We performed a comparison between Fortinet FortiGate-VM and Palo Alto Networks VM-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."From the firewall perspective, the rules and policies are very sufficient and easy to use."
"Consolidated our network environment at all locations, but mainly at our datacenter."
"Fortinet has a very good solution for Secure SD-WAN. One very good feature is that they have robust and simple FortiOS through which they provide all solutions. That's their strength. There's not much complexity involved with the Secure SD-WAN solution of Fortinet as compared to Cisco's solution, which has a lot of flexibility but complexity also comes with that flexibility."
"I like how we can achieve total integration."
"This is a quality product with ok support, and it is better than the competition we've tried."
"Easy to use support and licensing portal as well as activation process."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are the rules and quality of service."
"It is quite easy to handle."
"We work in the archiving domain where a secure environment is very important. We have some special requirements regarding the security of infrastructure."
"The user interface is the most valuable aspect of the solution."
"The solution is very easy to set up. It doesn't take a lot of time and offers a quick deployment, so you can start using it almost right away."
"It is very useful to make lists for rules and prepare firewall rules."
"FortiGate-VM has many valuable features: it's easy to use, it's intuitive, it's got very good traffic inspection features, it's got comprehensive filtering categories, and it has an extensive threat database, using FortiGuard."
"The EPM bundle is a good feature."
"One top feature is the ability to use the appliance as a WLAN controller for up to 10 access points with the new 5.6 firmware."
"We use it to ensure that our network is properly protected from viruses and malware."
"The solution enables organizations to enforce policies."
"The most effective features of the solution for threat prevention are Layer 7 inspection, SSL decryption, IPS, and the web filtering profile."
"The most valuable feature is the CLI."
"The most valuable features are security and support."
"It gives us the ease that we are secure. We have set up the proper things that help make our data safe."
"Palo Alto Networks VM-Series has everything centralized. You have the VPN solution, firewall, routing, UDR, flexibility, updates, and full visibility of your traffic."
"The main advantage of Palo Alto Networks VM-Series stems from the fact that you can access it with the help of cloud services."
"The VM series has an advantage over the physical version because we are able to change the sources that the machine has, such as the amount of available RAM."
"In the next release, maybe the documentation on how to use this solution could be improved."
"There are mainly two areas of improvement in Fortinet FortiGate— the licensing cost and the timing of upgrading licenses for boxes."
"It should provide better visibility over the network and more information in the form of reports for the end users. Its installation should also be easier."
"They should offer special pricing to premium partners and customers."
"There are problems with the custom reporting of the unique traffic. The data is there, but it is too difficult for us to extract."
"I'm not sure if it's something that they already have or are developing something, however, we need some dedicated features for container security."
"With FortiGate, the main complaint that I have heard is about the technical support."
"The firewall engine is not so strong as of now, in my opinion... My second concern is that, while they have Zero-day vulnerability and anti-malware features, the threat engine needs to be strengthened, its efficiency can be increased."
"Support could be improved a little."
"The solution can improve by adding separate interfaces for proxy and flow-based usage."
"Technical support could be improved."
"Now they do have the ability to pop up a command line, which is nice, however, the fact that you can't do everything within the GUI is probably a problem."
"SD-WAN could be enhanced to provide a clear division between control and data planes, utilizing controllers to manage tasks within the network."
"The graphical user interface should be enhanced."
"Sizing can be challenging for customers interested in using Fortinet FortiGate-VM."
"In terms of improvement, there have been some problems with the bandwidth of the security layer."
"It is not very easy to scale up the solution."
"The solution needs to have more easily searchable details or documentation about it online, so it's easier to Google if you have queries."
"The reporting part of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"The solution must improve Zero Trust integration and use cases."
"Palo Alto is that it is really bad when it comes to technical support."
"The solution needs to improve its visibility. It's not straightforward to use. Understanding the policies, authorizations, and initializing features requires careful review. The product needs to offer proper training."
"The command-line interface is something that some people struggle with and I think that they should have an option to go straight to the GUI."
"The disadvantage with Palo Alto is that they don't have a cloud-based solution that includes a secure web gateway."
Fortinet FortiGate-VM is ranked 9th in Firewalls with 113 reviews while Palo Alto Networks VM-Series is ranked 10th in Firewalls with 52 reviews. Fortinet FortiGate-VM is rated 8.4, while Palo Alto Networks VM-Series is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of Fortinet FortiGate-VM writes "An easy-to-manage and configure tool that provides ample documentation to help with the setup phase". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Palo Alto Networks VM-Series writes "Many features are optimized for troubleshooting real-time scenarios, saving a lot of time". Fortinet FortiGate-VM is most compared with Azure Firewall, Fortinet FortiOS, OPNsense, Netgate pfSense and Cisco Secure Firewall, whereas Palo Alto Networks VM-Series is most compared with Azure Firewall, Cisco Secure Firewall, Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls, Juniper SRX Series Firewall and Huawei NGFW. See our Fortinet FortiGate-VM vs. Palo Alto Networks VM-Series report.
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In the best tradition of these questions, Feature-wise both are quite similar, but each has things it's better at, it kind of depends what you value most.
PA is good at app control, web filtering and such like, they have always been top of the pile there. The GUI is very good, and their product is very user-focused.
Fortinet is good for scalability and predictable high throughput (ASICs in the hardware), and useful things like authentication flexibility, CLI config (if you have any networking/Cisco people, they always seem to prefer CLI over GUI) and have better OT features, maybe relevant to your manufacturing use?
Fortinet seem to have a broader integration offering with their security fabric than PA do, plus they can do Fortinet-based wifi, switching, etc. Depends if you are prepared to go all-in with a single vendor.
Hi,
Both FT and PA have compelling features for large Enterprises. I would like to add a few good points about Fortinetwhich might be helpful ( from my 13 years of engagement with them as Distributor and Partner)
Fortinet:
Have higher throughput; which comes with competitive rates
Wide range of models to select to meet your requirement, without spending heavliy
Outstanding customer support and very active customer care team
Easly available skilled resources from the channel for deployment and post-implementation support
Regards
Abhilash
Hello. The question is what you are going to have as a result of application