Fortinet FortiGate Reviews

I have deployed several of the following models for customers: 200D, 60E, 60D. This review focuses on the FortiGate 200D.

The first implementation I performed of a FortiGate 200D was to replace a Juniper SSG-140 in a main corporate office.  This implementation provided improved network administration and network performance.

We also received more timely security updates, and it became easier to connect all of the other offices together (via an IPsec VPN mesh).

As additional FortiOS releases have come out, we have obtained more flexibility in device identification and WAN load-balancing, among other things.

• The CLI is robust and powerful, enabling rapid, consistent changes via SSH. 
  
  The device identification is very flexible, facilitating the creation of rules to regulate all sorts of devices that might spring up on a network, especially via WiFi.
• The IPsec tunnels are very easily created, and quite interoperable with devices from other vendors.
• WAN load-balancing has improved, but needs some refinement.
  
  You can set up a different DDNS config for each WAN link.
  
  It is great to be able largely use the same OS features across the family of devices.

WAN load-balancing could be a lot better at detecting when a link is poor or inconsistent, and not just flat out dead. There are lots of options for routing traffic over a specific path when you have WAN load-balancing enabled, but they are not as clear and consistent as they could be, and most can only be set at the CLI.

Some configuration elements cannot be easily altered once created.  For instance, there is no way to rename an interface (say, for a VPN tunnel), unless you create an entirely new one and perform a little gymnastics to switch from one to the other. Or, you export the config, rename the elements in question, then re-import the entire config.

Creating a meshed VPN connection (Office A with two WAN links connecting to Office B with two WAN links) requires a massive bundle of four IPsec interfaces, with two policies. It would be nice to have a cleaner, simpler config for that functionality, something not very uncommon today.

I have found that if you have a console cable in the device when you reboot it for a disk check, it will boot to the device firmware. This will not happen for a regular reboot.

If you have more than a very basic environment, you quickly have to escalate past the first level of support. The initial level is so-so.  The next level up has been stellar for me, and quick to figure out issues and resolve them.

I've only experienced stability issues a few times.  One was with the v5.4.0 and .1 releases. Also, there was an issue during the v5.2.x series where there was an SSD issue that was fixed with later firmware. Overall, the devices have been very stable.

No. Scalability is good, and performance increases are great as you move to higher products.

Customer support is okay. They are fairly responsive for level three and higher (one and two) issues, but if your issue is a little complex, you will want to ask them to escalate to a second level tech. They don't always read all the info you provide in the first pass, but overall, they are helpful.

I previously favored NetScreen/Juniper SSG solutions, but Juniper stopped supporting the SSG line, and FortiGate provides more value and performance for the dollar.

I've also tested the Sophos solutions, but found them not compelling enough to switch from the FortiGate devices.

The devices are very easy to setup, even if you need to configure VPNs. You could have an HA config up and running within 60-90 minutes, with the latest firmware installed, and a couple of policies and tunnels.

If you do not regularly work with enterprise-class firewalls, you might need to add an hour to the above scenario, but the provided wizards make it pretty easy to address the basic functions.

In-house deployment all the time.

In almost every case, I've experienced (or had customers experience) an ROI within 12 months, based on better performance for the same price or increased functionality for the same (or less) price.

Licensing and setup costs are generally pretty clear with Fortinet. If you go with centralized management or their Log Analyzer tool, these carry some additional pricing that you need to look at.

Check out the price matrix, and go with a value-added reseller that understands how to help you size out the equipment. Remember to always look at the performance with the assumption that you will have many of the unified threat management (UTM) features on, not off.

Yes, I tested and evaluated solutions from pfSense, Sophos, and Palo Alto.

I highly recommend, and often try to deploy Fortinet solutions for my office network and for my customers. They run for a long time, they are supported for many OS updates, and they are pretty solid.

Don't upgrade the OS right away when it is released, if a major new version has come out.  v5.0 was problematic early, but v5.2 was great. v5.4 was a problem child, but v5.6 had only a minor issue. v6.0 was surprisingly smooth and had only a minor issue. I could have avoided most of these problems if I waited an additional month or so before updating, but I updated because I need to advise customers on what they should be doing.

I've had to interact with support a lot, and overall they've been good (with the caveat mentioned earlier).

Our company's technical team handles the reselling part of the tool. I haven't heard of any problems related to the product.

My company's clients use the solution. The tool is not majorly used to monitor the network traffic or intrusion, so it is purely for protecting the network.

The tool is expensive for small businesses, making it an area where the tool can improve the product by making it available at a cheaper rate.

I have experience with Fortinet FortiGate IPS. My company operates as a reseller. Sometimes, we purchase products to help our company's clients who need to renew the licenses of certain solutions.

My company never had any complaints about the tool in terms of performance or stability.

My company's clients are usually small businesses, so they don't spend too much time on security and protection, meaning they use the tool to meet their bare minimum needs.

Though I have never contacted the solution's technical support, I feel that the tool offers good support since I have never heard any complaints about the product's technical team from my company's team members.

I rate the technical support an eight out of ten.

Positive

I think that my company has been using Fortinet FortiGate IPS for at least four to five years. My company has not been using the rest of the products in the market, so it is not possible for me to compare Fortinet FortiGate IPS with other solutions. So far, my company has been happy with Fortinet FortiGate IPS.

The product's initial setup phase was pretty easy because my company is familiar with the product.

The solution is deployed on an on-premises model.

The solution can be deployed in an hour.

The tool is a bit pricey for small businesses, but it is still bearable in terms of cost.

Fortinet FortiGate IPS is used alone, so there is no need for any integrations.

The tool is not majorly used to monitor traffic or intrusions, so it doesn't provide much visibility in such areas. I am not sure whether Fortinet FortiGate IPS can be used easily for monitoring, considering that our company has many firewall tools over different networks. I am not sure whether it is possible to use the tool to log in or sign in individually.

I rate the overall tool an eight out of ten.

We use FortiGate Next Generation Firewall mainly for network security.

The solution's application control is very powerful. Another valuable feature is the integration between the firewall and the switches we have. The FortiSwitch extended security fabric is one of the things that we like about the solution.

The solution's stability should be improved because it is extremely unstable.

I have been working with FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) for eight years.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is a very scalable solution. Approximately 32 customers are working with the solution.

The solution's technical support team needs more improvement. The technical support team has a slow response and needs more experienced support agents to interact with the customers.

The solution's initial setup is easy and straightforward.

Since it's a security solution, it needs considerable time to deploy. We need to analyze the network, the customer requirements, and the policies we need to add, which can take a couple of days.

For any security solution, there is no straightforward deployment process. It depends on the survey on the customer side and what we are doing for the customer. One security engineer is required for the deployment and maintenance of the solution.

Since FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is a slightly expensive solution, the use case determines the ROI. However, since it's quite expensive for general usage, it has a lower ROI.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is an expensive solution with a yearly subscription. There are no extra costs in addition to the standard licensing fees.

The solution has a lot of features that we like. We don't need additional features because they compromise the solution's stability when they add more features. As a security gateway, we need to be much more stable than adding more features.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall comes in two versions, namely, the hardware version and the cloud version. For the on-premises version, hardware is to be implemented on-site; for the cloud, it's a cloud security solution. So it depends on which version your customer is using. The licensing is very different for the on-prem and the cloud solution.

When it comes to complex solutions, I highly recommend FortiGate Next Generation Firewall.

Customers looking for SD-WAN and good application control should go for FortiGate Next Generation Firewall. Customers looking for high stability should avoid the solution.

Overall, I rate FortiGate Next Generation Firewall an eight out of ten.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall can be described as the most complete solution.

When considering the policy of the vendors, they do not offer much of a discount policy, making the licensing model an area that needs improvement.

I have experience with FortiGate Next Generation Firewall for many years. My company is a reseller of the solution.

It is a stable product.

I recommend FortiGate Next Generation Firewall for small, medium, and enterprise-sized companies.

It is a scalable solution since Fortinet offers many other products.

My customers are satisfied with the technical support provided by Fortinet.

In my opinion, the pricing of the product is reasonable.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is a good product.

I rate the overall product between eight to ten out of ten.

The solution is being used as a firewall. 

The GUI configuration is its most valuable feature. 

The licensing model and pricing need improvement.

I have been using FortiGate Next Generation Firewall for the last four years. 

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is a stable solution. I rate the stability a nine out of ten.

It is a scalable solution. Fifty users are using the solution. I rate the scalability a ten out of ten.

The technical support team is good, but we haven't reached out to them on our own. 

FortiGate's initial setup is easy. The solution's deployment depends on the projects and the way clients use it. It takes approximately five days to deploy the solution. I rate the setup an eight out of ten.

It is an expensive solution.

I rate the overall solution a nine out of ten.

We use the solution as an internal gateway to protect some of our data center solutions.

The solution has the best group filtering features.

The solution's technical support could be better. Also, its hardware features need improvement as well.

We have been using the solution for five years.

It is a stable solution.

The solution is scalable. We have medium and small businesses as our clients.

The solution's technical support team's response could be faster.

The solution's initial setup process is easy. A new environment takes two to three days, while an existing one takes more time to implement. Also, it requires ten executives to deploy it and three to six executives to maintain it.

The solution's price is average. We have its yearly license. There are additional costs for support and license renewal.

It is a good solution. I rate it a seven out of ten.

We use the solution to protect our services published on the internet.

The solution is more reliable and easy to manage than Cisco Firewall Solutions. It provides a flexible interface for configuration.

The solution's load balancing feature could be easy to configure in terms of interface.

We have been using the solution for 15 years.

The solution is stable compared to other vendors.

The solution is scalable for our medium enterprise.

The solution is easy to access and configure in terms of GUI.

The reseller for the solution helped us implement it.

I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

The primary use case is branch network security.

The solution has helped our organization to secure a network and connect remote sites. 

The most valuable feature is the technical support by FortiGate.

There is an area of improvement in the pricing model and vulnerability management. 

In future releases, I would like to see partnering with cloud suppliers. 

I have been using this solution for less than a year. 

I would rate the stability a seven out of ten. 

I would rate the scalability of this solution a seven out of ten. 

Customer service and support are good. 

Positive

The initial setup was complex. 

I have not seen an ROI yet. We do have plans to increase the usage in near future.

I would suggest not to look for a single solution for all your security requirements and compare the pricing. 

Overall, I would rate the solution a seven out of ten.