We performed a comparison between OPNsense and Palo Alto Networks PA-Series based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."Fortinet FortiGate is easy to use. Anyone can easily maintain it."
"I appreciate FortiGate's flexibility, which allows for centralized management through FortiManager."
"The solution is extremely reliable."
"A strong point of FortiGate is that the graphical interface is complete and easy to use, especially if we think there is a list of operations that we are able to perform inside."
"Reliability is the best feature. We faced some issues when we were setting it up, but the service, portal, and administration are good."
"The user interface (UI) is very, very good."
"It is user friendly, and has all the features you need."
"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is URL filtering."
"The solution is user-friendly and easy to configure."
"I find the solution to be user-friendly. It has a lot of reports and easy settings."
"The interface and the dashboard are the most valuable features of this solution."
"OPNsense is highly stable."
"The DNS-level filtering is impressive for thwarting time scanners."
"It is a very good solution. I like the dashboard. I can see what is going on and manage it as I like it."
"We have found pretty much all the features of the solution to be valuable."
"OPNsense is easy to use and open source."
"It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The most effective features for threat prevention in the PA-Series are its integration with Cortex and the use of machine learning AI for advanced threat detection."
"Comprehensive logging is essential for monitoring and analysis purposes. For remote users, the firewall can be configured as a VPN concentrator, with VPN policies defined within the firewall settings."
"The solution has a three-layer architecture, and it helps customers to deploy the solution quickly."
"The solution is easy to manage."
"The cloud-based aspect helps significantly. It integrates seamlessly with other Palo products like Prisma Cloud, offers robust VPN protection, and it's all in one convenient package."
"The solution is robust."
"App-ID is a really good feature."
"WAN load-balancing could be a lot better at detecting when a link is poor or inconsistent, and not just flat out dead."
"The performance could be a bit better. Right now, I find it to be lacking. Having good performance is very important for our work."
"There can be more security in hybrid implementations. When a customer has a hybrid environment where some parts are in the cloud, we need a consistent security solution for such scenarios."
"The Web-filter in this solution is not very good."
"It should come integrated or have its own type of network monitor tool in a module. There should just be one package, and you are good to go."
"Some of the features in the graphical user interface do not work, which requires that we used the command-line-interface."
"The stability of Fortinet FortiGate could improve."
"Currently, FortiGate is providing SSL VPN. But they're missing some features that are available in Palo Alto's SSL VPN."
"There are a few weaknesses. For example, there is a lack of some features that I have in certain commercial products."
"The interface of the solution is an area with shortcomings."
"The scalability needs improvement."
"The interface isn't so friendly user. But we have some technicians here who are quite confident with this tool. OPNSense could maybe add sets of rules so it's simpler to manage different groups with particular needs."
"I would like to see better SD-WAN performance."
"There are issues with stability and reliability."
"The interface needs to be simplified. It is not user-friendly."
"You will need additional training before you can actually start to use it."
"As we migrate fully into the cloud, additional features like capacity upgrading and improvements to hardware resources will be necessary, especially since our equipment consists of older-generation switches and routers."
"Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is expensive. We would like to see additional threat hunting features."
"The SD-WAN feature of Palo Alto Networks is not good compared to FortiGate."
"In future releases, maybe Palo Alto can enhance and enlarge their portfolio with SIEM solutions. They already have an endpoint protection solution, SOAR solution, that's fine. But when it comes to standalone IDS/IPS solution or email security solution, for example, we don't have any product in that category for Palo Alto."
"The technical support offered by Palo Alto is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"Compared to other vendors, the solution's community should be strong enough to solve the problems engineers face."
"I have found that the tool works well for me, but there are areas where security testing and protection could be improved, especially in virtual or cloud environments. However, in this project, once we deployed it, we haven't encountered any issues. The cost is currently manageable, but as we migrate fully into the cloud, additional features like capacity upgrading and improvements to hardware resources will be necessary, especially since our equipment consists of older generation switches and routers. So, I'm looking for additional capabilities in these areas."
"There seem to be some issues with TAC (Technical Assistance Center) or Palo Alto support. Anytime you open a case, a level one engineer joins, and then you have to escalate it to level two or three. The support system has changed in the past few years, and that's something they need to look into."
OPNsense is ranked 3rd in Firewalls with 36 reviews while Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is ranked 16th in Firewalls with 28 reviews. OPNsense is rated 8.4, while Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of OPNsense writes "Robust network security and management offering a user-friendly interface, open-source flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, with challenges regarding initial setup and the absence of official support". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Palo Alto Networks PA-Series writes "Offers trained customer support, stability and ease of use ". OPNsense is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, Untangle NG Firewall, Sophos UTM and IPFire, whereas Palo Alto Networks PA-Series is most compared with SonicWall NSa, Juniper SRX Series Firewall, Sophos XG, Netgate pfSense and WatchGuard Firebox. See our OPNsense vs. Palo Alto Networks PA-Series report.
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