We performed a comparison between Meraki MX and OPNsense 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."Mainly the FortiGate reporting system is very good. It guides us through all the expectations of security. Fortinet provides us all that we need for security. Also, Fortinet FortiGate is a next-generation firewall. It is much more advanced than others."
"The solution is extremely reliable."
"I like that you are able to manage FortiGate from the FortiManager to create a more centralized environment."
"Fortinet FortiGate is user-friendly and affordable."
"Fortinet FortiGate is a scalable solution."
"The solution is easy to configure and maintain remotely."
"Good performance, stability, and virtual domain ability."
"This version is stable. I don't have any issues with this solution, in our environment, it works well."
"Meraki MX offers advanced filtration options, plus it behaves like a router and a firewall at the same time."
"The features we have found most valuable are the firewall and the monitoring tools."
"What I like best about Meraki MX is that it's easy to deploy remotely. The product works. It has automatic updates. I also like that Meraki MX is a brilliant device. You turn it on, stick the key in there, activate it, and then you're done. Meraki MX does what my customers need at the end of the day, so I also like that."
"The cloud management system is really valuable."
"Intrusion detection and prevention (IDS/IPS): The best feature. It can detect malware, even a virus, and warn you by email about the device that has it. When the Meraki detects that something is wrong, it automatically blocks the connection or the intrusion, delivering a graphic report with all the necessary content."
"It has very good features; it's easy to use, configure, set up, and deploy."
"To me, the analytics feature is one of the most valuable in Meraki MX. I also find that it has good usability as it's cloud-based. Another valuable feature of Meraki MX is that it's simple to use and it's user-friendly."
"The technical support people from Meraki are brilliant."
"The most valuable features of OPNsense are the GUI and frequent updates."
"It's open source."
"It has an open license. It works very well, and there is an update every month."
"It has firewall and VPN capabilities, which are very valuable features."
"I feel that its valuable features are that it is simple and free."
"The initial implementation process is simple."
"One of the most valuable features is the network checking. Additionally, the firewall and web filtering functionalities are highly useful."
"I find the solution to be user-friendly. It has a lot of reports and easy settings."
"A lack of integration between our data centers."
"Fortinet currently has many products bundled with FortiGate including the basic firewall and load balancer, and I think that that they need to have separate product portfolios for each of these specialized services."
"One issue that I have had is that sometimes I need to monitor the traffic, so I need to filter it according to the user and which user is using it the most. I experience a bottleneck most of the time, particularly at the peak time when the number of contracts and users are at maximum."
"Fortinet Fortigate could benefit by simplifying some of their processes."
"To some degree, it's almost a question as to why some of this stuff isn't simpler. For example, for an AP deployment, while it's integrated, the number of steps that you have to go through in order to get the AP up, seems like a lot."
"The solution is very expensive."
"With the addition of some features, it is possible that FortiGate can be used in all verticals."
"The solution lacks sufficient filtering."
"I need more UTM protection security features."
"An area for improvement in Meraki MX is that it needs some provision, as supplying the unit through Cisco can be tedious at times, but as far as the product itself and its offerings, Meraki MX is five-star all the way."
"They're very complacent and I find the rule set to be a little arcane."
"As far as what needs to be improved — nothing really comes to mind. It does what we need it to do."
"Management can be improved in Meraki MX."
"The product doesn't support route summarization and BGP dynamic routing protocol."
"I do not have the kind of feature I need for SSL decryption in Meraki MX. It would be great to see the SSL decryption feature in Meraki MX."
"The client-side VPN is weak. The product could be improved with deployment templates."
"There should be more technical documentation."
"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."
"The solution could be more secure."
"The support for OPNsense is good because we have documents available on the internet. The support could improve a little."
"While they do have paid options that actually gives better features, for most of the clients, if they tend to take a paid option will instead opt for Fortinet."
"There are a few weaknesses. For example, there is a lack of some features that I have in certain commercial products."
"In terms of improvement, the performance could be enhanced."
"The interface needs to be simplified. It is not user-friendly."
Meraki MX is ranked 2nd in Unified Threat Management (UTM) with 57 reviews while OPNsense is ranked 3rd in Firewalls with 36 reviews. Meraki MX is rated 8.2, while OPNsense is rated 8.4. The top reviewer of Meraki MX writes "Cost-effective, simplified, easy to manage, and reliable with advanced security features and granular visibility". 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". Meraki MX is most compared with Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, Cisco Secure Firewall, Sophos XG, SonicWall TZ and Sophos UTM, whereas OPNsense is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, Untangle NG Firewall, Sophos UTM and IPFire. See our Meraki MX vs. OPNsense report.
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