Exinda vs Symantec Proxy comparison

Why PeerSpot?

The compared GFI and Broadcom solutions aren't in the same category. GFI is ranked #5 in WO , and holds a 6.7% mindshare in the category. Broadcom is ranked #15 in WSG , with an average rating of 8.0, and holds a 1.7% mindshare. Additionally, 87% of GFI users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

Exinda

Read 9 Exinda reviews

1,489 Views
1,400 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

Symantec Proxy

Read 22 Symantec Proxy reviews

2,783 Views
2,477 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Exinda

Symantec Proxy

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Exinda and Symantec Proxy based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Riverbed, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Cato Networks and others in WAN Optimization.

To learn more, read our detailed WAN Optimization Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

WAN Optimization

August 2026

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Helped 913,806 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Exinda

Average Rating

8.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

WAN Optimization (5th)

Symantec Proxy

Average Rating

7.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (15th)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Enterprise Networking solutions, they serve different purposes. Exinda is designed for WAN Optimization and holds a mindshare of 6.7%, up 5.9% compared to last year.
Symantec Proxy, on the other hand, focuses on Secure Web Gateways (SWG), holds 1.7% mindshare, down 2.0% since last year.

WAN Optimization Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Exinda	6.7%
Steelhead	15.5%
Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform	14.2%
Other	63.6%

WAN Optimization

Secure Web Gateways (SWG) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Symantec Proxy	1.7%
Zscaler Internet Access	9.7%
Cisco Umbrella	9.3%
Other	79.3%

Secure Web Gateways (SWG)

Featured Reviews

Marek Jaworski

Senior Engineer, Team Lead, Network Operations at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Allows us to have better control over our network by shaping traffic more gently

There might be room for improvement in the speed and throughput of some of their devices. They're getting a bit slow on some of the bigger devices. It would be helpful if there were some sort of an ISP model. Also, while I don't think it would be possible for them to do, it would be better if they had the Citrix support and the visualization to visualize your network. Besides that, it fits its purpose as a shaper and accelerator. Some people would say things like, "Add a firewall to it," but I disagree. I think a firewall's a firewall, and Exinda's a shaper and accelerator.

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Ganesh Basappa

Network Security Consultant at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

Granular control for web traffic with enhanced content inspection, but support needs improvement

There are many use cases in terms of content inspection, such as having granular control for file type extensions when trying to download file types by default. It depends on the requirements, and based on that, we customize policies. We have deployed it in an Azure infrastructure, and we have…

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the ability to manage the traffic at the application layer. It makes things a lot easier. We're not digging for port numbers and IP addresses and different services... It makes us far more responsive in our ability to do things and speed up the process. We're a very small shop, so having something that's straightforward and easy to use is a big help."

"One of the great things for us is that the solution works, and it works whether you're looking at it or not."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to create policies where we can tailor them to the customer. It enables us to prioritize apps and users for bandwidth."

"The most valuable features are the shaper, accelerator, and the reporting... it will shape the traffic better than, for example, a Cisco, because it's more gentle on the shaping side of things. Suppose you were selling a 20-meg link. Because you can shape to the nth degree of traffic, the 20-meg link feels like about a 30 to 40-meg link."

"Getting Exinda was a life saver for our voice traffic"

"Compared to some of the stuff that I've used a decade ago, the Exinda solution is night and day."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to provide very granular classes of service. That's important because it allows us to prioritize certain traffic types over others, to a very granular level."

"You can use Exinda as a network orchestrator so you can be sure that the throughput is managed well and everything gets what it needs."

More Exinda pros

"We are using Symantec Proxy for outbound traffic URL filtering, and antivirus scanning of whatever package is going through the proxy system."

"Symantec Proxy’s technical support is very good."

"We can address and rectify issues promptly, resulting in consistently positive outcomes."

"It enables us to manage bandwidth for users based on their privilege levels. For example, if a user wants to use a certain application or resource, we can provide access based on their privileges."

"The tool's most valuable features are content-to-content filtration and SCCM protection."

"The security features provided by Symantec Proxy, such as granular controls for web traffic and caching, set it apart from other secure web gateways."

"What I found most valuable in Symantec Proxy is that it doesn't have any limitations. It also has a simple configuration, with only one window pane, unlike Zscaler, which has multiple window panes. Deploying the agent is also more straightforward in Symantec Proxy."

"The most valuable feature of Symantec Proxy is the support and autoscaling."

More Symantec Proxy pros

Cons

"There might be room for improvement in the speed and throughput of some of their devices. They're getting a bit slow on some of the bigger devices. It would be helpful if there were some sort of an ISP model."

"The stability was terrible in version 7.0 but it's been good since version 7.2."

"The areas for improvement would be around the support service that GFI provides."

"What I don't like is the fact that I haven't purchased the overall management interface. That is the interface that allows you to manage multiple Exindas. Personally, I think Exinda should provide that for free. I think that if you buy more and more Exinda boxes, you shouldn't then have to incur a charge for the overall management software. While I can manage each Exinda separately, if they provided me with the overall management platform for free that would probably encourage me to buy more appliances."

"It should improve the quality of service. It can improve their connection to the internet and your IP."

"More free training on the website for those just getting started."

"In terms of improvement, one thing that has always frustrated me about it is that when you look at real-time monitoring, you can only filter it by IP address. You can't filter it by anything else. It would be good if we could filter by VLAN."

"GFI's technical support for this solution could be better. It's hard to find information about Exinda, directly."

More Exinda cons

"Symantec Proxy needs to include content management capabilities."

"Pricing is difficult to specify as Broadcom sells platforms that include multiple products, making it hard to determine the exact cost for the proxy component. Forcepoint sold only proxies, which was easier to measure."

"The traffic filtering could improve. Our firewall traffic is limited. Additionally, it would be helpful if there was a dashboard and reporting feature."

"Prior to the Broadcom purchase, every appliance was application based, but now they have one ISG device and on top of it multiple applications are running. It has a single point of failure. If your device goes down, all of the applications would be down."

"They charge a lot of money yet don't give highly productive features."

"There are performance issues with all of the proxies. In the middle of the project, it will cause some delay."

"The initial setup can be somewhat complex, and deploying the system can take some time."

"The deployment is quite difficult."

More Symantec Proxy cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is priced well for the market, for what it needs to do."

"The pricing and licensing are pretty fair and really competitive. There are other SD-WAN solutions that are pretty costly because they build in a service where they'll manage it for you, which is really great. I don't know if Exinda has that option as well. However, we are a small shop and cost-conscious. For things like this, we are accustomed to self-managing and this solution suits us just fine. For a tool that gives you, like the graphs and reporting, it has a fair price point."

"The price of the solution is reasonable compared to others on the market."

"The price is too expensive compared with that of another solution."

"It's expensive. Clients often go to other products."

"Symantec Proxy has different expiry dates and renewal dates, which is a problem, so Broadcom should improve the licensing renewal process for the solution."

"The product is highly priced. There are no additional costs apart from the standard licenses."

"There is a different department that looks into the licensing part."

"There is a license needed to use Symantec Proxy."

"There are no licensing fees required."

More Symantec Proxy pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

16%

Computer Software Company

15%

Construction Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

20%

Outsourcing Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	1
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	4

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	12

Questions from the Community

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Earn 20 points

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Proxy?

Pricing is difficult to specify as Broadcom sells platforms that include multiple products, making it hard to determine the exact cost for the proxy component. Forcepoint sold only proxies, which w...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Symantec Proxy?

AI features could potentially improve the proxy by helping build rules more efficiently, suggesting unused rules, and enhancing preference setting. These would make the tool more effective.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Symantec Proxy?

I use Symantec Proxy for surfing the internet from internal to external networks. My endpoints do not have direct access to the internet, and if they need to access it, the proxy is used for that r...

See all answers

Comparisons

Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN Platform vs Exinda

Compared 26% of the time

Steelhead vs Exinda

Compared 22% of the time

Noction IRP vs Exinda

Compared 17% of the time

Sangfor WANO vs Exinda

Compared 16% of the time

Fortinet FortiWLC vs Exinda

Compared 3% of the time

More Exinda Competitors

Cisco Web Security Appliance vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 15% of the time

Forcepoint Secure Web Gateway vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 11% of the time

Akamai Secure Internet Access Enterprise vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 9% of the time

Fortinet FortiGate vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 8% of the time

Skyhigh Security vs Symantec Proxy

Compared 7% of the time

More Symantec Proxy Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Exinda

September 2026

Download Exinda product report

Buyer's Guide

Symantec Proxy

August 2026

Download Symantec Proxy product report

Also Known As

No data available

Blue Coat Encrypted Traffic Management, ProxySG Appliance

Overview

Exinda provides granular traffic management and application performance monitoring with policy-based traffic shaping for prioritizing critical applications.

Exinda offers a user-friendly interface for managing bandwidth, ensuring business-critical applications receive priority while controlling non-essential traffic. Real-time monitoring offers network visibility, identifies bottlenecks, and suggests policy adjustments. It supports WAN optimization, satellite link management, and bandwidth control, aiding entities from corporate offices to remote locations.

What are Exinda's key features?

Granular Traffic Management: Provides precise control over network traffic.
Application Performance Monitoring: Monitors and analyzes application performance.
Policy-Based Traffic Shaping: Prioritizes critical applications efficiently.
Real-Time Monitoring Dashboard: Offers network visibility and identifies issues.
User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies bandwidth and traffic control.

What benefits or ROI should users look for?

Efficient Resource Utilization: Ensures critical applications receive necessary bandwidth.
Improved Network Performance: Identifies and resolves network bottlenecks.
Enhanced Traffic Control: Balances and limits non-critical traffic efficiently.
Actionable Insights: Provides recommendations for policy optimization.

Exinda is implemented in industries for WAN optimization, helping manage satellite links and control bandwidth on campuses and remote locations. It aids troubleshooting by monitoring satellite services and prioritizes network traffic for customers.

GFI

Symantec Proxy offers robust web security by providing features like content caching and URL filtering. It enhances security, optimizes performance, and simplifies policy management for enterprises, serving as a dynamic tool across cloud environments.

Symantec Proxy integrates with Broadcom's FireGlass, providing enhanced compatibility and seamless functionality. Known for a stable deployment and a precise URL database, it offers comprehensive threat detection and policy creation, utilizing the Global Intelligence Network. Users deploy it for web security, malware blocking, and traffic filtering. Symantec Proxy's reputation and site categorization bolster defense against malicious sites, although SSL inspection, dashboard integration, and technical support could benefit from improvements. The platform has shifted post-Broadcom acquisition, needing streamlined solutions. Current challenges include performance with O365 and complexities around pricing and licensing.

What features define Symantec Proxy?

Content Caching: Improves performance by storing frequently accessed web content.
URL Database: Provides accurate categorization for security policies.
Policy Creation: Allows for detailed web and URL filtering rules.
Global Intelligence Network: Offers a robust threat detection system.
Autoscaling: Adjusts resource allocation to meet demand efficiently.
Threat Detection: Identifies and mitigates potential security risks.

What benefits and ROI considerations are evident?

Enhanced Performance: Boosts speed through efficient caching mechanisms.
Security: Protects against malicious attacks with intelligent filtering.
Simple Configuration: Allows for quick setup and policy management.
Integration: Seamlessly works with other Broadcom tools for broader functionality.

Enterprises leverage Symantec Proxy to secure web access and manage Internet usage across industries. Deployed across cloud providers like AWS, GCP, and Azure, it supports URL filtering, remote access, and bandwidth control by user privileges. Organizations also find value in its role within antivirus scanning, policy customization, and reporting.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

UMass Dartmouth, MLB Network, R&R Ice Cream, Savills, Manhattan School of Music, Blum Shapiro, Cincinnati Public Schools, City of Richmond, Genting Casinos, The Salvation Army, VoIP Unlimited, Frontier Silicon, Lakeshore Toltest, CTI Foods

Jefferies

Find out what your peers are saying about Riverbed, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Cato Networks and others in WAN Optimization. Updated: August 2026.

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