Fortinet FortiManager Reviews

My experience with Fortinet products is primarily with Fortinet FortiManager. I have attended training on FortiSandbox and FortiWeb as well.

Fortinet solutions are used by my clients across every sector.

They are also used in the healthcare sector for financial purposes.

Fortinet FortiManager can centrally manage all FortiGates and is effective for the deployment of updates and patches.

We use centralized policy management for policy management.

It helps streamline policy creation and policy enforcement. However, I would prefer to have an online meeting so I can see who I am talking to, as you are obtaining information about my security. I am aware that there are currently many spam and social engineering attacks occurring.

I do not use Fortinet FortiManager daily, but I can speak with my security team and ask them what areas need future improvement for Fortinet FortiManager.

When I installed it, I found it somewhat difficult to set up.

I would rate their support at between eight and nine, which I consider great support.

I still have experience with ESET and Fortinet products. My other colleague has more in-depth experience with Fortinet FortiManager and uses it more daily in that particular area, as I do not use it as regularly and my other colleagues are more involved in that area.

I am not certain if my clients purchase Fortinet FortiManager through the AWS Marketplace.

I want to remain anonymous for now.

My overall rating for Fortinet FortiManager is seven.

Fortinet FortiManager is a great solution that helps you consolidate the single point of management for all Fortinet solutions. It also helps you support the change management process that is aligned with ITIL. The solution also helps you to have version control and tracking control.

The solution's most valuable feature is the consolidation and the single point of administration solution.

The graphics interface between Fortinet FortiManager and any Forti products should be standardized. Doing a configuration change directly in the UTM is not the same as doing it via FortiManager for some features.

I have been using Fortinet FortiManager for five years.

Fortinet FortiManager is a very stable solution.

I rate the solution's stability ten out of ten.

The solution's scalability is very good.

I rate the solution's scalability an eight out of ten.

I would prefer the person who helps us on the first call or interaction to have a higher engineering capacity.

Positive

The solution's initial setup wasn't done by me but by an expert. I believe the setup is not too simple because it took some implementation by an expert.

As a simplified, unified point of management, Fortinet FortiManager helps to reduce administration costs.

On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten.

I haven't implemented the solution's automation capabilities. The most automation I have done in Fortinet FortiManager is a configuration to be deployed massively to a group of UTMs, access points, or switches. I would recommend the solution to other users. It would be great to have FortiManager by your side if everything you have is from Fortinet.

As the platform tracks every change we make, it helps me with compliance and also helps me maintain all the devices at the same firmware level. It helps with compliance and auditing.

Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Our solution centralizes all the firewalls in different regions or data centers into one location. We manage policy distribution between various regions by creating policies and deploying them according to the device location where the policy is needed. 

We also distribute certificates remotely for managers. Our solution primarily works with FortiGate firewalls without integrating with third-party products.

The centralized management of policies and certificates, coupled with the capability to handle multi-site deployments effectively, provides streamlined operations. 

Centralized visibility enhances security management, offering unified management across regions such as India, Singapore, and Australia. FortiManager captures all devices and provides reports for security analysis. 

We consider the pricing reasonable as it reduces operational costs and boosts security efficiency.

The graphical user interface could use improvement as it appears complex and not user-friendly. Better integration of Fortinet ADC into FortiManager would be beneficial.

We have been working with FortiManager for more than five to ten years.

Palo Alto Panorama is difficult to configure compared to FortiManager, which is more feasible and easier to manage.

Initially, the deployment takes some time, but it is easy to accomplish. Some challenges we encountered include the NTP server, certificate management, and port openings across regions.

We initially deploy our own NTP server. If that does not work, we resort to manual timing settings.

Pricing is reasonable and does not pose challenges.

FortiManager is more user-friendly compared to Palo Alto Panorama. It is suitable for small-scale and easy management. 

I would rate the overall solution between seven out of ten. Better integration of other Fortinet products like ADC into FortiManager would be beneficial.

I use this solution to manage my VDOMs and FortiGate policies.

It's very easy to install, and it's easy to discover and communicate with your device. 

We can manage VDOM, backup and restore configurations, and FortiGate. We have ten FortiGate firewalls.

It requires a lot of resources. This is the main challenge.

I've been using this solution for more than ten years.

It's stable. I didn't have any issues with its stability or availability. It's good.

It's scalable. I'd rate it a nine out of ten in terms of scalability.

Fortinet's support is very good. Sometimes, Fortinet's support is better than Cisco's support. They are more talented. I'd rate their support a nine out of ten.

Positive

We had Panorama from Palo Alto. We switched because most of our devices are from Fortinet. FortiManager is also easy to install and set up.

It's very easy to install. This is the main reason why we are using it. It's easy to set up and manage. The only thing I am not happy with is the sizing of the RAM and hardware. The implementation took about two months because we have a big network.

It was implemented in-house. We have a team of three engineers dedicated to installation and maintenance.

If you compare Fortinet and Palo Alto, Fortinet is cheaper, but if you compare Cisco and Fortinet, sometimes Cisco is cheaper because Cisco gives us more discounts because of the size. Cisco isn't cheap, but sometimes, we get a big discount from them. 

Its licensing is monthly. I'd rate it a seven out of ten in terms of pricing.

I'd recommend having a demo of FortiManager before deciding on it. I had a demo to understand how this device will match my profile and my requirements. The demo answered all my questions. 

Overall, I'd rate Fortinet FortiManager a nine out of ten.

We use FortiManager to manage the roles and policies for all of our edge firewalls.

FortiManager enables us to set unified firewall policies from one centralized dashboard,  reducing human error. If you do not have a central dashboard, there's a chance you might set a policy on one firewall and forget to do it for another. 

The SD-WAN solution is difficult to manage on FortiManager because you need to share some configurations on the firewall side. Sometimes you lose all connectivity with the firewall, so it is challenging to apply the default configuration to the SD-WAN solution.

I have used FortiManager for around two years.

I rate FortiManager nine out of 10 for stability. 

I rate FortiManager eight out of 10 for scalability. It's easy to scale, but you may run into some issues. We have around 4,000 users at my company.

I rate Fortinet support six out of 10. The response time could be better. 

Neutral

Deploying FortiManager is easy, but you may need to reconfigure and restart the appliance during the setup if it loses the connection. This happened once, but it has been working fine since then. 

I rate FortiManager eight out of 10 for affordability. All of the features are included with the basic license. It isn't like other solutions where you need to pay for SD-WAN or additional bandwidth. 

I rate Fortinet FortiManager eight out of 10. 

Amid a surge in malware threats, including ransomware, heightened awareness about security vulnerabilities has prompted organizations to prioritize robust cybersecurity measures. Fortinet's SD-WAN solutions provide a comprehensive approach to secure and efficient wide-area networking for our customers.

The user interface, along with user-friendly planning features, makes it straightforward to configure desired settings.

Issues arise when customers experience unstable electricity or poor grounding conditions. In such cases, their CPE or other devices on-site may become unreliable, leading to occasional configuration discrepancies. To address this, site visits are necessary, and sometimes manual configuration adjustments are required. In extreme cases, device replacement may be necessary, particularly when inadequate electricity grounding poses a persistent challenge, creating specific conditions for intervention.

Presently, our customers have a limited number of remote sites, numbering in the hundreds, with none exceeding a thousand or more. Fortunately, there haven't been any issues reported with this scale of deployment.

Fortinet's support has proven to be reliable, particularly as we've been engaged with them since the project's initiation. This long-standing collaboration has facilitated effective communication, allowing us to seek advice or receive the correct configurations when encountering issues. Their assistance has been instrumental in problem-solving and troubleshooting. I would rate it eight out of ten.

Positive

Previously, we employed Cisco Catalyst switches, specifically the Catalyst 1100 series. However, during that time, the stability of these switches was not satisfactory, and there were noticeable issues. We transitioned to FortiManager because our customers expressed a preference for enhanced security features in the form of superior Customer Premises Equipment. The local certification standards in Indonesia have played a crucial role in raising awareness among our customers regarding the need for robust security measures.

The initial setup is straightforward.

The installation is very simple, thanks to its use of zero-touch provisioning. With another engineer on hand and static alerts in place, the installation process is hassle-free. Completing the setup typically takes around fifteen minutes.

While I find the pricing somewhat higher compared to other options, it remains acceptable for now. I anticipate a growing demand for SD-WAN security in the future, particularly with Fortinet gaining popularity. I hope that the prices will become more competitive in subsequent releases, as the current pricing is perceived as somewhat elevated.

Overall, I would rate it nine out of ten.

We had a customer that had about five locations and at each location, they needed a management device. We installed FortiManager at the head office and all locations report back to it. 

Setup, setting policies, and reporting were all very easy. We had no issues whatsoever getting the solution up and running. 

The ability to manage multiple devices is great. We have one set up and one pane of glass for management. The reporting features are customizable for the customer. We would normally just show them some default reports and they would customize them. So far, there are no problems customizing your reports.

I haven't had any issues with the product.

Their EDR products could be better. They need to dedicate more R&D to that area.

I've used the solution for a while. The company I work with now exclusively uses Fortinet products.

Technical support is very good.

Positive

For network monitoring, I've previously used SolarWinds. The major differences are the ease of use of Fortinet and its single pane of glass. It's also easier to get reports. SolarWinds can require a little more technical knowledge. 

The initial setup is very simple. I'd rate the process eight out of ten in terms of ease of setup. The deployment takes, on a complex install, about two days. On a simpler install, it would take less than a day.

Usually, we have one solution implementation engineer managing the deployment. 

Once we have implemented it, it goes over to our support center and they handle it under a managed service.

Fortinet has the best pricing currently on the market. They are very competitive, especially if you are a preferred partner (which we are). 

I'd advise others to use it. It's a powerful tool. It makes managing multiple Fortinet products very easy. You can tie in FortiSwitches, Fortigates, et cetera, and gain one central point of management with great reporting functionality.

I'd rate the solution an eight out of ten. It's best of breed and always on the cutting edge of security technologies. they keep abreast of upcoming trends and emerging technologies. 

We had clients that wanted to manage multiple devices such as Fortigate firewalls. The customer had an environment with multiple devices or multiple branches. Now, they can centrally manage everything with this one product.

The features are good.

The reporting functionality is centralized. You can see policies and monitor the entire infrastructure. It makes administration very easy.

I cannot comment on what needs to be improved, although there are always potential areas for improvement in every product.

The Fortinet team is always very responsive and resolves issues quickly. For example, sometimes there may be a communication issue. However, other items may be the culprit, such as network connectivity. It depends on the customer's network. 

I've used the solution for two years.

It is a stable solution. 

The solution is scalable. The solution can be scalable or maybe not scalable enough in some use cases. If you are working with a private or public cloud, it is very scalable. If you go for a hardware-based client, you may need to upgrade the hardware to scale. 

Technical support is very good. They could always be better. Sometimes certain issues take more time, especially in terms of escalation. 

Positive

The installation is very easy. Documentation is very easy to find on the partner portal.

Configuration can be a big task. It depends on the scope of work. However, a fresh install might take about one hour. 

One person can easily deploy the product. That said, it depends on the environment. For example, if some devices are located in another location, another person may need to be there. You might need some credentials for that location as well.

There is some maintenance for proper monitoring and updating to the latest version of firmware. If you get any error messages or alerts, you'll have to action them. One person can handle maintenance tasks. 

The solution is competitive. It's neither cheap nor expensive. The solution can be paid annually. If you use a cloud, you will have to pay for subscription charges. 

I work as a reseller.

I'd advise the solution to users that have a big organization and if they are using Fortigate Firewalls, It helps centralize anything.

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. They have so many features. It's very feature-rich. From one central location, you can monitor everything.