Fortinet FortiOS Reviews

The fact that is it has a UTM, a Unified Threat Management feature is the most valuable aspect for us. It's an all in one product. It's like our one-stop-shop to the internet.

The complexity of the VPNs should be improved. Certain versions of the operating system don't function with our current Fortinet unit. For instance, we've got a 60D FortiGate at our branch offices and the 60D FortiGate doesn't support the latest version of the 40 OS. Because of this, certain Wi-Fi access points that depend on those operating systems don't function so well. So that has room for improvement. I'd like to see that happen.

My impression is the solution is very stable.

I find the solution scalable. With my current employer, we have a high available cluster. You can extend it and also extend it with Wi-fi access points because the controller of the Wi-Fi access points is also in the 40GB range. We've got about 300 personnel in the offices and we've got about 1,000 or more employees in the trucks and they all use it, at different times.

Technical support has been pretty good. At one point, because we've got a lot of drivers - we're a transportation organization - those drivers have mobile phones and at one point we implemented a new mobile phone which uses the Wi-Fi network. The new phones couldn't connect with the Wi-Fi access point and Fortinet pretty much came in quickly with a patch for the Wi-Fi access points.

The initial setup was straightforward. It comes with a quick book, a manual, and without any experience from day one, I implemented successfully without any help. It was pretty straightforward.

I implemented the solution myself.

Seven years ago I was looking into Palo Alto Firewalls.

It's a good reliable product. I'd rate it as a solid eight out of 10. It has room left for improvement.

We'd chosen the solution because of the price and the support contract, but just a few years later the support contact pricing was all of a sudden pretty steep. They increased it by 20% to 30% from one year to another year, and it's hard to explain why.

We are still using it in our company. We use FortiOS primarily for perimeter security and network segmentation.

In terms of benefits, it’s a standard solution used by many, and our customers and partners widely utilize the VPN features. It’s elementary to work with and implement because it is familiar across different infrastructures.

Sometimes, Fortinet FortiOS changes its CLI (command line interface) with new versions, which leads to internal incompatibility. When this happens, you need to update the configuration to match the new format, as the commands aren’t always the same. This can create some confusion and extra work because, unlike other vendors where the CLI commands remain primarily consistent with updates, Fortinet often changes the syntax between versions.

We have been using Fortinet FortiOS for more than six years.

Fortinet FortiOS is very scalable and can handle many users, depending on your hardware. Expanding it when needed is straightforward.

It’s generally good, but there’s always room for improvement.

Positive

The complexity of implementing and setting up Fortinet FortiOS depends on the customer'srequirements. With a network map of a hundred nodes, it could be either very complex or straightforward. There isn't a standard rule for this; it varies based on the specific design and planning needed. It would be best to have a straightforward design and a good plan before implementing. If the design isn't well done, you might need to make changes during the project, which isn't ideal.The time required for a full implementation of FortiOS can vary
significantly. It might be small but complex or large but straightforward—tthere'sno one-size-fits-
all pattern.

For maintenance, FortiOS requires attention to patches because it handles many functions and can be complex. It's crucial to stay updated on your running version and check for any reported vulnerabilities to avoid potential issues.

The return on investment for FortiOS is good but not exceptional. It’s close to breaking even; not every case justifies the renewal cost.

Regarding the cost, the initial purchase is relatively cheap because it comes bundled. However, the subscription renewals can be quite expensive. The renewal costs are high, even though the initial purchase might include discounts.

Overall, I would rate Fortinet FortiOS an 8 out of 10. It’s a solid product but could improve in areas like update management. Currently, it’s up to the user to check for updates, and Fortinet doesn’t proactively notify you about necessary updates. If they know your version, they should inform you directly about any needed upgrades instead of relying on you to check.

We use it as Fortinet as a edge firewall Fortinet protection and SSL VPN FortiOS Vivo SS.

The SSL VPN is fee for use is most attractive.

A switch should be introduced. 

I have been working with Fortinet FortiOS for 2023. 

The solution is moderately stable. I would rate the stability a seven out of ten. 

The clients are primarily small businesses. 

The initial setup was straightforward. I would date the setup a six out of ten. The deployment takes few minutes time. 

The solution is cost effective. I would rate the pricing a five out of ten. 

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight out of ten. 

Our primary use case for this solution is for deploying network security systems for SMBs or mid-range corporations.

We use the SSL VPN web portal and we actually find it very useful because we don't need to bother with installing additional client-side software.

The most valuable part of the application is the graphic user interface of the application where you can see specifically what's going on in the system at a glance and quickly assess the system. The GUI is very good.

One thing that should be improved in future versions is an issue we have observed and had problems with a few times. When we try to reinstall a backup for FortiOS, you need to do a factory reset manually or you lose access to a device. I have experienced this situation a few times and it seems like something that should not be required and they should resolve.

I think the product is a pretty stable solution. I did have some cases with the webserver where the appliance actually crashed. Later I research about the issue and I found out that it was actually a bug in the latest version. I imagine that because they know they will issue a fix if they have not already.

I recommend this product to my clients partly because of the scalability. Scaling is never really a problem though it may cost more if the client requires additional licensing or hardware.

I don't often have to contact support. When I do I usually just get help from the online community. I really don't contact their support directly.

I go about initial setup by just implementing the configuration using CLI (Command Line Interface) to propagate the components. I think the initial setup is straightforward.

We are the consultants and we do the installations.

I think the cost of the product categorizes FortiOS because it is a bit more expensive than small businesses will usually want to spend. It is not really practical for SMB or for small businesses. It is mostly for mid-range or higher SMBs because of the pricing. It is not expensive compared to some products, but a small business may not justify the cost. The cost ends up being dependent on the solution you choose and if you want individual or package licensing.

As consultants, we provide different customers with different solutions based on what they need. So, there is no specific product that we evaluate as there are always several options. Mainly I use Fortinet or Sophos solutions to recommend to my customers. We will use on-premises or cloud depending on the needs and how it fits for the client. For Fortinet FortiOS we usually use it in on-premises installations.

I do recommend this product to clients for use but it depends on their case needs. For example, in the AAA (Authentication Authorization and Accounting) some of the accounting and some of the VPN tunneling features are removed from Fortinet FortiOS due to some security configurations. In some projects, we need those features for the client and when that is the case, I cannot recommend that the client use the FortiOS solution.

It would be a better product if there were a logging feature. You need to have FortiAnalyzer in your installation to have logging management capabilities. It will be a better solution if some logging and history capabilities were integrated without requiring an additional product installation.

On a scale from one to ten, where one is the worst and 10 is the best, I would rate Fortinet FortiOS a seven. It is a good product but there are a few problems.

Fortinet FortiOS is the operating system(OS) for the appliance to work.

The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiOS are the granular control and their interoperability is good.

Fortinet FortiOS can improve the GUI and remove the command line interface. All the functionality should be available from the GUI. Day-to-day management can be tough for IT administrators. Additionally, the reporting is not very good.

I have been using Fortinet FortiOS for approximately 10 years.

I have not used support very often. I have been able to figure out the problems myself.

I have used other solutions, such as SonicWall. I have found SonicWall's GUI to be less complicated than Fortinet FortiOS.

If I have to implement through the Fortinet FortiOS I have to go through multiple screens. For example, if I need to configure a simple VPN, and a site-to-site Sec VPN channel, in Fortinet FortiOS, I may have to go through multiple GUI pages or screens. Whereas, in SonicWall, everything can be done on one page.

When comparing the ease of configuration and management, with SonicWall, I find Fortigate needs some improvement. If it was improved it would make it a lot easier for implementers.

I recommend this solution to others.

I rate Fortinet FortiOS an eight out of ten because the reporting, configuration, and management for the IT administrators could improve.

We use Fortinet FortiOS to control all the security and networking capabilities in all our FortiGates devices across our entire network.

Firewall and overall management are valuable features. They are a leader in the market.

The reporting and monitoring could improve, they have a lot of limitations. The monitoring is not easy compared to the other firewall.

I have been using this solution within the past 12 months.

The solution is stable.

I have used Palo Alto solutions.

I rate Fortinet FortiOS a nine out of ten.

The primary use case is for integrated cybersecurity.  

The VDOM (Virtual DOM) is a virtualized firewall that has some opportunities for flexibility that are an advantage in certain configurations. The other valuable part is that this flexibility makes it easy to integrate with Cisco products.  

The product really has everything that we need as far as features for this type of solution and our use case. It works fine for us. One thing that can be improved is the pricing model. It is currently subscription-based and I think they should probably try to change that.  

We have been using FortiO since around 2016. So we have been using it for four years.  

We had some issues with the stability of FortiOS, but I do not think it was because of Fortinet. It was because of how the integrator handled the configurations. The partner that implemented it originally did not do it optimally. We ended up having to change the partner in order to have it done correctly.  

So far we are satisfied with the technical support. We have not had a lot of need to use them.  

We had been using Check Point and we still use it. In fact, we have been working with Check Point more than Fortinet. I may be a bit biased toward Check Point because I already have more implementation support for it than FortiOS.  

The difference between the price of the products is also obvious. Pricing is more flexible with Check Point than with Fortinet. Fortinet ends up being more expensive because of the pricing scheme.  

The pros and cons of them are not so much different. If it were my choice and we were going to change what we use or choose between the two, then we would move back to using Check Point exclusively. 

I think that the setup was a bit complex because we have a complex network. Because of that, we had to do some interoperability testing first and that made the initial setup take longer than it would in another, simpler environment.  

The initial setup is one other area that could be simplified.  

We used a partner for the implementation. We ended up having to replace them with a different partner because of installation issues. The second partner was able to fix the issues.  

The costs for the maintenance and subscription for Fortinet FortiOS software alone is actually half of the cost of the hardware. For example, if your hardware costs were about $40,000, your yearly subscription to FortiOS is about $20,000. That is kind of the drawback to using Fortinet. By comparison, that $60,000 is already three years of maintenance or support with Check Point for the same scale setup. It is a significant cost difference.  

I would probably recommend Check Point to most users considering FortiO if they do not have any ACI (Application Centric Infrastructure) implementation or a Cisco ACI. If you could do a workaround on the ACI, then I would probably still recommend Check Point. But if you do not know how to make that type of adjustment or can not and you do not have any partners that need to access your systems, then it is better you go for Fortinet.  

The solution's most valuable feature is its ability to work efficiently with large-scale firewall deployments. Also, it provides custom segmentation for the firewall without adding any additional devices. It helps in reducing the cost of testing purposes.

The solution's firmware updates have significant bugs and issues. They affect the network and firewall. This particular area needs improvement. Also, they should include an advanced firewall feature.

I have been using the solution for two years.

I rate the solution's stability as seven.

I rate the solution's scalability a seven. The major bugs in the firmware update affect the scaling capabilities as well.

The solution's initial setup process is easy.

I rate the solution as a seven out of ten.