New Relay Features – Dynamic WAN and Fail Open
June 3, 2025
Both Umbrella and ScoutDNS use global anycast networks and cloud infrastructures to deliver fast and resilient content filtering with internet protection services to networks. Both solutions offer a variety of content categorization with rich policy customization. ScoutDNS and Umbrella offer direct to customer and MSP/reseller pricing.
ScoutDNS offers a cleaner and more simple to navigate business class modern web UI. Using object based configuration, administrators can manage and make changes across one to any number of protected networks with ease. With single click allow/block list additions, real time DNS RDATA/message inspection, and aggregate views by TLD, record type, and more, ScoutDNS customers receive a best in class experience. All this makes ScoutDNS a great Cisco Umbrella and OpenDNS alternative.
The Cisco Secure Client offers more functionality than ScoutDNS as it is a full web gateway whereas ScoutDNS is a Protective DNS Security solution. The Cisco Secure Client adds significant additional license costs and deployment/management complexity. Alternatively, ScoutDNS can function with a number of third party VPN and ZTNA web gateways if this function is desired.
Customers choose ScoutDNS for better data insights, a more user friendly UI experience, greatly improved ease of management, and lower cost per user.
ScoutDNS uses DNS-over-HTTPs or DoH as the default full time encryption protocol for all roaming clients. As DoH uses port 443, ScoutDNS roaming clients are always encrypted and can pass DNS through third party firewalls and most VPNs.
Cisco Umbrella relies heavily on the non RFC standards based DNSCRYPT for roaming agent deployments.
ScoutDNS offers certain remote management commands for roaming clients directly through the UI. This greatly improves remove client troubleshooting for your technicians. The remote command options include:
Disable: Tells the ScoutDNS agent to unbind from the loopback address and sets DNS to the network default for the device
Forget: Clears a roaming client from the UI. If the agent is still active it will appear again as long as the key is valid
Uninstall: Issues a remote uninstall command to the device
Umbrella does not offer remote disable. You will need to build and execute a third-party script or remote into the device to top the service and set DNS back to network default. For uninstall, you will need touch the device to uninstall should it become disconnected from your remote management tools.
ScoutDNS created a new method to manage and filter TLDs or Top Level Domains. Instead of just adding TLDs to a block list which you can still do if you choose, ScoutDNS offers trusted access TLD lists so that you can choose what TLDs are trusted. In this case all other TLDs are blocked by default and you don’t have to worry about new TLDs being added to the internet because they will be blocked unless specifically trusted first.
| Features | ScoutDNS | Cisco Umbrella |
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Global Anycast Network |
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Zero Touch Relay |
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Easy Roaming Clients |
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Requires Org File |
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Machine Learning Based Categorization |
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Safe Search & YouTube Safe Mode |
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Multi-Tenant with Single Log-in |
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Role Based Access |
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30 Days Log Access |
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TLD Filtering |
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As Blocklist Only |
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Inspect Raw RDATA/Message |
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Object Based Allow/Block Lists |
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Make Any Allow/Block List Global |
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Searchable logs, Category, TLD, and Record Type aggregate view, full message inspection
Create and mange top level domain filtering lists for a zero trust TLD internet policy.
Our highly efficient application model allows us to offer competitive features at reduced costs.
