Leiterin Netzwerk Security at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
MSP
A tool that allows its users to manage big environments with fewer resources
Pros and Cons
  • "One of the big benefits of the product is that it allows you to manage big environments with fewer resources."
  • "Barracuda CloudGen Firewall should work a little bit more with the logs so that, in our company, we can generate a little bit more reports and get a bit more statistics, which would be fine for us."

What is most valuable?

One of the big benefits of the product is that it allows you to manage big environments with fewer resources. The product offers very good management.

What needs improvement?

Barracuda CloudGen Firewall should work a little bit more with the logs so that, in our company, we can generate a little bit more reports and get a bit more statistics, which would be fine for us. The firewall's functionalities are okay, including network and security. The tool should improve its reporting and security areas, which are the only areas of concern related to the product.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Barracuda CloudGen Firewall for twenty-two years. I use the solution's different model versions, including Barracuda CloudGen Firewall F12.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution.

Buyer's Guide
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
May 2024
Learn what your peers think about Barracuda CloudGen Firewall. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2024.
769,976 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable solution.

How was the initial setup?

The product is easy to deploy, configure, and update.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I would prefer users to opt for Palo Alto in enterprise-sized environments, like energy companies, health companies, or financial organizations. Compared to Barracuda CloudGen Firewalls, Palo Alto offers its users a little bit more security. Palo Alto's threat prevention, sandboxing functionalities, and web filtering features are good. I don't know the other vendors so well that I could talk about them.

What other advice do I have?

Though there are some issues with Barracuda CloudGen Firewall, those working with it in our company are mostly satisfied with it.

I rate the overall tool an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
Flag as inappropriate
PeerSpot user
Project Manager & IT Consultant at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Consultant
Top 20
A stable product that provides excellent encryption, security, and technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "The encryption and the security standards are valuable."
  • "The features are a bit limited compared to other vendors."

What is our primary use case?

The solution has a couple of use cases in VPN. We have branches connecting to the head office. We have users connecting to VPNs. We also use SSL VPN.

What is most valuable?

The encryption and the security standards are valuable.

What needs improvement?

We need high availability and load balancing. The product does not enable load balancing. We are looking for alternate solutions. We have multiple VPN channels with clients and sites. We need to ensure that the traffic is optimized so that the full bandwidth of the existing network is utilized. If the link goes down, the traffic must be routed without any downtime in the connection.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for the past six years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the tool’s stability a nine out of ten. We haven't faced any issues with the stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate the tool’s scalability an eight out of ten. The features are a bit limited compared to other vendors. Scaling with limited options doesn’t make sense. Around 80 people are using the solution.

How are customer service and support?

We have contacted support for configuration or troubleshooting. We involve support in areas where the product lacks features. The support is quite good. I rate the support a nine and a half out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

What was our ROI?

I have seen a return on investment from the solution. We will be using the device refresh feature next year. The devices will be upgraded free of charge.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The product is a bit cheaper than some solutions. It depends on the type of load.

What other advice do I have?

We are partners of the product. The solution must include as many features as possible. Each environment has different use cases. The features provided by the tool must be flexible enough to address our use cases and requirements. Overall, I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Flag as inappropriate
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
May 2024
Learn what your peers think about Barracuda CloudGen Firewall. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2024.
769,976 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Real User
Top 20
An easy-to-setup solution with good security features
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a very stable solution."
  • "Its interface could be better."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution to secure network infrastructure.

How has it helped my organization?

The solution provides essential security features to protect our customers' applications.

What is most valuable?

The solution has the best security features.

What needs improvement?

The solution's interface is complex at the moment. It could be more user-friendly.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using the solution for four years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very stable. I haven't seen any downtime in the past two to three years.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I used Cisco Secure Firewall earlier.

How was the initial setup?

The solution's initial setup process is easy. It requires a team of five to execute the deployment.

What about the implementation team?

We implement the solution with the help of Barracuda partners.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution's price is affordable.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We are evaluating Fortinet, Palo Alto, and Cisco products. In comparison, Barracuda offers a reasonable price.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Business Systems Manager at ACT Pipe & Supply, Inc.
Real User
Gives us greater control while also enhancing security
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features are SD-WAN, URL filtering, IPS, and virus scanning."
  • "The technical manuals, at times, have images that don't match the actual screens and are not always as clear as they could be on the configuration."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for this solution is to replace vendor-managed MPLS with in-house managed SD-WAN.

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has allowed us to use multiple commodity internet connections at our locations, added greater control of internet usage, and enhanced security.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features are SD-WAN, URL filtering, IPS, and virus scanning.

What needs improvement?

The technical manuals, at times, have images that don't match the actual screens and are not always as clear as they could be on the configuration. This requires a call to their very good support department.

For how long have I used the solution?

One year.

How are customer service and technical support?

Technical support is very good.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Director at TT-Repair
User
Inbound and outbound traffic analysis is a key feature
Pros and Cons
  • "Inbound and outbound traffic analysis, rule creation wizard, and the GUI portal are among the key features."
  • "A rule for email announcements, when configured hits occur, would be a great improvement for a more efficient experience."

What is our primary use case?

Barracuda X200 is the edge of our home system for VPN traffic. It provides IPsec to two other sites, including remote VPN access for users who are off the network.

What is most valuable?

  • Inbound and outbound traffic analysis
  • Rule creation wizard
  • GUI portal
  • Quality online support

What needs improvement?

The unit seems to be handling our 150MB pipe okay, but logger refresh leaves a bit to be desired.

A rule for email announcements, when configured hits occur, would be a great improvement for a more efficient experience.

For how long have I used the solution?

Three to five years.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We replaced an underperforming, continually locking Cisco RV130 unit. However, the two are not an "apples to apples" comparison.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
IT Infrastucture - Cloud Admin at Primary S.A.
Vendor
The product is great, and it fulfilled our expectations. However, we found it a little harder to configure than others.

What is most valuable?

In the time we were using it:

  • Intrusion Prevention System/Intrusion Detection System (IPS/IDS)
  • Layer 7 filtering
  • DDoS prevention
  • HA
  • Traffic management, among others.

How has it helped my organization?

During the testing time, the improvement was prominent as we stop unwanted outgoing traffic and were able to get real-time logs. This provided us with better bandwidth administration and usage.

What needs improvement?

If I compare it to other firewalls like Kerio Control, I would say that, probably, the GUI/Configuration Menu is something that could be more user friendly.

For how long have I used the solution?

We used it for almost two months while we were researching firewall solutions and this was one option.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

Not much, the problem was on our side because it was the first time with this kind of firewall (and brand), but the installation of the virtual appliance was really easy.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

None, from the first day to the last, the firewall ran with no issues at all.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

None at all as long as you have the money to pay for the licenses to scale the system.

How are customer service and technical support?

Customer Service:

Nil, here in Argentina, the distributor was limited to providing the price of the product. We had to resolve issues by doing our own research.

Technical Support:

We didn´t use the technical support, however we watched, many times, the webinars that Barracuda gave.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

At that time we were using pfSense, which is not bad at all, but we needed something more enterprise-class like, and Barracuda Networks gave that to us. The monitoring tools are great.

How was the initial setup?

Compared with other Firewalls, yes, it was complex but that´s for two reasons,

  1. The firewall has plenty of options to configure
  2. Because we were not trained or used to this kind of firewall, the initial set-up was long

What about the implementation team?

We installed this application on our own, and we didn't receive any advice on it. I can say that the Latin America team at Barracuda took some time to reply to our questions through email.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We were evaluating a lot of appliances/firewalls/UTM like,

  • Sonicwall
  • Checkpoint
  • Bluecoat
  • Kerio Control
  • Cisco ASA
  • Sophos Gateway (formerly Astaro Gateway)

There were also many others that I don´t remember now as well. We were looking for simplicity and effectiveness.

What other advice do I have?

Try it before you buy. Barracuda gives the chance to try the hardware and the software before buying it so you can test all the things that you will need and use day-to-day. And if you can, take a seminar to get the most out of the devices. However we found the product a little harder to configure than others, and so it´s not a product for unskilled/inexperienced administrators. You will need training to get the best of this product.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Senior Network Engineer at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
Consultant
Stable, easy to scale, and the support is good
Pros and Cons
  • "What I like best about this product are the support and the features."
  • "The interface should be more user-friendly and it should be easier to configure."

What is our primary use case?

We use barracuda firewall as edge router connecting to our ISP modem. we turn on firewall with IP, port, applications, web filtering. We also use its VPN site-to-site and client to site. 

What is most valuable?

What I like best about this product are the support and the features.

What needs improvement?

The interface should be more user-friendly and it should be easier to configure. Its configuration are divided per module/service. You will have Firewall service, VPN module and others service. Each services are under 1 server tree. You have to configure at different tabs to make it functions which I found easy to get confused. There are no wizard for guided configuration. You have to depend on their manual at barrcuda campus. Fortunately the manual is quite comprehensive.

The inclusion of a load-balancing capability in the future would be helpful.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Barracuda CloudGen Firewall for about a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable firewall solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

This product is easy to scale.

How are customer service and technical support?

The support is okay but the response time is quite long.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

cisco, out of support and pricing

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is difficult and the deployment took a few days.

What other advice do I have?

My advice for anybody who is considering this solution is to do a proof of concept first, to make sure that it meets the requirements.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
PeerSpot user
System Administrator at a educational organization with 201-500 employees
Real User
If we didn't have the product, then we would be spammed constantly
Pros and Cons
  • "Barracuda is very prompt at blocking any new spam which comes out."
  • "The product is foolproof. It has done everything that we have needed with the amount of email that we receive, and it handles it quite well."
  • "To start working with spam, it takes a while because the product has to see that multiple emails are coming in with all the spam. If it could reduce that amount of time, then we would reduce the amount of users who are receiving spam."

What is our primary use case?

We are mostly using it for spam filtering. We have had great success with Barracuda Cloud, using it to block any spam before it even gets to our on-premise devices. I also had the same results occur at my previous place of employment, so I have had a lot of success with the product.

How has it helped my organization?

If we didn't have it, then we would be spammed constantly. It has cut down the amount of emails that get through to our end users.

What is most valuable?

  • It is easy to use.
  • It actually works really well. 
  • Barracuda is very prompt at blocking any new spam which comes out.

What needs improvement?

To start working with spam, it takes a while because the product has to see that multiple emails are coming in with all the spam. If it could reduce that amount of time, then we would reduce the amount of users who are receiving spam.

For how long have I used the solution?

Three to five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is very stable. We haven't had any issues with it on the cloud or even on-premise. On-premise, we have two of them that are set to high availability, and they have never gone down.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is very scalable, especially with its cloud feature. It doesn't matter how many users I have on my end, and we are a shop of about 800 to 1000 users. So, it is working perfectly.

How is customer service and technical support?

I have called in a few times to the tech support, and they have been on top of it. If I have a problem, they respond immediately to help. Whomever I speak with is very knowledgeable about the product. Therefore, I have not had any issues with the technical support.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup for on-premise was an easy setup. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I wasn't part of the evaluation process.

What other advice do I have?

Give Barracuda a try because it has been successful in my experience. The product is foolproof. It has done everything that we have needed with the amount of email that we receive, and it handles it quite well. So, I would give it a ten out of ten and  recommend it to anyone for use.

I have used the on-premise and Barracuda Cloud versions of the product. We are only now looking into AWS.

They are already pushing it out to the cloud and putting another layer in front of it before it even gets to me.

Disclosure: PeerSpot contacted the reviewer to collect the review and to validate authenticity. The reviewer was referred by the vendor, but the review is not subject to editing or approval by the vendor.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Barracuda CloudGen Firewall Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: May 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Barracuda CloudGen Firewall Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.