Fortinet FortiGate Reviews

I am a network engineer implementing Fortinet FortiGate firewalls. We have implemented this firewall for various government departments, small organizations, and hotels.

Fortinet FortiGate is quite popular in my region, so we are implementing Fortinet FortiGate firewalls. Fortinet FortiGate is the best option on the market when it comes to firewalls. It's straightforward to deploy and has good stability and performance.

In an incident, after a restart, Fortinet FortiGate did not connect to FortiGuard servers. Due to that reason, on the customer end, all websites got blocked. I don't know why this happened. The firewall of a bank in Sri Lanka rebooted yesterday, and after that, FortiGuard servers did not connect properly, blocking all customer environment websites.

I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate for around three years.

I have not faced any other issues with Fortinet FortiGate. The performance for Fortinet FortiGate is good.

The scalability of Fortinet FortiGate is good.

We are able to resolve most issues on our own. We raise a case through a partner portal. If the local distributor cannot resolve it, it's routed to another country. The response time for their technical support is not always good. It also depends on the license that the customer has.

Positive

We are partners with both Sophos and SonicWall. I have implemented Sophos firewall myself, but not SonicWall. Our other engineers handle SonicWall implementations. I implemented Sophos SG and recently migrated from SG to SGS, all the firewalls.

The implementation process for Fortinet FortiGate is straightforward. We don't get much error with FortiGate because it's straightforward. We can implement it easily. Sometimes, when we implement through the portal, there are some errors, but we can manage it.

I have implemented 900D firewall and 400D firewall clusters, and many Fortinet FortiGate firewalls. I have also implemented FortiADC once, following step-by-step guides.

We are a partner of Fortinet.

Some of our customers are using Sophos and SonicWall due to price concerns, as they can't manage the pricing of Fortinet FortiGate.

I mostly recommend Fortinet FortiGate when it fits the customer's budget. I would rate Fortinet FortiGate an eight out of ten.

I am reselling FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) or handling the administration of this product for various customers such as universities and those in the hospitality industry.

FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) is more realistic in application, allowing for more specific, customized security policies without the extensive work involved with static rules. This feature is what I desire from the next-generation product. Its segmentation capabilities allow me to apply rules based on team needs or social networks, automatically updating for new networks. This removes worry about what happens when a new social network appears.

It would be better if there was more transparency regarding what the automatic rules do. When a site is blocked, it is necessary for me to consult the logs to understand what the Next Generation Firewall policy has blocked. There is usually no information about what is included or not included in these automatic rules.

I have had about five years of experience with FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW).

The support is not good because I generally search for solutions online. When I open a case, they usually identify it as a bug they are working on. I must study the best version to install to avoid previously found bugs.

Neutral

The initial setup of FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) is pretty straightforward and easy.

For one implementation, only one person is needed for configuration. However, for tasks like interconnecting, putting the device in a rack, and other physical requirements, more people are required.

The licenses are expensive, and whenever a customer needs to renew the license, it becomes a significant expense. However, the hardware itself is relatively inexpensive compared to the license costs.

Netgate pfSense and FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) differ significantly in terms of pricing and features, with FortiGate offering many more features.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) a seven.

My customer's main use cases for Fortinet FortiGate are mainly for threat blocking, compliance requirements, firewall functionality, and basic security.

It's focused on defending against advanced threats and providing better throughput. Additionally, it can accommodate both enterprise companies and independent users. Bandwidth is one of the issues, but there are many benefits. Overall, it's a solid solution that is scalable in terms of throughput.

The best features of this tool include threat protection, email filtering, and web filtering. FortiAnalyzer's integration with the firewall and FortiSASE is beneficial. The integration helps detect the most advanced threats, such as APTs. 

Fortinet FortiGate stable solution has made systems more compliant in the cyber industry for several customers.

They can improve the backend functionality of Fortinet FortiGate, particularly how the policies work in a real-time environment. Improving this aspect can ensure that policies work effectively.

I have been working with this solution for around one year.

The stability can be rated as eight out of ten.

Fortinet FortiGate has very good scalability in terms of bandwidth, throughput, and everything else. It's scalable without any problems.

I would rate Fortinet support a six out of ten. The immediate response is not that good, particularly when raising a critical or P1 ticket; they lag in the immediate response. They can improve on that front, especially in their support service.

Positive

The initial setup of Fortinet FortiGate is straightforward.

My customers have seen ROI with Fortinet FortiGate. The investment they made has provided returns.

I'm not sure about the exact license cost, but generally, it's a reasonable price. If the hardware or the machine is advanced, it will be expensive. However, for medium-sized machines or hardware, it maintains a reasonable price.

I recommend that those who want to use Fortinet FortiGate need to plan ahead. If they are upgrading or expanding their user base in their company, they should purchase a one-level higher version. It would provide good throughput and withstand the number of users in their company.

Fortinet FortiGate can be a bit expensive, but the price is reasonable. I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

I use Fortinet FortiGate just for the data center to connect to it. I put Sophos on the internet and FortiGate on the data center.

For application filtration, I really appreciate many features of Fortinet FortiGate because it is more reliable, easy to use, and the reports are easy to read and understand. I have integrated Fortinet FortiGate with the database for reading the reports. I can recommend Fortinet FortiGate for enterprise-level because it has many features and solutions, though I would not recommend it for small companies or individual companies.

To improve Fortinet FortiGate, I think they need to improve the software and make updates more quickly, rather than taking a long time to update the software or firmware.

I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate for approximately four to five years.

I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten, with ten being the best.

I would rate the scalability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten, as I think it is reliable and very dependable.

I would rate the technical support from Fortinet between eight and nine; it is a very good vendor, but sometimes there is a delay in getting information from us or maybe a delay for us to contact them.

I am using Fortinet FortiGate and Sophos.

In the beginning of my work with Fortinet FortiGate, the setup was difficult, but after many attempts, I became an expert on how to install and modify every command. For a regular user, I think it is very easy to understand and read the product documentation.

I use Sophos for firewall and Fortinet FortiGate for data center.

I really recommend Fortinet FortiGate. My overall rating for Fortinet FortiGate is 9 out of 10.

Public Cloud

Microsoft Azure

I am working as a presales engineer or system engineer, designing solutions for other clients.

The clients use this solution for their data centers and perimeter security.

The main reason customers prefer Fortinet FortiGate is that it's security-centric, allowing them to implement security features such as a next-generation firewall and translate this to the WAN or SD-WAN architectures, or as a base if they want to grow in more security features or other verticals such as ZTNA and SASE. It's a little baseline for the rest of the verticals or features that can be exploited.

Fortinet FortiGate compares favorably to others in terms of the technology. Second, it's about the relationship they build with their customers. I'm in Colombia, and I can say they have an excellent sales and engineering team that provides a great experience for their clients. They are very attentive and engaged. This company has a rich history; they grow alongside their clients. They take the time to show clients all the benefits and features of the technology they offer. It’s a much more personal experience for everyone involved.

Fortinet Unified SASE is strong for providing consistent security policies across multiple locations. Working with Fortinet in the SASE aspect has been easy. Customers appreciate the features we can offer with Fortinet SASE and ZTNA solutions. They particularly appreciate how they can integrate everything with the baseline of Fortinet FortiGate, and how they can easily apply all the features they need to secure access to different applications from a single console. Some clients use the Fortinet FortiGate data center solution for their data centers as a hub and the perimeter security service.

My experience integrating SD-WAN capabilities with Fortinet FortiGate is in the middle ground. Fortinet FortiGate, as a security-centric fabric, can implement an SD-WAN solution. It can be somewhat manual in some cases, but using other tools that Fortinet has, such as FortiManager, makes implementing an SD-WAN network easier with less effort.

The implementation depends more on the engineer's skill when integrating SD-WAN with Fortinet FortiGate. If you don't have extensive skills in implementing Fortinet FortiGate, it can be difficult, but with more experience, it becomes easier.

In the presales team, I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate for about five years, and as a customer, I worked with it for about two years between 2016 and 2018.

Fortinet FortiGate is very stable and secure for customers.

It's easy with Fortinet FortiGate as they have a very good solution for scalability. If we need to grow in branches or licenses, we can easily do it. The most important aspect of growing this solution is their strong enterprise-level account managers, who always help customers find the best solution and an easy path to grow their architecture with Fortinet.

I would rate their customer service around eight because not everything is perfect, but they have very good customer experience and relationship management.

Positive

It depends on the size of the company or the solution they want to implement with Fortinet FortiGate. Most companies could have another vendor or baseline products, so we need to depend on the scenario.

It is very straightforward to set up initially. The duration depends on the size of the company and the solution they want to implement. They might already have another vendor or a different baseline of products, which makes things more complex.

As for deployment models, we typically offer both on-premises and cloud options. We have been working with AWS, and it has been a very positive experience. They provide readily available machines, and everything is easy to find in the marketplace.

I believe it's a fair price for the kind of technology they offer their customers. Sometimes, I think they could apply more discounts to engage customers further. This approach would be beneficial, as it helps us expand the solutions available to clients. As for discounts, they do engage clients with them, particularly in strategic business situations, such as with large accounts in sectors like banking and big retail.

When comparing Fortinet to other vendors, Fortinet generally tends to offer better discounts. However, this does not imply that their solutions are of lower quality; rather, they demonstrate expertise in meeting customer needs.

Some users utilize AI and machine learning enhanced features, such as the FortiGuard services, though not all do as the AI features are relatively new. However, we have successfully positioned some features, particularly in areas such as AI. For example, the threat detection capabilities and the AI assistant available in the FortiAnalyzer service are noteworthy. Fortinet offers a license that can be utilized for AI features, especially in FortiManager. Users appreciate this feature because it helps them achieve better network configuration. If they encounter any issues within the network, they can easily leverage AI to find solutions to those problems.

Overall, I would rate Fortinet FortiGate a nine out of ten because while not everything is perfect, they're really doing their best and demonstrating it through their technology.

Majorly, I use Fortinet FortiGate for establishing SD-WAN in different remote locations. I also use it for segmenting wireless from LAN and implementing basic policy routing for departments. The next-gen features on Fortinet FortiGate permit proxy access, where URLs can be specified for specific users or departments to access.

Fortinet FortiGate has several valuable features. The configuration and policy setup are easy to implement. There are embedded features in Fortinet FortiGate, including DLP features, WAF presence in the firewall, and proxy capabilities. It has security profiles that can be set for various functions. In terms of security, it is particularly strong.

SD-WAN offers better reach, good reachability, and enhanced performance for network optimization. People implement SD-WAN today because of reachability and network optimization capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is effective in protecting against malicious access. It has a robust security architecture, which is something I truly like about FortiGate.

The SD-WAN integration is very simple. I appreciate the simplicity of the FortiGate system. It's one of the things I like most about it. With FortiAI, it's very easy to input your queries, and the system helps you set it up. If you prefer to do it manually, there is excellent documentation and step-by-step guides available to assist you. For me, the experience has been seamless and straightforward.

I cannot think of many improvements needed for Fortinet FortiGate. However, the pricing compared to competitors is quite high, though you get value for what you pay with Fortinet FortiGate.

With FortiSIEM, I have experienced some challenges. It has been suspended and is not available for utilization now. They should work on improving FortiSIEM.

I have worked with both virtual appliances and physical devices, primarily with hardware devices, for over five years. The models I have used include 60, 100, and 201 series.

Fortinet FortiGate is one of the best firewalls available. There are no crashes or performance issues. It is very stable and reliable.

The solution is scalable.

I have worked with Sophos and Check Point firewalls. Fortinet FortiGate leads compared to other solutions. Based on customer requests, we provide different options. I recommend people should consider Fortinet or Sophos, depending on their needs. Fortinet FortiGate performs well against other firewalls in the market.

The hardware is easy to set up. I have only had issues with the activation of the evaluation license. 

There has definitely been a return on investment with Fortinet FortiGate.

The pricing depends on the capacity required. There are 100 series, 200 series, and 500 series options. The prices are moderate and reasonable for each series.

For organizations using Fortinet FortiGate, it is important to utilize the security profiles properly. Make sure anti-spoofing is set up and networks are well-segmented on the Fortinet. Ensure proxy configuration is based on URL access stability.

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

On-premises

We use Fortinet FortiGate for the firewall as well as for the VPN. Any of the users outside the organization use the VPN. Any staff members working outside the office headquarters or our office location use the VPN.

The main aspect that I deal with is URL blocking and web access. I don't work with other aspects of this firewall.

It has upscaled our security posture, especially regarding external connectivity, because any access or connection from the company has to go through the Fortinet FortiGate firewall. It's doing a pretty good job. We do not have any complaints there.

Anything that we don't want to allow is not coming in. Anything we want to allow is not being blocked. We always have the granular control where we can block malicious IPs or subnets if needed.

Geofencing allows us to limit the countries from which we allow IP connections. There are many features that I may not even know or haven't explored, but in general, Fortinet FortiGate is doing a pretty good job for us. 

The web controls are what I appreciate about Fortinet FortiGate. We have extensive controls over areas where we could block external-facing IPs, external URLs. We can do geo-fencing with the firewalls, which is a good feature. 

There are too many updates coming for VPN, and the VPN keeps disconnecting frequently, which I find problematic. It does what it's supposed to do, but I practically face reconnection issues with the VPN. 

Regarding the Fortinet FortiGate firewall, I don't have any input. My scope is limited.

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for around three years.

Fortinet FortiGate is stable. We haven't seen any latency issues related to it, though we do experience latency from ISPs.

I would rate the scalability as eight out of ten based purely on my exposure to security controls relating to URL blocking and website access. 

I haven't had a chance to work with Fortinet FortiGate technical support, but from my colleagues' experience, they say the Fortinet FortiGate people are easy to reach but hard to schedule time with. It's not as easy as having the Fortinet FortiGate engineer on the call and getting other teams involved; it requires careful arrangements to join in with the Fortinet team. I would give their support a neutral score of maybe five.

Neutral

I don't know why we switched to Fortinet FortiGate from Juniper; it's a management decision.

I was not involved in the deployment. I think it's not that difficult; there's no complexity involved as long as we are clear on what we want to do.

We have it on both cloud and on-premises.

I was not part of the team that implemented it. I don't know how much they invested, but it would be worth the investment.

My overall experience with Fortinet FortiGate rates as eight out of ten. 

My customers use Fortinet FortiGate for various purposes. The security services provided by Fortinet FortiGate are quite strong. 

I have had use cases where FortiGate helped to protect the mission-critical data for my customers. 

FortiGate is effective at protecting the data at the edge.

What I appreciate about Fortinet FortiGate is its effectiveness. The feature that I find the most effective is threat prevention. 

The mean time to respond and the remediation process is sped up. FortiGate has also helped to consolidate tools and applications for my customers.

The firewall has indeed helped customers to consolidate tools and applications. Once everything is set and done, maintaining FortiGate can have its challenges.

Fortinet FortiGate brings numerous benefits to my company.

The good things aside, there are improvements needed in the Fortinet FortiGate. My customers requested specific features to be included in the Fortinet FortiGate.

My experience with the Fortinet FortiGate is recent, as I worked with it less than a year ago.

My impression of the stability of FortiGate is that it is quite stable.

When it comes to scalability, I find it scalable.

I have escalated questions to Fortinet's tech support.

Positive

We need to compare different firewalls, including Fortinet FortiGate and Hillstone, and then suggest the better one to our clients.

The initial implementation part is straightforward, but it has some complexities. My implementation strategy involves several steps that I take when deploying it.

I do have hands-on experience working with the products, and I do the POCs and implementation part.

When it comes to the ROI, the return on investment of FortiGate can be a bit hard to estimate, but based on my experience, I find it to be quite favorable. Overall, Fortinet FortiGate has indeed helped to reduce the total cost of ownership for my customers.

My impression of the firewall's ability to provide network and security coverage is positive. 

When it comes to sustainability, my impressions of the firewall are favorable.

The size of the environment with Fortinet FortiGate was significant, including many endpoints and users, and it involved enterprise-level business.

Based on my experience, I would say to someone considering purchasing Fortinet FortiGate's data center firewall is that it's a good choice. I would give Fortinet a solid score.