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Hillstone E-Series vs SonicWall NSa comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 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 FortiGate
Sponsored
Ranking in Firewalls
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
330
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (1st), WAN Edge (1st)
Hillstone E-Series
Ranking in Firewalls
36th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
SSL VPN (11th), Enterprise Infrastructure VPN (28th)
SonicWall NSa
Ranking in Firewalls
17th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
87
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Firewalls category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiGate is 21.4%, up from 17.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Hillstone E-Series is 0.3%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall NSa is 1.7%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Firewalls
 

Featured Reviews

EhabAli - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient, user-friendly, and affordable
In the past, NSS Labs was utilized to test files and verify the numbers and datasheets. It would be beneficial to have an organization or testing lab that can verify the numbers in our datasheets since changes are frequently made, which can be inconvenient for review. For instance, when comparing different competitors such as Forcepoint, Palo Alto, and Check Point, the throughput or numbers in the datasheet may be lower than the actual numbers. Conversely, Fortinet typically reports very high numbers, but they cannot be replicated in the real world. Therefore, it would be advantageous for them to partner with a neutral testing organization such as NSS Labs to validate these numbers, thus providing more credibility and comfort to everyone regarding the accuracy of the datasheets. For the migration, everyone has a firewall in use and I am selling Fortinet. Typically, I am replacing another firewall. Previously, there was a tool available to convert configurations from one firewall, such as Palo Alto, to Fortinet, but this tool is no longer free. If it could be made free again, it would be very beneficial. This tool shows a lot of promise and is very good. Making it free would help many companies deliver their products in a more efficient and integrated way. It would also be more valuable to include the tool with the firewall package or license instead of having to pay extra for it. Paying extra puts more pressure on small companies to deliver the firewall and complete the configuration, especially if they have hundreds or thousands of policies. It's very painful to move through these policies line by line. The stability has room for improvement. When it comes to Secure SD-WAN, everything is fine. They are going the right way. SD-WAN is very promising. They can provide the SD-WAN solution separately, but they will not take this approach because even the smallest firewall can support the features, so there is no need to have a separate service or appliance. They are following the right steps, and there is nothing to be improved. Feature-wise, I'm really satisfied with the new release, and the features they have added. For now, it's fine.
TahirMahmood - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers good features like URL filtering, IPS, and IDS to users
We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the firewall, where too much memory was consumed, and the firewall was hanging a lot. When we updated the tool's features, everything became okay. The tool only had some memory-related problems. It took the tool a month to fix the issues.
Vijay Mohan - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers a simple console to manage multiple branches and content filtering
The centralized console is great for managing multiple branches. It's a very simple console to connect all three of our branches in the US and India. We connect through three firewalls in a single console and manage any policy. So, if we need to change a policy, the global admin can connect from anywhere and easily make changes. Log usage is also very easy. The threat prevention capabilities are very good. Preventing the latest threats is very easy. You can define rules, and it automatically alerts you. For example, if there's a sudden increase in malicious spam, it will notify you immediately.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Anti-Spam web content filterinG."
"The initial setup is easy."
"The stability of the solution is excellent, as it is with other Fortinet products."
"Offers good security and filtering."
"Fortinet FortiGate is used to prevent security failures. Since implementing the solution, we have seen improvements in security and in the distribution of our network."
"The flexibility and ease of configuration are the most valuable features."
"It works very well. It has a lot of different functionalities. Its cost is also fine for our customers."
"The solution can scale well."
"I am impressed with the application filtering feature."
"Very reliable solution with good scalability and straightforward implementation."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the ransomware protection that the tool offers."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"Working with the Hillstone E-Series has, from a remote perspective, allowed me to give my clients a secure connectivity."
"This solution has two main features that we find very valuable; a threat-intelligence option, and a web/application filtering option. The technical support team are very good and very quick."
"The most valuable features of the Hillstone E-Series are its hardware capacity, innovation, and the throughput that the hardware can take."
"The initial setup was straightforward. It only took a few hours to deploy."
"We can do the hosting and security all under one box. The UTM is a good feature."
"The prices are similar to other vendors and the support is good."
"The basic firewall rules of the solution are great."
"The features I found most valuable are email security and web filtering."
"The most valuable features are flexibility, ease of setup, and it's a good product cost-wise."
"The technical support is very good."
"This product has kept us safe and we haven't had any breaches."
"Overall SonicWall NSa is a good solution for our use case."
 

Cons

"They should improve high CPU and memory usage that occurs."
"We had a minor problem where there was a major system upgrade on the hardware platfrom and the Mac client was not available as soon as it might have been. The PC client was available immediately, but we had to wait a month or so, before there was a mac client. I was slightly irritated that it was not ready on time, but it was eventually resolved."
"This product needs to have an analysis feature, rather than having the analysis done through the integration of a different product."
"The support team for Fortinet FortiGate needs to be more customer friendly."
"Their support can be better, and there should be better policies for immediate replacement in critical situations."
"Usually, we sell the bundle with the UTM or threat management piece with IPS, IDS. Other providers, such as Palo Alto, are ahead in terms of safe functionality. So, for me, delivering truly safe service is probably something that still needs to be improved."
"Fortinet FortiGate can improve by integrating the web application firewall and the DDoS protection part of the solution. Having a WAF feature, web application firewall, and proxy together would be a good benefit."
"There were quite a few problems with the stability of the system."
"The solution doesn't have a web proxy built into the system like Sophos. This is something they should work to change."
"I am not sure if this solution offers active directory integration. Adding that feature will definitely be an advantage."
"The tool only had some memory-related problems."
"The tool provides just a general report. It does not provide a granular report. Hence, the tool should work on its reporting feature."
"Having frequent live webinars on a monthly basis would really help."
"The tool needs to improve its price."
"The current usage reporting is very basic."
"Support from Hillstone E-Series has a shortcoming that needs improvement."
"It would help us a lot of SonicWall sent us more information about the latest updates and things that are changing."
"The features I would like to see improve are the dashboard and the UI."
"They are not ready for managed security services. Their Cloud GMS product is weak, barely out of beta (buggy)."
"SonicWall NSa doesn't have a proxy. It also needs a quota management feature in specific scenarios where you must limit user bandwidth for a particular day."
"The reporting and monitoring are a bit complex and should be easier in SonicWall NSa because other firewalls I have experienced have been more simple, such as Palo Alto. We are able to receive a clear view of our network. As a general user with little experience, it would be difficult for them to handle."
"The logging, reporting, and storage capacity size could improve in a future release."
"It's very hard to manage this box. You really need a lot of skills to operate the SonicWall. There is training and the like, but it's just hard to manage. Even if you have the knowledge, there are too many options. The menus are not very clear, where you should find the information."
"SonicWall needs to work on SD-WAN."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is too expensive for us. My organization is very small, and we have a total of ten users. We have three internal users and seven external users. The FortiGate 100D series is too expensive for renewing the licenses."
"Go for long term pricing negotiated at the time of purchase."
"If the price of the license in Fortinet FortiGate was less expensive it would be better."
"If you compare Fortinet FortiGate with Sophos and other firewall products available in the market, this solution is affordable."
"The price depends on the size of the company. From the beginning, you just want to know the internet bandwidths, speed, and the number of users to be able to offer the right product and model. They have a lot of products in FortiGate according to the size of the company, like 200D and 300D."
"If the customer is looking for SD-WAN, it comes free with FortiGate."
"It is cost-effective, and provides a good value for your money. The pricing, and license renewal, is very reasonable for us."
"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."
"Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low."
"The licensing model is very complex with many subcategories of licenses you can purchase. They could make it more simplified for customers to understand."
"The cost per year for licensing, and hardware, is approximately $850 for the basic plan."
"The tool's pricing is reasonable. It depends on the model. The product's pricing is around 600 USD. You need to buy a software license to activate the features. You need to pay around 150 USD for that."
"SonicWall still is only a dollar or Euro per gigabit. This means, of the IPsec, it's the cheapest solution."
"The price is reasonable for what it does."
"The return on investment is very good."
"SonicWall is not an expensive solution."
"The price of SonicWall NSa is expensive."
"There are different pricing models for SonicWall NSa."
"SonicWall is a one-time purchase and there is no renewal license."
"The price is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
20%
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Real Estate/Law Firm
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Educational Organization
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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 Hillstone E-Series?
The most valuable feature of the Hillstone E-Series is its user-friendliness.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Hillstone E-Series?
Hillstone's pricing is economical and neither very high nor very low.
What needs improvement with Hillstone E-Series?
We received an update for the tool in July. The update was provided for the tool as there was a problem with the fire...
What do you like most about SonicWall NSa?
The product blocks access when I visit unrecognized websites.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall NSa?
I would rate the price of the product as seven out of ten.
What needs improvement with SonicWall NSa?
There are some aspects of the dashboard configuration or customization that could be improved.
 

Also Known As

FortiGate 60b, FortiGate 60c, FortiGate 80c, FortiGate 50b, FortiGate 200b, FortiGate 110c, FortiGate, Fortinet Firewall
No data available
NSA 250M, NSA 2600, NSA 3600, NSA 4600, NSA 5600, Dell SonicWALL NSA
 

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
Bank of China Macao, Instituto Tecnológico Bolivariano, Ministry of Labor in San Salvador, FEDCO
Orange County Rescue Mission, First Source, Michaels & Taylor, Green Clinic Health System, Aspire Chiltern Skills and Enterprise Centre, UnitedStack, Faith Lutheran College Redlands, Celtic Manor Resort, Star Kay White, Air Works, Unimat Life, NHS Yorkshire and Humber Commissioning Support (YHCS), Hutt City Council, Mato Grosso do Sul, Nspyre
Find out what your peers are saying about Hillstone E-Series vs. SonicWall NSa and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,349 professionals have used our research since 2012.