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Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs syslog-ng comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 2024
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiAnalyzer
Ranking in Log Management
8th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
syslog-ng
Ranking in Log Management
15th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is 2.4%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of syslog-ng is 3.1%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Log Management
 

Featured Reviews

Kiarash Heydari - PeerSpot reviewer
We can automate event-based handling solutions, is stable, and is great for heavy traffic
The solution has very heavy features. Similar to when we get an app, usually, it's less than what we want. When we send all our logs over to the analyzer, it almost crashed on the first try. We must first get our logs tuned up and then set up the Fortinet FortiAnalyzer or it will crash. This is very complicated and heavy work for such a simple task, and it's a big issue for that app. The setup of the solution can be improved because it is currently complex. The cost of the solution is high and can be improved.
RyanVargas - PeerSpot reviewer
It's a user-friendly open-source solution that can replace or augment a commercial product in some cases
I rate syslog-ng 10 out of 10. It's free and easy to use. It has built-in tools that help us index the various logs sent to it. It's a solid log product. If you're looking for a SIEM solution, syslog-ng will work as a stopgap measure at beginning of the project. It can also work as an injector for a true SIEM solution. You can send all the logs to syslog-ng and forward all the data to the SIEM solution after you've cleaned up the data and got the pertinent information. It's a good front end for a commercial SIEM solution, which becomes more expensive as you load more data into it. I would highly recommend syslog-ng for that use case. However, if you lack the expertise, you might need to go with a cloud-based SIEM instead. You need some in-house expertise or an outside consultant to manage it and set it up.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The event handling solution in the platform is very good and useful."
"It is very stable and reliable."
"The most valuable features of the solution are the reports and the playbooks."
"The program is stable and it gives me great visibility."
"Report generation is very easy"
"The IBS (Intent Based Segmentation) and application web filtering are the most valuable aspects of the solution."
"The product can scale."
"The log analysis and reporting are both quite good."
"Syslog-ng has a separate config file in addition to the core configuration."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"The ability to extract and store the logs is the most valuable feature of syslog-ng."
"For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior."
"Syslog-ng provides easy access to all my logs. It helps me show managers and other clients precisely where an incident occurred. I also like it because you can integrate syslog-ng with multiple solutions to allow real-time monitoring."
 

Cons

"They can include integration with devices, such as firewalls, endpoints, from other vendors. They can include graphic monitoring of everything in the network, not just Fortinet products. It would also be good to include customizable reports and customizable views of the reports."
"Sometimes, there is a problem with CPU consumption, where one process consumes 100%, and I need to restart FortiAnalyzer to fix this."
"They need to make the monitor better."
"Sometimes, there is a problem with CPU consumption, where one process consumes 100%, and I need to restart FortiAnalyzer to fix this."
"The solution does not function well with third-party tools"
"The solution can improve the incident response function to provide more detailed information on where the incident is originating."
"FortiAnalyzer's price could be lower."
"Fortinet has a new bug every month, which needs to be improved."
"It's hard to find people who know how to use syslog-ng. I often find problems with configurations, and solutions aren't integrated correctly with syslog-ng. For example, there might be data with extra decimals, or the collector agents are incorrectly named. It isn't a problem with the solution; it's a lack of professionals."
"There is always the potential for additional integration and protocol extensions."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"There is room for improvement in terms of observability."
"The filtering has room for improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is reasonable."
"I rate the product's price a six on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."
"The cost of the license is high."
"When you compare with other firewall vendors, FortiAnalyzer is quite competitive in pricing."
"Its price is okay for us. Fortinet products are cheaper than other solutions."
"The price is quite expensive. Fortinet products are very expensive. That is something which they should also look at, because if you compare Fortinet product to, say, Sophos for example, Fortinet is really high and that's the only thing which is a drawback for most users."
"It is expensive for small business customers. It is only available for customers with a high number of firewalls to manage or to report. If a customer has only five boxes of FortiGate, the price of FortiAnalyzer can be more than the five boxes. So, we can't easily put this solution for small business customers."
"I believe that Fortinet is a cost-effective brand, making it a competitive option in terms of pricing."
"Syslog-ng is a free open-source solution."
"Syslog-ng is open-source."
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
The reporting features, which offer customization, real-time insights, and compliance support, are particularly noteworthy aspects.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is quite an expensive tool. On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
Fortinet has a new bug every month, which needs to be improved.
What do you like most about syslog-ng?
For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for syslog-ng?
The pricing is in the middle. I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with one being expensive and ten being cheap.
What needs improvement with syslog-ng?
There is room for improvement in terms of observability. Additionally, a possible new feature could be Kafka integration.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

General Directorate of Information Technology
Tecnocom, University of Victoria, University of Exeter, Datapath
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs. syslog-ng and other solutions. Updated: December 2024.
824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.