Sophos XG Reviews

We are using the Sophos XG in a different manner than the typical use case. We have the physical box, and we are using Sophos XG on the cloud.

We have two different types. We have two different Sophos XG we're running. We're running one on the Microsoft Azure cloud which mostly all security on the cloud goes through the Sophos XG. The second Sophos XG is running on our own physical local data center.

We are doing something similar to an IPsec between Azure and the local data center. So we are doing an IPsec between the two. We connected all our resources and we mostly run the applications on Microsoft Azure. Were now are doing IPsec between the two data centers.

Most of the features Sophos XG has are valuable. However, if I have two different  ISP, I'm able to create an automatic switch between the two ISPs. I can do the same thing for the cloud as well. If I have two subnets coming from the cloud, I'm able to create a type of switch between both of them where if there is traffic on one and has the traffic drop, I'm able to switch to the other ISP without any problems. It's a normal feature and I get to enjoy the ability to switch between services with no issues.

Security is one of the major reasons we are deploying Sophos XG in our process.

We recently did an upgrade on the Sophos XG firmware and we were surprised that after the upgrade,  the automatic switch actually we were using did not work anymore.

We try to understand exactly why it wasn't working with the new 18.5 firmware, but we could not figure it out. I realized that I was stuck with the main ISP. If there's an outage, it was not reliable on the network any longer.

We had to reverse, back to the old firmware even though we were still trying to fix the new version. It is a very efficient feature for our operation. If it was not there, it could make the workings of our operation inefficient. It is one of the best features of Sophos XG. It makes operations very efficient. You don't have to worry about anything at all. We are using the entire Sophos package, such as Sophos endpoint, Sophos XGR, Sophos ZGR.

The documentation can improve with Sophos XG. This will allow our network engineer to work better with the solution. Additionally, they can improve the ability to filter down devices. Recently we were faced with a challenge where we needed to restrict mobile phone users on the network but we realized that we couldn't do this with the solution. 

Recently I was looking at the Cisco Meraki solution, to see what it can do in terms of capacity. There's one feature that stood out to me, and that feature has the ability to implement some policies. Organizations need to have security policies in place. I would like the ability to create policies.

I have been using Sophos XG for approximately two and a half years.

We have approximately 60 people that are working on Sophos XG. However, the number is higher because Microsoft Azure routes every customer through the firewall. We have multiple layers and the traffic passes through Cloudflare and then gets directed to the Sophos XG on Microsoft Azure. The Sophos XG on Azure does all the filtering and routing to the private IP, allowing us not to use the public IP.

The DMs are private, and approximately 14,000 customers  pass through the Sophos XG and Microsoft Azure

The support from Sophos XG is very good. We can easily relate to the support.

I would rate the support from Sophos XG a two out of five. You cannot have good support without good documentation.

If you look at the software environment now, anywhere you go, you see the documentation for everything that has been done. Sophos XG has documentation, however, you should not need to have a certification to be able to understand it.

I have used Sophos Cyberoam previously.

If we had better documentation we would be able to implement Sophos XG better for the organization's exact specifications. When you have already come up with your networking strategy, presented it to the company, then you find out the new framework doesn't conform with the organizational strategy. You have to start going back and receiving approval for a new strategy. However, you are not even sure what the strategy is going to be with the new framework, because everything has changed. Most of the automatic resources stop working.

There is a high chance I do not even know why it is not working or what the major issue is. We have realized the package wasn't switching and we did a lot of troubleshooting for almost a week to understand why. We switch over to our old firewall, then we finally understood that it was something that has to do with the new 18.5 firmware in Sophos XG. Immediately we switch back to the old firmware, this fixed out problems we were having at that point.

I would rate the implementation of Sophos XG a two out of five.

The initial deployment was done approximately three years ago and it was done by a third party because of some complex considerations, such as the VOIP Gateway.

However, since the initial implementation, we have been managing it by our own in-house network engineers and every modification to the network has been done in-house.

We have three network engineers, that work on the solution and the network. They can manage all the features and securities. The amount of people needed to maintain the solution depends on the organization's architecture. 

In information security, the only way you rate ROI is by the level of information you're securing. I will ask myself how much is the information I'm securing is worth? The worth of what I'm securing will determine the amount of cost that I'm spending on the information secured. If I were to judge it that way, the ROI is high. 

I would rate the ROI of Sophos XG a five out of five.

We pay for two licenses for the use of Sophos XG annually and it is a flat fee. We do not have everyone going through both of the Sophos XG firewalls a the same time and the Sophos XG on Microsoft Azure is only accessible from the VPN.

Sophos XG has changed its pricing model for extreme protection.

I rate the price of Sophos XG a two out of five.

When we were evaluating other solutions we looked at Barracuda and it had an old GUI. This was an issue when we were making decisions between Barracuda and Sophos XG.

The solution has served its purpose in my organization.

I rate Sophos XG a nine out of ten.

We are using the solution internally for policy purposes in our data center. We use the firewall for certain routes for client connectivity. 

I like the functionality and the user interface. The solution has a better graphic interface than that of Cisco. 

I wish to see an antivirus feature added to the solution. 

I believe we have been using Sophos XG for more than three years. 

The solution has better stability than Cisco, which is why I prefer it over other firewalls. 

I have not had need for technical support. Mostly, I find what I am looking for on the internet. 

The initial setup is easy.

I handled the implementation by myself.

The solution is not expensive since one pays as he goes. He pays just for the functionality he requires, meaning there is no need to pay for all that Sophos offers. If a person needs email protection, he will pay just for this. The same holds true if he needs web filtering. 

The solution is more stable than Cisco, which is why I like it better than the other firewalls.

The firewall does not connect to the internet. It is not firewall edge. We use the solution as a data center firewall. 

I would recommend the solution because it provides the greatest firewall protection. 

I rate Sophos XG as a seven out of ten. 

I like their firewall and the intrusion detection feature. This is also a scalable solution.

Their reporting needs to be improved.

The initial setup is not straightforward.

Technical support could be improved as well.

Integration to the cloud is also a challenge. It's not straightforward, especially while I move my mail from on-premises to cloud 365. I had to go to the cloud to research certain routes with it.

I've been using it for five years.

It is scalable. We have over 500 users.

My experience with technical support has been poor because I have not had any support. When I have had issues, I have gone to their help files but have not had any technical support.

The initial setup is not straightforward. You have to do a lot of reading to do something new. So, you have to really understand it or have prior knowledge to be able to find your own way out to whatever you want to do.

We currently have two people who manage this solution.

The cost could be lower especially if you want to add other features. For example, if I want to activate the advanced threats feature in Sophos Central, there will be an additional cost. There are features that I wish I could have, but because of the cost, I currently don't have them.

I think technical competence is much needed, so if you are not familiar with Sophos firewalls, you would need to be trained. You need to have knowledge to be able to work with this solution. It's not straightforward like other firewalls. It's not easy; you may understand the concept, but you need to have technical knowledge regarding the interface and the movement.

So, I would rate Sophos XG at seven on a scale from one to ten.

We use Sophos Firewall for our environment.

The Sophos Firewall, from our interaction and the way we are using it, is a very effective network security solution that basically protects our infrastructure, identifies any infections or any network security threats that actually may happen within our environment. We also are able to manage our users in terms of bandwidth usage and the allocation of bandwidth, whereby we give our users restricted access for use during working hours and they are supposed to utilize the bandwidth and make sure that we optimize and prioritize the applications able to get the necessary bandwidth. We do use it to manage our bandwidth. We do use it as well to make sure that our environment is secure against any possible threats.

In terms of the Sophos XG Firewall, what really excites us is basically the issue of intrusion detection and the intrusion prevention features. Those are both very, very good. 

The issue of sandboxing as well is something that is very useful. It's able to protect our environment quite well. 

Email protection is something that we are basically using all the time and it protects our environment which has more than 2000 users. 

All of the protection features are great in terms of securing our environment.

Sophos is way ahead of a number of other products in terms of the enhancements and upgrades they offer.

Sophos offers a great centralized dashboard that makes it easy to see what's happening on your network. 

The initial setup is very straightforward and the solution is extremely user-friendly.

The documentation is very, very good.

In terms of the product, from the way that we have been utilizing it, we have noticed that the vendor has been able to continuously upgrade and upgrade and update the product with new features. You'd find that all the time a new release has come out, and we're actually happy with that. We don't find it inconvenient that we are constantly upgrading. 

I can't think of any downsides in terms of the features on offer.

I'd like the dashboard to be improved. It could be a bit more customizable. 

I have about five years of experience with the product.

We are very satisfied with the functionality. We are very satisfied with the way that it is securing our environment. The stability has been excellent.

We have 2,000 users on the solution currently.

The solution is very scalable. We basically started with about 900 users. We went up to about 1,300. As we went up, as our users increased, we also scaled it up in terms of protection. Sophos was able to scale up easily and protect all our end users as well as our environment. It's been great overall.

We do plan to increase usage. Our employee base is about 10,000. We have 2,000 networked employees and we are planning to add another 1,000 users by the end of the year.

The technical support has been great. All of our technical staff have been certified as Sophos administrators. They were able to offer us the training to make sure that all of the support staff are familiar with the functionality of the product. Then, in terms of technical support that we may need, when we call the Sophos team, they are usually very available and they are even able to support us remotely if there is a need to do that. We are extremely satisfied overall.

I also often work with Cisco's ASA Firewall as well as Nagios. We bought Sophos to complement the ASA firewall.

The initial setup was very, very straightforward. You find that we did not even require a lot of external help from the vendor. It's so straightforward. The documentation is quite comprehensive and it takes the user through a step-by-step process, It's very user-friendly.

For the firewall as well as deployment of the end-user, the email protection as well as the sandbox, and the like, it took us approximately three days to finalize everything for our entire environment. We had over a hundred network sites, which are dotted through the city of Harare, therefore, we knew that we had to make sure that deployment was done fully throughout the entire environment.

There was very minimal, minimal assistance from the vendor. The vendor, here and there, would assist if we requested their help. However, you'd find that in most of the installations we did in-house, we didn't need the vendor to do anything. We knew that the installation process was very user-friendly.

The cost of procuring this product is very reasonable and it's very affordable for most organizations.

We're a customer and an end-user.

We use the latest version of the product.

I'd advise those considering the solution that Sophos' security solution is highly synchronized, very secure, and provides comprehensive security. I'd like them to know that it has enhanced and very detailed and sophisticated functionality, which is really easy to use, easy to deploy, and very user-friendly. It is a product that I would highly recommend for any organization that needs to comprehensively secure its infrastructure.

I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten.

We are using it for our VPN and firewall. It acts as our firewall for the external portal into our network.

It is very easy to configure and straightforward. The firewall rules are straightforward.

It works great out of the box. It has been working as advertised, and I haven't had any issues with it.

Its user interface is a little bit slow.

I have been using this solution for a couple of weeks.

It has been up and running for probably three weeks and hasn't had any issues. I didn't have a lot of time on it yet to make a good call about that, but so far, so good.

It scales for our purposes. We're a very small office. We have 25 users on the system. We're an engineering consulting company, so all remote users are accessing our network

It is being used quite heavily, and I don't see any need to increase its usage at all at this point.

I didn't have any direct interaction with Sophos. Their online documentation is very good. It is much better than Cisco.

It was a replacement for Cisco ASA Firewall. Our Cisco licensing had expired, and it was very expensive. Sophos XG is a lower-cost solution for the same thing. It was also easier to configure.

It was very simple. It took a couple of hours.

We had a partner, and they did the initial setup and walked us through it. Our experience was very good.

Its maintenance is very simple. You need less than one administrator for its maintenance.

I expect to see ROI in a year or two.

Its licensing cost is around 700 bucks a year or something like that. It is 100 bucks a month at the most. It seems to be standard licensing with no additional costs.

I would advise others to go through the Sophos demos. They are very good, and they walk you through configuration and use cases. Their online documentation is very helpful in not only configuring it but also selecting a proper model to deploy.

I would rate Sophos XG an eight out of ten for ease of use and cost.

I use Sophos XG as a content filtering, web filtering, and application filtering utility, as well as to integrate with the endpoint antivirus software. 

I have Sophos Endpoint Antivirus installed on the user machines as well, i.e. the Central Cloud Management version. That's our main use. 

Sophos XG has cybersecurity. It integrates with the antivirus software.

I have a serious problem because our offices are scattered around the world in very remote areas. We cannot deploy proper branch office guides, active directory sites, and software services. 

It is impossible to apply any sort of group policy on the user machines, which makes it very hard to control issues like USB ports, access to cameras, or access to any preferences on the user machines. 

With the integration between Sophos UTM and the installed endpoint antivirus, you can now manage all those features from your cloud subscription. You can allow and block whatever you want from the cloud. 

You can allow whatever USB ports you want for specific devices with specific IDs, serial numbers or modems. The machine gets updated online or updated from the antivirus settings, i.e. the UTM unit itself.

The UTM unit itself has a cache update on it. Once the clients behind the UTM get updated, they get access or they get denied access to the hardware resources they are applying for. This is a major benefit for us.

The application filters available with Sophos XG are brilliant. The sandboxing and the way the firewall or the UTM integrates with the installed endpoint antivirus clients on the user machines is brilliant. You get the chance to isolate network threats before they become active or become distributed on your network. 

With the cloud version of Sophos XG, you get the proper visibility of your network and the user machines. With the cloud versions of the antivirus, i.e. the cloud central management of the antivirus, you get high visibility.

With the application between the installed Sophos UTM, you get a high level of visibility of what's happening on your network or on your client machines. You get protected against threats. You get proper visibility. That solves a major issue.

There was a big issue with the Cyberoam and with the SG units as well, i.e. the previous Sophos UTM model. With Sophos XG, you get the chance to block what sites operate on SSL or that operate with HTTPS, without the need of extracting and distributing a certificate. 

On older Cyberoam and Sophos SG old versions, if you wanted to block something like YouTube or Facebook or any other websites that operate with HTTPS, you had to extract the certificate. Then you had to export that certificate. Then you had to re-import that certificate in all the user browsers. 

The only problem was if you needed to use an active directory where those certificates would be automatically thrown into the user browsers once they logged in to the domain. 

For a scenario like mine where you don't have a group policy, it is a disaster and ends up with you setting the rules to block certain websites with HTTPS on the firewall, even while they are not being blocked so that the user will still have access to them. This problem is now 100% sorted out with Sophos XG.

Now you can actually block whatever you want, whether it's using HTTPS or HTTP keys from the firewall without the need for extracting certificates. That's a major improvement. That problem with the HTTPS settings was a huge issue. 

I know other people must be enjoying that it's sorted out now. It was a serious and major issue for Sophos. The only issue that Sophos XG now needs to improve is the product's reporting capabilities.

Sophos XG is stable enough for our requirements.

We have about 450 Sophos XG users currently using this edition and 300 for the antivirus platform installed on the machines, plus in-service, around 310. We also have around 15 additional units deployed around the world.

I'll give Sophos XG technical support an eight out of ten for their service.

I used Cyberoam previously, although I always used it as a UTM only. What made me move to Sophos is that they were acquired, i.e. they acquired Cyberoam to start with the development. At that time the software had many features that were not available with FortiGate, in terms of content filtering, and it was an appliance when Websense was the software to be installed on a server. 

There was a problem with our operating system with some of the updates, i.e. with the operating system or the hardware. I moved from Websense to Cyberoam because it wasn't applying properly.

The initial setup is definitely something different than the old Cyberoam and it's a bit complex. If you've been dealing with UTMs and you understand the concept, it is still complex but then I find it enjoyable.

Sophos XG is not hard to configure. Too much detail is always good. 

I required three or four hours for the initial setup. One day for the testing, fine-tuning, optimizing, and categorizing. Three days for the first unit with the initial setup and the customization including testing. Finally, three days for testing all the rules, the QA, and then putting everything live. 

I used to work for an integrator myself years ago, as well as my team. We are all trained. We are all professional in what we are doing. No external help was used.

Our ROI is 100%. I've got the ransomware attacks being blocked. I've got the users' consumed bandwidth by using proxy bypasses and all sorts of applications being blocked now. 

It's saving on the companies and the employees working hours and time. It's saving on minimizing virus infections and applications that the users like to use on their machines in order to bypass blocking USB ports or cameras. 

It is saving the company money by saving bandwidth and saving employees time by not allowing them to access time-wasting websites.

We have the annual license for Sophos XG. It all depends on what you would like to have in the package that you are purchasing.

I evaluated FortiGate but wasn't happy with it. I evaluated another group called WatchGuard. WatchGuard has good features in it, but it's for a smaller business scale than the Sophos clients.

I evaluated Cisco ASA or PIX but now, I use Sophos XG as the firewall. I have confidence in their unit. Before Cyberoam and Sophos, I used FortiGate and Websense for our UTM requirements.

I recommend that everyone should have a proper understanding of new network requirements and then enjoy it. Sophos XG is definitely a good product.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give Sophos XG an eight.

The tool's most valuable feature is threat protection and DLP features. So far, basic DLP features like content protection and blocking. Furthermore, for remote users, features such as back filtering and application control are available, allowing for command and control from our side. It is very easy to understand policy applications. 

It has multi-console features, where you can designate administrators or super admins. There's also a read-only feature available. Visibility features are included in XDR. This provides information on user impact, potential threats on specific machines, source and destination IPs, setup firewall details, and unique identifiers for each machine. Another notable feature is network isolation, ensuring that data remains secure by isolating affected machines from others.

Sophos XG offers visibility into network information, sources, destinations, and threats. Depending on the policies applied, users may monitor specific issues without blocking them. However, policies that block threats should be applied.

One feature I would like to add is remote wipeout capability. This would be useful in cases where a user leaves the organization and fails to return their laptop. Remote wipeout would allow for the deletion of data from the device with a single command. Regarding technical support from Sophos XG, it's generally satisfactory. However, the response time could be improved. It takes around one hour to receive assistance, but reducing this to 30-45 minutes would benefit us.

The tool has only a base DLP feature. It needs to have a full DLP feature with additional licensing. 

I have been working with the product for ten years. 

I rate the tool's stability an eight point five out of ten. 

I rate the solution's scalability a seven point five out of ten. 

The tool's installment is easy. 

The tool's pricing is cheaper compared to other alternative products. 

Sophos XG has a lab center where they analyze signatures and automatically update them on the product. This eliminates the need for manual updates on individual machines or centers. Additionally, it has features like MDR and management response features. So, Sophos XG seems to have a roadmap in place.

I would recommend the product based on the situation. Cortex, a next-generation antivirus for larger enterprises, would likely provide sufficient coverage. It's also known for its scalability and visibility features, including root cause analysis and terminology features.

I rate the overall solution an eight out of ten. 

I mainly use Sophos XG for network firewall protection and VPN access. It helps secure our internet connection and allows us to manage our network traffic efficiently. Additionally, we use it for monitoring our local network.

Sophos XG has significantly improved our remote workforce security. It effectively safeguards our information systems and data, while also enabling us to restrict access to unauthorized websites. This has been particularly valuable for ensuring productivity and security across all our branches nationwide.

The most valuable features of Sophos XG for our use cases are its firewall capabilities, its ability to connect to wide area and local networks, and its VPN functionality. It effectively protects our information systems while simplifying VPN setup across branches, eliminating the need for additional VPN services from our internet service provider.

One area where Sophos XG could improve is in its patch management system. I encountered an issue where installing a new patch resulted in being locked out of the firewall, which was quite inconvenient. This suggests a vulnerability that needs addressing to ensure administrators can update patches without losing access. Such incidents shouldn't require a complete reconfiguration, so there is definitely room for improvement in this aspect.

One piece of advice I would offer is for Sophos XG to consistently incorporate the latest technologies to stay competitive with other vendors. Ensuring that new features are regularly updated and integrated into future products will enhance the platform's effectiveness and appeal to users.

I have been working with Sophos XG for seven years.

I would rate the stability of the solution as a ten out of ten.

I would rate the scalability of the solution as an eight out of ten. It is highly scalable and capable of covering a growing number of end users. Whether managing a small or large user base, its scalability makes it adaptable to varying network sizes and user demands. In my organization, we have approximately two thousand users across various branches using Sophos XG daily.

I would rate the initial setup of Sophos XG as a solid ten out of ten in terms of ease. With a clear understanding of the process and step-by-step guidance, setting it up was straightforward and hassle-free.

It took me around 30 minutes to deploy Sophos XG. The deployment process involved configuring the LAN, WAN, and VPN settings at each branch. Once connected to the switch and router, it was ready to use, making it a straightforward and quick setup process. 

Maintaining Sophos XG typically requires only one or two people, depending on the size and complexity of the network deployment.

The most effective feature of Sophos XG for threat prevention is its regular patch management system. By consistently updating software and firmware with new patches, it helps prevent attacks by addressing vulnerabilities and staying ahead of emerging threats.

The web filtering capability of Sophos XG has benefited our organization by effectively blocking users from accessing specific websites during office hours and even restricting access to certain sites altogether. This feature has been instrumental in enforcing our web usage policies and ensuring a secure browsing environment.

The performance of Sophos XG's firewall has met our expectations perfectly.

We have integrated Sophos XG with other security equipment such as routers and switches. While we primarily use it as a standalone product, in some branches, we have connected it with other security solutions for enhanced protection.

I would recommend implementing Sophos XG for its effectiveness as a firewall. Before installing it, consider factors like your current network equipment, intended use, user compliance with security controls, and whether your technical staff may need training if they're unfamiliar with Sophos firewall.

Overall, I would rate Sophos XG as a ten out of ten.