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Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs syslog-ng 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
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
101
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
syslog-ng
Ranking in Log Management
19th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is 2.0%, down from 2.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of syslog-ng is 2.5%, down from 2.8% 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.
RyanVargas - PeerSpot reviewer
It's a user-friendly open-source solution that can replace or augment a commercial product in some cases
I rate syslog-ng 10 out of 10. It's free and easy to use. It has built-in tools that help us index the various logs sent to it. It's a solid log product. If you're looking for a SIEM solution, syslog-ng will work as a stopgap measure at beginning of the project. It can also work as an injector for a true SIEM solution. You can send all the logs to syslog-ng and forward all the data to the SIEM solution after you've cleaned up the data and got the pertinent information. It's a good front end for a commercial SIEM solution, which becomes more expensive as you load more data into it. I would highly recommend syslog-ng for that use case. However, if you lack the expertise, you might need to go with a cloud-based SIEM instead. You need some in-house expertise or an outside consultant to manage it and set it up.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This solution offers one view of incident management which has been the most valuable feature."
"We like the fact that we can run minute-by-minute reporting form this solution."
"It gives you live logs, which can be really helpful during troubleshooting."
"t integrates within FortiGate and you can find the reports there."
"Logging is the best feature."
"With Fortinet FortiAnalyzer, it is easy to get reports and read specific logs."
"The most valuable feature of Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is its ability to report for several management tasks in a very short time."
"There are a lot of monitoring features available."
"Syslog-ng provides easy access to all my logs. It helps me show managers and other clients precisely where an incident occurred. I also like it because you can integrate syslog-ng with multiple solutions to allow real-time monitoring."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior."
"Syslog-ng has a separate config file in addition to the core configuration."
"The ability to extract and store the logs is the most valuable feature of syslog-ng."
 

Cons

"One thing we struggled with FortiAnalyzer was integration with SIEM. We also had issues with the new threats and APTs. There were false positives, so we needed to have some ratings related to false positives."
"When somebody is new to the system they find it difficult to perform certain operations, like backups, and to see where the reports are."
"From my point of view, at this time, the solution isn't lacking any features or functionalities."
"Fortinet FortiAnalyzer is not in the cloud environment like some of the other products. There could be a possibility of extending its functionality to the cloud environment. If possible, they could have a deal with or integrate with other firewall manufacturers, like Palo Alto and Cisco, and mix the information. It is a difficult functionality. I don't know if any product in the market provides such functionality."
"The UI could use some improvement. It can be tough for a beginner to navigate because you don't know what to do even if you read the guide. I've talked to some users who said that they couldn't figure out what to do even after looking at the documentation."
"The deployment is complex and has room for improvement."
"They could improve the user interface a bit."
"The traffic monitoring could be better, and stability could be improved."
"There is room for improvement in terms of observability."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"The filtering has room for improvement."
"It's hard to find people who know how to use syslog-ng. I often find problems with configurations, and solutions aren't integrated correctly with syslog-ng. For example, there might be data with extra decimals, or the collector agents are incorrectly named. It isn't a problem with the solution; it's a lack of professionals."
"There is always the potential for additional integration and protocol extensions."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"FortiAnalyzer was in the product itself, but two years ago they split it from Fortinet. We paid the license two years ago."
"It is acceptable for on-premises, but it is expensive for the cloud."
"When comparing with other solutions such as Checkpoint and Cisco, Fortinet is priced well."
"I believe that these devices were procured with a five-year maintenance and support license up front. I work at a university, so the vendor provides a considerable higher ed discount."
"Compared to other products, the price is a little bit high."
"The price is not expensive when compared to other solutions like Palo Alto."
"Its worth spending on FortiAnalyzer if you have multiple firewalls in your network."
"I believe that Fortinet is a cost-effective brand, making it a competitive option in terms of pricing."
"Syslog-ng is a free open-source solution."
"Syslog-ng is open-source."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

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?
In the Indian market, Fortinet's pricing is very competitive, allowing us to win most of our deals. It is supportive in terms of pricing, offering a good balance for mid-sized enterprises.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiAnalyzer?
Currently, Fortinet FortiAnalyzer provides a very basic level of correlation facilities. I would like to see improvements in the integration of better correlation capabilities. This would help in a...
What do you like most about syslog-ng?
For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for syslog-ng?
The pricing is in the middle. I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with one being expensive and ten being cheap.
What needs improvement with syslog-ng?
There is room for improvement in terms of observability. Additionally, a possible new feature could be Kafka integration.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

General Directorate of Information Technology
Tecnocom, University of Victoria, University of Exeter, Datapath
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiAnalyzer vs. syslog-ng and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.