# Fortinet Secure SD-WAN vs HPE Aruba EdgeConnect: which do AI models recommend for SD-WAN, October 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, SD-WAN. Nine of fourteen models named Fortinet Secure SD-WAN first on the direct prompt; two named HPE Aruba EdgeConnect. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/network/sd-wan/fortinet-secure-sd-wan-vs-hpe-aruba-edgeconnect/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fortinet Secure SD-WAN | 50% | #1 of 10 | 3% | 64 | 14 of 14 |
| HPE Aruba EdgeConnect | 4% | #5 of 10 | 13% | 30 | 12 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- GPT-5.4 mini: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Cisco Meraki SD-WAN, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SD-WAN)
- Perplexity Sonar: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, HPE Aruba EdgeConnect, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Cisco Meraki SD-WAN, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: HPE Aruba EdgeConnect, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SD-WAN, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Cato SASE Cloud, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, Cisco Meraki SD-WAN)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Cisco Meraki SD-WAN, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SD-WAN)
- Kimi K2: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Cisco Meraki SD-WAN)
- GPT-6 Luna: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Cisco Meraki SD-WAN)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: fortinet secure sd-wan first (first choices: Cisco Meraki SD-WAN, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cato SASE Cloud, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, FatPipe SD-WAN, HPE Aruba EdgeConnect)
- Mistral Small: hpe aruba edgeconnect first (first choices: HPE Aruba EdgeConnect, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN) (alternatives: Fortinet Secure SD-WAN)
- MiniMax M2.5: hpe aruba edgeconnect first (first choices: HPE Aruba EdgeConnect, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN) (alternatives: Cisco Meraki SD-WAN)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Cato SASE Cloud) (alternatives: Aryaka, Comcast Business, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN, MetTel, Windstream)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: Cato SASE Cloud) (alternatives: Barracuda SecureEdge SD-WAN, Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN, Fortinet Secure SD-WAN, Palo Alto Networks Prisma SD-WAN, VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named

## What the models said about Fortinet Secure SD-WAN

- "Requires more configuration expertise for advanced features, has a larger upfront learning curve, higher hardware footprint" (Claude Haiku 4.5, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "warns about vendor lock-in and limited third-party integrations" (Perplexity Sonar, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Fortinet Secure SD-WAN is frequently highlighted as the "budget champion,"... If you need both networking and security in one, Fortinet may be the best fit." (Mistral Small, budget prompt, first choice)
- "Fortinet Secure SD-WAN (Best Overall Value & Security Integration) ... widely considered the market leader for mid-market organizations" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, direct prompt, first choice)
- "If your primary goal is consolidating security and networking onto a single cost-effective firewall appliance, choose Fortinet." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, comparative prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about HPE Aruba EdgeConnect

- "What to Avoid: Silver Peak (now Aruba/HPE) - Not recommended for mid-market due to high price point and locked hardware" (MiniMax M2.5, paraphrase prompt, hard negative)
- "HPE's history of discontinuing products or rebranding means that an SD-WAN controller you love today could become unsupported" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Historically, Silver Peak (now part of HPE) and Citrix/VMware SD-WAN solutions had critical vulnerabilities" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Instead, consider platforms like Fortinet Secure SD-WAN or Aruba EdgeConnect" (Mistral Small, negative prompt, first choice)
- "Similar capabilities, also recommended for mid-market" (MiniMax M2.5, direct prompt, first choice)
- "VMware SD-WAN and Aruba EdgeConnect are top choices" (Mistral Small, direct prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.