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Cisco IOS Security vs ExtraHop Reveal(x) comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
5.7
Users find Fortinet FortiGate cost-effective, enhancing security and productivity while reducing operational costs and manpower needs.
Sentiment score
8.1
Cisco IOS Security offers high ROI through improved efficiency, reduced risks, cost savings, and a beneficial subscription model.
Sentiment score
6.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) enhances MTTR and ROI by swiftly identifying issues, benefiting finance firms but costly for healthcare.
Clients are now comfortable and not wasting productive hours on IT support.
The automation part is giving us a cost benefit and speed; we can react faster.
It's a very useful tool to mitigate and protect your enterprise.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.4
Fortinet FortiGate's customer support is generally positive but varies in responsiveness and expertise, influenced by region and support tier.
Sentiment score
7.0
Cisco IOS Security offers expert support but faces criticism for slow responses and communication challenges, remaining a strong choice.
Sentiment score
7.6
Users highly rate ExtraHop Reveal(x) support for reliable, knowledgeable, and efficient issue resolution, despite occasional time zone delays.
They offer very accurate solutions.
The quick resolution of issues with Fortinet FortiGate is due to the support of the company and the fact that the equipment is easy to work with.
I would rate the technical support for Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
I would rate their technical support nine out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Fortinet FortiGate effectively supports scalable deployments, offering adaptability despite potential hardware limits and integration and licensing concerns.
Sentiment score
7.5
Cisco IOS Security is praised for scalability and efficiency but may require additional hardware and specific Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
6.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) is scalable and manages up to 100GB, though cost and upgrades may pose challenges for some users.
They scale up really well from smaller models like the FortiGate 40 and 50 to bigger sites with the FortiGate 100 for more throughput - up to enterprise datacenters.
The variation comes in terms of the interfaces and throughputs, but from a security perspective, you get the same benefit, irrespective of whether you have an entry-level unit or an enterprise.
We determine sizing based on multiple factors: number of users, available links, traffic types, server count, services in use, and whether services will be published.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
FortiGate is praised for stability and performance, with minor challenges managed by updates, proper sizing, and support.
Sentiment score
7.7
Cisco IOS Security is praised for stability and reliability, with few integration issues reported when not using Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
7.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) is highly stable and reliable, consistently performing well with regular updates, despite minor hardware issues.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
Currently, we are experiencing a general outage of one of the main internet service providers of the Dominican Republic, and we have not been impacted in our operations because with SD-WAN, we have another internet service provider and we are working with the second WAN connection without any disruption.
I find Cisco IOS Security to be a very stable product.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiGate struggles with integration, user complexity, support inefficiencies, high costs, and feature performance, needing improved documentation and security.
Cisco IOS Security needs more intuitive management, better performance, advanced features, and improved integration, usability, and support.
ExtraHop Reveal(x) needs improvements in integrations, flexibility, reporting, pricing, and cloud capabilities, while offering better training options.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
The constant daily revisions necessitate meticulous identification of the relevant documents to prevent the use of outdated information that could jeopardize our environment.
While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security.
Currently, we have to check manually as we do not receive any notifications about new patches, maintenance, or firmware releases.
I would like to see improvements in areas where events are getting dropped; we're not able to view complete insights.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers competitive, cost-effective pricing, appealing to small-medium businesses with flexible licensing and valued security solutions.
Cisco IOS Security is pricey, subscription-based, aimed at medium-to-large enterprises, with recent SMB options, often seen as expensive.
Enterprise buyers find ExtraHop Reveal(x) costly, with escalating costs for scaling and specific features, despite robust capabilities.
FortiGate is priced lower than Palo Alto.
Last year, I renewed the support for three years, which can sometimes be expensive but depends on the security benefits and how it helps us.
It is about 20% cheaper.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate is user-friendly, cost-effective, and offers high-performance comprehensive security with advanced threat protection features.
Cisco IOS Security enhances network security with robust features, user-friendly interface, and strong performance, preferred over competitors.
ExtraHop Reveal(x) offers seamless integration, powerful analytics, and machine learning for effective threat detection and comprehensive network visibility.
In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable.
FortiGate has helped reduce the risk of cyberattacks that might disrupt our client's production.
These features help reduce our downtime, manage the ISPs, and deploy SLAs for all the website traffic.
This solution, called Network Access Controller, handles authentication, authorization, and accounting for devices accessing the network.
If I want to know a specific IP and which server it has been connected to, it's easy to gather those kinds of trees from the NDR.
The solution offers a friendly GUI for security features.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
411
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (2nd), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Cisco IOS Security
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (20th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (11th)
ExtraHop Reveal(x)
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (3rd), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Firewalls
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA)
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service
I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.
Binoob John - PeerSpot reviewer
Rrobust network security and device authentication with advanced access control features
This solution should be implemented for most enterprise-level customers. It ensures that users accessing the corporate network or wireless network with their own devices are authenticated and authorized. As a network administrator, I can track who is accessing the network, what devices they are…
Jordan Swanson - PeerSpot reviewer
It helps you visualize how data moves across your network
I rate ExtraHop Reveal(x) 10 out of 10. This is more of a nice-to-have rather than a must-have solution. Something like a CrowdStrike or a next-gen AV is an essential product, whereas NDR is more of a nice-to-have thing. If you only have a little bit of traffic, you're probably not going to get anything out of it. It's better for a medium-to-large enterprise. It's more appropriate for companies wh a massfootprints or industrial applications using use nonstandard devices. It's helpful for things that use SCADA, the Internet of Things, somethingings that don't fit neatly into other management categories. Itty common for industrial, construction, or maintenance devices to be a little lackluster in their security. Major breaches like the Colonial Pipeline hack and attempted hacks on nuclear power plants all went through Internet of Things vulnerabilities and other devices where security wasn't part of their plan. This helps you cover yourself by monitoring the traffic. With something like CrowdStrike, you need to put the CrowdStrike sensor on it, but Reveal(x) looks at everything on the network.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
29%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
5%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
7%
Healthcare Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is the better NGFW: Fortinet Fortigate or Cisco Firepower?
When you compare these firewalls you can identify them with different features, advantages, practices and usage a...
What is the biggest difference between Sophos XG and FortiGate?
From my experience regarding both the Sophos and FortiGate firewalls, I personally would rather use FortiGate. I know...
What are the biggest technical differences between Sophos UTM and Fortinet FortiGate?
As a solution, Sophos UTM offers a lot of functionality, it scales well, and the stability and performance are quite ...
What do you like most about Cisco IOS Security?
Cisco IOS Security is a mature product with extensive capabilities, serving as the base for the defense layer. It off...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS Security?
Pricing can be reduced. I rate the current price for the product a four out of ten.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS Security?
While I do not have specific recommendations for improvement, pricing can be reduced.
What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?
We just did an assessment for our 47 datacenters around North America. The top two enterprise-level network monitorin...
What open source tool can one use to measure bandwidth from one's upstream service provider?
One I am looking closely at is AppNeta. They have an appliance that can digest the flow and do a better job than N...
What do you like most about ExtraHop Reveal(x)?
With ExtraHop Reveal(x), it gives me more visibility into the packets. It doesn't provide the entire packet capture, ...
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
IOS Security
Reveal(x), Revealx
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya
Arup Group, Brunel University London, City of Biel, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, K&L Gates , New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Offshore Northern Seas, Transplace
Wood County Hospital
Find out what your peers are saying about Netgate, Fortinet, OPNsense and others in Firewalls. Updated: August 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.