SonicWall NSa Reviews

We primarily use the solution from our firewall endpoint VPN. It does have a spam filter, SSL, DPI, and numerous other security features. We've got the full license suite.

The DPI-SSL is the solution's most valuable aspect. It's handy. It's nice.

The scalability is okay.

The initial implementation isn't too bad, once you get used to the process.

We're not happy with the device itself. We're obviously moving away from it for a reason that they're a Swiss pocket-knife of devices and they do a lot. However, nothing is really done well. They don't specialize in one thing that they excel at. They try instead to do almost everything and end up failing.

We're not particularly fond of the way it generally performs. We are finding ourselves rebooting often. There are freeze-ups and that kind of thing. The stability needs to improve exponentially.

Technical support is pretty slow to respond and escalate matters.

The cost of the solution is quite high.

The solution could use an invisible DPI-SSL or something that doesn't require a certificate rewrite. Most of the other vendors are doing that now. 

The SSL VPN performance-wise is terrible.

We've been using the solution for about three years at this point.

The stability isn't the best. It freezes. We have to reboot a lot. The device just doesn't work very well.

The scalability is okay, It's marginal, however, it is possible.

We have about 300 people on-premises that use the solution.

We've been in touch with technical support, ad currently, we find them to be below average in their support capabilities. Firewall support is just adequate. Right now, with COVID and everything, you are looking at 45 minutes to an hour to get the first technician on the phone. Often it takes two or three days to get it escalated. It's slow.

I personally previously used Cisco devices at another company, and therefore I have some experience with them. 

We're currently migrating away from this solution at the moment. We do not like the way the device performs.

In terms of deployment, there is a bit of a learning curve right off the top, as I come from a Cisco ASA background. It's more object-based, a little bit different. Once you get the knack of it, it's actually pretty nice in some ways.

That said, operationally, I would recommend anybody that deploys one of these to make sure they develop their own SOP for naming conventions, for objects, object groups, object types, service groups, service objects, et cetera, so that it's easier to manage and understand what you're doing. Generally speaking, it's just a best practices kind of process for administrative work. If you've got multiple admins, it's important that everything is contiguous, meaning everybody understands and works under that same parameters. It's like any other operating environment.

In terms of maintenance, there are two of us that generally manage it and maintain it on a fairly regular basis. I'm a network engineer and the department manager, who's not a system engineer, (however, is well-versed), also can perform maintenance as needed.

We handled the implementation in-house. We did not need an integrator or consultant to assist us.

While I don't know the exact amount off the top of my head, I would estimate the licensing package was about $15,000 to $20,000 a year.

Your original purchase includes the purchase of the hardware, licensing, and support. It's not a cheap device. 

We are customers and end-users.

We are currently using the NSA 4600. It's a full security appliance. We're using the latest version of the solution.

It's our primary firewall/VPN endpoint. It's used 24/7, 365. Due to the nature of our work, uptime is critical.

Ultimately, if you were to ask me if I were to recommend this device, I would say no.

I'd rate the solution at a three out of ten, simple due to the fact that the stability isn't there, and it's an expensive solution.

I use the solution to filter the IPs. Our users also use it for connectivity purposes.

The product blocks access when I visit unrecognized websites. The tool blocks some IP addresses.

The dashboard must be improved. The product should enable alerts. When hackers compromise our websites and applications, it will help us alert our staff and network administrators.

I have been using the solution for two to three years.

I rate the tool’s stability a seven out of ten. We face glitches sometimes.

I rate the tool’s scalability an eight out of ten. We have approximately 1200 users in our organization.

My colleagues are happy with the response time and quality of support.

Positive

The setup is simple.

The solution is cheaper than others. It has a reasonable price.

I will recommend the tool to others. Overall, I rate the product an eight out of ten.

We use the solution to provide edge security. We provide edge policies and protection. We use a very old version.

I rate the performance an eight out of ten. The product is simple to manage. It is a good solution.

The scope of management must be improved. The scope of what users can do with the product must be improved. The product must enable integration with endpoint protection tools.

I have been using the solution for a couple of years.

I rate the tool’s stability an eight out of ten.

I rate the tool’s scalability a five out of ten. We don’t need to scale. However, if we need scalability, we will have to change the solution.

The price is reasonable. The tool is cheap.

We did not see much improvement in our organization after using SonicWall NSa. We are evaluating other tools.

Overall, I rate the tool a seven out of ten.

We're using the solution as a gateway-level device.

It's good for firewall and gateway-level security. The VPN service is quite good, including the site-to-site VPN.

It works well for the corporate sector. 

Sometimes I have some queries, and the SonicWall support team resolves my queries.

It offers a very straightforward setup. 

I do not see any specific areas that need improvement. 

The solution can be a bit expensive. 

I've been using the solution for more than ten years. 

It's stable and reliable. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

SonicWall is scalable. Currently, I have two NSa 4600s and they are good for my users.

We have around 400 people using the solution. 

At this time, there is no plan to increase usage. 

Technical support has been good. 

Positive

I previously used Sophos.

The solution is easy to set up. It is also easy to deploy. How long it takes to deploy depends on your work culture and how you want to use it. 

For my organization, I deployed it with my support partner, and it has been working fine over the last few years.

There is a good ROI.

For some services, we have to pay for a license. We need to renew for either one or three years.

It can be quite expensive compared to other products with the same features. 

I have the on-premise model, and I have the TZ270. There are more than 20 devices.

I can recommend it to people who are somewhat technical. They would have no trouble with SonicWall products.

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. 

We primarily use the solution for just securing our users and creating a LAN through VPN tunnels. We use it to provide remote access to a cloud service.

It has allowed us to work remotely when the order to shelter in place went into effect in March of this year due to COVID-19.

The most valuable aspect of the solution is its ability to work like any other firewall.

The product is pretty easy to configure. It's easy to maintain and it works well with Windows.

There are features that offer 3G, 4G, failover, wireless, and things like that are very good. I'm not a firewall expert, however, in my opinion, the solution pretty much covers the needs of small and medium businesses.

Currently, I just have the basic modules turned on. I'd love to see how it works in terms of preventing more malware from getting through.

We still get phishing emails that manage to come through from time to time.

The solution could use a bit more security.

We had issues with the VPN tunnel between two sites. It wouldn't stay up. That was a problem for us. They need to fix it if they find it happens across the board to other customers.

This company has been using the solution for good three years.

The solution is stable. I've had one running for a little over 300 days without any problem. There aren't bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable.

The scalability is pretty good. I can scale out and add a firewall within a new office if I need to. If an organization wants to scale, they should be able to do so with no problems. Everyone working in our office uses the solution. Anybody that has a work laptop that needs to remote work from outside the office can do so as well. It's 100% used across the board.

I had to call support when one of my VPNs was failing. The VPN tunnel between two sites wouldn't stay up and they had us use a different security protocol.

They were very helpful. I found them to be quite responsive and knowledgeable. I don't think the problem with the VPN should have been there in the first place, however, that said, they did help us. I'd rate them, overall, at a nine out of ten.

The initial setup isn't too complex. My understanding is that it's straightforward. I didn't set it up myself, however, it's got configuration wizards to walk a user through. This no doubt is quite helpful and makes it pretty simple in terms of implementation.

The pricing is pretty reasonable. We don't find it to be overly expensive.

The version we are using is NSA 20 or 60.

If a company is looking for a good product that's easy to configure, I would suggest they consider SonicWall.

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. If we didn't have that trouble with the VPN tunnel, I would give it a perfect score.

We have installed this firewall appliance across cloud and on-premises environments, our clients primarily use the VPN functionality.

If a customer wants to use the firewall, they have to pay more money for the cloud. By having a firewall solution, they can configure the VPN through the firewall, enabling them to avoid the high costs. Once you deploy the firewall in the cloud solution, then you will get protection for the gateway as well.

We are a service-based company and have implemented over 200 appliances for our customers.

The VPN functionality and intrusion prevention service (IPS) are the most valuable features.

I am a technical engineer, I have complete knowledge of SonicWall. I can do all of the configurations for the firewall. We are a service-based company and I handle the different solutions. If they need any requirement or they any action on the firewall then I can do that myself. 

The only thing that needs improvement is the VPN because we need to pay to connect the points.

I have been using SonicWall for 5 years.

We have found the NSa appliance to be stable and is comparable to FortiGate.

We have expanded the solution with several of our customers and this worked great. We have over 200 customers who use SonicWall.

Level 1 and 2 support issues are handled by our in-house team, but for more complex, level 3 issues we utilise the vendor. The call response is great.

The initial setup was straightforward.

We are a service-based provider and implement in-house.

We also implement similar appliances from Fortinet and Sophos.

I would rate it a ten out of ten. It's a good security product, so I wouldn’t give it a lower rating.

The tool is easy to manage with a friendly GUI.

SonicWall provides endpoint security with advanced protection. Moreover, SonicWall includes access points and additional features.

The product could expand its throughput capacity.

I have been using SonicWall NSa as a reseller for 19 years.

The SonicWall NSa is considered a high-end midrange firewall suitable for integrating small businesses and main offices. The range of NSa models can accommodate from as few as 250 users with the smallest model to 1,400 users with the NSa 6700 model.

All those features are the same, but NSa SonicWall is cheaper than other solutions. It has a Secure Upgrade Plus offering, with options for either one plus one or two plus one.

The initial setup is fair and quick. Deploying a certain firewall takes three or four hours, depending on the client's requirements.

We are also selling SonicWall products. We have a dedicated team that handles the deployment process. As a pre-sales engineer, I conduct presentations on the NSa and facilitate client discussions.

SonicWall is free for the first year and chargeable for the second year if you opt for two years.

The NSa is a model of SonicWall firewall. It encompasses firewall, content filtering, DNS filtering, antivirus scanning, and primary and advanced firewall requirements.

It helps with threat prevention up to the memory level.

I recommend the solution.

Overall, I rate the solution nine out of ten.

My primary use case is web filtering, VPN, and sometimes UTM. I can check a VPN for point-to-point connectivity with this solution.

The features I found most valuable are email security and web filtering.

The features I would like to see improve are the dashboard and the UI.

In the next release, I'd like to see APIs included.

I have been working with SonicWall for approximately two to three years.

I would rate the stability of this solution a nine, on a scale from one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 being the best.

I would rate the scalability of this solution an eight, on a scale from one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 being the best.

I would say the initial setup was easy. I'd rate it an eight, on a scale from one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 being the best.

When deploying, you first use a gateway, ISP terminated in the firewall, and then terminate to the user end. Usually, deployment takes two to three years.

The deployment was done by one or two engineers.

I have experience with Fortinet and I would say this solution is much better suited for SMB customers, while SonicWall is better for large enterprises.

I would recommend this solution to enterprise customers.

Overall, I would rate this solution an eight, on a scale from one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 being the best.