Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs IPFire comparison

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. IPFire

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 15.1%, down from 21.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 1.0%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IPFire is 1.1%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Firewalls Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Fortinet FortiGate	15.1%
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)	1.0%
IPFire	1.1%
Other	82.8%

Firewalls

Featured Reviews

Joseph Koomson

IP Network Security Specialist at MTN Ghana

Process-Level CPU Visibility: Introduce detailed CPU-usage metrics per subsystem (e.g., IPS engine, logging) so administrators can quickly identify and address performance spikes.

Analytics with FortiAnalyzer. Being able to pull in logs not just from our FortiGates but from all our other firewalls and then get them in one view has been a game changer. Whether I’m building an executive dashboard or doing a deep dive forensics session, I get everything I need without navigating consoles.Straightforward Application Control. FortiGate spots and blocks unwanted apps (eq. like BitTorrent or streaming services) with accuracy. Segmentation with VDOMs. We’ve carved our data center into four logical ‘mini-firewalls’ enterprise, core, billing, and WAF—all on one box. Each has its own rules and logs, and any traffic between them still gets inspected. It’s like having multiple appliances without the extra hardware. Always-Up-to-Date Threat Feeds. Daily signature updates and AI-driven threat sensing mean we’re blocking the latest vulnerabilities almost as soon as they’re announced.

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Nasseer Qureshi

Pre Sales Consultant at Redington Group

Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.

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Agharinma Ehiedu

Chief Technology Officer at Agileware Limited

Firewall deployment has secured mission-critical public apps and simplifies Linux-based management

The best features IPFire offers include its very intuitive nature because, even though it has a Linux back-end, in terms of configuration, it has a very rich GUI interface. The GUI and configuration features of IPFire have made my work easier and more efficient because their positioning and the sequence with which I follow is easy. In terms of all the processes, what you need to do at first and the next thing that you need to do is clear. The GUI is well arranged in sequential order, so you can follow that from whatever you want to do until you get the target objective. IPFire includes features with a very robust and rich community that is very much valid in terms of content. IPFire has positively impacted my organization by giving us some mileage. At least, a lot of organizations now know that we have a solution that can deliver the same value.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The most valuable aspects of FortiGate NGFW are its top-notch reputation in peer reviews, user-friendly interface, and excellent support."

"For application filtration, I really appreciate many features of Fortinet FortiGate because it is more reliable, easy to use, and the reports are easy to read and understand."

"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall can be described as the most complete solution."

"We’ve gone from only selling Fortinet FortiGate as an accessory to creating an entire department in our business dedicated to selling Fortinet products in the span of three years."

"We saved a bundle by not needing all the past appliances from an NGFW."

"The main benefit is the grouping of our security monitoring."

"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall (NGFW) 's most valuable features are reporting and filtering."

"Overall Fortinet FortiGate is a good solution."

More Fortinet FortiGate pros

"It's improved the security of every single OS in the organization as well as the visibility and security capabilities."

"The Check Point VPN connection is way more stable than our previous software."

"Providing access and security allows our company employees to work from home and remotely."

"The Check Point portfolio showcases very strong products."

"I find it very easy to implement and deploy in the organization."

"Its software solution also ensures connectivity and protects against NSF filtering."

"While the higher cost and complexity may pose challenges for smaller companies without extensive IT resources, the value provided by Check Point's advanced capabilities and excellent 24/7 support justifies the investment. Overall, it is highly recommended that insurance firms prioritize data security and regulatory compliance, especially medium to large companies with the resources to manage and fully utilize its features."

"The feature that I have found to be most valuable is the reputation that the company has regarding privacy. Nowadays, this is critical, especially when you do all of your work online."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) pros

"Regarding IPFire's AI capabilities, I think they are quite focused; in all the deployments I have done, I have not had any incidents or breaches."

"IPFire has prevented any kind of hacking and enables us to comply with customer requirements."

"I would rate the stability as ten out of ten for IPFire."

Cons

"Sometimes it's super hard to figure out what's wrong with a FortiGate VPN unless you know the commands on the CLI to see the flow and how to interpret it."

"The stability could be a bit better."

"The room for improvement is about the global delivery time period. Usually I need to wait for almost one month to deliver it overseas. So if you can shorten the deliver time it'd be great."

"The firmware in Fortinet FortiGate needs improvement. Some firmwares have many bugs, such as filter issues and VPN connectivity problems."

"The price of the solution could be cheaper."

"There's always something new that can be added or fixed."

"I would like to see improvements in Fortinet FortiGate regarding the active-active scenario. The active-active scenario is supported but not recommended, whereas other vendors are implementing active-active without issues. Perhaps in the future, we could effectively use both firewalls to increase the throughput. If there are two boxes, they both should be able to work."

"Some of the software stability could improve."

More Fortinet FortiGate cons

"Sometimes downloading PDF files can be slow."

"Check Point is an expensive product so support should be more adequate."

"Harmony lacks this ability when anything more than a vanilla access policy is used (we use layers and source user objects in our policy which make this impossible according to Check Point)."

"The suspend feature needs more control."

"The Point locations need to improve the latency and speed."

"As it is a new market solution, I still face some instabilities in access at certain times of the day when I have more than 150 users using it simultaneously."

"When it comes to firewall configuration, sometimes we encounter issues."

"One of our challenges is ensuring the security of our cloud-based operations."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) cons

"The graphical interface could be much better."

"I would rate IPFire 8 out of 10 because I do not think there is any solution anywhere in the world that is 100 percent efficient."

"Accessing the internet was a bit complicated."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."

"When comparing this solution to others, I would rate it a ten out of ten in terms of pricing. However, the issue of requiring a separate license for redundancy is a drawback, and I would rate it a nine out of ten."

"FortiGate Next Generation Firewall is an expensive solution."

"The price of FortiGate support is too expensive."

"Easy to understand licensing requirements."

"Our licensing costs are on a yearly basis."

"The pricing for this solution is good."

"The solution is offered as an annual license."

More Fortinet FortiGate pricing and cost advice

"I would rate Harmony Connect's pricing at six out of ten. It wasn't particularly expensive, but it wasn't super cheap either."

"Annual licenses cost $30 to $40 each."

"The cost of the solution's licenses depends on the particular use cases."

"The product is neither cheap nor expensive."

"Perimeter 81 charges separately for gateways and VPN connectivity, but compared to Azure, it seemed more reasonable."

"The solution is priced appropriately considering its uses. For an essential license, a user pays only 30 USD per month. For an enterprise version, the prices can be negotiated with the company."

"I consider the product to be a medium-priced solution. There are no additional costs attached to the tool."

"Overall I am very happy with the solution’s flexibility and pricing."

More Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Comms Service Provider

10%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Construction Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

21%

Computer Software Company

10%

University

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	369
Midsize Enterprise	139
Large Enterprise	195

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	53
Midsize Enterprise	19
Large Enterprise	14

No data available

Questions from the Community

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When you compare these firewalls you can identify them with different features, advantages, practices and usage a...

What is the biggest difference between Sophos XG and FortiGate?

From my experience regarding both the Sophos and FortiGate firewalls, I personally would rather use FortiGate. I know...

What are the biggest technical differences between Sophos UTM and Fortinet FortiGate?

As a solution, Sophos UTM offers a lot of functionality, it scales well, and the stability and performance are quite ...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Harmony Connect?

I am not aware of the pricing, setup cost, and licensing, but I would say the setup cost is our resource, and we have...

What needs improvement with Harmony Connect?

When I'm raising a ticket for Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81), it's a bit technical for non-technica...

What is your primary use case for Harmony Connect?

I have experience with this product as a user. Currently, the Check Point product that I worked with mostly was the F...

What needs improvement with IPFire?

The graphical interface could be much better.

What is your primary use case for IPFire?

I use IPFire ( /products/ipfire-reviews ) to protect my home.

What advice do you have for others considering IPFire?

Sometimes configuring IPFire is challenging. Overall, I would rate this solution as eight out of ten.

Sophos Firewall vs Fortinet FortiGate

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Product Reports

Fortinet FortiGate

Download Fortinet FortiGate product report

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)

Download Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) product report

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) report

Download IPFire product report

Firewalls

May 2026

Also Known As

Fortinet FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall

Check Point Quantum SASE

No data available

Overview

Fortinet FortiGate is a versatile network security tool offering features like VPN, firewall, web filtering, intrusion prevention, and scalability. It is known for its performance and integration with other Fortinet products, making it a preferred choice for robust cybersecurity.

Fortinet FortiGate stands out as a comprehensive cybersecurity solution with strong performance and ease of configuration. It delivers unified threat management, integrating features such as dynamic routing, SD-WAN support, and centralized management. Despite its strengths, improvements in the web interface's stability, pricing structures, and reporting capabilities are needed. Users seek better integration with third-party tools and automation advancements to enhance the experience further. These enhancements, alongside improvements in bandwidth management and the reduction of licensing costs, are points of interest for users looking to capitalize on FortiGate's extensive capabilities.

What are Fortinet FortiGate's key features?

VPN: Ensures secure remote connections.
Firewall: Protects against unauthorized access.
Web Filtering: Blocks malicious sites and content.
Application Control: Manages and controls applications.
Intrusion Prevention: Detects and prevents vulnerabilities.
SSL Inspection: Enhances security by inspecting encrypted traffic.

What benefits should be considered when evaluating Fortinet FortiGate?

Affordability: Offers cost-effective security solutions.
Reliability: Known for consistent and stable performance.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with other Fortinet products.
Comprehensive Protection: Provides broad threat protection capabilities.

Fortinet FortiGate is widely implemented across industries as a primary firewall system for securing internet gateways and safeguarding data centers. It supports businesses in achieving SD-WAN integration and enhances cybersecurity by providing essential features like antivirus, web filtering, and application control. Enterprises utilize FortiGate for securing remote connections and ensuring compliance with security standards, making it adaptable for different network sizes and industries.

Fortinet

Check Point Harmony SASE, formerly Perimeter 81, offers robust security features like split tunneling, MFA, and Zero Trust Network Access focused on secure remote access and optimized connectivity for remote teams.

Check Point Harmony SASE delivers advanced security through a user-friendly interface, efficient VPN connections, and a centralized management console. It enhances security with real-time threat intelligence from ThreatCloud and traffic management via built-in optimization. Firewall as a Service and Secure Web Gateway safeguard against unauthorized access and phishing. While users seek enhanced networking customizations and better integration with identity providers, there's an emphasis on improving reporting, real-time analytics, and policy management. Requests also include a Chrome extension, traffic balancing, and simplified configuration to address some resource-intensive aspects.

What are the key features of Check Point Harmony SASE?

Split Tunneling: Manages internet traffic more efficiently by routing only necessary data through the VPN.
MFA: Provides an additional layer of security through multi-factor authentication.
Zero Trust Network Access: Ensures secure connections by validating every user and device.
ThreatCloud: Enhances protection with real-time threat intelligence.
Firewall as a Service: Protects against unauthorized access and threats.
Secure Web Gateway: Prevents phishing attacks and unauthorized internet access.

How can organizations benefit from using Check Point Harmony SASE?

Improved Security: Real-time threat intelligence and robust authentication minimize risks.
Centralized Management: Simplifies control over network security and policies.
Optimized Connectivity: Efficient traffic routing enhances user experience.
Flexible Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing IT infrastructure, enhancing strategic security deployment.

Check Point Harmony SASE is used across industries for secure remote access and connectivity, protecting sensitive data, and managing access to corporate resources. It is ideal for those with hybrid cloud models and requires comprehensive security measures combined with existing IT infrastructures to meet specific industry demands.

Check Point Software Technologies

IPFire enhances network security and protects against cyber threats. It provides a secure firewall, secure remote access, and customizable options. Users praise its ease of use, flexibility, and reliability for network monitoring and traffic shaping. Its valuable features include efficient firewall capabilities, a user-friendly interface, and reliable network performance.

IPFire Project

Sample Customers

Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Dell, HP, Oracle, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Vodafone, Orange, BT Group, Telstra, Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, CenturyLink, NTT Communications, Tata Communications, SoftBank, China Mobile, Singtel, Telus, Rogers Communications, Bell Canada, Telkom Indonesia, Telkom South Africa, Telmex, Telia Company, Telkom Kenya

Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith

1. Siemens 2. IBM 3. Cisco 4. Dell 5. HP 6. Intel 7. Oracle 8. Google 9. Microsoft 10. Amazon 11. Apple 12. Facebook 13. Twitter 14. Netflix 15. Adobe 16. SAP 17. VMware 18. Juniper Networks 19. Ericsson 20. Nokia 21. AT&T 22. Verizon 23. T-Mobile 24. Vodafone 25. Orange 26. Deutsche Telekom 27. British Telecom 28. Comcast 29. Time Warner 30. Sony 31. Samsung 32. LG

Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. IPFire