We performed a comparison between Netgate pfSense and SonicWall NSv 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."The most valuable features are simplicity, management, and that it's constantly evolving."
"I like Fortinet FortiGate's antispam filter, SPN, and clustering features."
"Fortinet FortiGate protects against internet-based threats, both internal and external. It is scalable, stable, easy to use, and easy to install."
"We've found the solution to be pretty stable."
"The base firewall features are quite valuable to us."
"The security fabric is excellent."
"It has very easy management and an amazing ETM configuration."
"Fortinet FortiGate is easy to use."
"pfSense helped us during COVID-19 because we used OpenVPN to connect from home."
"This solution has increased the level of security, given us more control, provided a deep insight into network traffic, and is a great VPN solution."
"I had some outages in the network and we provide services for our company. We sell mobile credits. The terminal gets access to our own server inside the network and if one internet fails, then the other one is still up and we have a back-up link on the devices."
"It has a good web cache. I used to use a DHCP server and DNS server. For my company, I use pfSense as a load balancing application."
"The "OpenVPN Client Export" package is really helpful in exporting the VPN client software on most popular devices: iOS/Android, Windows, Mac, Linux, and a handful of SIP handsets."
"I especially like the VPN part. It works like a charm."
"At our peak time, we have reached more than 5,000 concurrent connections."
"The main features of this solution are customization and ease to use."
"The security of this system is fantastic, including the IPS and IDS."
"We purchased the AGSS Bundle (Advanced Gateway Security Suite) for the security services, such as antivirus, intrusion prevention system, and anti-spyware botnet GUI."
"SonicWall NSV is easy to use, and you can use it to manage the logs easily."
"The solution has no additional charges and no restrictions on the number of users."
"The product helps improve our security."
"One of the standout features of SonicWall is its simplicity in creating and managing rules."
"The customization of firewall rules provides great value to our customers as it allows them to lock things up in the way that they desire. When it is used for internal access, with a VPN in place for remote workers, the firewalling services provided by Azure, such as the default services that can be turned on, are applied. However, the use of a software-based virtual firewall gives us greater flexibility in introducing security controls for customers who are publishing applications that are publicly accessible from the public cloud. This virtual firewall provides an additional layer of security and more extensive security control options to ensure the protection of our customers' valuable information and assets."
"It's my understanding that more of the current generation features could be brought in. There could be more integration with EDRs, for example."
"In the next release, maybe the documentation on how to use this solution could be improved."
"I would like to see improvements in the support from Fortinet. Here in the Philippines, whenever we have problems with a Fortinet product, we mostly ask for support from distributors and resellers and not directly from Fortinet."
"The inability to scale the FortiAnalyzer to match our growth necessitates the purchase of new hardware."
"Pricing for it is a bit high. It could be cheaper."
"I would like to see better pricing in the next release, as well as a simplification of the installation."
"For the migration, everyone has a firewall in use and I am selling Fortinet. Typically, I am replacing another firewall. Previously, there was a tool available to convert configurations from one firewall, such as Palo Alto, to Fortinet, but this tool is no longer free. If it could be made free again, it would be very beneficial."
"Fortinet already improved FortiGate, but in the current market, many brands of security devices have improved together. Fortinet still needs to catch up with market standards. Fortinet is lacking in features in comparison to competitors."
"The solution’s interface must be improved."
"Needs services on additional features, such as managing inventory and generating reports."
"Also, simplifying the rules for the GeoIP. Making it simpler to understand would be an improvement."
"I believe improving integration with various antivirus vendors could be beneficial."
"For the third-party packages, I'd rather have it built-in, like a core feature of pfSense, part of the core model."
"Perhaps the documentation is not clear and because it is supported in the community there is no basic documentation."
"They could improve their commercial stance and be more agile when it comes to the commercial pricing of enterprise deals."
"The technical support needs to be improved."
"We face some challenges when we upgrade the solution."
"An area that could be improved is the export and import settings functionality."
"I would like to see the reporting opened up and have several more opportunities for automatic reports."
"SonicWall NSV's initial setup is complicated and requires good knowledge."
"It has been brought to our attention by a few customers that they are dissatisfied with the fact that our virtualized service is only offered as a subscription option on the cloud. However, it is worth noting that many other similar services are also offered through a subscription model on the cloud and not through perpetual licensing. It is unclear why these customers would have an issue with this subscription service when so many others are utilizing similar methods."
"SonicWall NSV's SSL VPN could increase its number of users to 100-plus users."
"There are limitations to bandwidth management."
Netgate pfSense is ranked 1st in Firewalls with 128 reviews while SonicWall NSv is ranked 35th in Firewalls with 7 reviews. Netgate pfSense is rated 8.6, while SonicWall NSv is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of Netgate pfSense writes "User-friendly, easy to manage the firewall, rule-wise and interface-wise". On the other hand, the top reviewer of SonicWall NSv writes "Easy to use, stable, and the security features work well". Netgate pfSense is most compared with OPNsense, Sophos XG, KerioControl, Sophos UTM and Cisco Secure Firewall, whereas SonicWall NSv is most compared with Azure Firewall, SonicWall NSa, SonicWall TZ and Fortinet FortiGate-VM. See our Netgate pfSense vs. SonicWall NSv report.
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