AlgoSec Reviews

My primary use case to use this solution was to get visibility into my multi-vendor network environment into a single pane of glass making it easy to have compliance and audits done seamlessly. 

Also, it is letting me know if any changes are required over different network devices if I bring a certain new application in the environment (discovering its dependencies) and then push the changes from the single console. Also, it needed to verify if there are any unnecessary rules with the attribute "any" over all the firewalls that the solution was able to cover.

It helped me in managing the multi-vendor network devices with also mapping the required network level prerequisites for my application to be able to handle their network needs in an automated and seamless manner. It also removed the need for multiple approvals with Fireflow. 

It also made compliance and audits very easy for my organization. It was able to give visibility of the changes on the firewall with a who-when-what scenario. It helped me to document all the risks related to any change request that I made.

The way the solution helps in managing, reporting and seamless security policy change automation for the connectivity between the network devices and the applications is great. 

The visibility provided by the single pane of glass for managing multi-vendor firewalls is excellent and then pinpointing network connectivity issues is certainly on a very good level. 

The majority of the value comes with automating of the entire security - i.e., the policy change process from design and submission to proactive risk analysis, implementation and auditing.

They need to improve the web interface to be a little more interactive and friendly. It's still not bad, yet it could improve. 

They could improve AlgoSec academy, as there are some bugs when it comes to advancing resources. When trying to do the certification, I got stuck in one module, which prevented me from completing the certification. 

The only downside of AlgoSec is that it seems to need some updates as it relates to UX and potentially some more outlined integrations. Specifically with cloud platforms and tools.

I have been using the solution from the last six months and have been quite happy with it.

This was my first solution and I have been continuing with this solution only for future needs until it satisfies all of my use cases.

I evaluated other options as well, however, where their capability ended, i.e. firewall analyzing capability, AlgoSec provides much better capabilities.

The most common use cases include:

• Performing audits on an annual basis with the help of information security
• Remediating risky rules by trusting them or remediating them at the firewall level
• Unused rules and disabled rules are addressed on a regular basis
• All firewall changes are monitored through AlgoSec with the help of change notifications
• Improving compliance and risk management and connections revolving around the network Layer 3
• Locating objects and addressing any issues on a much quicker basis

We were able to improve the security ratings of our firewalls. It helped us with annual audits, change notifications, rule assessments, and visibility in general.

It improved compliance and risk management and connections revolving around the network Layer 3.

We can get all the firewall-related data with a single click and effectively work on synchronizing with all the firewall gateways including the management server.

It helps us with firewall audits on an annual basis with the help of information security.

We remediate risky rules by trusting them or remediating them at the firewall level.

We address the unused rules and disabled rules on a regular basis.

All firewall changes are monitored through AlgoSec with the help of change notifications.

It improved compliance and risk management and connections revolving around the network Layer 3.

It helps locate objects and address any issues on a much quicker basis.

RFEs are kept open for too long. We had requested a couple of features, including the ability to trust implicit rules, and IPT doesn't run on IPSEC-enabled firewalls (Cisco to be specific). We had reported these issues for over four years now and still we do not see any resolution.

There is no visibility for the changes made to the NAT rule policies.

Adding objects or object groups on the firewall also do not generate a change notification.

There is no visibility for changes made to the secondary standby firewall if the firewalls are added as a cluster.

I've used the solution for more than five years.

We did not previously use a different solution.

We did not evaluate other options. 

I use AlgoSec as a firewall analyzer. It helps review the changes made on the firewalls and determine who executed those changes. The tool automates predefined reports about non-used network objects, which is technically challenging for manual review.

By implementing AlgoSec, we've reduced the time and effort it takes to review firewall changes and audit logs. Before AlgoSec, we used to review each firewall manually, but now, the tool automates this process which saves us time.

The most valuable feature of AlgoSec is its ability to generate comprehensive reports. As a firewall analyzer, it's very useful for reviewing and collecting information at a single point. The tool also helps generate reports automatically, which is beneficial for us.

The graphical user interface in AlgoSec needs improvement. Sometimes it gets stuck, requiring multiple refreshes. Additionally, system integration with more products can be enhanced, like integrating the Blue Coat web filtering products.

I have been using AlgoSec since 2020.

The product is stable and reliable for our needs.

While we haven't tested it extensively, it has the capability to scale. We currently use it to manage eleven firewalls and nine routers. It has the ability to expand by adding more CPUs and memory.

Technical support is decent, although it can take time for them to handle more complex cases. The first level of support may lack the knowledge to solve advanced issues swiftly.

Positive

Before using AlgoSec, we manually reviewed and audited changes and reports.

The initial setup was easy for adding firewalls, despite some challenges when deploying the second module of AlgoSec.

The implementation was conducted by working with the vendor through remote sessions.

The return on investment is evident in the reduced time and effort for reviewing and auditing firewall changes.

I am not involved with pricing details since I mainly handle the technical aspects. However, the value from reduced time and effort justifies its cost.

I would recommend AlgoSec for enterprise environments that make frequent changes. Smaller environments with infrequent changes may not benefit as much.

We resell AlgoSec, and I provide professional service for AlgoSec. Our customers get good value from it. Our clients are usually large businesses, between 25,000 to 40,000 employees.

The primary use cases are for:

• the optimization of firewalls,
• getting reports, 
• compliance for ISO 27001 and PCI DSS.

It helps us to see what changes users make on a firewall by the users. AlgoSec identifies in real-time any changes on the firewalls. It also optimizes the firewall policies, rules, and objects. 

There is a compliance that is required where we need to provide a report for the optimization of firewalls that is part of PCI DSS and ISO 27001. So now many organizations use AlgoSec to monitor and optimize their firewalls. 

In addition to compliance, they also use AlgoSec to ensure that their environment is well-secured. They can see what changes are being made to the firewalls and by who, which is part of the compliance. They use AlgoSec to achieve that and also to track real-time changes. 

One of the problems that I've used AlgoSec to solve is to identify what's blocking a particular rule, object, or network traffic with the AlgoSec network simulator. It has a traffic simulator and a query simulator, where you can input the destination, the source, and the service, and then you can do a simulation of that traffic and see what firewall, object, or rule is blocking that traffic from going through. 

AlgoSec is easy to use and very easy to implement. Within three hours after downloading AlgoSec, you can start to see value immediately. Within that same time, you can generate reports almost immediately. 

Another valuable feature is the way it produces reports. It checks to see if you pass a particular policy. It also shows you recommendations to fix it. That's a very good feature. 

I like the traffic simulation too and queries. I'm not sure other solutions provide that. You can also use it to get a network topology and network map of your environment and see what's happening. 

These are some of the good features that make AlgoSec stand out.

AlgoSec support is exceptionally good. They have very good support. I use several solutions because I'm a security engineer. I implement security solutions for my customers and AlgoSec stands out in support. You can always rely on their support.

The customization and fine-tuning of the policies could use improvement. There's a place where you can modify the network maps and network. It is not so straightforward unless you have experience with it. It would make it more flexible and everyone can use it effectively if they improve that.

I have been using AlgoSec since 2018.

They have updates at least twice a year, so, it is very stable. I'd rate the stability a nine out of ten.

I have a new client that is using it on the cloud, and it's as effective as the on-prem version. The scalability is very good. I would rate it eight out of ten.

The support is very responsive and knowledgeable. You can rely on support for speed and to have the ability to resolve a problem. 

Positive

The initial setup is very straightforward.

After downloading the software it takes around one hour or so. It is fast.

There are usually updates and fixes. Support is always available to assist whenever there's a need for it.

I think the pricing is fair because when I speak to our partner manager, we can always get reasonable discounts but it can be better. Many people do not want to spend a lot of money on security. If the price was a little lower it would make it more affordable for smaller businesses.

I would always recommend AlgoSec to other users. 

I would rate AlgoSec overall an eight out of ten. 

AlgoSec is an exceptionally good solution. I didn't give it a perfect ten because the UI of the platform could be improved and the pricing could be lower. That would make it more interesting. Also, the modification or fine-tuning of policies could be easier. 

AlgoSec was used as a firewall setting, but we had issues with change management, approvals, and the workflow to deploy firewall rules. The tool covers the technology and intelligence, but we had a lot of manual work to convince sponsors and correlated areas that used AlgoSec or needed to open a firewall rule.

AlgoSec has a feature that provides intelligence on which rules are correct. It was crucial in helping us understand which rules were important and which ones could be turned off or removed, simplifying the structure. It helps prioritize actions and performance needs. The performance boost we had was huge. We were considering buying new firewall structures, but with AlgoSec, we just organized the rules and avoided spending more money on the environment. 

We faced internal challenges with our services and the process. If we had a closer approach from AlgoSec with instructions on how to build or change the management process, how to improve our environment, it would have been better. The big problem was more about the approval and request roles, and bureaucratic side of things.

I left the company a couple of years ago. I bought AlgoSec in 2022, and after a few months, I left the company and joined a different one that already had AlgoSec infrastructure in place.

The technical support was really technical and had a more technological view of the problem. Here in Brazil, we have a lot of discussions, conversations, and meetings, so the technology didn't resolve the problem we had like that. 

Positive

I wouldn't recommend AlgoSec for environments with fewer than 500 rules or without multiple offices, as the solution is quite complex to deploy and engage teams. It's more suitable for larger enterprises with complex environments. If you have a complex environment, AlgoSec is a good choice, but for smaller or medium-sized companies with fewer firewalls, it's easier to manage with the console provided by the vendor. If your site has complexities and you deal with multiple firewall vendors, AlgoSec simplifies management. However, if you only have one vendor, it's better to avoid adding more consoles. For environments with multiple vendors and many rules, AlgoSec or any firewall management tool would help.

Overall, I would rate AlgoSec ten out of ten, considering the complexities of the companies I've worked with. The tool needs to be managed by expert teams who understand both the technology and the change process.

Algosec is a cybersecurity tool that benefits the organization with a smooth operation of the network infrastructure and by managing the firewall. 

It is user-friendly and easy to implement and manage. It can be installed on-premises as well as on the cloud. It visualizes the complex networks and creates a dynamic network topology map. 

Using Firewall Analyzer, security and operations teams can optimize the configuration of firewalls, routers, web proxies, and related network infrastructure to ensure security and compliance.

Algosec helps with device onboarding and offboarding, managing access, and overseeing information security.

Algosec helps customers across the globe optimize their firewall policies and bring the best performance.

AlgoSec supports a wide range of devices and is constantly working to include support for many other vendor devices.

The solution checks on vulnerability scans often and reports.

Auto policy orchestration has helped our organization.

We can get all the firewall-related data with a single click. There is effective work on synchronizing with all the firewall gateways, including the management server.

The most valuable aspects of the solution include:

• Hybrid network security topology. A centralized dashboard provides a bird's eye view of the company's network infrastructure, like firewalls, routers, switches, and cloud.
• Security Policy Management. Automates the entire security policy management process.
• Compliance. Conducts complaints checks.
• Audit capabilities. Generates comprehensive reports for auditing.
• Cloud security management. Manages security policies in both on-prem and cloud environments.
• Network segmentation. You can design and implement the network segmentation that controls security breaches.

The solution needs improvements in the following areas:

• Algosec does not support vendors like Sophos, SonicWall, Forecepoint, and so on.
• Traffic simulation and fire flow need to be improved.
• The solution has insufficient documentation.
• They need to improve tech support in India.
• Deleting objects from each firewall is tedious, and it has to be done manually.
• An effective topology diagram can be provided.
• It is a challenge to combine different security vendors. 
• To upgrade, we have to upload package files which can be downloaded from the Algosec website, however, downloading takes time.

I've used the solution for two years.

We did not previously use a different solution.

We did not evaluate other options. 

AlgoSec enables organizations to have end-to-end visibility and control over application connectivity across complex hybrid IT environments spanning data centers, cloud, containers, and legacy systems. This allows organizations to automate analysis of how applications interconnect and depend on each other as well as the underlying infrastructure. 

When new applications are deployed, or existing ones are migrated, AlgoSec can rapidly determine the minimal policy changes required to maintain security and compliance.

While AlgoSec already provides substantial capabilities around managing security policies and compliance, there is an opportunity to further enhance its intelligence to take a more proactive security posture. Specifically, AlgoSec could look to incorporate advanced machine learning techniques to analyze network traffic, application logs, and user behavior to detect anomalies and identify emerging threats. 

Going beyond just mapping the authorized connectivity, AlgoSec could leverage unsupervised ML clustering algorithms and deep learning models to find high-risk anomalies and subtle attacks.

It allows organizations to identify risks, reduce attack surfaces, and streamline policy changes required to deploy or migrate applications safely and quickly. 

With ever-changing infrastructure and threats, keeping security policies optimized is extremely challenging. AlgoSec's continuous monitoring capabilities allow organizations to maintain proper controls and compliance coverage as the application landscape evolves. No longer are security changes made blindly. 

AlgoSec gives organizations the visibility and intelligence needed to make application connectivity changes confidently while managing risk and compliance. Having all these capabilities seamlessly integrated into one platform makes AlgoSec a powerful tool for digital transformation initiatives involving constant application change.

While AlgoSec provides comprehensive visibility and management of security policies across hybrid environments, there is an opportunity to further expand its intelligence capabilities. 

Specifically, AlgoSec could look to incorporate more machine learning to analyze network traffic patterns and application behavior to detect anomalies indicative of emerging threats and policy violations. Going beyond just mapping connections, it can automatically flag high-risk flows and unusual events for further investigation.

I've been using the solution for more than a year.

We've used Cisco Tetration in the past.

The price is not the lowest, however, it is reasonable and offers good ROI.

We also evaluated Tufin.

We hope, in the future, to have more flexible pricing plans.

Our team operates within the support division, assisting customers who primarily utilize AlgoSec through on-premises deployments. They rely on this solution to analyze and manage firewall policies, enhance their security measures, and receive recommendations for optimizing their firewalls.

Specifically, we utilize the AlgoSec Firewall Analyzer component of the solution. Recently, we conducted a proof of concept (POC) of AppViz for a customer who utilizes FireFlow. This POC was successful, and it is likely that some of our other customers may express interest in implementing AppViz within the coming year.

Implementing firewall rules within our organization has been significantly expedited thanks to AlgoSec. 

This product plays a crucial role in preparing us for audits and ensuring firewall compliance. With its assistance, we are able to assess security and firewall rating points, offering valuable advice to our customers regarding the optimization of their firewall and security rules.

One of the key benefits of AlgoSec is its ability to simplify the tasks of our security engineers. By providing essential guidance to administrators responsible for managing firewalls, streamlines their responsibilities and enhances their efficiency in carrying out their duties.

The Firewall Analyzer component of the solution offers remarkable compatibility and proves to be highly valuable and easily manageable.

Our customers have found the Intelligent Policy Tuner to be incredibly helpful, and during the proof of concept (POC), it emerged as a significant selling point for our clients. They expressed great interest in utilizing this feature.

Setting the log options to "extensive" provides us with excellent visibility into our network security policies. This extensive logging enables us to generate detailed reports and receive change notifications, thereby enhancing our overall visibility.

AlgoSec plays a crucial role in providing comprehensive visibility into the risks associated with firewall change requests. This feature proves especially important when presenting security reports to upper management.

The solution's automation capabilities significantly contribute to reducing human error and misconfigurations. If the tool detects a drop in security and firewall policy points, it promptly notifies administrators via email about potential misconfigurations. This proactive approach allows us to promptly address and rectify any issues, ensuring that the security and policy points are restored.

Introducing greater flexibility in editing alerts would be a highly appreciated improvement.

The solution currently faces visibility and compatibility challenges when it comes to Palo Alto firewalls, making it difficult to generate reports. Since the reports heavily rely on logging, the product encounters obstacles with Palo Alto's logging system. Enhancing compatibility with Palo Alto firewall reports is crucial for seamless reporting.

A notable customer demand is the implementation of a user-based policy within AlgoSec. This feature would enable the solution to provide advice on user policy rules while also ensuring compatibility with identity awareness functionalities. Meeting this customer requirement would be highly beneficial.

We primarily use the AlgoSec solution to monitor and interpret the risk status in our firewalls. Seeing the troublesome situations experienced in our firewalls from the same point of view sometimes does not help to solve the problem. However, thanks to AlgoSec, it is of great benefit to observe these risks from a different perspective and to see that they improve in the process. Being able to see and follow these changes makes the work of system administrators and risk analysts much easier.

It is of great benefit to observe the firewall risks from a different perspective and to see that they are improving in the process. When the effects of tightening and improvements are checked regularly, we can better monitor the current risk situation. It is a difficult process to examine the security risks in detail in each of our products and in our firewalls which may be different brands and models. AlgoSec enables us to manage this process in a central way.

AlgoSec can monitor the current status of firewalls. Other vendors mostly focus on working with daily tasks, however, AlgoSec is able to follow the live status and current issues or changes with the help of push technology. It can be easily integrated with different firewall devices (even different brands and models). In this way, it becomes very easy to monitor different risks from a single interface. Thanks to the web-based management screen, it can be easily managed through any end-user operating system.

At the integration point, a manual page could be added to the dashboard where directions about the products are explained in detail. In this way, if the system administrator wants to integrate a new product, they will be able to integrate this product by following these directions, even if they do not have deep knowledge of the product in question. Integrating different products should not require us to have to wait for coordinated work with a product specialist.

I've used the solution for almost four years.

In terms of stability, we have no complaints so far. We didn't face any problems.

This solution works well in mid-size companies. 

Customer service is very good and educated. However, the process to open a ticket sometimes could be harder than necessary since we need to collect some logs from the dashboard and upload them to the related ticket before submitting it.

Positive

I've used the Skybox Security solution as well.

The product offers an almost straightforward setup. It is easy to install and integrate.

I installed the product by myself.

We cannot calculate ROI based on vulnerability or data leak issues.

The cost and licensing are reasonable.

I did not evaluate other options.

As an administrator, I ensure the platform works as well as possible. We are responsible for everything on the platform, such as onboarding and offboarding devices and managing the information on there, access, etc. AlgoSec has a good security component, but we primarily use it as a network and firewall appliance. It communicates with firewall and router vendors and integrates well with major vendors, such as Palo Alto, Check Point, and Cisco. However, it has some limitations with other vendors. It depends on the brand, but all the vendors we use work well with AlgoSec. 

We use AlgoSec Firewall Analyzer, FireFlow, and AppViz. All of our AlgoSec devices are on-prem. We average about 15 users daily, at least. We divide AlgoSec users into requesters and actual users. Requesters have limited access to only FireFlow, where they can make a request. We have about 100 requesters and 20 direct users from the network, security, and other teams. 

AlgoSec made troubleshooting much more manageable. For example, we can quickly determine the cause of routing issues and do traffic simulations to discover if something is open. It helps us perform analysis faster. That's one of the significant advantages. 

AlgoSec simplifies the work of security engineers in two ways. First, it simplifies approvals. Every time a flow is requested, it goes to security for approval. The security team assesses the risk of each request and makes a decision based on that. Second, it made audits easier because analyzing firewalls and permitted traffic is effortless. All these little aspects don't seem like much, but they add up. We have lots of audits. The risk metrics help us to identify specific risks as long as we can define solid risk metrics. If that doesn't work, you can also use the API to gather much of that information.

FireFlow provides multiple ways to create tickets involving numerous teams. Our existing ticketing solutions are not as easily configurable. They have some more restrictions. AlgoSec is a significant improvement. It has considerably reduced the time we spend implementing firewall rules. For example, we had previously implemented some rules manually and others via FireFlow. We started to use FireFlow for all of them. Because even if the network review on FireFlow isn't as accurate, it's still a net reduction compared to the time it would take to implement everything manually. It's worth it to spend a little more time analyzing everything. We can select the firewall and let FireFlow take care of everything. It's not comparable because we can press a few buttons, and everything is done.

AlgoSec reduced human error and misconfigurations, especially in terms of firewall implementation. AlgoSec doesn't make many mistakes. Implementation errors are rare. For example, let's say that we are trying to analyze something. Creating things by hand requires us to look at a file with 25 lines. It's easy to forget something, but AlgoSec doesn't forget anything. 

AlgoSec provides us with all the information, and we have to check to see if it's working correctly. Of course, it's not perfect. Sometimes there's some routing missing. When it doesn't implement something, AlgoSec usually informs people it's not going to. 

My company is a massive enterprise with several DCs globally and various types of environments. In addition to those DCs, they also have several subsidiaries, so it's a giant network. We work on incorporating all these environments into a single pane of glass using AlgoSec. Previously, every DC had its own AlgoSec, but we're currently merging them all into a single global AlgoSec because it's best to have everything in one place managed by the same people. It will enable us to control and standardize everything. It's also better in terms of visibility. 

We have integrated AlgoSec with Cisco ACI, but I wouldn't say it adds much. ACI is replacing our previous architecture, which was also Cisco. It's mostly the same. The way AlgoSec collects information hasn't changed much. ACI is good at organization, but it doesn't add much to AlgoSec's security functions. AlgoSec comes in handy during cloud migration. 

When migrating to the cloud, we typically extract information from old servers and provide that to the migration technicians so they know what they need to open for the new server. If the migration goes well, we aren't usually too involved with it. Afterward, if they find issues, we can help detect them and understand why something is missing.

FireFlow is great. In a company that gets a large volume of requests to open firewall rules, it's helpful to have one place that summarizes the requests, enabling you to clearly understand why they need to be implemented and also implement them. Firewall Analyzer can help you identify missing routing or check information on the firewall without the need to log into a firewall or router to check the routing. We have all that access in three clicks.

AlgoSec provides excellent visibility. We can easily see our devices, how they're connected, and what information is on them. AlgoSec allows you to define your own risk metrics based on a set of rules. It gives you a report based on that, so it's highly customizable. 

A few features could be more customizable. For example, one of our issues is related to the comments. When using FireFlow and ActiveChange, the comments by AlgoSec can be changed, but they always have the FireFlow number first. That's mandatory. It can be a bit bothersome because that's sometimes not exactly what we want. The templates we use have some scripts running in the background that aren't easy to change or remake. 

These options could be improved. Some features take time to learn and understand. It would be hard to figure out without AlgoSec support. Every bug or every problem we encounter is challenging to understand and fix without them. We try to solve our own issues, but sometimes we can't, and we need AlgoSec support. 

I've been using AlgoSec for a year and a half.

I think the solution is pretty stable. There has rarely been an instance when we needed to reboot to fix something. It has happened, but it's uncommon. Overall, I would say it's highly stable.

The scalability is excellent. We are changing the architecture, including the remote agent. It has been easy to scale like this. 

I rate AlgoSec support a six out of ten. Our experience has been inconsistent. Sometimes, support is fast and clean; other times, not so much. Occasionally, they take a while to respond or provide an inadequate workaround instead of a solution. It also depends on the support we purchase because AlgoSec has different levels. The premium levels have 24-hour support. 

Neutral

I wasn't involved in the initial setup, but we had a migration in which we changed the server where it was hosted and changed the architecture a bit. It was pretty simple. We had the support of AlgoSec engineers, so it went smoothly and quickly. We have two platform administrators and a third person who is the product owner. He helps us a lot, especially with the bureaucracy and everything, but we can primarily manage the solution well with two people. 

We've seen a return on investment. We continue to use AlgoSec a bit more each day. We're not investing more in AlgoSec monetarily, but we're investing time into learning its features so we can use it to the fullest extent.

It comes down to the amount of work AlgoSec reduces. The volume of flow implemented monthly would be challenging to handle manually. It would take much longer to analyze and execute. Not counting security, one guy using FireFlow is enough to implement requests these days. One member of the network team and one person from security can implement all the requests within our SLAs. I'm unsure how many people we would need to do that manually. It would probably take five times as many people to do the same work. That's not even counting all the security and troubleshooting benefits AlgoSec provides. 

I know AlgoSec can be expensive. I've heard from some of the platform users who worked at other companies that wanted to use AlgoSec, but it wasn't within their budget. Large enterprises can use it if they have a huge network with several devices. It's worth the cost if they spend a lot of time auditing and dealing with security concerns. It pays off in the long run.

You must pay for the basic AlgoSec license and the number of devices onboarded. There are licenses per firewall and network device. I believe you also must pay extra for firewalls with ActiveChange. I don't know the precise figures because I don't work with them, but I think they change. 

I rate AlgoSec a nine out of ten. It makes life easier. Without AlgoSec, you need to deal with one or two layers of extra work, doing tasks manually and logging into devices to run commands. It simplifies a lot of daily work. I've grown accustomed to the ease of use, so it'll be hard to adapt if I get a new job at a place without it. 

The solution is excellent, but you need to customize it for your own purpose. Before I joined this company, the previous administrators worked closely with AlgoSec support to build the platform to their specifications. They were the ones that customized what we needed. After that, everything is straightforward. There are a few tweaks here and there, and everything is good to go. The biggest hurdle is getting started. It's good to work with support. If not, we'll constantly be dealing with modifications, bugs, errors, and stuff that doesn't work. Getting the platform right in the beginning makes it a lot easier.