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Security Analyst at M3
User
Top 20
Great import, logging, and IPS features
Pros and Cons
  • "The IPS is frequently updated so the rules are always new and in place."
  • "The firewall can improved to make it more user-friendly."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use case for this solution is to protect the devices under the firewall.

There is a customer who has many switches and routers in their network. They are only protected by an old Cisco ASA firewall. So, the customer instead finds a new vendor or service, and thus we install the Check Point Firewall.

Since the customer has many devices, it takes quite some time to move the Cisco ASA firewall rules to the Check Point policies. However, Check Point has a function to import the policies so it takes less time to do so. Still, the rules that were imported are a mess so we still need to check them one by one and fix the errors before installing them in the customer environment.

How has it helped my organization?

The Check Point NGFW has improved the organization by helping with multi-tasking.

The Check Point Firewall that we have is better than the previous Cisco ASA as the firewall has IPS, anti-virus, and anti-bot installed into it at the same time. The IPS is frequently updated so the rules are always new and in place. The firewall IPS and anti-virus can also get other threat intelligence from the web so that the firewall will always have good protection that is up to date. 

The anti-bot is good as it can prevent the firewall from being protected from DDoS without creating any rules as it automatically blocks IPs that are sending too much information to the servers.

What is most valuable?

The features I found most valuable are the import, logging, and IPS.

The import makes it easier for us to copy the rules without starting from scratch, which will take lots of time. The next thing I find most valuable is the logging. The logging which is called Smartview can distill the logs into simple reports which makes it easier to see all the attacks and issues the firewall faces without diving deep into the logs. Lastly, the IPS is always new and up to date so the attacks that happen are always blocked.

What needs improvement?

The firewall can improved to make it more user-friendly. The firewall is somewhat not user-friendly as it has many sections and makes it complicated for a layman to understand where to put the policies and rules. 

The firewall also doesn't save the policies immediately after you save them, which means you need to do one more extra step in order for the new rules or policies to take effect. During my first time handling it, I did not understand why the rules and policies I put in didn't work until I found out that you need to click the install button until it takes effect.

Buyer's Guide
Check Point NGFW
June 2025
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Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Support at a security firm with 51-200 employees
User
Nice portal, good security, and great dashboards
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is easy to administer thanks to its dashboards. The monitoring is really useful."
  • "Currently, some prices are very expensive."

What is our primary use case?

We require local perimeter security in one of our workshops, which is why we require a new-generation firewall solution. The local equipment works for us to be able to provide perimeter security in our workshop.

Thanks to these Check Point Gateway devices and with the integration of many additional security solutions, we have protection against zero-day threats. In addition, we have the possibility of carrying out all the management from the Infinity security portal and can administer all our policies, view logs, and monitor devices, among other tasks.

How has it helped my organization?

Thanks to Check Point, we managed to carry out a better security implementation. By placing one in a workshop, we managed to solve issues with attacks and malware.

The solution is easy to administer thanks to its dashboards. The monitoring is really useful.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable aspects include:

  • Mobile security. Check Point NGFW includes mobile security features that enable you to secure mobile devices and protect against threats such as mobile malware and phishing attacks.
  • Scalability: Check Point NGFW is highly scalable and can support large networks with high traffic volumes. 
  • What needs improvement?

    The best improvements to be considered are:

    • Improvements in the time and attention given to solutions for generated cases.
    • Licensing that is more comfortable and affordable. Currently, some prices are very expensive.
    • In terms of language in the application, they could better facilitate the handling of others.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    This is an excellent product of the new generation, administered in the Infinity Portal. We have used the product for at least two years.

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

    Previously, we had not carried out verifications of other devices.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Check Point NGFW
    June 2025
    Learn what your peers think about Check Point NGFW. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
    859,687 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Manzoom Ahmed Khan - PeerSpot reviewer
    Senior Network Security Engineer at C-Edge Technologies Limited
    Integrator
    Good support with advanced blades and good reliability
    Pros and Cons
    • "The Check Point architecture and packet are very good."
    • "There is a huge amount of revenue lost in the financial/banking sector due to cyber attacks, so we need to have something that can highly concentrate on future cyber attacks."

    What is our primary use case?

    I am using Check Point NGFW in an internet-facing manner thanks to the advanced features and security, like the SAM database.

    If anyone wants to use the firewall as internet facing, then Check Point NGFW is the best option.

    How has it helped my organization?

    Our organization gets many attacks on our server, so we have installed Check Point firewall for internet-facing scenarios,

    What is most valuable?

    The SAM database and advanced blade are the most valuable aspects of the product.

    The Check Point architecture and packet are very good.

    What needs improvement?

    We need further protection from future critical cyber attacks, as cyber-attacks are growing day by day, and every day new attack is happening in the real world.

    There is a huge amount of revenue lost in the financial/banking sector due to cyber attacks, so we need to have something that can highly concentrate on future cyber attacks.

    Check Point should release some new technology that no vendor has ever done before.

    Check Point NGFW helps me as a network security engineer as it is easy to troubleshoot the issue and also its easy to clear all vulnerabilities in Check Point after upgrading.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using this solution for five years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The stability is good. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability is good.

    How are customer service and support?

    They are awesome. They offer a high level of support.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

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

    I have used Cisco, however, due to multiple vulnerabilities, I have switched to Check Point.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward.

    What was our ROI?

    The ROI is good. 

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

    They offer good quality, therefore, the pricing doesn’t matter.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    I have compared many vendors, including Sophos and Fortinet.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer1856865 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Network Engineering and IS Access at SFR
    Real User
    Easy to use with good management capabilities and advanced routing
    Pros and Cons
    • "The management of the firewall and advanced routing is great."
    • "We need east/west Check Point firewalls in order to do micro-segmentation."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use Check Point as well as Cisco. The firewall is used in order to continue filtering with VMware VMotion on different data centers. 

    How has it helped my organization?

    We have several data centers that are stretched. Our Check Point firewalls are used to filter north/south traffic.

    With BGP on Gaia, when one of the clusters is unreacheable, the traffic is rerouted to another cluster. 

    We also use VSX which is really a very good product for macrosegmentation.

    What is most valuable?

    The management of the firewall and advanced routing is great. It's easy to use and troubleshoot.

    What needs improvement?

    We need east/west Check Point firewalls in order to do micro-segmentation. A good solution for us is a solution that can be installed on différent systems (Linux, Windows K8S, bare metal, etc.) and can have centralized management.

    Troubleshooting is also a big feature that will be necessary in this use case. 

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've used the solution for many years.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We also looked at Ciscos ASA and Fortigate.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Private Cloud

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Other
    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. We are a french isp
    PeerSpot user
    Harold Suárez, MGP, PMP® - PeerSpot reviewer
    Project Management and Deployment Team Leader at Sefisa
    MSP
    Great security features with helpful support and useful integration capabilities
    Pros and Cons
    • "In addition to the different security features that Check Point security solutions have, their integration with other technologies makes the security environment a complete security type."
    • "Check Point could do better to include acceleration technologies like SD-WAN in an integrated or embedded way to provide these new features that Check Point never had and is of great importance in the market."

    What is our primary use case?

    We have a very robust implementation of firewalls for a central site, a contingency site, and five agencies, all connected by MPLS. In each perimeter firewall, we apply the security features of FW, IPS, AV, and AB. Additionally, we have a VPN concentrator for VPN S2S and C2S.

    How has it helped my organization?

    Over time, Check Point's solutions have had fewer security breaches than their competitors, which is why they remain in high categories and quadrants, as they are a very robust technology. As pioneers in information security, Check Point has been innovating year after year in information security.

    Since we implemented this architecture in our client, we have not had any security breach exploited and the organization maintains communication with its different sites through MPLS and VPN to secure and encrypt the traffic that passes through said connection.

    What is most valuable?

    In addition to the different security features that Check Point security solutions have, their integration with other technologies makes the security environment a complete security type.

    Apart from the technological and innovative solution, a point in favor of Check Point is the support provided by the manufacturer, since over time, we have not had any case that is not resolved, they have a good escalation process and highly qualified staff. 

    The process of opening a case has different options that are convenient.

    What needs improvement?

    Check Point could do better to include acceleration technologies like SD-WAN in an integrated or embedded way to provide these new features that Check Point never had and is of great importance in the market.

    Its competitors have this SD-WAN technology, if it were not for the fact that Check Point has been more stable historically, this value would weigh negatively for Check Point when choosing a solution.

    If Check Point includes this feature, they will be able to cover those architectures where traffic between sites must be protected and accelerated.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using Check Point for ten years. It is a very mature and robust technology. R81 is a very stable version and always has great security features.

    How are customer service and support?

    I consider that they have good support engineers at each level of escalation, according to the criticality of the issue.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

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

    I do use other technologies, however, Check Point is historically more stable for me, as they have had fewer exploitable security breaches.

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

    Check Point has a good cost-benefit ratio.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We also evaluated Fortinet, Palo Alto, and Watchguard.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Hybrid Cloud
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer1853787 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Systems Engineer at HarborTech Mobility
    User
    Good interface, excellent GUI, and helpful integrations
    Pros and Cons
    • "Making configuring numerous layers of security policies easy to use was always one of the things I liked most about their firewall solution."
    • "There is no email security."

    What is our primary use case?

    We've been using Check Point Firewalls for about nine years, from the early Nokia boxes to the most recent OpenServer architecture. Next year we're finally going to upgrade to an appliance directly from Check Point.

    Check Point Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW) is a very good firewall. It is one of the best firewalls that I have used. I would rate Check Point Next-Generation Firewalls (NGFWs) a nine out of ten. 

    Also, Check Point has a great architecture, where you can just enable the software blades and deploy a secure service. 

    Overall, it provides ease of deployment and ease of use.

    How has it helped my organization?

    All in all, I'm delighted with their security solution. Making configuring numerous layers of security policies easy to use was always one of the things I liked most about their firewall solution. 

    You have multiple security layers that build upon each other, from the traditional security policy that is IP and port-based to application security, intrusion prevention, and their latest sandblast cloud-based malware detection. Everything is easily managed through their "SmartConsole" dashboard. 

    What is most valuable?

    It's valuable as a next-level network security appliance for your enterprise.

    It comes with advanced features like web filtering, app filtering, user-based policies to restrict web and application uses, tunneling, restricting bandwidth uses according to policy, load balancing, etc., and helps to cover almost all network security requirements.

    Our IT team has installed a firewall on all of our company's workstations and laptops to keep our own data and our customer's data secure. This program runs in the background and I don't even notice it, but it keeps me secure at work.

    What needs improvement?

    Configuration using the command line is not that simple and user-friendly.

    There is no email security.

    It's a bit confusing to configure at first. An example is having to set up separate source and destination NAT rather than a simple static mapping. Some configurations require accessing multiple different sections rather than being consolidated in one area. License subscriptions are a bit confusing as well for additional features.

    The CLI is not very useful.

    There's no option to import bulk address objects.

    The firewall default rule 0 blocks rule matches to allowed traffic, even though allow rule is written.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I started using this solution in 2009.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    I am very satisfied with this product.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I have been using Check Point firewalls for a few years now and I enjoy the interface.

    It also integrates great with our other security tools.

    The GUI is much more user-friendly than other Firewall vendors.

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

    I use Check Point Next-Generation Firewalls since things are automated and updated frequently. I did not use a different solution. 

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

    It's not the cheapest solution, however, it's one of the most advanced and competent.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    I am not responsible for our manager's choice of this product. He said it's the best product to secure our network. 

    What other advice do I have?

    Check Point licenses work very differently compared to other vendors. We need to purchase each blade in order to make it work, however, we can easily obtain a trial (evaluation) license from Check Point to get visibility for the blade. Check Point tries to maintain relationships with customers and they try to match their price with customer expectations.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Public Cloud
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer1805079 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Network Engineer at Fujairah Port
    User
    Offers a secure environment with great protection and simple upgrade capabilities
    Pros and Cons
    • "We can also run policies with two or more people simultaneously without problems or the risk of developing the wrong policy."
    • "The smart console is heavy."

    What is our primary use case?

    We currently use Check Point's firewall for our data center. We use Check Point firewall for providing the first layer of security to web application servers and intranet servers. It is robust and easy to upgrade, which makes it less stressful for the administrators. Its failover clustering option also works seamlessly.

    The Check Point firewall is used to secure our environments. It also allows us to set up tunnels between our various sites.

    We use it for the publication of services, as well as a notification system that reports on user behavior and unusual traffic - both within and outside of the network. 

    How has it helped my organization?

    Over the years, we have experienced various types of attacks on our company, and, without the help of the Next Generation CheckPoint Firewall, we would have lost.

    The spoofing feature helps us to prevent various attacks in our organization.

    The firewall policy designing and implementation allow for inline policies that make for clearer teaching on the correct use of policies as well as a more readable list. We can also run policies with two or more people simultaneously without problems or the risk of developing the wrong policy.

    What is most valuable?

    The initial sizing is not a problem. You can easily add more resources if needed. Reliability is a major factor in any hardware or software solution, and Check Point uses cutting-edge hardware. Their software upgrade process is flexible for different deployment requirements. 

    Their threat analysis reporting in their management console is comprehensive and easy to use. The web-based dashboard is well designed and offers a wide variety of out-of-the-box reporting. It offers admins extensive customization.

    What needs improvement?

    The list of site-to-site VPN configuration options is long. They can become confusing and communication with other vendors when deploying VPNs is not the strongest. It's totally different from any other VPN vendor I've encountered.

    It lists the current threats identified on the appliance's front page. It would be easier to find information by clicking on the threat and clicking the exact logs, rather than all host logs.

    The smart console is heavy. It would be better if it was like the web-based consoles that Palo Alto and Fortigate FW offer.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've been using the solution for more than a year.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer1830165 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Technology at Partswerx
    User
    Very easy to use, setup and configure
    Pros and Cons
    • "The small business hardware device was powerful and easy to set up."
    • "Including some sort of menu or grouping for VOIP would help the small business area that has limited support."

    What is our primary use case?

    We initially started using the Check Point device for the VPN blade.  

    After using the VPN blade for several months and using the hardware interface we found it very easy to use.  

    The small business hardware device was powerful and easy to set up. We started using the firewall and Nat shortly after that. 

    Having additional features like the threat prevention that has IPS antivirus antibot and threat emulation we're all added bonuses. This also gives us a piece of mind for the safety of our business.  

    How has it helped my organization?

    Securing our organization was our main goal. Check Point, with threat prevention which includes IPS antivirus antibot and threat emulation has better secured our business from the internet.  

    With the auto-updates made simple and knowledgeable support personnel, it has freed up our time to focus on other IT strategies.  

    Utilizing the Check Point support team has allowed us to configure and use other money-saving features like VPN tunneling to remote offices, while still remaining secure in our systems.

    What is most valuable?

    Check Point VPN has been most valuable to our organization. Having a hardware solution that allows our remote users to connect securely to our business is extremely valuable. 

    The ease of use, setup and configuration backed by the knowledgeable support of Check Point has made this a smooth and easy setup. Our users can get connected securely, anywhere. When connected with our Check Point VPN endpoint, users get the same security and prevention from the threat prevention module as the rest of the devices on our network.

    What needs improvement?

    As a small business, IT expenditures are always a tough call and hard sell. With every business connected to the internet these days, firewalls and threat prevention are very important for any business of any size. Check Point's small business devices are a great fit for most any business. However, including some sort of menu or grouping for VOIP would help the small business area that has limited support. Check Point support is very knowledgeable and can also help in this area as they've helped our business evolve as well.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I've been using the solution for 20 years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The hardware units are solid. It is a stable solution. While you're subscription is active checkpoint fully supports your hardware and will replace if you have any uncorrectable issues.  After 20 years, I've only had to do a hardware replacement once.  Once setup, they just do what their supposed to do.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The solution is very scalable. Configurations can be imported to other units.  Many levels of hardware and software are available.

    How are customer service and support?

    Customer service has always been very knowledgeable about their products.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

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

    We used to use Norton VPN. We switched due to the fact that we had issues with the system.

    How was the initial setup?

    The product offers a simple basic setup.

    What about the implementation team?

    We handled the implementation in-house.

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

    There are different levels of protection and yearly maintenance on offer.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We did not evaluate other options previously. 

    What other advice do I have?

    The support is great.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Check Point NGFW Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: June 2025
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Check Point NGFW Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.