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Ismael Abdelkader - PeerSpot reviewer
Strategic Development Manager at Arrow Electronics
Real User
Simple to use and manage, helpful VPN and application control features, and it's constantly evolving
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features are simplicity, management, and that it's constantly evolving."
  • "With the addition of some features, it is possible that FortiGate can be used in all verticals."

What is our primary use case?

I am a project manager and I have implemented this product in several different projects. The deployments are for enterprise clients, government agencies, and several universities.

How has it helped my organization?

This is a complete security solution that we can offer to our clients.

It provides security EOT (Encryption of Things).

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features are simplicity, management, and that it's constantly evolving. 

Different modules offer different functionality including the facility for web application control, VPN, and complete security integration.

It is easy to integrate FortiGate with other products.

What needs improvement?

With the addition of some features, it is possible that FortiGate can be used in all verticals.

Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,158 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with FortiGate for 10 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

FortiGate is a very stable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have implemented FortiGate in approximately 200 projects, and it is a scalable solution.

It is primarily used by medium-sized and enterprise companies. Medium-sized companies normally have between 10 and 50 users whereas an enterprise will have more than 5,000.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support from Fortinet is very nice.

I would rate them a five out of five.

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

I work with several products from Fortinet including FortiGate, FortiManager, FortiAnalyzer, and FortiSIEM. The selection of which products to use depends on the company.

We work with what we refer to as the Fortinet fabric.

We also have experience with products from Check Point and Palo Alto.

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

Fortinet is competitive price-wise.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

One of our clients in space evaluated FortiGate in terms of pricing and integration, and they chose FortiGate.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Implementer
PeerSpot user
DineshKumar28 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at Cognizant
Real User
Top 20
Effective threat prevention with responsive customer support
Pros and Cons
  • "It has a good UI and overall integration, including FortiGate Manager for controlling all firewalls from a single place."
  • "The anti-malware engine could use an upgrade."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Fortinet FortiGate as a firewall.

How has it helped my organization?

Fortinet FortiGate has been invaluable. It has helped save costs due to its various features, reliable performance, very good UI, low latency, and stability.

What is most valuable?

The Threat Intel engine in Fortinet FortiGate is highly rated for its effectiveness in threat prevention. It has a good UI and overall integration, including FortiGate Manager for controlling all firewalls from a single place.

What needs improvement?

The anti-malware engine could use an upgrade. It should automatically classify and sandbox malicious packets with more granular controls, including providing details like TV numbers.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Initially, we faced some issues with updates due to network factors needing to be white-listed in the proxy. These problems have since been resolved, and we are not facing any issues now.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

While I don't have a clear picture of scalability, we scale up in different regions based on the number of users and the amount of load. This is typically handled by architecture teams.

How are customer service and support?

Customer support is very responsive, addressing queries in a timely manner. I would rate the customer support ten out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We have also used Palo Alto Firewalls and Fortinet FortiGate. Fortinet FortiGate has a better UI and overall integration, including FortiGate Manager for single-place control over all firewalls.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward and easy, thanks to the support provided. I would rate the ease of setup ten out of ten.

What about the implementation team?

We had the help of the end-of-support team for the setup, which made the process quite straightforward and easy.

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

The price is reasonable for our company. The finance team handles the specifics regarding the license costs.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Palo Alto NG Firewalls before settling on Fortinet FortiGate.

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.
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Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,158 professionals have used our research since 2012.
MOHAN SUKUMAR - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of computer systems at Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology(IIST)
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Helped reduced our cybersecurity risks, is user-friendly, and stable
Pros and Cons
  • "In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable."
  • "I would prefer to have more detailed logs within the FortiGate products themselves rather than relying on a separate tool."

What is our primary use case?

We use Fortinet FortiGate to safeguard our online users, who are primarily students, around the clock.

Over the past seven years, we've utilized Fortinet FortiGate to address a wide range of security challenges. Initially, we implemented a firewall to secure our network perimeter. Subsequently, we sought to protect internal network segments. Next, we implemented application-level security measures. And most recently, we've implemented selective service controls to manage access to applications like Google services, WhatsApp, and video conferencing platforms. These measures have addressed evolving security needs over time. Currently, we're focused on enhancing authentication and remote access security. To achieve this, we're implementing security tokens to verify user identities and ensure authorized access.

How has it helped my organization?

Fortinet FortiGate enables us to comply with regulatory governance and compliance requirements.

FortiGate is one of the security solutions we have implemented to enhance and protect our network infrastructure, including devices, across the campus for all users. Specifically, FortiGate has shielded us from Internet security threats, application threats, and unwanted websites or access to unauthorized web services. For instance, access to classified websites is restricted based on user permissions. This has resulted in a cleaner network environment, not just from a security standpoint but also in terms of overall network performance. Secondly, FortiGate has significantly alleviated the burden on network administrators and server managers. The product has proven to be highly reliable.

It has effectively reduced our risk of cyberattacks. We have experienced a very small number of incidents, primarily due to configuration loopholes. However, FortiGate has been successful in preventing intrusions from the Internet. It has effectively thwarted hacking attempts, making it a valuable tool for our computer and network security.

We operate in an educational setting and do not rely solely on online connectivity. Therefore, an internet outage would only impact academic activities. While some internet services are utilized within our campus primarily for business purposes, they are not entirely internet-dependent. Consequently, the impact of equipment failure is minimal. In the event of equipment malfunction, we have established contingency plans and alternative facilitating services in place. Additionally, our devices are designed for high availability, with two devices functioning as a backup in case one fails. We have not experienced any device failures to date.

It has streamlined the management of our network and security operations. While the machine itself doesn't provide an out-of-the-box solution, its effectiveness hinges on the expertise and security knowledge of its users. Therefore, engineering and security proficiency are paramount to maximizing the benefits of FortiGate.

FortiGate offers a lot of reporting logs and reports. By continuously monitoring these resources, we can gather sufficient information to take immediate action and implement necessary changes. However, the effectiveness of this approach hinges on having dedicated personnel to review and respond to the provided insights. The device itself cannot act autonomously without human intervention and analysis.

FortiGate has helped us reduce our mean time to remediation by 60 percent. Its user-friendly interface facilitates rapid issue resolution.

What is most valuable?

Fortinet FortiGate is an extremely user-friendly product. In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable. Additionally, we have not experienced any downtime, which is of utmost importance.

What needs improvement?

The log analyzer, for instance, is a product being developed as a common solution for multiple FortiGate devices. Consequently, the log analyzer's functionalities are not fully integrated into the individual FortiGate products. I would prefer to have more detailed logs within the FortiGate products themselves rather than relying on a separate tool.

While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security. Fortinet's capabilities are primarily focused on network security.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for over seven years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Fortinet FortiGate is a fixed configuration that depends on the number of nodes and devices.

How are customer service and support?

The support from Fortinet and its vendors is good.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial deployment can be completed in a few days. Two to three people are involved in the deployment.

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

In the Asian economy in which we operate, FortiGate is expensive.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate Fortinet FortiGate eight out of ten.

I'm not involved in the operation of industrial devices. We do, however, have devices that are part of laboratories, and they may be flagged during searches because we belong to the education sector. In any case, FortiGate provides protection, and I wouldn't know the extent of visibility there because it's primarily concerned with providing security for those devices. If they are connected to the network, alright.

We have around 1,500 users and over 3,000 devices that utilize FortiGate.

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
Adeel Razzaq - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Ar at IBEX Holdings Ltd
Real User
Top 10
Highly reliable, reasonably priced, and worth the money
Pros and Cons
  • "Reliability is the best feature. We faced some issues when we were setting it up, but the service, portal, and administration are good."
  • "There are some complex administration tasks in their administration portal. That needs to be improved."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Fortinet for administration over local users that need to connect with our wireless. We have users that come from different domains, and there are certain limits and restrictions that need to be implemented.

How has it helped my organization?

There is not much visible improvement, but it's a stable and reliable environment. We did not see anything critical in the production environment.

What is most valuable?

Reliability is the best feature. We faced some issues when we were setting it up, but the service, portal, and administration are good.

What needs improvement?

There is some development gap. We had experienced bugs in their operating system. When we were planning to upgrade it, there was no patch available for a bug, and the support team was saying that they need to work on that. That's the part they should work on.

There are some complex administration tasks in their administration portal. That needs to be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

It has been around two years since we set it up.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's scalable. We have 1,500 to 2,000 people across the world. We have multiple regions and multiple sites.

How are customer service and support?

We contacted them for a few cases. I would rate them a seven out of ten. They could be better at finding solutions.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

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

This was the first option, but we'll try Cisco as well for our Wi-Fi setup for the next one to two years. 

It was a management call to go for this. They know what is best for their business.

How was the initial setup?

I was not exactly involved in its initial setup, but at a later stage, I had to jump into that. I was more into Cisco setup.

Overall, the setup was easy. There was a portal, and most of the things were similar to other hardware we use, such as Palo Alto. We found some bugs during the setup, and there was not much support available from the Fortinet support team

In terms of maintenance, there are upgrades available roughly every quarter.

What was our ROI?

It's worth the money.

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

The price range is quite acceptable and normal.

What other advice do I have?

It's excellent. The services, administration, and reliability are up to the mark. They just need to improve it a bit. 

I would recommend it if you want to set it up for your business. Overall, I would rate it 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
Luke_Smith - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Infrastructure Lead at Harmony Gold Australia
Real User
Easy to use and provides good visibility of network traffic
Pros and Cons
  • "FortiGate is more feature-rich and has a broader range of hardware. T"
  • "The SD-WAN functionality is a bit overly complicated and not fully documented."

What is our primary use case?

It is just for firewalls and network security.

How has it helped my organization?

It's mostly compliance, like just meeting our security requirements to keep our data secure. We don't make money out of it. It just keeps our data safe.

I have FortiGate for SD-WAN and all access points here, which has helped with traffic shaping capabilities.

I also use AI (Rapid7) to improve my cybersecurity. 

What is most valuable?

It's easy to use and provides good visibility of network traffic.

What needs improvement?

The SD-WAN functionality is a bit overly complicated and not fully documented.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it for six years. 

How are customer service and support?

The customer service and support are good. I can contact them online or over the phone.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

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

I have used Sophos XTM and Palo Alto.

FortiGate is more feature-rich and has a broader range of hardware. They offer switches, access points, firewalls, and the whole network stack, whereas a lot of others only do firewalls.

It's just a good value and the possibility of using those features. We haven't used FortiSwitches yet; we're investigating them at the moment, but we haven't ordered any yet.

How was the initial setup?

The SD-WAN was certainly tricky and took a while to figure out, but the rest of the security features were straightforward.

The deployment took us six months. 

What was our ROI?

It's hard to measure the return on investment, but it certainly helps us manage our security requirements easier than other solutions that I've used.

It's good value for the money.

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

It was worth the money overall. It's good value.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight 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.
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Elvis Mahadeo - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Systems Engineer at Caribbean Development Company
Real User
Has good ECC management feature and a single GUI with excellent monitoring capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "The ECC management and the GUI that offers single interface management are the most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate."
  • "The documentation available for Fortinet FortiGate should be improved"

What is our primary use case?

Our company uses this solution for endpoint network security. 

What is most valuable?

The ECC management and the GUI that offers single interface management are the most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate. 

What needs improvement?

The documentation available for Fortinet FortiGate should be improved. Often, I find documentation of older models and not the latest version of Fortinet FortiGate. I have to often utilize the older documentation and reengineer the information for the latest model of Fortinet FortiGate. 

There are competitor products in the market that can monitor all logs, which are referred to as SOC; Fortinet FortiGate should have such in-built features. The solution should be able to implement machine learning and analytics of all the logs for threat detection and protection. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate for more than a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the stability an eight out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is used daily in our organization. I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten. 

How are customer service and support?

I would rate the tech support an eight out of ten. Our company needs to contact customer support on certain issues. The support team is usually able to resolve the issues by communication over call a few times. Sometimes, there was quite some back-and-forth through support tickets with the vendor team before the issues got resolved. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

Our company previously worked with Juniper, NETGEAR, and Cisco. The devices from the aforementioned vendors reached the End of Life, and their support was expiring in our company, so we switched to Fortinet FortiGate to have visibility and manage all devices through a single vendor. 

How was the initial setup?

I would rate the initial setup a nine out of ten. Due to some network complexities, we had to schedule the downtime of our organization's business, so the initial deployment of Fortinet FortiGate took more time than anticipated. But the setup process was seamless and our company didn't face any abrupt down time. 

At our company, first, we prepared a deployment plan and then divided the services into varying areas based on which the deployment was performed in phases. Only two professionals, a system engineer, and an infrastructure manager, are required to deploy Fortinet FortiGate.

Another two individuals are needed to maintain the solution with the same aforementioned professional job designations. In our company, we didn't face any issues while integrating Fortinet FortiGate with our existing infrastructure and even with other tools.

What about the implementation team?

A third-party team deployed the solution for our organization. 

What was our ROI?

In our company, we haven't realized an ROI yet, as the solution was implemented just a year ago. There are some devices that I need in addition to other area devices of my company, we are in process of renewing all old devices with newer versions.

In the next few months, our company will be able to obtain the actual capex purchase with at least ten switches. Fortinet FortiGate is worth the money, offers multiple solutions under one roof. 

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

I would rate the pricing a five out of ten. Our company onboarded the solution through a traditional capex purchase of the standard license with three years of customer support. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Our company has been using Fortinet FortiGate since 2009 at the firewall level, due to familiarity with the RTO and FortiGate environment, complete adoption of Fortinet FortiGate was an easier choice than other solutions for a single clear management. 

Fortinet FortiGate also had all the features that our company was expecting, and in terms of ease of management, opting for the same vendor from firewall to edge device was a comfortable option. 

What other advice do I have?

Previously, in our organization, we didn't have a network monitoring tool. With the adoption of Fortinet FortiGate, we can now check the port level of the switches that can be witnessed at the EP end, where all devices remain connected to the network. The management and monitoring are the major benefits of Fortinet FortiGate. 

I would advise others to consider adopting the solution without hesitation. I read the latest Gartner Magic Quadrant report, and it mentioned that, based on its track record, Fortinet can compete with the best in terms of network and security solutions.

For the last five years I believe Fortinet has dominated the market. I recently attended a Fortinet event where I met all the local and regional support team; I learned that the vendor is continually expanding, and in our region, we can easily avail support and guidance regarding Fortinet solutions whenever required. 

The monitoring subscription that is provided with the Fortinet FortiGate has built-in AI features for the past three years. I believe Fortinet is in the sixth generation of their AI and ML utilizing the native infrastructure. Thus, the AI features have been available for a long time in Fortinet FortiGate, but they are promoting it now due to the market trends. I would overall rate the solution an eight 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.
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Taimoor Khan - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Operations Engineer at Inara Technologies
Reseller
Top 10
Helpful support, good UI, and provides excellent visibility
Pros and Cons
  • "It's very good and very stable for businesses. It works very well."
  • "They should offer special pricing to premium partners and customers."

What is our primary use case?

We've deployed FortiGate on some customer premises. We've also deployed other Fortinet products, such as FortiMail and FortiManager. We often bundle Fortinet devices. We use FortiGate as a firewall. It is for security and protection. 

How has it helped my organization?

The solution has helped our clients secure their network efficiently. It offers security across multiple sites and helps monitor traffic effectively.

What is most valuable?

It's very good and very stable for businesses. It works very well. 

The UI is better than the alternatives. 

We like using Fortinet devices. They integrate well with one another.

Fortinet provides good visibility and segmentation.

Fortinet's devices are purpose-built to operate in various environments. It operates well across clouds. We can run Fortigate as an MSP.

It helps with intrusion prevention specific to various environments. It provides us with details about the traffic for better monitoring. 

FortiGate has helped reduce the risk of cyberattacks that might disrupt our client's production. 

The product provides policies for strict monitoring to make the network secure. If something hits against a policy, it will be blocked.

What needs improvement?

We'd like to see the product offer higher discounts to users. They should offer special pricing to premium partners and customers. 

For how long have I used the solution?

The company has been using the solution for the last five or so years. I've maybe used it for three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability depends on the FortiGate model. You need the right model for the amount of GB traffic. If a customer deploys a smaller model on more traffic, there may be issues. Otherwise, it handles traffic well. Overall, it's a stable solution. I'd rate stability nine out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Our clients are quite sizable. One of them is one of the biggest telecoms in our country. We also have smaller customers that deal with smaller FortiGate models. We have a variety of customers of different sizes from around the country.

It's a scalable solution. I'd rate it nine out of ten. 

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is good. They offer very accurate solutions. We learn a lot from them. We're happy with their level of service. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

We typically deploy the solution to our client's VMs. The deployment sometimes takes about a month. We have a team of 12 people who work on the FortiGate side. 

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

Their services are good, and we are happy to work with them, however, the pricing could be cheaper. 

What other advice do I have?

We're a Fortinet partner. 

If we have the option of which firewall to choose, whether Fortinet, Cisco, Juniper, et cetera, we will choose Fortinet. We're very comfortable with their devices. We have a very skillful team, and we've become very comfortable with Fortinet. They have good support as well.

I'd rate the solution ten 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: Partner
PeerSpot user
RahoolSharma - PeerSpot reviewer
Lead Network Engineer at Afiniti
Real User
Top 5
Has enables a reduction in our security budget
Pros and Cons
  • "I'm looking forward to FortiGate's dashboard features, insights, application oversight, and monitoring, which could help us significantly."
  • "FortiGate has led to a reduction in our security budget."
  • "The configuration part was challenging, especially converting configurations from another OEM to FortiGate."
  • "The configuration part was challenging, especially converting configurations from another OEM to FortiGate."

What is our primary use case?

We use FortiGate as the edge firewall. We integrate it with our APIs over Microsoft Azure. We work in the VOIP industry, and our services are prone to latency. Security is a major concern for us as a U.S. research company, where we frequently test attacks. FortiGate handles these attacks well.

How has it helped my organization?

FortiGate has led to a reduction in our security budget. Our management decided to switch to FortiGate because it offers all the necessary features and even improved features within our budget.

What is most valuable?

I'm looking forward to FortiGate's dashboard features, insights, application oversight, and monitoring, which could help us significantly.

What needs improvement?

As of now, I haven't identified areas for improvement. However, once the firewall is in production and all traffic is shifted, I might be able to provide more feedback. The configuration part was challenging, especially converting configurations from another OEM to FortiGate.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working on FortiGate devices for around four years. In my previous role, we used FortiGate based on the requirements and budget constraints. Currently, my organization is transitioning to FortiGate in the Azure environment as part of the migration phase.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate FortiGate's stability as a nine out of ten, reflecting that there have been no major issues with stability so far.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

FortiGate's scalability is rated eight out of ten. We expect network expansion both over the cloud and on-premises, and we believe FortiGate will perform well in this scenario.

How are customer service and support?

We had a single instance requiring FortiGate's technical support, which was effective in solving the problem. I rate their support as eight out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We used other vendors, like Cisco. FortiGate was chosen due to its cost-effectiveness and its ability to offer improved features within our budget.

How was the initial setup?

The installation process does not take much time, but the migration phase from Cisco to FortiGate is expected to take about ten days.

What about the implementation team?

We have a separate team responsible for deployments over the cloud, while our networks and security team manages migrations and operations of the devices.

What was our ROI?

There has been a cost reduction in our security budget after implementing FortiGate, attributed to its offering of essential features at a reduced cost compared to previous vendors.

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

We pay for additional services like perpetual licenses. Despite this, FortiGate is considered a cost-effective solution. I rate the pricing as a five out of ten, reflecting a balance between cost and benefit.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also use other vendors like Cisco, Netgate, Ubiquiti, and others in our environment.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend this product. In future updates, it would be beneficial to see automation features, such as real-time alerts via phone, which we currently get from other OEMs.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: January 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.