We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiGate and OPNsense based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Features: Fortinet FortiGate is highly regarded for its all-inclusive package, intuitive interface, strong security features, expandability, and centralized administration. OPNsense is appreciated for its scalability, user-friendly nature, adaptability, reliability, and availability of a free version.
Fortinet FortiGate could be enhanced in areas such as SSL VPN capabilities, multi-factor authentication, filtering accuracy, support system, reporting capabilities, antivirus and IPS functionality, delivery reliability, logging information, security features, scalability, navigation, container security, and WAF functionality. OPNsense could improve its interface, bandwidth management, protection across multiple internet providers, high availability, logging, management of different groups, integration, reporting, SSL inspection, and learning curve.
Service and Support: Fortinet FortiGate and OPNsense products have varied reviews. Certain customers have expressed satisfaction with Fortinet, while some have criticized the support provided by OPNsense.
Ease of Deployment: The setup process for Fortinet FortiGate is generally straightforward and can take anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days or even up to two months. OPNsense's initial setup is described as easy and not too difficult, typically taking a few hours for installation and configuration. However, certain environments like Azure may require additional setup and adaptation, which can extend the implementation process.
Pricing: Fortinet FortiGate offers different packages and pricing options for setup, which are considered reasonable and competitive. However, the renewal prices might be higher. OPNsense is an open-source solution with affordable pricing, mainly determined by hardware expenses. Although a paid version is available, the free version is widely utilized.
ROI: Fortinet FortiGate is a worthwhile investment that delivers positive outcomes by reducing costs in data communications. It offers efficient protection against threats and allows for centralized management. OPNsense has experienced notable progress, achieving a return on investment in under three months and eliminating the need for recurring fees.
Comparison Results: Fortinet FortiGate is highly recommended by users due to its extensive package solution, user-friendly interface, stable performance, strong security capabilities, and ease of use. It offers additional features such as SSL VPN, load balancing, and multi-tenancy. Fortinet FortiGate also excels in customer service and support, with users appreciating their quick response times and helpful assistance.
"The technical support is great."
"The solution has very good threat and content filtering switches."
"Fortinet FortiGate has many valuable features, such as IDS, and intrusion detection. It has security features that are in part with the technologies that are available in the market."
"Fortinet FortiGate is easy to use."
"Security management tool that's easy to integrate and easy to work with. No issues found with its stability and scalability."
"It's inexpensive compared to some of the other technology out there."
"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiGate is the simple configuration."
"The solution is very, very easy to use."
"It's open source."
"One of the most valuable features is the network checking. Additionally, the firewall and web filtering functionalities are highly useful."
"The IDS and IPS features are valuable. From the usability perspective, there is a lot of good documentation. As IT professionals, we found it very easy to configure the firewall. It was easy to configure and use."
"What I like best about OPNsense is that, as a firewall, it's pretty good. I'm quite impressed with it. I had an excellent experience with OPNsense, which helped me achieve the targets I wanted."
"I feel that its valuable features are that it is simple and free."
"I have found the solution has some great features overall, such as guest access capabilities, dashboards, and ease of use. There is plenty of documentation and support and it has the plugins that I needed."
"The solution is good for a basic firewall for a small business or for home use."
"URL blocking, Wireguard, Tail Scale, Engine Blocker, and VPN are the most valuable features for me."
"The UTM filtering needs improvement."
"To the best of my knowledge, Fortinet does not have a CASB solution and Fortinet does not have a Zero trust solution."
"They can do more tests before they release new versions because I would like to be more assured. We had some experiences where they release something new and great, but some of the old features are disabled or they don't work well, which impacts the product satisfaction. The manufacturer should be able to prove that everything works or not only that it might work. This is applicable to most of the other services, software, and hardware companies. They all should work on this. We cannot trust every new release, such as a beta release, on the first day. We wait for some comments on the forums and from other companies that we know. We always wait a few weeks before we use the updated version. They should also extend the VPN client application, especially for Linux versions. Currently, it has an application for Linux devices, but it doesn't work the way we want to connect to the VPN. They use only the old connection, not the new one. They have VPN client applications for Windows and Mac, but they can add more useful features to better manage the devices and monitor the current health of each device. Such features would be helpful for our company."
"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."
"Its reporting capabilities can be improved. It should have some out-of-the-box reporting capabilities and some degree of customization. The basic reporting that it currently has is not sufficient to create more usable reports. It needs some sort of out-of-the-box reporting. They try to make customers purchase FortiAnalyzer for this kind of reporting, which is an additional cost. Other firewall vendors, such as SonicWall and Sophos, provide this sort of reporting without any additional cost."
"The web-cache feature which was previously on the FortiGate device, but was deleted with the recent upgrade should be returned. It was a very valuable feature for us."
"Tunnel flapping was one of the major things I had seen wherein your internet link remains but your VPN tunnel is down. However, since I got a fix from the TAC team, I have not noticed it, but the customer complained a few times that they couldn't access the internet because of this problem."
"There were quite a few problems with the stability of the system."
"There is room for improvement in SSL inspection."
"On the customer-side, because I'm a small business, I need a cheaper or free solution option."
"There are some add-ons that need enhancements to make management easier for users, especially the reporting features. Some reports don't show the level of detail I'm looking for, and I've had trouble installing certain add-ons, especially for Internet bandwidth shaping within my company."
"There are a few weaknesses. For example, there is a lack of some features that I have in certain commercial products."
"Given that OPNsense plays a pivotal role as a firewall, safeguarding against various threats, having a reliable backup ensures uninterrupted protection even if unforeseen events impact the primary virtual machine."
"I think the most important thing is that it should be easily accessible, but currently, that doesn't seem to be the case. We need a hardware platform that's based on common standards and open computing principles, which would be like a commodity and benefit us greatly."
"The IPS solution could be more reliable."
"An area for improvement in OPNsense is the hardware, which needs to be updated more frequently. DNS blocking is another good feature I want to be added to the solution. pfSense has a peer-blocking feature that I also want to see in OPNsense."
Fortinet FortiGate is ranked 2nd in Firewalls with 306 reviews while OPNsense is ranked 3rd in Firewalls with 36 reviews. Fortinet FortiGate is rated 8.4, while OPNsense is rated 8.4. The top reviewer of Fortinet FortiGate writes "It's a reliable solution that's easy to install and cheaper than competitors ". On the other hand, 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". Fortinet FortiGate is most compared with Sophos XG, Cisco Secure Firewall, Netgate pfSense, Meraki MX and Fortinet FortiOS, whereas OPNsense is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, Untangle NG Firewall, Sophos UTM and IPFire. See our Fortinet FortiGate vs. OPNsense report.
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