Information Technology Executive at Pelemix Lanka
Real User
Stable, user-friendly, and helpful for seeing the bandwidth usage
Pros and Cons
  • "It is very user-friendly, and there is no problem in using its interface."
  • "Its reporting can be improved. Currently, we cannot directly get the user names. It only shows the IP, which makes it a bit confusing because we need to use the IP to find the user. If we could directly get the name of the user, it would be better."

What is our primary use case?

We are using a server for all our details, and we are accessing data from multiple countries. So, we needed a firewall.

We are using the SonicWall TZ400 model.

How has it helped my organization?

It has been helpful in many ways. We can see the bandwidth usage for users and how they have used it. From time to time, we get complaints that the server is a bit slow, and we then go to the reporting part to check the bandwidth usage for each user. It has also blocked a couple of viruses.

What is most valuable?

It is very user-friendly, and there is no problem in using its interface.

What needs improvement?

Its reporting can be improved. Currently, we cannot directly get the user names. It only shows the IP, which makes it a bit confusing because we need to use the IP to find the user. If we could directly get the name of the user, it would be better.

Its licensing should be improved. We would like to get the reporting part along with the license, without having to purchase it separately. It would be good if they combine both of these.

Its scalability can also be improved.

Buyer's Guide
SonicWall TZ
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about SonicWall TZ. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for about two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution. There is no doubt about it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Currently, we have 17 users in our country with access to the firewall. We have given them a VPN connection to the firewall to access some of their data.

It is more suitable for small businesses. It would be useful if they can improve its scalability so that even big companies can use it.

How are customer service and support?

Whenever I needed any kind of support, the local partner gave me the best possible support. Their support was extremely good.

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

It is a bit expensive. We have to purchase the license and the reporting part separately, which makes it a bit pricey. This is the main reason why we have thought of moving to another firewall. It would be good if they combine both of these.

What other advice do I have?

We were a small business at the beginning, and we did not think of allowing all of our countries to access the server, but now, we need to give everyone access to the server. We are thinking of moving to a firewall that would be better than this.

I would rate SonicWall TZ a 10 out of 10. It is a good product.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
ArunKumar1 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Administrator at a healthcare company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Top 5
Good support, very stable, easy to use, and useful for viewing network utilization
Pros and Cons
  • "Most of the features are useful. It is easy to configure and easy to troubleshoot. I can see the utilization of different networks, and there are also App control features."
  • "FortiGate has a client DNS in the firewall, but SonicWall doesn't have that. To create or configure a site-to-site VPN tunnel, we have to give a DNS name. Currently, we have to get the DNS name from a third party and then include it in SonicWall, whereas FortiGate has its own client DNS, so it provides a DNS name, and it does not require a third party. There should be a graphical option to view the network utilization and bandwidth usage."

What is our primary use case?

We have multiple branches, and we have configured SonicWall VPNs for branch-to-branch connectivity through IPSec. I am also restricting websites to protect us from hackers, torrents, games, and other such things. I am using SonicWall TZ 400 series.

What is most valuable?

Most of the features are useful. It is easy to configure and easy to troubleshoot.

I can see the utilization of different networks, and there are also App control features. 

What needs improvement?

FortiGate has a client DNS in the firewall, but SonicWall doesn't have that. To create or configure a site-to-site VPN tunnel, we have to give a DNS name. Currently, we have to get the DNS name from a third party and then include it in SonicWall, whereas FortiGate has its own client DNS, so it provides a DNS name, and it does not require a third party.

There should be a graphical option to view the network utilization and bandwidth usage.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is scalable. We have 100 users of this solution. We might increase its usage in the future in about eight months.

How are customer service and technical support?

Their technical support is good. They are very helpful. I would rate them an eight out of ten.

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

We were using ESET Antivirus for endpoint security. For firewalls, we were using FortiGate and MikroTik firewalls. FortiGate is fine, and it is helpful and easy, but MikroTik is not. It can't stop attacks from hackers.

In addition to SonicWall TZ, we are now using Cloud App Security from SonicWall for endpoint security, and we have Email Security from SonicWall for emails. In addition, we are using Capture Client from SonicWall for endpoint protection. All these solutions are very helpful, easy to configure, and easy to troubleshoot.

How was the initial setup?

It was straightforward. It took five to ten minutes.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution. We plan to keep using this solution. We have recently renewed our license, and we don't have any plans to use any other solution.

I would rate SonicWall TZ an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
SonicWall TZ
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about SonicWall TZ. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Virtual CIO/ CISO at Kyber Security
Real User
Easy to implement, fairly stable, and supports SSL-DPI
Pros and Cons
    • "From a support perspective, if we're talking tech support I think Silver Partners, Gold Partners, Platinum, whatever level, should have a different number to call. End users can call tech support over at SonicWall if they've paid for support as part of their AGSS or whatever services they bought. The end-user can call, or we can call, however, I don't want to be calling the same line that an end user's calling. I don't want the same response time. I need a different level of expertise."

    What is most valuable?

    Once we moved the units up to the Gen 6 platform, they could support SSL-DPI. We are huge fans of the DPI. That piece is incredibly easy to implement. I'd say probably the most powerful thing about the solution is that coupled with the captured functionality. 

    What needs improvement?

    We've turned the SSL inspection on, and it is a nightmare. It doesn't mean it doesn't work, but it will turn your world upside down for weeks until you tune it and get it right. That's an across the board problem. It's not just TZ. That's TZ's, NSA's, etc. Wherever you're using their implementation of SSL, where you've got to implement a certificate on every machine. Once you even get past that it's still going to be particular and finicky. Banking sites are driven crazy by it every time we turn it on.

    It is trying to lock down outbound traffic so tightly that you get to sites that are already very security conscious. It's just a battle to get the traffic through. Intentional traffic, the traffic you want to get through, seems to be a problem. It will stop almost everything. Too much in fact. I understand the concept. It's just a little threatening. We just had a client sign off on a 6650. Then we send them a scope of work for implementing it. We specifically put a note in there in enormous bold type: "Note does not include SSL-DPI implementation". That is additional. The client responded that  "That's the one piece I wanted you guys to do. I'm scared of it."

    He said, "We're scared of it," and I told him, "We're scared of it too." I said, "I don't know how long it's going to take. And it's going to turn your universe upside down for a week to 10 days to maybe two weeks." He said that he heard that this would be the case. 

    My fear is that the client thinks that we'll say it will take four hours and then, when it turns into 40, try to make us give them the submission for free. 

    Even tiny environments, for example, 10 user environments, once you turn it on, you will spend days tuning it. The last one we did took us 22 hours to get it perfect. We learned our lesson. We slotted in four to eight hours to do it and it took us 16 to 20.

    From a support perspective, if we're talking tech support I think Silver Partners, Gold Partners, Platinum, whatever level, should have a different number to call. End users can call tech support over at SonicWall if they've paid for support as part of their AGSS or whatever services they bought. The end-user can call, or we can call, however, I don't want to be calling the same line that an end user's calling. I don't want the same response time. I need a different level of expertise.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We've been a SonicWall dealer for 21 years approximately. We've been handling the solution since 1999. I personally didn't start using the solution until 2004.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Once you get past all the configuration issues, If you are on a rock-solid GA (Generally Available firmware), I don't know if I want to say it's bulletproof, however, the stability is really, really good. I don't sit and worry, thinking, "Oh, God. We know another one's going to fail today." We never think that way about that type of stuff. It's the odd time where we might get hardware failures or random reboots. We've had a couple of SMA units go sideways. Even SonicWall couldn't solve the problem. However, that said, it's rare.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    There's a couple of different ways to answer the question of scalability. They've built the TZ line wide enough so that we've got enough of a selection to be able to fit most bandwidth and user count situations. It's never going to fit everybody and it's not meant to. It shouldn't. It is a little challenging to try to get one of the boxes to do full wire speed. I'm not so sure inside that box, at the price point, you're going to solve that problem.

    That's why we sold the 6650. One client has got a one gig fiber line and they're in a school. On an NSA 3600, he can't get over 400 on it. I told him he never would. Some days I'd be surprised to get 400, depending on the user count. The TZ lineup is pretty good, however, I'm not so sure I'd use the word scalable. 

    If what we mean by scalable is, "oh, well, I buy a 300 and I buy it for 10 users, but I can scale up to 30 users with that box," the answer to that is no you can't. If you ask "could I scale up to 25 users and move to 200 or 300 or 400 meg?" You can't. We've got somebody in that situation right now and we're quoting a box replacement because it just can't scale that way.

    You can't necessarily scale on the appliance. You've got to get the right size. That's the easiest way to scale. If it's the right-sized appliance for the environment with some headroom then I think most situations users are going to be fine. There's going to be some issues where somebody cheaps out. For example, we worked with a law firm. They bought a TZ 300 because they didn't want to spend the money for the 500. Now they're going to have to spend the money for the 500 anyway because they need to scale up. 

    How are customer service and technical support?

    I don't think they really separate support from line to line. Maybe if you get all the way up into supermassive issues they do. Between NSA and TZ, it's the same level of service that you get on the other end of the phone. To be quite honest, level one support is not sparkling. Level two is usually really good. Level three is usually a combination. You get to level three, and you're almost talking to development or a combination of a crew that's dealing with development and senior technical expertise. Those guys rarely fail us.

    That's a typical support story. The level one guys will read the scripts and don't necessarily fix anything. We've already run through level one through three on our end with my staff. If they can't fix it, talking to a level one script reader is definitely not going to get it fixed. You should be able to bypass those guys if you're a reseller and a long-standing Silver Partner, like we are.

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

    We've also used Cisco previously. A while back, we used to have Cisco as our primary choice, with SonicWall being our second. That changed when I came to the company in 2004, where SonicWall became our solution of choice. We've got 400 or 500 firewalls out there and we don't plan on changing over to anything else.

    What other advice do I have?

    We're a Silver Partner.

    I'm not an engineer. I was a field engineer for nine years a long, long time ago. However, I'm not typically the one that gets my fingers into stuff, and it would be my engineering and senior engineering staff that do that. That said, I can say that I don't think any of our guys have touched the virtual platform yet.

    We use TZ and traditional NSA tech every day. That's our bread and butter.

    The current version we're using right now is the 600 series, although we do still have some 350 series. 90% of what we use are Gen 6. They're either TZ 300, 400, 500, 600 or NSA 2600, 3600, 4600. 

    We've got a smattering of 2650s that we've rolled out, which have been really, really good. Those are powerful units.

    I'd rate the solution eight out of ten. It doesn't warrant more than that. There's plenty of products I'd give a five to out there, however, for the quality of the product offering, I think an eight is a fair mark.

    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
    PeerSpot user
    Sr. Executive IT / DP at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees
    Real User
    Offers good protection, but it's expensive, and there are no upgrades for phased out technology
    Pros and Cons
    • "The general feature is the antivirus policy, followed by the ransomware protection, and these are the features I was looking at."
    • "The interface and technical support are probably the two most important things that I would like SonicWall to improve."

    What is our primary use case?

    It is for our company. We are not customers, we are direct clients. I am the end user.

    What is most valuable?

    The general feature is the antivirus policy, followed by the ransomware protection, and these are the features I was looking at. The VPN feature is not something that I'm a great fan of, but I mean, it is not something that I would even complain about. Whatever is required for my organization, the TZ 400 has performed admirably.

    What needs improvement?

    The user interface is a little challenging. It is not something I am familiar with. Things could go much more smoothly if they could be improved.

    The interface and technical support are probably the two most important things that I would like SonicWall to improve. If the product that they have is to be phased out, there must be an upgrade in technology as well.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been working with SonicWall TZ for seven years.

    The version we are working with is SonicWall TZ400.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    SonicWall TZ is a stable product.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    SonicWall TZ is scalable.

    How are customer service and support?

    It was difficult to contact technical support online.

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

    Before SonicWall TZ, I have not worked with another similar product.

    I recently purchased a FortiGate from Fortinet. I am about to receive the delivery, which will most likely be in a fortnight, so I do not have much experience. We are planning to use Fortinet FortiGate, our plan is to switch from SonicWall to Fortinet.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is smooth. It is not complex.

    It can take an hour to two hours to deploy.

    What about the implementation team?

    The vendor was able to assist us.

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

    The prices are expensive. I wouldn't say the prices are reasonable.

    What other advice do I have?

    Personally, I find it challenging. Previously, they had an Adobe Flash interface. When Adobe Flash was phased out and a new version was released, it was difficult for us to upgrade, and we received little help from the SonicWall team.

    I had also purchased the SonicWall Analyzer. The Analyzer was also based on Adobe Flash, which they did not support. One must consider future expandability and the technology that is being deployed, as well as whether or not it is supported by the company if it is phased out.

    I would rate SonicWall TZ a six out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Rich Hoult - PeerSpot reviewer
    President at Vector One IT Solutions
    Reseller
    Top 10
    Effective unified threat management, stable, and intuitive setup
    Pros and Cons
    • "The most valuable features are unified threat management which provides security intelligence and the VPN for both site-to-site and remote access."
    • "In an upcoming release, SonicWall could improve by adding cloud management for all devices for free or at a nominal cost. Currently, they have a cloud management platform but is not free. We have the MySonicWall portal for purchasing from them for software updates and renewals."

    What is our primary use case?

    We primarily use SonicWall TZ as an internet gateway for a lot of our small to medium-sized clients' sites.

    What is most valuable?

    The most valuable features are unified threat management which provides security intelligence and the VPN for both site-to-site and remote access.

    What needs improvement?

    We are not receiving the rated throughput that the solution claims. We have noticed our client's internet bandwidth has increased but we are not receiving the throughput that the device is sized for. For example, if I have a device that is rated to handle 400 megabits of throughput, we are not receiving that speed. We are receiving significantly less than that in some cases, this needs to be improved. I do not know if this is still the case with the latest generation of SonicWall's, but we have sixth-generation SonicWall's in use and we are not receiving the rated bandwidth.

    We have built a host secondary DNS directly on the firewall. For example, If you have a small business environment where you only have one server or you have a remote office location where you do not have any servers, you could use a VPN back to the main office and rely on the internal DNS server. However, you will have no redundancy for DNS. There are two choices, we can either use a public DNS service, which is a mistake because it will not know where the information is on the local network. The active directory is not going to work properly if the resources you want cannot be found. You end up picking between two poor options. You either have no redundancy for DNS or you have redundant DNS where one of them is not the best quality. The whole industry is lacking an alternative. I would like to be able to host a secondary DNS on a firewall appliance, many people need this feature.

    In an upcoming release, SonicWall could improve by adding cloud management for all devices for free or at a nominal cost. Currently, they have a cloud management platform but is not free. We have the MySonicWall portal for purchasing from them for software updates and renewals.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonicWall TZ for approximately 14 years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    SonicWall TZ is very stable. We rarely have to reboot the platform.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    We have not needed to scale the solution very much, our clients are typically small to medium business environments where we do not need the scalability. However, The scalability could improve because there is not a centralized device manager.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    The technical support is good. However, there is a language barrier because their support is based out of India and you cannot always understand the agent that you are speaking with. Sometimes support is outstanding, and other times you do not have the level of technical expertise that you need.

    How was the initial setup?

    The solution is easy to do the setup and is intuitive.

    What about the implementation team?

    To implement and do the maintenance of SonicWall TZ we do not need a dedicated team.

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

    You need to purchase multiple licenses to manage multiple devices which is cost-prohibitive for the value you would receive.

    What other advice do I have?

    I rate SonicWall TZ an eight out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
    PeerSpot user
    Security Analyst at CyberTalos
    Real User
    Top 20
    Helpful support, beneficial for home use, but user interface is lacking
    Pros and Cons
    • "The scalability of SonicWall TZ is good and easy to add users."
    • "SonicWall TZ can improve the UI application and when you create any net policies or any new policy, it will not sync or work properly."

    What is our primary use case?

    SonicWall TZ is used for network security.

    What needs improvement?

    SonicWall TZ can improve the UI application and when you create any net policies or any new policy, it will not sync or work properly.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonicWall TZ for approximately three months.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    SonicWall TZ is stable. However, sometimes we have some issues.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability of SonicWall TZ is good and easy to add users. 

    How are customer service and support?

    I have contacted the technical support from SonicWall TZ and their support is good.

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

    I have previously used UiPath and FortiGate firewalls and FortiGate is my favorite because it is consistent and has a good configuration. UiPath has a good interface and is user-friendly.

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

    The price of SonicWall TZ is good for medium-sized companies.

    What other advice do I have?

    My advice to others is this is a good solution but sometimes it is not working properly. I would recommend this solution for a home setup and I would recommend FortiGate firewalls for companies.

    I rate SonicWall TZ a six out of ten.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    E-commerce Co-ordinator at First Group International
    Real User
    Low maintenance, beneficial network MAC binding, and effective firewall
    Pros and Cons
    • "SonicWall TZ is very user-friendly and has network MAC binding. Additionally, the firewall works well."
    • "Sometimes there is a glitch between the network connection. Last time, something happened on our IP phone, the SonicWall team did some updates to fix the issue. However, glitches happen very rarely. I did not experience any other types of problems."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are primarily using SonicWall TZ for a VPN.

    What is most valuable?

    SonicWall TZ is very user-friendly and has network MAC binding. Additionally, the firewall works well.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonicWall TZ for approximately three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Sometimes there is a glitch between the network connection. Last time, something happened on our IP phone,  the SonicWall team did some updates to fix the issue. However, glitches happen very rarely. I did not experience any other types of problems.

    95% of the time the solution is operating well, the performance is good overall.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    There are approximately 40 users using this solution and it is scalable.

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

    I have used other solutions in the past, but I have found SonicWall TZ the most user-friendly.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was not complex.

    What about the implementation team?

    We used some help from the vendor for the implementation. When new implementations or devices are added we sometimes use the vendor for assistance.

    The solution is low maintenance. There is some updating that needs to be done by the two-person IT team.

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

    There are a few features that are licensed and there should be more that are licensed. The price of the solution is midrange compared to others, I have not had anyone complain.

    What other advice do I have?

    I rate SonicWall TZ a nine out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Executive Project Manager at a non-profit with 1-10 employees
    Real User
    Straightforward installation, good support, but feature need updating
    Pros and Cons
    • "The installation is straightforward and took approximately 30 minutes."
    • "We have experienced some issues with SonicWall TZ and they are lacking some advanced features other vendors have."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use SonicWall TZ for site-to-site VPN and as an NSa firewall. We have a mixture of SonicWall TZ devices that we use which are the TZ300, TZ350, and TZ400.

    What needs improvement?

    We have experienced some issues with SonicWall TZ and they are lacking some advanced features other vendors have.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonicWall TZ for approximately nine years.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    We have approximately 30 people using the solution in our organization.

    How are customer service and support?

    The support for SonicWall TZ is good.

    How was the initial setup?

    The installation is straightforward and took approximately 30 minutes.

    What about the implementation team?

    We have one technician that does the maintenance for this solution.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    I have evaluated Fortinet and we may have future plans to switch solutions.

    What other advice do I have?

    I would recommend this solution to others.

    I rate SonicWall TZ a seven out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free SonicWall TZ Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: March 2024
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