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Palo Alto Networks VM-Series vs Stormshield Network Security comparison

 

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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Palo Alto Networks VM-Series
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
66
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (17th), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (18th)
Stormshield Network Security
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.4
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Unified Threat Management (UTM) (14th)
 

Featured Reviews

MuhammadNadeem - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr. Network Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Has supported urgent deployments and enabled inline threat protection but pricing and features could be more flexible
I am not using Palo Alto Networks VM-Series mostly, but based on my experience, there are some deficiencies in Palo Alto Networks VM-Series. Having those features missing, we are not proposing Palo Alto Networks VM-Series to all customers. However, for urgency and for some solutions that customers need for some of their other sites and subdivisions, we are providing the same.
Zsolt Jónás - PeerSpot reviewer
System Administrator at NaxoNet
Advanced GUI and layered security have supported compliance and simplified intrusion prevention
I haven't had a task that I couldn't solve with Stormshield Network Security. The active-active high availability solution would be beneficial because currently, if you build a high availability solution with Stormshield Network Security, you have a main device and another one is a backup device. The HA can switch between them, but it would be good to have a master-master solution, not just a master-slave one. I could set a URL that I can call to update the DNS record. Currently, Stormshield Network Security devices support DynDNS, which is not a usual feature request from a server environment. I have my own solution instead of DynDNS because I don't prefer it, so I have my own service for that. However, the GUI does not support using a custom service instead of DynDNS. I had to solve it in the console on Stormshield Network Security device, but it would be much better if it was reachable on the GUI. I had to figure out a trick for the IPsec configuration. In the IPsec config, we have to provide the remote side's IP address, but it's always changing. This means that an office, for example a company that has an office but without a fixed IP address, cannot be used with IPsec VPN.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We haven't had any security issues since deploying it."
"Palo Alto’s Panorama centralized management system simplifies our security posture based on our requirements. Instead of manually pulling logs, then generating them into readable formats, it gives us the console in a readable format to view."
"The filtering feature is good."
"AWS has improved our agility to apply firewall rules."
"Compared to the previous devices that we have used from other vendors, Palo Alto is very user-friendly, and we are comfortable with the features and capabilities that it offers."
"The most valuable feature is that you can control your traffic flowing out and coming out, allowing you to apply malware and threat protection, as well as vulnerability checks."
"It is very stable. It is fairly easy to use."
"The main advantage of Palo Alto Networks VM-Series stems from the fact that you can access it with the help of cloud services."
"Easily manageable in a variety of environments."
"Our organization's main concern is stability, and this is a stable solution."
"The multi-layered security approach of Stormshield Network Security is a good one and has helped with compliance."
"This product has improved the way our organization functions."
"I feel we have more options with the Stormshield firewall and new features that we haven't previously had."
"This solution is quick and easy to configure."
"The performance of this solution is good."
"The most valuable features of this solution are the URL filtering database, which is great and contains all internet categories, the highly scalable interface that I can turn into what I want including hybrid, bridge, or router mode, the security with no back doors that is more secure than other solutions, and the hardware performance that is also better than others."
 

Cons

"In the next release, I would like to see better integration of multi-factor authentication vendors."
"The only minor issue we've faced is with the app's ID configuration, which requires specific matching for application filtering."
"There is a need for two-factor authentication, particularly for VPN and CloudProtect."
"Even when the solution locks away a virus, there seems to be a delay for four or five minutes. It should be as little as one."
"The solution needs to improve its visibility. It's not straightforward to use. Understanding the policies, authorizations, and initializing features requires careful review. The product needs to offer proper training."
"We don't know how it will scale once we start putting more load on it."
"Enhancing the ease of accessing technical support would be useful."
"At the beginning of the implementation, we had some difficulties with the scripts, but Palo Alto Networks support together with a local partner finally fixed it."
"I don’t recommend this product at all."
"The technical support for this solution in Poland is not good."
"The stability is not that good based on my experience. We have a lot of disruptions when it comes to Stormshield."
"One thing, though, is that not all the fields are activated yet and we were informed that it will take at least one month."
"The biggest issue was their support department was not able to help us, then everything stops. This is a no-go area for me."
"It could be better if it were more user-friendly for us as we dont use it very often even if we never had problems to modify setup when needed."
"Stormshield Network Security is quite expensive."
"With Stormshield, there are difficulties joining things, and it can be complex depending on the architecture."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Palo Alto Networks VM-Series is an expensive product but the best one in the market."
"The pricing for Palo Alto is quite high compared to FortiGate, which is more affordable. I don't have the exact figures as my manager handles that, but from my research, Palo Alto's licensing costs are significantly higher."
"Because the solution was getting deployed on AWS, it was the best place to go and it was available there."
"For licensing, It depends how they want to use the firewall. The firewall can be used only for IPS purposes. If you only want that firewall IPSs, you will only need a license that is called threat prevention. That license, threat prevention, includes vulnerabilities, antivirus signatures and one additional measure (that I can't remember), but it includes three measures and security updates."
"Initially, pricing was high. Later on, we were able to negotiate the pricing and get something that fits our budget."
"The solution is a little bit expensive compared to other vendors."
"Sometimes, it's cheaper to buy a new firewall with licensing instead of renewing the licenses of an old firewall."
"The product is costly but provides all essential security features. I rate the pricing a seven out of ten."
"I think the price is good."
"The price of this solution and the price of support are ok."
"We chose Stormshield for its price, as the Azure firewall was too expensive."
"We bought a three-year license, and we renew it whenever it expires. The price could be better. It's always very expensive."
"For mid-sized companies, they sell their appliances for good prices."
"The pricing could be better."
"The SN200 series costs between $500 USD and $600 USD per year, whereas the SN700 series costs approximately $1,000 annually."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Construction Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise24
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

Features comparison between Palo Alto and Fortinet firewalls
In the best tradition of these questions, Feature-wise both are quite similar, but each has things it's better at, it kind of depends what you value most. PA is good at app control, web filtering a...
How does Azure Firewall compare with Palo Alto Networks VM Series?
Both products are very stable and easily scalable. The setup of Azure Firewall is easy and very user-friendly and the overall cost is reasonable. Azure Firewall offers a solid threat awareness, can...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Palo Alto Networks VM-Series?
The pricing is more on the expensive side, but it is justified due to its functionality, reliability, and throughput, even with all features enabled. In comparison to FortiGate ( /products/fortinet...
What needs improvement with Stormshield Network Security?
I haven't had a task that I couldn't solve with Stormshield Network Security. The active-active high availability solution would be beneficial because currently, if you build a high availability so...
What is your primary use case for Stormshield Network Security?
I already use Stormshield Network Security, and I am now looking for a new solution. I am already working with Stormshield Network Security, and the official reseller of Stormshield.
What advice do you have for others considering Stormshield Network Security?
The pricing is increasing, and I would say it is a bit expensive. Palo Alto and others are much more expensive, but Stormshield Network Security is also not inexpensive. My overall review rating fo...
 

Also Known As

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NETASQ Firewalls
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Warren Rogers Associates
ACESUR group, Ministry of Education Oman, Anios Laboratories, Zain, DLM Location
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