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Cisco Secure Firewall vs Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection 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
7.4
Fortinet FortiGate provides cost-effective security, reducing operational costs and enhancing efficiency with quick ROI for enterprises.
Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Secure Firewall offers improved security and efficiency, but cost and ROI vary based on deployment and usage.
Sentiment score
7.3
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection provides cost savings and operational continuity, with users confirming its value and beneficial returns.
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.
The biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Firewall is that there's no waste in any infrastructure cost and licensing costs for us.
From my point of view, the biggest return on investment when using Cisco Secure Firewall is the single pane of glass, which is a huge plus for us.
The biggest return on investment for me when using Cisco Secure Firewall is reliability and robust network design.
The implementation of Infoblox DNS allows customers to reduce operational costs by managing multiple functionalities in one window, thereby reducing the need for multiple resources.
The ROI with Infoblox is very efficient for opportunities like replacing other vendors and providing advantageous points.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.9
Fortinet FortiGate support varies, praised for responsiveness but criticized for slow responses and regional inconsistencies in efficiency.
Sentiment score
7.5
Cisco Secure Firewall support is highly rated for knowledgeable assistance, though response times and access vary based on contracts.
Sentiment score
9.0
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection is praised for efficient, responsive 24/7 support, though some report delays and challenges.
I would rate their support for FortiGate a nine out of ten.
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 have to provide many logs, yet problems remain unresolved, often requiring workarounds rather than solutions.
I have been working with them on firewalls, wireless, switching, and routing, and the support is the best.
They have expertise and provide solutions for the most difficult problems.
Infoblox technical support is excellent, with good experiences and strong historical support.
Customer support is efficient, with Infoblox providing 24/7 fast support.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Fortinet FortiGate is scalable with ease of expansion, though hardware integration and sizing can pose challenges for users.
Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Secure Firewall offers scalability and integration, though licensing complexity and scalability challenges in growth may concern some users.
Sentiment score
8.3
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection is scalable, meeting diverse needs with flexibility, hardware options, and high ratings despite compatibility issues.
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.
Scalability presents a challenge.
Compared to FortiGate and Palo Alto, it lags in configuration and other aspects.
Even with the highest one, the 4600, we still face issues, particularly when transitioning between screens; it becomes very slow.
Scalability is well-supported in Infoblox DNS due to the availability of both hardware and virtual options.
Infoblox is very scalable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Fortinet FortiGate is favored for its stability and reliability, with some performance issues resolved through updates and sizing.
Sentiment score
7.2
Cisco Secure Firewall is highly reliable with minimal outages, though occasional upgrade issues are typically fixed with updates.
Sentiment score
8.5
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection is generally stable and reliable, though some users note instability with added features or high traffic.
We're experiencing 99.999% availability consistently.
I would rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate a ten out of ten.
We have not had any problems with the operating systems or maintenance of subscriptions.
We have often encountered split-brain scenarios during failover processes and code upgrades, which have been persistent problems for us.
We work with a cluster with high availability, so if something goes wrong, we have it functioning.
Cisco Secure Firewall offers exceptional performance and stability.
Infoblox DNS is quite stable.
Even when there are performance issues, such as hardware problems, Infoblox provides strong support to resolve the issue promptly, without delays.
 

Room For Improvement

Fortinet FortiGate users seek improvements in stability, integration, scalability, cost, and advanced features like monitoring and zero-trust technology.
Cisco Secure Firewall faces criticism for its complex GUI, high costs, and demands better features, integration, and performance improvements.
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection faces challenges in documentation, pricing, UI complexity, integration, and requires better DNS security alerts.
Investing in a solution that can accommodate such growth would be more cost-effective than repeatedly purchasing new hardware.
The constant daily revisions necessitate meticulous identification of the relevant documents to prevent the use of outdated information that could jeopardize our environment.
While Fortinet claims to offer a comprehensive network solution, it falls short in addressing computer application issues, particularly server security.
My ongoing complaint for the last six years has been the lack of CLI functionality, which hinders my ability to work on the firewall, alongside concerns regarding deployment time.
Firepower Management Center is quite out of date compared to other vendors.
The integration between Cisco products themselves presents difficulties, such as SD-WAN configuration.
The configuration process can be complex, which may be an area for potential improvement in terms of user-friendliness.
Infoblox needs to adapt its protection to better cover enterprises, particularly in the context of pricing when compared to competitors like Cloudflare.
The overall pricing of Infoblox is high, particularly for the Bangladesh market, and the licensing model is challenging.
 

Setup Cost

Fortinet FortiGate offers various licensing models, balancing affordability and performance, though renewals can increase costs.
Cisco Secure Firewall is costly but offers robust support and reliability; licensing complexity can be mitigated by smart licensing.
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection is costly, priced around $100,000 annually, with varied licensing and no extra setup costs.
FortiGate is priced lower than Palo Alto.
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 is about 20% cheaper.
It's good to have them, however, it costs us a lot.
It's considered a premium, but people pay that price for Cisco.
There are a lot of in-place contracts for us that provide the benefit of discounts.
Licensing costs can vary depending on the number of users, sometimes costing around a hundred to one hundred fifty dollars per user.
The overall pricing is quite high, which poses a challenge when selling this product to the customer.
The main challenge with pricing is competing with vendors like Cloudflare, which often have an advantage in costs.
 

Valuable Features

Fortinet FortiGate provides robust security features, user-friendly management, and scalability, making it a preferred choice for organizations.
Cisco Secure Firewall provides robust security, scalability, and central management, with intuitive tools for efficient threat protection and network monitoring.
Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection offers centralized management, advanced security, seamless maintenance, and automated features, supporting industries with high demands.
The firewall, IPS, and VPN functions are the most valuable features.
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.
What stands out positively about Cisco is their training and support, which has effectively prepared engineers to work with their products.
This is very important to my organization, as we work extensively with security because we are a bank, so we can keep the data safe.
Cisco Secure Firewall allows me to safeguard Layer 7 or Layer 3 and manage the security rules with the business needs of my organization.
They provide centralized management for DNS, DHCP, and IP address management for the DDI, along with complete visibility of the DNS flow in case of incidents, and automated responses.
Infoblox is a DDI solution that offers more than just DNS security, providing unique protection for IT management and DSCP.
Infoblox DNS Protection provides complete DDI solutions, allowing customers to easily manage their IP addresses and integrate them with DNSSEC and DSCP.
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortinet FortiGate
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
370
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (2nd), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Cisco Secure Firewall
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
428
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (6th), Cisco Security Portfolio (4th)
Infoblox Advanced DNS Prote...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Domain Name System (DNS) Security (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Firewalls
Domain Name System (DNS) Security
 

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.
Phil Shiflett - PeerSpot reviewer
Unified policies streamline network management but complex licensing requires attention
Cisco Secure Firewall has some growth opportunities in terms of visibility and control capabilities regarding managing encrypted traffic. It has the ability to analyze encrypted traffic, and there is potential for more integration with APIs and AI to enhance these capabilities. Cisco Secure Firewall needs improvement in deployment time and the capability to access the CLI during support calls. I often encounter issues when technical support uses a CLI that is not familiar to me while troubleshooting through the GUI. My ongoing complaint for the last six years has been the lack of CLI functionality, which hinders my ability to work on the firewall, alongside concerns regarding deployment time. For the next release, they should look at the features offered by competitors such as Fortinet, including the ability to perform packet capture directly from the interface. If they enhanced their troubleshooting efficiency related to packet capture for each specific rule, it would simplify the process significantly.
Amr Shawky - PeerSpot reviewer
Replaces internal DNS servers effectively with strong support for network security
For users not already working with Infoblox, it is advisable to present it as a centralized integrated solution to handle DNS IPAM. Not all customers understand DNS security threats, so emphasizing its importance is crucial. On a scale of one to ten, I rate Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection as ten for the overall solution.
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Comparison Review

it_user206346 - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 11, 2015
Cisco ASA vs. Palo Alto Networks
Cisco ASA vs. Palo Alto: Management Goodies You often have comparisons of both firewalls concerning security components. Of course, a firewall must block attacks, scan for viruses, build VPNs, etc. However, in this post I am discussing the advantages and disadvantages from both vendors concerning…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Educational Organization
13%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
35%
Computer Software Company
15%
University
6%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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What do you like most about Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection?
The solution's user interface is very smooth compared to other products.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection?
The main issue with Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection is its higher price compared to other solutions.
What needs improvement with Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection?
The portal for technical knowledge for Infoblox Advanced DNS Protection needs improvement. It is not very rich and co...
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Firewall, Cisco ASA NGFW, Adaptive Security Appliance, Cisco Sourcefire Firewalls, Cisco ASAv, Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewall
Infoblox Secure DNS
 

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
There are more than one million Adaptive Security Appliances deployed globally. Top customers include First American Financial Corp., Genzyme, Frankfurt Airport, Hansgrohe SE, Rio Olympics, The French Laundry, Rackspace, and City of Tomorrow.
Colruyt Group, Council Rock School District, Danone, GlaxoSmithKline, The Hershey Company 
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