedRAMP, the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program, is a U.S. government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. U.S. FedRAMP authorization is also recognized internationally, and Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) with FedRAMP Authority to Operate (ATO) are desirable across the globe.
Q. What is meant by FedRAMP Authority to Operate (ATO), and how does a CSP achieve an ATO?
A. The FedRAMP Program Management Office (PMO) reviews a security assessment completed by a Third-Party Assessment Organization (3PAO) for a CSP and grants an ATO. To achieve an ATO, a CSP must demonstrate that they adhere to all security controls set as requirements for FedRMAP program. Compliance with these controls includes technical configurations, architecture, and process implementation documentation.
Q. Is the ATO information publicly available?
A. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is listed as Authorized in the FedRAMP Marketplace. All public information is available
here.
Q. Who can purchase Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government?
A. The U.S. federal government, local governments, U.S. public education systems, U.S. federal government contractors (including Defense Install Base), and tribal governments can purchase Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government. It is not available to private educational institutions unless they are U.S. government funded research centers. There is an approval and verification process for customers to follow when purchasing.
Q. Does FedRAMP compliance mean that Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN is also compliant with StateRAMP?
A. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government achieved StateRAMP (now GovRAMP) authorization on August 21, 2024. Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government complies with security standards required by state and local governments. Our listing can be found in the
StateRAMP Product List.
Solution migration
Q. Can I move from a commercial on-premises deployment to the Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government solution?
A. Yes, customers who purchase the FedRAMP ATO license can open a case to migrate their environment from commercial on-premises to the Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government cloud solution. Please contact your account manager for more information on the process.
Q. Is downtime required for migrating to the Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN for Government solution?
A. Cisco’s migration team works with customers to minimize the downtime required for migration. All activities that can be achieved with downtime are communicated to the customer and a time window is agreed upon with the customer for making the change.
Q. How much downtime would I need?
A. The migration team can provide the required downtime information based on the size of your deployment.