What is our primary use case?
We provide wireless access to customers as per the business case. The primary preferences of clients are usually to choose Fortinet, Ubiquiti, or Cisco, as these offer free consumer-based options built into the FortiGate firewall. This reduces costs and provides a unified space where we can deploy valid policies and enable first-time monitoring.
What is most valuable?
Regarding cost and financials, customers do not need to purchase an additional controller and can scale and expand as their business needs dictate. This is one of the major features in terms of cost and financial management. Additionally, we can from a single console, deploy and push firewall policies, monitor everything, lock and give access, and extend and scale easily. Furthermore, stability, adaptability, performance, and low interference of other frequencies are all managed by radio bands. This is why Fortinet is suitable for the customer.
The Fortinet FortiWLM system can be controlled through the cloud controller, which is convenient when the solution is not installed in our environment, as it allows us to manage the entire WiFi or access points and provides more adaptability.
What needs improvement?
In comparison to the Extreme and UBNT wireless solutions, we find that Fortinet falls short in terms of validity management, practice management, and firmware arrangement.
The initial setup is complex and has room for improvement.
I would like to have some customized modifications to the radio bands so that we can see which is interfering with the wireless IP. If FortiWLM could provide a tool where the user could generate a heat map of the space in which the FortiWLM is operating, this would be a valuable addition to the solution. Most organizations rely on their existing knowledge of wireless before deploying a wireless solution. When we look at the market, we see many more commercial products which provide comprehensive tools. Fortinet has the basic tool, but I don't use it because it is not flexible enough. If Fortinet could provide us with flexible customization of band management, and add a special dashboard where the user can see other devices and settings, as well as a tool to generate a heat map in the next version, this would greatly improve the solution.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is an eight out of ten.
We have used the solution in enterprise-level organizations but it is primarily for SMBs.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is complex, especially with regard to the bad software, complex system integration with the existing infrastructure, integration with multi-factor authentication, and integration with industrial equipment. The solution also supports the industry's portables. However, the UC does not have an extensive list of industries for the portables.
What about the implementation team?
Before implementing, we analyze our customer's requirements and discuss their budget, so we consider the financial aspect. Then, we recommend a customized, scalable, and flexible solution that not only meets their current requirements but also has the potential to last for the next five years. This is why we can plan and execute the solution in such a way that the customer can scale it up for the next five years.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
In the last few years, due in part to the impact of COVID on the market, Fortinet has increased its prices by 35 percent.
What other advice do I have?
I give the solution a seven out of ten.
Most of our customers prefer Cisco over Fortinet due to their longevity of almost 40 years and superior security protocols. Cisco has developed its own set of protocols, giving them flexible options to integrate and coordinate with many open-source centers, and providing excellent integration.
Fortinet FortiWLM is a good solution and I recommend it.
*Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner