Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Fortinet FortiClient vs Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 27, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
7.8
Fortinet FortiClient boosts productivity, supports remote work, enhances security, and offers significant ROI and VPN cost savings.
Sentiment score
8.8
Quest KACE streamlines system management, boosting productivity and cost savings, with minimal training needed for quick adoption.
The return on investment is seen in the quick access to information, good inventory management, and efficient systems management.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Fortinet FortiClient's support gets mixed reviews, with satisfaction dependent on package level; 24/7 availability varies in effectiveness.
Sentiment score
8.3
Quest KACE SMA support is praised for fast, accurate responses, knowledgeable staff, and 24/7 availability through Premier Support.
They initiate the troubleshooting process quickly and resolve issues in a timely manner.
They have room to improve by deploying more support resources.
The main issue revolves around addressing bugs in the endpoint.
The customer service is very good, providing quick customer support in Spanish.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Fortinet FortiClient efficiently scales for various enterprise sizes, offering easy user expansion and minimal deployment resources.
Sentiment score
8.0
Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance is scalable, user-friendly, and efficiently manages devices in varying network sizes despite some training challenges.
The scalability could use improvement as you need to ensure that routes and policies are aligned, which can be complex.
I hope Fortinet will start an insider developer program where professionals can provide feedback on new releases to ensure improvements.
We can add more licenses and Fortinet tokens, demonstrating excellent scalability.
The product is very scalable as it supports 10,000 thousand endpoints with just one appliance.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Fortinet FortiClient is stable and reliable, with minor VPN issues, improved stability, and high user ratings.
Sentiment score
7.4
Quest KACE SMA is reliable and stable, with quick support and performance improvements despite occasional infrastructure-related issues.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiClient needs improved management simplicity, support, pricing, usability, stability, integration, and advanced features like AI and better VPN options.
Quest KACE System's scalability, interface design, automation, and support need improvement, complicating software patching and integration processes.
There are advanced features like Zero Trust that I currently do not use but could be beneficial for security.
FortiClient needs improvement in restricting user information and ensuring more secure customer data to better protect source code and reduce the risk of security breaches.
The routing and policy need to be tailored between both to ensure proper functionality.
The user interface needs improvement as customers have mentioned they do not like the interface since it is not an SMA-based interface.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiClient offers competitive mid-range pricing with free VPN, yearly subscriptions, bulk discounts, but faces recent price increases.
Quest KACE SMA offers competitive per-device pricing with robust features, valued by larger deployments despite some cost concerns.
FortiClient is a value-for-money product and is not considered expensive compared to similar products on the market.
Recently, Fortinet has increased prices for its products.
Justifying the price to clients can be difficult.
The pricing is in the middle range of the market, not too expensive but not the cheapest either.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiClient offers robust security, seamless integration with Active Directory, and remote access, ensuring efficient management and user-friendly interface.
Quest KACE SMA enhances IT operations with integration, automation, and management tools, boosting productivity, security, and user experience.
We appreciate its VPN capabilities and the features that offer extra security functionalities like antivirus and malware scanning.
The most valuable feature of FortiClient is its high security level.
The integration with Active Directory is a valuable feature, allowing SSO for users.
The most valuable features include simplicity, which makes systems management easier and faster, especially for device management.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiClient
Ranking in Endpoint Compliance
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
98
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (15th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (2nd)
Quest KACE Systems Manageme...
Ranking in Endpoint Compliance
7th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (14th), Patch Management (10th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Endpoint Compliance category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiClient is 35.0%, up from 32.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is 3.9%, up from 2.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Compliance
 

Featured Reviews

MuhammadJahangir - PeerSpot reviewer
Users only need to install the VPN and authenticate with their email address
I primarily use remote VPN solutions to connect securely. We have configured both site-to-site VPN and remote VPN, and it is connected to FortiClient Implementing this solution has streamlined time management in our organization. Without SSO, we would need manual configuration for each PC, but…
Scott Tweed - PeerSpot reviewer
Low maintenance, reliable, and easy to create packages
I like how when you click on the device, it shows you everything that has changed as well as the software versioning. I am really enjoying the inventory aspect of it. The deployment process for both deploying and creating a package is straightforward. I believe the inventory in KACE is superior to SCCM's. I know with SCCM I could do things like remote console into machines via the agent's remote console, but that is not a feature that is provided in KACE. I know that at least in the Systems Management Appliance, I can't get to it. I'm not sure how distribution works, with distribution points. I'm not sure if KACE has that feature. You could use an SCCM to set up distribution points at remote sites so that they don't have to download patches or software from across the country. If you have a DP or something similar, they could pull it down.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Endpoint Compliance solutions are best for your needs.
831,158 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
43%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Government
5%
Computer Software Company
13%
University
11%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What's the difference between Fortinet's FortiEDR and FortiClient?
I suggest Fortinet’s FortiEDR over FortiClient for several reasons. For starters, FortiEDR guarantees solid protection because it continually scans servers for emerging vulnerabilities, which gives...
What do you like most about Quest KACE Systems Management?
KACE automatically tracks this information and saves it for me, allowing me to call it up on the dashboard. For example, if I need to find Juliano's computer in the system, I don't need to search t...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Quest KACE Systems Management?
The pricing is in the middle range of the market, not too expensive but not the cheapest either.
What needs improvement with Quest KACE Systems Management?
The user interface needs improvement as customers have mentioned they do not like the interface since it is not an SMA-based interface and lacks a manual configuration option.
 

Also Known As

FortiClient
Dell KACE Systems Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
Waypoint, Mattos Filho, Meetic, Gems Education, Green Clinic HealthSystem, Service King
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiClient vs. Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
831,158 professionals have used our research since 2012.