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Head of Presales at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
MSP
Expandable with helpful support and great threat intelligence functionality
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is stable."
  • "The deployment side is quite complex."

What is our primary use case?

It's considered one of the modules for the LTM box. It's all modules for the LTM box.

It is actually to protect the customer web application which is published on the internet. It's actually to protect that, and nowadays, we also have this threat intelligence. You will link to the F5 centra, the depository of the threat intelligence database. We always have the latest update on the common threat that is happening currently. You will notify the customer if there's an issue.

What is most valuable?

The threat intelligence function is great. Nowadays, there is more awareness on the security side. They'd have a real-time update from F5. It provides peace of mind on the security side for the customer.

It is an add-on module to protect the web application.

The solution can scale with planning.

The solution is stable.

Support is helpful.

What needs improvement?

The deployment side is quite complex. We'd like them to simplify the implementation process. I'm not sure whether they can do that, however, they have to be very detailed on configurations, and sharing of the policy. Anybody that configures this box, the WAF, they have to have knowledge of the application and some of the security portions there as well.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've had the solution since last year. We have deployed it to a customer.

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F5 Advanced WAF
April 2025
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable. Actually, it evolved from ASM, what they call the Application Security Manager, and now they name it Advanced WAF. It's been around for a while. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We'll size up based on the customer requirement with some buffer, maybe 20% to 30% for the future extension. There is also some consideration on the capacity planning and the size of the box. You can scale. You just need to plan ahead. 

In terms of users, with Advanced WAF, normally their role is more related to the security side.

We just implemented the solution recently and we'll have to wait another three or four years before we change or upgrade the solution. 

How are customer service and support?

I've dealt with technical support. We're quite satisfied with them. They're good. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

F5 WAF is a web application, in the firewall domain, they have been in the market for a very long time. They know the requirements and the market trends very well. This is the reason why we normally chose F5.

How was the initial setup?

The solution is pretty difficult to set up. You really have to have a grasp o the product to configure it correctly.

The setup takes approximately two months. It's quite a long time. If the application is not ready, then the dependency will be on the application side. Therefore, the cycle is quite long. It depends on the application readiness.

We just need one to two people to handle deployment and maintenance. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The licensing is charged yearly. It's considered expensive, however, there are more expensive WAFs on the market - like Imperva. F5 is second after Imperva in terms of cost. L1 to L3 support is included in the cost.

I'd rate the price of the solution at a four out of five in terms of how expensive it is.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We tend to stay with F5, however, we will look at pricing and try to negotiate based on that. We'd like to get a discount and look at the market to see the costs. 

What other advice do I have?

I'd advise that new users need to know the requirement expectations, and then the criticality of the application that they're going to let the user use. Sometimes the application is public to the internet for a public user to log into and query the database. In that case, we're exposed to all kinds of external parties. So if you put something that is cheap in place, something that is not able to do the protection properly, then it will be a very big risk to the company. 

I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. Our clients have been very happy with it.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partners
PeerSpot user
Mohamed Fouad - PeerSpot reviewer
Cybersecurity Team Leader at Summit Technology Solution
Real User
Top 5
Stable product with essential capabilities to protect the web applications
Pros and Cons
  • "F5 Advanced WAF helps our engineers to learn the complete configuration, including fundamental and advanced policies."
  • "Most customers encounter stability issues with the product's Big-IP logs."

What is our primary use case?

We use F5 Advanced WAF to protect web applications on HTTPS, APIs, and portals.

What is most valuable?

F5 Advanced WAF helps our engineers to learn the complete configuration, including fundamental and advanced policies.

What needs improvement?

Most customers encounter stability issues with the product's Big-IP logs. It works slowly while retrieving logs.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using F5 Advanced WAF since this year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is more stable than Fortinet.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The product has modular appliances. It works well, scalability-wise.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support services are good. The team includes professional engineers to communicate with the customers regarding cases.

How was the initial setup?

It is easy to set up F5 Advanced WAF. Although, it is difficult to deploy and maintain compared to Fortinet. The deployment process involves gathering customer information regarding virtual servers to be protected. Later, we select the best design suitable for their requirements and start with license provisioning. Further, we configure LTM with special servers and nodes and proceed with configuring the security policy and advanced directory. It takes a week to protect the infrastructure fully. Once we have license provisioning, it is good to run.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

F5 Advanced WAF's pricing is high. Fortinet and some other vendors are more affordable.

What other advice do I have?

F5 Advanced WAF has good capabilities, powerful tools, and professional services. I advise others to compare pricing with vendors in terms of their use cases before purchasing the product.

I rate it a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
F5 Advanced WAF
April 2025
Learn what your peers think about F5 Advanced WAF. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2025.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Özden-Aydın - PeerSpot reviewer
Technology Consultant at Netwiser
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Bot attack reduction and enhanced web security with reasonable pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "It provides web application security and reduces bot attacks."
  • "The product could be more user-friendly for administrators."

What is our primary use case?

We use this solution for load balancing and web application firewall (WAF) services. We use the solution standalone and not integrated with other solutions.

How has it helped my organization?

It provides web application security and reduces bot attacks.

What is most valuable?

The web attack signatures are very important for detecting attacks, and the bot detection capability is an important feature that works well with F5 Advanced WAF.

What needs improvement?

The product could be more user-friendly for administrators. The user interface could be easier.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it for almost three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable. I would rate its stability as nine out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Very scalable. We use this solution for multiple customers and across data centers.

How are customer service and support?

The solution offers good support. That said, sometimes it takes too much time to reach the right person.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have also worked with Citrix NetScaler and F5 products, depending on customer needs.

How was the initial setup?

The initial configuration is not too difficult, but subsequent configurations can be complex because they depend on customer needs.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I don't have direct knowledge of the pricing. From what I know, it is not too expensive compared to other solutions.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I am familiar with F5 and Citrix NetScaler solutions.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend this product to others because of its effectiveness in mitigating threats.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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PeerSpot user
Security team leader at a aerospace/defense firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
A reliable and user-friendly solution that provides positive and negative security and has antivirus and DDoS mitigation capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "The web application firewall itself is most valuable. It provides positive security and negative security. In negative security, it blocks a task such as cross-site scripting, code injection, etc. In positive security, it lets you specify and enforce things, such as the parameters allowed in username and password fields and the number of characters allowed in a field."
  • "It also has antivirus and DDoS mitigation capabilities. We have enabled these features."
  • "It is also quite intuitive and user-friendly. They have several webinars that are actually like labs. You can use these webinars to learn about how to use all features of the product."
  • "Its price should be better. It is expensive."

What is our primary use case?

We have several websites that are exposed to external users. We have a website for interaction with supply chain customers. We also have a website that gives access to CRM functionality to allow our customers to open tickets and disputes. F5 WAF is at the front for security and attack mitigation. It ensures that users are able to access only allowed pages.

What is most valuable?

The web application firewall itself is most valuable. It provides positive security and negative security. In negative security, it blocks a task such as cross-site scripting, code injection, etc. In positive security, it lets you specify and enforce things, such as the parameters allowed in username and password fields and the number of characters allowed in a field.

It also has antivirus and DDoS mitigation capabilities. We have enabled these features. 

It is also quite intuitive and user-friendly. They have several webinars that are actually like labs. You can use these webinars to learn about how to use all features of the product.

What needs improvement?

Its price should be better. It is expensive.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

In general, it is stable and reliable. Over the past few months, several vulnerabilities were found in the product, but which product doesn't have vulnerabilities? The main question is how fast do you get the fix for it, and they provided the fix quite quickly. We had to upgrade it as soon as possible to mitigate the risks.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I didn't try to expand it. We have two staff members who are using F5 Advanced WAF.

In terms of its usage, we are deploying it on all points through which we are exposing services, but we are currently not exposing too many services.

How are customer service and technical support?

I had only one case for which I had to call tech support. It wasn't a straightforward ticket. It was quite a challenging ticket. Eventually, they found a solution, but it took some time. It was challenging to find the bug in one of the previous versions. They also didn't know about it. We did the troubleshooting together until we found the problem.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We were using another solution before switching to F5 Advanced WAF. We didn't have success with that solution because the integrator failed to deploy it properly. It was more complex and not user-friendly.

How was the initial setup?

It was a little bit complex. If you want to add an additional layer or model like APM with two-factor authentication, then it requires a little bit more integration.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It is expensive. Its price should be better.

Its licensing is on a yearly basis. Its licensing is also based on the model. There are no additional costs.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to other users. I will advise others to learn a little bit about how the HTTP protocol works. They should be familiar with the functionality of the product. They should not use it without understanding what they are actually doing.

I would rate F5 Advanced WAF a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Quoc Nguyen - PeerSpot reviewer
F5 Product Manager at Westcon-Comstor
Real User
A solution that would benefit with more documentation regarding bot protection
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of F5 Advanced WAF are the security features and the protection."
  • "F5 Advanced needs to improve its bot protection. The solution needs to have machine learning to learn the behavior of the customer to recognize the human versus the bot. This is a difficult feature to explain to our customers. I would like documentation about the bot feature to make it easier for the customer to understand."

What is our primary use case?

We are distributors in Vietnam. We consult for our customers and I am a Product Manager. We use F5 Advanced WAF as a firewall for our website applications and the websites of our customers.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of F5 Advanced WAF are the security features and the protection.

In the future, I would like to see F5 include AI in the hardware of F5 Advanced WAF.

What needs improvement?

F5 Advanced needs to improve its bot protection. The solution needs to have machine learning to learn the behavior of the customer to recognize the human versus the bot. This is a difficult feature to explain to our customers. I would like documentation about the bot feature to make it easier for the customer to understand.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using F5 Advanced WAF for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

F5 Advanced WAF is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

We tend to handle our own technical support for our customers. My experience with F5 support is a three out of five overall. They need to improve the information and training of the receiver.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was neither easy nor difficult. I would rate setup as a four out of five.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing of F5 Advanced WAF is more expensive than other solutions like Radware and CD18, it is quite high. I rate the product a one out of five for price, with one being expensive.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I would rate F5 Advanced WAF an eight out of ten overall.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
Chee Young Tan - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at ST Electronics
Real User
Top 10Leaderboard
Is flexible, powerful, stable, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "It's flexible and powerful, and the users can input their own rules to the system."
  • "The pricing could be more flexible."

What is our primary use case?

I use it for load balancing.

What is most valuable?

It's flexible and powerful, and the users can input their own rules to the system.

What needs improvement?

The pricing could be more flexible.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using it for three to four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

F5 Advanced WAF is a scalable solution. We have 20 people using it in our company, mainly from our operations team.

How are customer service and support?

F5 has a partner in Singapore, and he's very supportive.

How was the initial setup?

It is reasonably easy to set up and took about a month.

What about the implementation team?

I used a third party for the deployment.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The cost is slightly above average.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution at eight on a scale from one to ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
SamerHamadeh - PeerSpot reviewer
System Engineer at DShield
Reseller
Top 5
A cost-effective solution for load balancing with data loss prevention
Pros and Cons
  • "It protects and mitigates damage in the network."
  • "They should work on the virtualization of NGINX."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for load balancing.

What needs improvement?

They should improve the capability, and then they should work on the virtualization of NGINX. Currently, most environments are virtualized. F5 Advanced WAF will not be able to protect it.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using F5 Advanced WAF as a reseller for 5 years.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is good but not enough. It takes a lot of time to get support.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not so easy nor not so complex. There is a learning phase, and there are policies to apply. It complies with regulations. Recently, we used it for Formula One, and it proved very effective.

What was our ROI?

ROI is covered in one year. You can see how it protects and mitigates damages in the network.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The product is not so expensive. It depends on the assets.

What other advice do I have?

There are other solutions for data loss prevention, such as Symantec and IP solutions. There are options available for DNS blocking. While these solutions may specialize in certain aspects, They offer comprehensive coverage across various areas. Each vendor specializes in different aspects, but F5 Advanced WAF excels in its particular domain.

I recommend the solution. Most of the environment is going to virtualization.

Overall, I rate the solution an 8 out of 10.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
PeerSpot user
Information Security Manager at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Useful SSL uploading, highly reliable, and effective detection
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of F5 Advanced WAF are SSL uploading, signature, and anomaly detection. It is overall a high-quality solution."
  • "The solution could improve by having an independent capture module. It has a built feature that you can deploy the capture on your published website. However, it's not very user-friendly. When you compare this feature to Google Capture or other enterprise captures, they are very simple. It needs a good connection to the F5 Advanced WAF sandbox. When you implement this feature in the data center, you may suffer some complications with connecting to the F5 Advanced WAF sandbox. This should be improved in the future."

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of F5 Advanced WAF are SSL uploading, signature, and anomaly detection. It is overall a high-quality solution.

What needs improvement?

The solution could improve by having an independent capture module. It has a built feature that you can deploy the capture on your published website. However, it's not very user-friendly. When you compare this feature to Google Capture or other enterprise captures, they are very simple. It needs a good connection to the F5 Advanced WAF sandbox. When you implement this feature in the data center, you may suffer some complications with connecting to the F5 Advanced WAF sandbox. This should be improved in the future.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using F5 Advanced WAF for approximately 10 years. This includes my experience when the solution was  formerly named Advanced Security Module(ASM).

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

F5 Advanced WAF is an extremely stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have found F5 Advanced WAF scalable.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is handy and useful when you have your contract available. Once you lose it, you are all alone and there is a penalty to extend your subscription.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have used FortiWeb previously.

These products are not meant to be compared, because they are serving in different areas of expertise. When you are low on budget, it's better to use the FortiWeb. When you have a budget and want quality, it's most recommended to use the F5 Advanced WAF. We are talking about different classes of quality.

How was the initial setup?

When you are using the F5 Advanced WAF for any reason, you have to employ an expert. It's not the same as other solutions, such as FortiWeb, it is not easy to use. It's an advanced device, and you have to have an advanced person to operate it. This is the biggest problem that F5 Advanced WAF.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of the solution is reasonable when compared with other products, such as FortiWeb. I am very satisfied with the price.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to those wanting to implement F5 Advanced WAF is they will need to have an expert on any stage of operation. Then once they decide to use the F5 Advanced WAF they have to have very good expert advisors for choosing the product because there are a variety of license options, and you may spend more than what you need. 

In the implementation stage, you have to have experts. At least three experts for the implementation phase. When it comes to the operation, you can't have a temporary expert that comes and goes, you have to have the F5 Advanced WAF expert in your company. It's an advanced device. It's completely different from the FortiWeb and the other devices. It gives you lots of options but it's complicated to implement. You have to have an expert to support you.

I rate F5 Advanced WAF an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free F5 Advanced WAF Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: April 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free F5 Advanced WAF Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.