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Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs Security Onion comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 2024

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 FortiAnalyzer
Ranking in Log Management
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
106
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Security Onion
Ranking in Log Management
21st
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.5
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is 1.9%, down from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Security Onion is 5.0%, up from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Log Management
 

Featured Reviews

Manikandan Kannan - PeerSpot reviewer
Simplifying log management by displaying detailed access information
The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is its ability to simplify and display logs clearly, providing details like which IPs are accessing the system, the destination, and the policies applied. This visualization and detail make managing logs more straightforward. In conjunction with our VMware setup, Fortinet FortiAnalyzer enhances organizational efficiency, meeting the standard log retention period for up to a year.
Jörg Kippe - PeerSpot reviewer
A mature and affordable solution that is easy to install and easy to update
The product takes time to learn, it's not that easy. In the beginning we had a lot of questions. If you want to use such a tool in an real (industrial) environment, you have to ask how to get the network data. Can we do a full packet capture? Can we provide agents to our end systems? There are no simple solutions to these questions. It's a general problem when running such systems in an industrial environment.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The scalability is good. It is also good in the cluster nodes. You can make multiple FortiAnalyzer clusters groups, and you can distribute the logs between these FortiAnalyzer nodes. In other words, you can expand the scale."
"The most valuable is its robust and comprehensive reporting functionality, providing a thorough overview of various metrics."
"Log collection is the most valuable. The UI looks great. It has a very good look and feel. We don't have the need to use solid state drives. We use mechanic drives, and we don't see any performance issues, so basically, it is doing fine."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is reporting."
"The installation process for Fortinet FortiAnalyzer was very smooth, taking around two to three hours to deploy."
"The most valuable features of the solution are report generation and traffic logs."
"The ability to gather all gateway information and logs in a single location is the most valuable feature."
"The solution allows for a lot of customization."
"We use Security Onion for internal vulnerability assessment."
"Security Onion is the most mature solution in the market."
"The most valuable feature of Security Onion for security monitoring is its ability to find infected ports."
 

Cons

"The traffic monitoring could be better, and stability could be improved."
"Pricing-wise, it not affordable for the normal customer. Most of the people want to see different types of reporting, but FortiAnalyzer's fee is a little bit difficult."
"I feel that Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is a little bit heavy, making it an area where improvements are required."
"The deployment is complex and has room for improvement."
"Fortinet FortiAnalyzer could improve by having better integration with other vendors."
"The technical support is not very good."
"Currently, Fortinet FortiAnalyzer provides a very basic level of correlation facilities. I would like to see improvements in the integration of better correlation capabilities."
"The solution could use more graphics and be more specific in the dashboard. This way, I'm able to understand everything and effectively understand what's going on, including what's incoming and outgoing. Right now, I have to look up everything. I need a dashboard so that I can see specific items right there in one place."
"The product is not easy to learn."
"The initial setup of the solution is a little bit difficult."
"Security Onion's user interface could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I do not know the price of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer. I did not pay for it, but I know the price of other Fortinet products. They are not cheap. I am from Poland. We have Zloty, not Euro, so for us, everything is expensive."
"We found the price of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer to be reasonable."
"The enterprise version of this solution is costly. We have considered FortiAuthenticator for network control, but the pricing was focused on the larger companies and didn't suit our needs as a smaller business."
"I would rate the price of FortiAnalyzer as seven out of ten, with ten being the most expensive."
"I won't say the solution is too costly since it is available at a fair price."
"The cost of the license is high."
"The cost and pricing should be in accordance with the calculation of log storage capacity for a time period required for historical analysis."
"Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is quite an expensive tool."
"Security Onion is an open-source solution."
"It is an open-source solution."
"Security Onion is a free solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
11%
University
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Government
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
The reporting features, which offer customization, real-time insights, and compliance support, are particularly noteworthy aspects.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
I have experience with pricing, licensing, and setup costs as I prepare quotes for clients. While Fortinet FortiAnalyzer might be more expensive than some other solutions, it remains very competiti...
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
Fortinet FortiAnalyzer can become even better with integration with other product providers and solution providers.
What do you like most about Security Onion?
The most valuable feature of Security Onion for security monitoring is its ability to find infected ports.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Security Onion?
Security Onion is an open-source solution. On a scale from one to ten, where ten is expensive and one is cheap, I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten.
What needs improvement with Security Onion?
The initial setup of the solution is a little bit difficult.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

General Directorate of Information Technology
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs. Security Onion and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
863,901 professionals have used our research since 2012.