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Cisco IOS Security vs ExtraHop Reveal(x) comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.7
Fortinet FortiGate offers cost-effective security with quick deployment, improving efficiency, reducing downtime, and providing a strong return on investment.
Sentiment score
7.4
Cisco IOS Security offers high ROI through improved efficiency, reduced risks, cost savings, and a beneficial subscription model.
Sentiment score
6.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) enhances MTTR and ROI by swiftly identifying issues, benefiting finance firms but costly for healthcare.
Clients are now comfortable and not wasting productive hours on IT support.
The automation part is giving us a cost benefit and speed; we can react faster.
It's a very useful tool to mitigate and protect your enterprise.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.4
Fortinet FortiGate support is mostly praised for responsiveness and knowledge, though inconsistencies exist in complex cases or regions.
Sentiment score
6.8
Cisco IOS Security offers expert support but faces criticism for slow responses and communication challenges, remaining a strong choice.
Sentiment score
7.6
Users highly rate ExtraHop Reveal(x) support for reliable, knowledgeable, and efficient issue resolution, despite occasional time zone delays.
They offer very accurate solutions.
The quick resolution of issues with Fortinet FortiGate is due to the support of the company and the fact that the equipment is easy to work with.
I would rate the technical support for Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
I would rate their technical support nine out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
Fortinet FortiGate offers scalability and easy integration for diverse environments, catering to businesses from small to large enterprises.
Sentiment score
7.4
Cisco IOS Security is praised for scalability and efficiency but may require additional hardware and specific Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
6.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) is scalable and manages up to 100GB, though cost and upgrades may pose challenges for some users.
They scale up really well from smaller models like the FortiGate 40 and 50 to bigger sites with the FortiGate 100 for more throughput - up to enterprise datacenters.
The variation comes in terms of the interfaces and throughputs, but from a security perspective, you get the same benefit, irrespective of whether you have an entry-level unit or an enterprise.
We determine sizing based on multiple factors: number of users, available links, traffic types, server count, services in use, and whether services will be published.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.5
Fortinet FortiGate is highly stable and reliable, excelling in continuous operation with effective network management, despite occasional update issues.
Sentiment score
7.6
Cisco IOS Security is praised for stability and reliability, with few integration issues reported when not using Cisco equipment.
Sentiment score
7.5
ExtraHop Reveal(x) is highly stable and reliable, consistently performing well with regular updates, despite minor hardware issues.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
Currently, we are experiencing a general outage of one of the main internet service providers of the Dominican Republic, and we have not been impacted in our operations because with SD-WAN, we have another internet service provider and we are working with the second WAN connection without any disruption.
I find Cisco IOS Security to be a very stable product.
 

Room For Improvement

Users express concern over Fortinet FortiGate's interface stability, functionality, performance issues, and call for improved support and features.
Cisco IOS Security needs more intuitive management, better performance, advanced features, and improved integration, usability, and support.
ExtraHop Reveal(x) needs improvements in integrations, flexibility, reporting, pricing, and cloud capabilities, while offering better training options.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security.
When considering Sophos XG, which we also use, the logging and reporting functionality is notably more efficient.
Currently, we have to check manually as we do not receive any notifications about new patches, maintenance, or firmware releases.
I would like to see improvements in areas where events are getting dropped; we're not able to view complete insights.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers high initial costs but competitive pricing, valued features, and flexible licensing compared to competitors.
Cisco IOS Security is pricey, subscription-based, aimed at medium-to-large enterprises, with recent SMB options, often seen as expensive.
Enterprise buyers find ExtraHop Reveal(x) costly, with escalating costs for scaling and specific features, despite robust capabilities.
Last year, I renewed the support for three years, which can sometimes be expensive but depends on the security benefits and how it helps us.
It offers cost savings as it is generally cheaper than the competition.
It is about 20% cheaper.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate offers robust, affordable security with user-friendly interface, centralized management, and efficient SD-WAN capabilities.
Cisco IOS Security enhances network security with robust features, user-friendly interface, and strong performance, preferred over competitors.
ExtraHop Reveal(x) offers seamless integration, powerful analytics, and machine learning for effective threat detection and comprehensive network visibility.
In terms of security, we have not experienced any security flaws or loopholes, and it has proven to be quite stable.
FortiGate has helped reduce the risk of cyberattacks that might disrupt our client's production.
These features help reduce our downtime, manage the ISPs, and deploy SLAs for all the website traffic.
This solution, called Network Access Controller, handles authentication, authorization, and accounting for devices accessing the network.
If I want to know a specific IP and which server it has been connected to, it's easy to gather those kinds of trees from the NDR.
The solution offers a friendly GUI for security features.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
574
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (2nd), Firewalls (1st), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (1st), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st), ZTNA (2nd), Unified Threat Management (UTM) (1st)
Cisco IOS Security
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (24th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (14th)
ExtraHop Reveal(x)
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (3rd), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Firewalls Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco IOS Security0.3%
Fortinet FortiGate20.4%
OPNsense11.0%
Other68.3%
Firewalls
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ExtraHop Reveal(x)14.1%
Darktrace23.9%
Cisco Secure Network Analytics14.6%
Other47.4%
Network Traffic Analysis (NTA)
 

Featured Reviews

Vasu Gala - PeerSpot reviewer
A stable solution with an intuitive interface and quick customer service
I have been working with Fortinet FortiGate, WatchGuard, Sophos, and SonicWall. I'm not as comfortable with SonicWall because of their UI and limitations. I prefer Fortinet above all other options. When it comes to configuration, I am confident in my ability to handle various tasks, including creating policies such as firewall rules, web policies, and application policies. Additionally, I can configure VPNs and implement load balancing, among other tasks. Overall, I feel much more comfortable working with Fortinet. Fortinet has made significant improvements by integrating AI with firewalls for threat analysis and prevention. In the past 2-3 years, they have launched FortiSASE and SIEM, and they also provide SOC services. Both Palo Alto and Fortinet FortiGate are excellent. While Fortinet FortiGate comes at higher prices, the functionality and support justify the cost. They promptly resolve firmware issues and inform all support providers about configuration changes.
Binoob John - PeerSpot reviewer
Rrobust network security and device authentication with advanced access control features
This solution should be implemented for most enterprise-level customers. It ensures that users accessing the corporate network or wireless network with their own devices are authenticated and authorized. As a network administrator, I can track who is accessing the network, what devices they are…
Henri Heuvel - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud-based administration streamlines network security management
ExtraHop Reveal(x) can improve regarding integration capabilities. For instance, the market is getting really flooded with Microsoft Sentinel, and I know there is an integration possible, but the tools on the market right now indicate that integration should not be a skill from an integrator point of view. It should be quite easy for customers to integrate that solution into SOCs, SIEMs, or any other integration with other tools. There are various integrations from which there's a manual on how to do it, but specifically, the Microsoft portfolio, particularly Sentinel, integration is not yet there. If you score them on a scale of one to ten, ExtraHop scores around a 7.5 to an 8 on an integration basis, but there's actually room for improvement on that side. In the older days, ExtraHop had a license model where you could do all you can eat, so if you had a sensor with 10 gig of capacity, you could use all the entire 10 gig of throughput. They changed that to an asset-based license model, and that's an absolute downside of the solution, where it is harder for smaller companies to acquire the solution itself. That has given us quite some problems in positioning the solution properly within the network, so the licensing model is an absolute downside where they need to improve.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
27%
Government
9%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
12%
Healthcare Company
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business350
Midsize Enterprise130
Large Enterprise187
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise18
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise9
 

Questions from the Community

Which is the better NGFW: Fortinet Fortigate or Cisco Firepower?
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 do you like most about Cisco IOS Security?
Cisco IOS Security is a mature product with extensive capabilities, serving as the base for the defense layer. It off...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco IOS Security?
Pricing can be reduced. I rate the current price for the product a four out of ten.
What needs improvement with Cisco IOS Security?
While I do not have specific recommendations for improvement, pricing can be reduced.
What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?
We just did an assessment for our 47 datacenters around North America. The top two enterprise-level network monitorin...
What open source tool can one use to measure bandwidth from one's upstream service provider?
One I am looking closely at is AppNeta. They have an appliance that can digest the flow and do a better job than N...
What do you like most about ExtraHop Reveal(x)?
With ExtraHop Reveal(x), it gives me more visibility into the packets. It doesn't provide the entire packet capture, ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
IOS Security
Reveal(x), Revealx
 

Overview

 

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
Arup Group, Brunel University London, City of Biel, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, K&L Gates , New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Offshore Northern Seas, Transplace
Wood County Hospital
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