May 20, 2022
I prefer Sophos. I find it easy to use and it has better features on malware and threat management.
Cisco Secure Firewall and Sophos XG are competitors in the network security sector. Cisco Secure Firewall is often preferred for its advanced security configuration options and integration with Cisco infrastructure, while Sophos XG is praised for its ease of deployment and value for money.
Features: Cisco Secure Firewall offers robust threat protection with comprehensive security features, scalability, and smooth integration with existing Cisco systems. Its advanced security settings cater to organizations seeking in-depth threat management. Conversely, Sophos XG excels with a user-friendly interface that allows intuitive management. Its synchronized security features and versatile deployment options benefit those needing simplicity in operations and diverse environment adaptation.
Room for Improvement: Cisco Secure Firewall could enhance its user interface to make navigation easier for less experienced users. Moreover, simplifying its setup process could broaden its appeal. Sophos XG might improve by expanding advanced security features, developing integration with more third-party software, and enhancing configuration granularity for those dealing with complex network environments.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Secure Firewall's setup can be complex, benefitting from experienced IT personnel due to the sophisticated architecture generally utilized in larger organizations. Sophos XG's deployment is noted for its straightforward nature, complemented by robust customer support that facilitates swift setup, appealing to businesses without a dedicated IT infrastructure.
Pricing and ROI: The cost of Cisco Secure Firewall is higher upfront, justified by its extensive feature set for organizations requiring detailed security and integration. It often results in substantial ROI through enhanced security capabilities. Sophos XG is perceived as economical, providing excellent value for small to medium businesses by balancing cost with a wide array of essential security features, translating into a favorable ROI through simplicity and cost-effectiveness.
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.
The biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Firewall is that there's no waste in any infrastructure cost and licensing costs for us.
From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Firewall is the single pane of glass, which is a huge plus for us.
The biggest return on investment for me when using Cisco Secure Firewall is reliability and robust network design.
The graphical interface of Sophos XG simplifies configurations, saving time in support and troubleshooting compared to the Linux-based solution I previously used.
We purchased endpoint security for the first time last year, and even without endpoint security, it provides comprehensive security.
It's good, but I would still say it's higher by about 10-15 percent compared to other market products with similar configurations.
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 have to provide many logs, yet problems remain unresolved, often requiring workarounds rather than solutions.
I have been working with them on firewalls, wireless, switching, and routing, and the support is the best.
They have expertise and provide solutions for the most difficult problems.
They are professional, respond quickly, and help resolve issues effectively.
I rate the technical support a ten out of ten.
Their team was quick to diagnose and resolve the problem by exchanging the equipment within two weeks.
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.
Scalability presents a challenge.
Compared to FortiGate and Palo Alto, it lags in configuration and other aspects.
Even with the highest one, the 4600, we still face issues, particularly when transitioning between screens; it becomes very slow.
You can scale up to multiple firewalls with centralized management.
You can't upgrade memory or storage on a specific model, which limits scalability.
I rate the scalability a nine out of ten.
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.
We have often encountered split-brain scenarios during failover processes and code upgrades, which have been persistent problems for us.
We work with a cluster with high availability, so if something goes wrong, we have it functioning.
Cisco Secure Firewall offers exceptional performance and stability.
Sophos XG is very stable, even when serving as a DHCP server.
Sophos XG is resource-greedy, affecting performance even on newer computers.
It's on 24/7 and has consistently been reliable over the years.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security.
When considering Sophos XG, which we also use, the logging and reporting functionality is notably more efficient.
My ongoing complaint for the last six years has been the lack of CLI functionality, which hinders my ability to work on the firewall, alongside concerns regarding deployment time.
Firepower Management Center is quite out of date compared to other vendors.
The integration between Cisco products themselves presents difficulties, such as SD-WAN configuration.
The solution should have the ability to be up to date with the most recent threats.
This suggests a vulnerability that needs addressing to ensure administrators can update patches without losing access.
Business cannot stop just because of issues with support.
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 offers cost savings as it is generally cheaper than the competition.
It is about 20% cheaper.
It's good to have them, however, it costs us a lot.
It's considered a premium, but people pay that price for Cisco.
There are a lot of in-place contracts for us that provide the benefit of discounts.
I rate the pricing a ten out of ten.
Currently, it costs about four million shillings in Kenya.
The cost depends on the package you are in, such as full threat management or basic.
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.
What stands out positively about Cisco is their training and support, which has effectively prepared engineers to work with their products.
This is very important to my organization, as we work extensively with security because we are a bank, so we can keep the data safe.
Cisco Secure Firewall allows me to safeguard Layer 7 or Layer 3 and manage the security rules with the business needs of my organization.
I particularly like the visibility it provides into network traffic, allowing us to identify and address issues efficiently.
The firewall feature of Sophos XG has been the most effective for threat prevention.
Integration with endpoint security products ensures seamless traffic flow and rule enforcement, even when endpoints are not directly connected to the firewall.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Fortinet FortiGate | 20.4% |
| Sophos XG | 9.6% |
| Cisco Secure Firewall | 6.2% |
| Other | 63.8% |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 350 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 130 |
| Large Enterprise | 187 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 180 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 126 |
| Large Enterprise | 212 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 140 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 50 |
| Large Enterprise | 37 |
Fortinet FortiGate excels in providing integrated VPN, firewalling, and Unified Threat Management (UTM) with centralized management and high availability. It supports remote access and comprehensive threat protection, making it a preferred choice for securing networks.
Fortinet FortiGate offers a robust security platform with features such as strong intrusion prevention, application control, and web filtering. Its integration with Active Directory and SD-WAN functionality provides scalable solutions for large networks. Users appreciate its ease of use through centralized management interfaces, ensuring robust security with flexible configurations. However, FortiGate could enhance its graphical interface and technical support responsiveness, address firmware bugs and costly licensing, improve logging, integrate better with third-party tools, and strengthen scalability and memory for log storage. Complexity in configuration and the need for intuitive features are noted challenges, and there's a demand for advanced security, zero-trust capabilities, and AI integration.
What are the key features of Fortinet FortiGate?Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries like education, finance, and government. Companies use it for firewall protection, VPN, and SD-WAN capabilities, ensuring secure perimeter and data center security. It facilitates remote access management and traffic routing optimization, offering reliable security and connectivity solutions.
Cisco Secure Firewall provides comprehensive network security with advanced features such as application visibility, URL filtering, and malware protection. It combines a user-friendly interface with robust VPN capabilities, making it a reliable choice for varying network environments and industry applications.
Cisco Secure Firewall offers exceptional protection with its integration into Cisco's broader ecosystem, ensuring enhanced threat detection and policy unification. Despite its complexity in command-line interfaces and management, Cisco Secure Firewall remains a potent tool for safeguarding data. It is widely adopted for edge security, VPN services, perimeter defense, and traffic segmentation, especially in hybrid settings. Essential sectors like banking and telecom benefit from its stable connectivity and centralized security management. Though there are challenges with costs and support for third-party APIs, the firewall's scalability and high availability provide comprehensive support for protecting network assets.
What are the key features of Cisco Secure Firewall?Cisco Secure Firewall is widely implemented across sectors like banking, education, ISPs, and telecoms. It fortifies data centers and network edge security, delivering strong protection for client access, hybrid environments, and intrusion prevention. In these industries, firewall solutions ensure secure connectivity and manage RTU traffic effectively, leveraging centralized management and integration with Cisco's security tools.
Sophos XG provides robust security capabilities, offering features like web filtering, VPN, and user-friendly management. Its intuitive setup and policy adjustments enhance security while synchronized endpoint protection ensures comprehensive defense.
Sophos XG is a network security solution with web and application filtering, VPN features, and a management interface that simplifies configuration. It offers email protection, threat prevention, and reporting capabilities, all contributing to a comprehensive defense strategy. Synchronized security with endpoints enhances protection, and advanced threat protection with efficient bandwidth management supports secure remote work environments. However, users suggest improvements in log interfaces for real-time actions and better email protection. Enhancements in link load balancing, RAM, VPN stability, and central management are needed. HTTPS filtering, certificate management, technical support, and scalability of the SD-WAN feature can see advances.
What are the key features of Sophos XG?In industries such as healthcare, education, and financial services, Sophos XG acts as a mainline defense for network security, VPN connectivity, and web filtering. It supports secure remote access, intrusion prevention, antivirus scanning, and secure web gateways integrated with endpoint systems, tailoring its extensive security capabilities to meet specific industry requirements.
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