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SonicWall Netextender vs SonicWall SMA comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Netgate TNSR
Sponsored
Average Rating
7.0
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Routers (3rd)
SonicWall Netextender
Average Rating
6.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (16th)
SonicWall SMA
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
8.5
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Universal Access Gateways (2nd), SSL VPN (8th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (19th)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1642500 - PeerSpot reviewer
Good performance, stable, but price could be reduced
I am using Netgate TNSR for personal network security The solution has good performance. I have been using Netgate TNSR for approximately two years. The solution is stable. The scalability could improve. I have not needed to use technical support. The installation is very simple, all you…
JayPrajapati - PeerSpot reviewer
Allows using a custom port for the VPN connection and provides very satisfactory customer support
In the past, customers wanted an application that could run directly upon starting the PC, automatically connecting to the firewall. We were not able to do it in NetExtender. This was something customers wanted, but we couldn't provide due to NetExtender's limitations. I feel NetExtender might have rolled out this feature. In future releases, introductions of AI features would be really helpful. For example, we faced a situation where a customer wanted to allow Office 365 access without any kind of internet, just through the local internet. Office 365 has multiple dynamic IPs and URLs that can be updated daily, making it difficult to allow. If there were an AI-based solution that could bring those URLs and new IP addresses to the firewall and add them to the rule, that would be very helpful. That is just one scenario; there are multiple things AI could help with.
Rias_Majeed - PeerSpot reviewer
This is a versatile VPN that saves us from using more difficult security measures
I don't really think that there are many ways that this product can get much better for my purposes. Everything is working fine. I cannot find anything here that really needs to be fixed for my needs and really it is perfect as it is. As a user, you have to decide to use whichever solution is comfortable and that solves your problem — whatever that problem may be. That said, there are some things which can help promote the product and its use. Every customer is influenced by price. They are looking for something to be a lower price as if there is a big competition over only the price and features don't matter because every product is the same. The Dell SSL-VPN product needs to be set at a competitive price or it will lose out to other solutions. Price may be something Dell needs to consider to be competitive in the market. Recommending the right solution all depends on business needs on a client to client basis. But it is not always the best solution that influences a client's choice. Some of the clients want SonicWall because they see it is a Dell product and they are familiar with the brand or they know someone else who uses it. Then there are decision-makers from other companies who see another product advertised and — for whatever attracted them to the product — they want that product and nothing else. Other people might also say they don't want SonicWall because they don't want Dell. The public opinions all depends on how Dell is doing with pitching itself and SonicWall, and how much they are pushing it in the marketing campaigns they are doing. Depending upon that publicity, they are in competition with other products. If there is an actual comparison one-to-one, people will see there are lots of wizards, all those things that make the product easy to use, it looks okay, and that may be an advantage. But the company needs to promote the product to make the comparison desirable. On the client end, whether it is a global VPN client or SSL-VPN client, it does not matter because it can be made to perform okay. The only thing that matters, in the end, is if it is performing well. But creating a positive face for the business community is something to be improved and maintained by Dell so the product is desirable. One problem I saw which happens with the product in some cases is where a client uses a mobile device to connect to the VPN. The connection might be coming from a private address because of the local ISP. In that case, the client can face problems when they try to connect. If they are connecting directly, no problem. But if the network is sitting behind a 3G or 4G network and we have the safety measure for remote connections which requires inserting the SSL-VPN, then the client may face a connection problem. Browsing is not a problem, but the SSL-VPN connection can be. They will blame the services for being unstable or unpredictable instead of the networks they are connecting through. That is maybe not a very common problem, but handling this type of situation might be addressed in the product to provide better general connectivity. An enhancement for the product would be saving configurations to add by drag-and-drop. I don't want it personally but that could be the easiest way to help some kinds of users to deploy the product. For example, there are vendors who specialize in VPN. They install the box, put on the basic API and do the same thing first with all their installations. If they could somehow save this configuration as an object that they can reuse, it would be good for them. They just install the box, drag-and-drop their usual configuration for the box, and it becomes very easy to do deployments. When the vendor says it will take a lot of configuration, it becomes a big pain. Either they or the client may not want a product that is difficult to install and maintain. Implementation improvements would help that perception. There are still areas that are gray in the area of security. If you ask them, most vendors are not able to tell how security threats are coming exactly and where the weak points are. They give a solution like RDP or this thing or that thing. It may work but they still don't know how it is getting done. I also feel like most companies providing security measures are still researching the topic. In my case, I'm looking for how the ransomware made its attack so we can resolve the actual issue. Everybody has a vague idea but still, nobody knows for sure how that particular infection came into the systems. If they did it would have been stopped. It would be good to know more about what is effective in threat protection. When you install too much security, people will start complaining. They won't complain about the security maybe, but they could complain about performance depending on the solution. Complicated security introduces performance issues and other issues like files are not being delivered properly. When it takes time, people don't want to wait. That means creating better security without compromising the performance — whatever it takes. Even a small percentage like 2%, 3%, or five percentage in performance enhancement is welcomed. At the same time, you must not compromise on security. If Dell can enhance performance by just a little, it matters. The last thing is that the knowledge base for the product could be improved for technical users. Again it is not the product that is the problem and it is more like something to do with the technical support and support services.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Construction Company
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Construction Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Netgate TNSR?
It's an ideal gateway solution for small and medium businesses, i.e., around 300 devices can be easily handled.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Netgate TNSR?
The product is very cost-effective and has no requirement for additional licenses. The setup is not easy. Users need ...
What is your primary use case for Netgate TNSR?
THe solution is used as a primary gateway with two lease lines of 450 Mbps total. Around 200 users are under it. Ther...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall Netextender?
Pricing is a simple thing. We have the key, and we need to enter it in the SonicWall official portal. That's all. Com...
What needs improvement with SonicWall Netextender?
In the past, customers wanted an application that could run directly upon starting the PC, automatically connecting t...
What do you like most about SonicWall SMA?
Blocklisting and allowlisting are the most beneficial features for network security.
What needs improvement with SonicWall SMA?
Enhancing live tracking capabilities could improve the product, particularly in monitoring user activity and request ...
 

Also Known As

TNSR
No data available
SonicWall Aventail, SonicWall SMA SSL-VPN, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

US Army, TrustCo Bank, Arkansas State University
Information Not Available
UnitedStack, Newport City Homes, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, PRIME aerostructures GmbH, Celtic Manor Resort
Find out what your peers are saying about SonicWall Netextender vs. SonicWall SMA and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
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