Our primary use case of this solution is for the UTM it offers and the access to VPN. We have branches in Rio, Singapore and the UK. I'm an information security manager and we are customers of Fortinet.
Information Security at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
Great web tutor and automated rules by schedule features
Pros and Cons
- "The web tutor and automatic rules by schedule are good features."
- "They've become quite expensive."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features for me are the web tutor and the automated rules by schedule - the VPN itself.
What needs improvement?
Fortinet is huge in today's market and they've become quite expensive. I think there are products at the same level as Fortinet, but with better prices. They've changed their subscription plan and are now forcing companies to subscribe 24/7.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for around five years.
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We never had any issues or problems related to stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
There are other products on the market that are a little better than FortiGate in terms of scalability, but in general it's a good solution. We have about 200 users in the company.
How are customer service and support?
We didn't need to contact technical support very much. We had a local partner and if there were problems we contacted them directly.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward. We were implementing on a large project and it took a weekend to completely deploy with all the features, connections and everything.
What other advice do I have?
They have very good documentation and if you've had experience with other products I'm pretty sure that you'd be able to deploy just by reading the documentation.
I would rate this solution an eight out of 10.
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.
System Administrator at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
Easy to configure and the technical support is good, but the newer versions have issues with stability
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature is the ease of configuration."
- "One of the problems I was having was with user mapping, and it is an issue for which I have escalated tickets with Fortinet support."
What is our primary use case?
We use this firewall as part of our security solution.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is the ease of configuration.
What needs improvement?
There are a lot of known issues in some newer versions of the FortiGate operating system, so there is room for improvement with that. One of the problems I was having was with user mapping, and it is an issue for which I have escalated tickets with Fortinet support.
Having the newer features work in the older, more stable versions of the product would be great. Some of the new features might really help a lot, but there are problems with stability.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with FortiGate for approximately two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
There are a lot of new features built into newer releases, but there are not very stable.
How are customer service and technical support?
The Fortinet technical support is awesome. They're handling my problem quickly and doing it well.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price is okay.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have compared solutions from other vendors including Palo Alto.
What other advice do I have?
This is a good product, however, there is always room for improvement.
I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Network Engineer at LinkTech
Improves internet speed and improves network security
Pros and Cons
- "The most important features of Fortinet FortiGate are the Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) and firewall control applications."
- "The main aspect of FortiGate that could be improved is load balancing. Our management team does not want to buy another appliance for only load balancing."
What is our primary use case?
We are a reseller of Fortinet products. We use FortiGate for Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) support. This is the most important reason that we use Fortinet FortiGate.
How has it helped my organization?
We required our network to be more secure. We also use FortiGate for improving the speed of the internet because the network here does not perform as we would like it to.
What is most valuable?
The most important features of Fortinet FortiGate are the Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) and firewall control applications.
What needs improvement?
The main aspect of FortiGate that could be improved is load balancing. Our management team does not want to buy another appliance for only load balancing.
The network routing with Fortinet FortiGate can be an issue, but it generally depends on the size of the company.
For how long have I used the solution?
More than five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
FortiGate is a wonderful appliance.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have knowledge of other firewall products but FortiGate is the best.
How are customer service and technical support?
We like the Fortinet technical support and how they have responded in the past.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was easy and not complex at all.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is only one issue with Fortinet FortiGate: It's the price. If the company makes its products cheaper then we can convince our clients to buy more.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Fortinet FortiGate a nine out of ten because I don't know all of the features of the platform personally.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
President at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Good performance, protects network perimeters against attacks
What is our primary use case?
To protect network perimeters.
How has it helped my organization?
Security. The main options feature protection and security against attacks.
What is most valuable?
Reliability and performance, those are key factors.
What needs improvement?
I have only one request and that is to have Fortinet as a market download in Azure.
For how long have I used the solution?
Less than one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
So far, so good.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I'm an integrator, so I use SonicWall, Sophos, and Fortinet.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator.
Deputy Chief Manager at a newspaper with 5,001-10,000 employees
It has given us improved security over the internet. It is easy to use with a single console and unified threat management features.
Pros and Cons
- "Unified Threat Management (UTM) features."
- "NGN, reporting and controls."
How has it helped my organization?
It has given us improved security over the internet.
What is most valuable?
Ease of use, single console, Unified Threat Management (UTM) features.
What needs improvement?
NGN, reporting and controls.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We had some stability issues but we upgraded.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
There was a hardware limitation, affecting scalability.
How are customer service and technical support?
I would rate the technical support as 8/10.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We had a different solution in the organization arising from different OEMs and this solution was chosen with consideration of requirements and costs.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was simple but the DC was complex.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Go for long term pricing negotiated at the time of purchase.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated Check Point, Cisco ASA.
What other advice do I have?
You should be clear concerning the scope and outcome you are looking for.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
IT NETWORK ENGINEER at a energy/utilities company with 501-1,000 employees
The most valuable features for us are VPN, WebFilter, and Firewall.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features for us are
- VPN
- WebFilter
- Firewall
How has it helped my organization?
It's features are highly customizable. This means that when our different business groups have different needs, the implementations can be customized to meet the demands of those groups and needs.
What needs improvement?
I'd like to see an improvement in the Bandwidth Management and Traffic limit control.
Also, the licenses are expensive, turning off some users.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've used all units for five years, except the FortiGate 200D which has been in use for one year. Alongside FortiGate, we also have FortiAnalyzer 1000B and the FortiManager 200D.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
There have been no issues with the deployment.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
There have been no stability issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It has not been a problem to scale it.
How are customer service and technical support?
Customer Service:
Customer service is very good.
Technical Support:Technical support is very good.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I depend on different products from different vendors depending on the required function.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is simple in the CLI or Web GUI.
What about the implementation team?
An in-house network engineer implemented it using the best practice recommendations from the vendor.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The appliances and licenses are expensive, and I know some people use other vendors because of this.
What other advice do I have?
You should know the customization you want from the beginning, and plan your requirements appropriately.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Customer Support engineer at a healthcare company with 51-200 employees
It helps to come up with the requirements of proxy servers, but it does not have that much troubleshooting & network testing features.
What is most valuable?
The key features of this product are:
- Network security
- UTM Features
- Configuration and ease of deployment.
- IP/User/Device Mac ID/Device Type based policy configuration
- Traffic shaping
- Load balancing
- Ease of VPN configurations
- Explicit proxy
- Link segregation
- Application signatures
- Network object based HTTPS/SSL inspection etc.
How has it helped my organization?
In many organizations it helps to come up with the requirements of proxy servers, defining network traffic and the amount of bandwidth for any network object or specified user(s). It has also provided us with security compatibility with other network devices such as IP cameras, the video conferencing system, VOIP phones. It also logs & reports on individual users network activities.
What needs improvement?
The FortiGate series does not have that much troubleshooting & network testing features in its GUI, hence we’ll definitely be looking for some add-on features in near future.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for the past year.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
No issues yet.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
No issues yet.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
For massive logs & reports (over a month) we have to go for a separate logging & reporting device i.e. FortiAnalyzer/FortiCloud, as this is not available in Fortigate itself.
How are customer service and technical support?
Customer Service:
7/10.
Technical Support:8/10.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We started with FortiGate itself.
How was the initial setup?
This product has a setup wizard (FortiExplorer) for the initial configuration, while the physical connectivity is done via a USB cable which is very easy to use.
What about the implementation team?
We implemented the solution ourselves.
What was our ROI?
It is value for money product as we’ve purchased it with Fortinet's three-year warranty package.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We have evaluated Dell’s Sonicwall & Cyberoam.
What other advice do I have?
Analyze your needs first before implementing this product.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Senior Information Security Engineer with 501-1,000 employees
It's excellent and we strongly recommend it, but WAN link load balancing needs improving.
What is most valuable?
I am using different features of this product but the most valuable are -
- SSL VPN
- Web filter
- Explicit proxy
- IPS
- Application control
- Routing
How has it helped my organization?
I replaced my core router with a Fortigate appliance and it is performing inter-VLAN routing. I removed manual proxies and used transparent proxy using Fortigate security profiles, and implemented traffic shaping, web filter, application control, IPS and anti-virus. All the servers are protected by Fortigate security profiles.
What needs improvement?
- WAN link load balancing
- Reports
- Anti-virus.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution since 2013.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
We faced some technical issues on the Fortinet side.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
No issues encountered.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
No issues encountered.
How are customer service and technical support?
Customer Service:
6/10.
Technical Support:6/10.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I didn't use any other solution prior to Fortinet.
How was the initial setup?
It was complex because there was a huge network with VLANs configured and routing protocols enabled.
What about the implementation team?
We implement this through a vendor. I would rate their level of experience 8/10.
What was our ROI?
I would only say that Fortinet provides business and security returns at a cost substantially lower than the benefits derived.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated Sophos and Barracuda alongside Fortigate.
What other advice do I have?
Our experience of using Fortigate is excellent and we strongly recommend it.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
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Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
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