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Sutjipto Budiman - PeerSpot reviewer
Director at Widya Presisi Solusi
Real User
Top 5
Useful for end-user protection and as a VPN
Pros and Cons
  • "Fortinet FortiClient offers a vulnerability test feature, allowing us to monitor end-user devices. This includes ensuring necessary updates, such as Windows updates, are not overlooked."
  • "The tool needs to improve its web filtering feature. Its support quality needs improvement. We speak different languages, and this can create misunderstandings."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for end-user protection and VPN. 

What is most valuable?

Fortinet FortiClient offers a vulnerability test feature, allowing us to monitor end-user devices. This includes ensuring necessary updates, such as Windows updates, are not overlooked.

The tool simplifies our organization's endpoint management by monitoring users to ensure they use the right tools. Additionally, it allows us to enforce IT policies. 

If a user attempts to access a suspicious website, the tool prevents the computer from opening it. It integrates with FortiClient EMS, allowing IT security to enforce additional measures such as application firewall and web filtering. This enables the company to restrict users from accessing certain websites or using specific applications, such as blocking access to YouTube.


Fortinet FortiClient has improved our team's workload and response time to security incidents.

What needs improvement?

The tool needs to improve its web filtering feature. Its support quality needs improvement. We speak different languages, and this can create misunderstandings. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the product for seven years. 

Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiClient
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiClient. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the product's stability a nine out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate the tool's scalability a nine out of ten.

How was the initial setup?

The tool's deployment is not complicated. Fortinet FortiClient's team is helpful in that regard. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I rate the product's pricing a seven out of ten. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate the overall product a seven out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
IT Manager at SAI Systems
Real User
Good device control, knowledgable support, and capable of expansion
Pros and Cons
  • "The initial setup is easy."
  • "Sometimes there are issues when we are trying to connect."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for endpoint protection. 

Since there has been a lot of work from home, the product has given us more control over the users and what they are browsing. We can restrict their activity to our Fortinet cloud only. Having those controls in place - including what website they should browse, what data they should transfer or use, whose server is coming into their devices, how they're connected with geographical location, et cetera - keeps our company safer. Everything is helping us maintain the security of the devices that are not in the office.

What is most valuable?

With FortiClient we can control the devices which are not in the office. We are enforcing them to work with FortiClient only. If FortiClient is off, they cannot connect to the internet. They need FortiClient to be on. That one friction is what is making our life easier as system administrators and IT security support.

The initial setup is easy.

The solution scales well.

What needs improvement?

Sometimes there are issues when we are trying to connect. The error doesn't give us the proper feedback. Exactly what is wrong and how we can troubleshoot it is not clear.

We have approximately 500 users who are using FortiClient. They do not provide us a central point of how to deploy on all the users from one location. Manually, we have to go and install it on every user's system.

If we could have multiple VPN connections at the same time or a VPN channel to different VPNs, that would be ideal.

For how long have I used the solution?

I used the solution for six or seven years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable and very reliable. Its performance is good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

I'd rate the stability eight out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is easily scalable.

We have about 100 users. 

How are customer service and support?

I've used support many times. 

There are two aspects. One is reaching them and the second is getting support. So reaching them is a pretty tedious process. That said, if we reach them, then our resolution is a hundred percent what we get. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We were using Symantec. Then Symantec was overtaken by Broadcom. Once Broadcom took over, we were not getting the support that we used to get when it was really Symantec only.

We also tried to work with CrowdStrike and did not have a good experience with them. They wouldn't properly let us test the solution. They only let us test the basic antivirus and nothing else. 

Earlier, we were using SonicWall. That global VPN client was not that stable, so we moved to Fortinet.

FortiClient is much better than the global VPN client of SonicWall as SonicWall Client is very limited, and it doesn't have a feature set, that we can upgrade in future. Fortinet Client can be upgraded. We don't have to reinstall, only handle the feature enabling. The scalability is excellent. 

How was the initial setup?

The solution is simple. It's not overly complex. 

It's just three clicks, and it is installed. It doesn't take long at all. 

We have about seven team members that can handle deployment and maintenance tasks. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is more on the expensive side. 

What other advice do I have?

I'm a customer and end-user. 

We had the solution deployed on-premises and on the cloud. We have a cloud-based appliance and physical appliances in each of our offices too. When our office wants to connect to Azure's cloud, we use the Fortinet appliance on the cloud to get connected and have the VPN established.

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. I'd recommend it to others any day of the week. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiClient
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiClient. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Sachin Vinay - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Manager-Networks at Amrita
Real User
Top 5
User friendly and easy to set up with a great split tunneling feature
Pros and Cons
  • "You can scale the product."
  • "FortiClient is not great in Linux."

What is our primary use case?

We are using the solution completely for VPN purposes. We have infrastructure VPNs, and our clients are completely relying on FortiClient.

How has it helped my organization?

We are providing SSL VPNs with separate IDs for all the clients. With the FortiClient software, they can use our service even from home, with all kinds of solutions - like public VDA. They can access the VDA from their home with FortiClient. They just need to connect to the solution and be directly accessible to this local VDA service.

What is most valuable?

It's a completely user-friendly solution for any kind of platform, including Linux, Windows, Mac, et cetera. Our clients rely entirely on FortiClient.

It has a great split tunneling feature. The split tunneling feature is good in cases when we want to browse the internet through the ISP connection without going through our organization. It's for the client to browse the internet without going through our organization. The remaining traffic will go through a web firewall, and only the public features will go through their ISP.

The solution is stable.

You can scale the product.

The solution is easy to set up, deploys quickly, and doesn't take too many people in terms of handling the setup.

Technical support is good.

It works well with other Fortinet products.

What needs improvement?

FortiClient is not great in Linux. Our clients report issues from some of their Linux versions where FortiClient has some issues. In Windows, it is perfectly fine. In Mac OS also, it is excellent; however, in Linux, it is somewhat tough to handle.

We would like to see user-based authentication. It is already there. However, we are not able to save profiles completely in many of the releases. We will need to type these user-based things again and again on each connection fail. Therefore, once it gets connected, it is not completely up. We need to connect again after a session time-out.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for eight to nine years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable product. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It is reliable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution scales well. It's not an issue at all.

We have between 4,000 and 5,000 users on the solution. Maybe 3,000 students will use it, and around 2,000 faculty.

We do have plans to increase usage.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support has been good. We've found them to be helpful and responsive.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We have used other private VPN solutions. For example, OpenVPN. FortiClient, however, completely works well with FortiGate solutions which is why we moved on with FortiClient.

How was the initial setup?

We required two people to handle the setup process. It's completely configurable. We were able to have everything up and running in two or three days. It's pretty straightforward and doesn't take a long time. Our network administrators handled the setup. We have two people handling maintenance.

What about the implementation team?

We didn't need any outside assistance. We handled everything in-house.

What was our ROI?

We have seen an ROI as it allows our users to work from home, which saves in-office resources. It's helped us cut down on our budget.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We license FortiClient as a VPN and don't require any other licenses.

What other advice do I have?

I'm a customer and end-user.

I can't say which version number we are on at this time. We're likely on the most up-to-date version.

We like that the solution provides us with a more secure feeling. Also, client connectivity is not that difficult to configure. With the DNA in FortiClient, we can directly use the server from home. It is completely user-friendly and less time-consuming. Users can improve their production time greatly.

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Zsolt Zalka - PeerSpot reviewer
Corporate IT Manager at PRopex Furnishing Solutions
Real User
Easy to use with good vulnerability scanning and patch management functionality  
Pros and Cons
  • "It’s easy to use."
  • "While we like patch management, it would be nice if it could handle patch management for other solutions, like Microsoft."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for security purposes. It’s an endpoint management server.

It's for endpoint management, especially for the laptops or maybe the virtual laptop that is working, virtual desktops, servers, mainly vulnerability scanning, and just for management.

What is most valuable?

It’s easy to use.

The deployment was fast.

It's migrated to the security service. On the firewall, we can see if you are a client or not, so it's good for visibility.

It offers vulnerability scanning and is good at picking stuff up.

The solution offers useful malware protection.

The sandbox is okay also.

It’s good when using the VPN and remote access.

The patch management is pretty good.

What needs improvement?

We opened a ticket in Forti for a virtual desktop environment client to see if we could use it in the cloned desktop. We're using it in a virtual environment and need to sort that out so it also will work for cloned environments. They're working on that. However, it's not perfect right now.

I don't really want to add new features. However, I would like to add the zero-day protection that they offer in the FortiXDR solution to this product. Right now, it's another product. They are clever guys. They make you buy more than one solution instead of putting everything together.

While we like patch management, it would be nice if it could handle patch management for other solutions, like Microsoft.

For how long have I used the solution?

We’ve used it for around a year and a half. We started using it around 2020 or thereabouts.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

For the most part, the solution is stable. It depends. We always need to test the new versions. However, it seems stable even on the client side.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We are licensing to about 200 endpoints on the solution right now.

Everyone in the company uses the solution. Here, in Hungary, we're using a sync client and virtual desktops.

We are a small company, so scalability is not the issue. We don't need to worry about having 20,000 users and then suddenly getting another 50,000. That's really a scalability issue. However, right now, it's not an issue for 200 users. There’s not a question anyway in regards to scalability.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I previously used Ivanti. We moved to a virtual desktop environment and to Forti Fabric and it seemed better to move to FortiClient. It was cheaper as well. That said, Ivanti is a bigger solution, especially focused on physical desktops. We have no physical desktops, so we did not need them.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is easy to use, which makes the deployment very quick.

What about the implementation team?

The deployment was deployed by a partner.

It was easy to set up. The whole process maybe took one day.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing was okay. They recently changed it. I just purchased it, and they doubled the price. It was not a very friendly move.

The problem is that the marketing guy is always working with forecasting, and they're crazy about their forecast. The vendor is crazy about the forecast, yet they doubled the price without warning me. It's very hard to make a budget that way.

It's paid every year. This year, when I saw the price, I thought, "oh my God, it's double what was in the last year." For 200 users, that was not very, very painful. However, you need to explain to everyone why you spent more.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, it’s a good product. I'd rate it a nine out of ten. 

It’s great if you have other Fortigate products.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Ganesh Khutwad - PeerSpot reviewer
Software Engineer at Rich Products
Real User
A stable solution requiring a straightforward initial setup to get started but needing improvement on the scalability front
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a stable solution."
  • "Occasionally, the solution may provide a slow connection. In addition, there may be initialization and authorization issues that one may need to take care of while using the solution."

What is our primary use case?

Occasionally, the solution may provide a slow connection. In addition, there may be initialization and authorization issues that one may need to take care of while using the solution. As a network engineer, cybersecurity professional, and individual involved in the assessment process, it is necessary to monitor VPN connectivity regularly. This involves verifying whether the VPN connections are established or not and understanding any challenges that may be affecting users. These are the areas where I need to pinpoint and look into since I have been handed over the responsibility to do so.

What is most valuable?

The price to pay for the features is significant, in my opinion. However, I don't know much about the updates and packs since our company is not involved in that part. Our primary responsibility is to check the latency during slow periods of time. We must be aware of any slowness in the user's connection since they are connected to us. If users experience slow connections, we must address the issue promptly.

What needs improvement?

Assuming myself to be the subject and your database to be the object, whenever the subject requests access to the database, the authorization process needs to be done quickly to ensure that the database can be manipulated efficiently. However, sometimes data manipulation can still take time.This can be achieved fast through authorization, authentication, or a triple authentication system. I am from India, and I have to log in to the data center in the US. I wonder why it takes time despite us having leased lines and multiple connections. Therefore, these are important topics that we need to discuss further.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiClient for one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability-wise, I rate this solution a seven and a half out of ten. There should be a proper solution for patch implementation and server hardening. I would like the solution's scalability to be improved. Also, I plan to increase the solution's usage. I have 13,000 people using Fortinet FortiClient and Cisco AnyConnect based on their work areas and connectivity requirements. Redundancy measures have been implemented to ensure connectivity for all users.

As per my observation, there are people who are supportive of Fortinet FortiClient. Their support can be crucial in making the solution scalable since they possess years of experience in this field.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup process for the solution is straightforward. The initial setup was done one year ago.

Several steps need to be followed to deploy the solution. Firstly, the software required for the solution needs to be installed. Once the software is installed, the server name needs to be provided where the software will be deployed. Additionally, the network needs to be configured by specifying the IP addresses and gateway addresses to establish connectivity.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

As a technical team member, I am not responsible to look into the pricing matters. These aspects are typically handled by the management team, who have the authority to obtain the necessary licenses based on certain established principles. Also, I can only let the management team know when the license will expire. Ultimately, the decision-makers are the business consultants.

What other advice do I have?

I used Fortinet FortiClient for cryptography, which is something one can achieve faster over the solution. An alternative solution to consider is Cisco OpenConnect. It's important to consider the requirements of its users because, ultimately, everyone goes for a different redundancy. Fortinet FortiClient and Cisco OpenConnect are VPN solutions that can establish secure connections with other individuals or networks. They are both available as open-source resources.

Since I am not from the procurement side, I cannot recommend the solution to anyone from my end. However, from a technical perspective, I will be in a position to comment. Overall, I rate this solution seven and a half out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
FrançoisNolin - PeerSpot reviewer
Cybersecurity architect at Alithya
Real User
Easy to set up and user-friendly with good support
Pros and Cons
  • "It’s really easy to use."
  • "It would be interesting if the solution offered a way to try to investigate and create a use case to trace vectors."

What is our primary use case?

FortiClient is for the VPN. FortiClient is used with FortiGate. We have 100 users across both North America and Europe. We created a rule with the firewall to authorize the countries we are in, and we have rules to authorize specific IPs. We have to link to the internet.

How has it helped my organization?

The incidents in the log have been very useful. Some projects are really a pain to investigate. This helps.

What is most valuable?

The solution is user-friendly. It’s really easy to use. It is not like Cisco where GUI is really bad.

I don't have really issues with them. In terms of features, everything is easier.

When you want to find any information, you have documentation on hand that is easy to use.

You have good support and the price is good.

The solution is very easy to set up.

What needs improvement?

I’m not sure what exactly can be improved.

It would be interesting if the solution offered a way to try to investigate and create a use case to trace vectors.

For how long have I used the solution?

I’ve used the solution for more than two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We don’t have any issues with stability. It’s been fine. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn’t crash or freeze. We don’t have any issues with the internet or power supplies.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have about 100 users on the solution currently. We don’t really scale it.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support has been excellent. They are fantastic.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I used a different solution. However, it does not cover the same responsibilities.

Sometimes, for SOCs, I’ve looked at WatchGuard, Palo Alto, Cisco, and Check Point.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was simple and straightforward. It wasn’t difficult at all.

I wasn’t a part of the initial setup and we tried to switch since the first time the person deployed it. In FortiGate, he used the wrong setting and the wrong methodology. We had to try to make some changes without creating any issues with the production.

It is very easy when you start at the beginning. It is not long to deploy.

What about the implementation team?

We handled the setup ourselves in-house. However, when I leave the company, likely they will try working with a third party as they don’t have the time and have a contract with other clients.

What was our ROI?

I don’t deal with anything related to pricing or costs or ROI.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I don’t know the exact pricing of the solution. It’s not an aspect I worry about.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

To compare every project on FortiClient you have and compare it with Palo Alto. Palo Alto offers a few more powerful new features. You can automate the use case. You have internet analysis and endpoint analysis. I would like to see the same options in FortiClient.

What other advice do I have?

I administrate FortiGate.

Within my new job, I am trying to be a partner with FortiGate and FortiClient to sell it to other clients. I have to get my certification just to be expert

I’d advise users to just look into best practices. Maybe try to join a training session. You can also simply go on the internet and try to find the best practices that make sense for you.

I’d rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
OusaidAbaz - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Network Architect at Inmac
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Protects endpoints within the local area network and has low maintenance
Pros and Cons
  • "FortiClient is very easy, useful, and practical."
  • "The solution could add data to the endpoint."

What is our primary use case?

Fortinet FortiClient protects endpoints such as PCs, laptops, tablets, and other devices within the local area network.

What is most valuable?

The flow between the endpoint and Fortinet firewall is increasing. If you configure VPN IPsec and site-to-site between two FortiGate or firewalls, the network interface between the endpoints and the firewall is not encrypted. We added analytics to increase the flow from the endpoint through the firewall and the server to the second firewall like Palo Alto, Azure, or another.

Integration capabilities are based on license. You can specify the number of endpoints to add.

What needs improvement?

The solution could add data to the endpoint.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used Fortinet FortiClient for an implementation.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution was integrated with Windows, Linux, or various web distributions. It's stability is great.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. You can upgrade anytime.

How are customer service and support?

Sometimes, we may not have anyone to contact for tech support because we've acquired much knowledge. We refer to a quick guide if we encounter issues, such as VPN IP settings or VPN assistance. When one person lacks the skills to master or understand the content, you can comprehend and implement it with the Fortinet cookbook. You can resolve some issues. However, you can email them if you encounter a very complicated problem or issue. Fortinet will understand and respond within two hours.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very easy. You can perform the initial setup as the user, installing the application on the endpoint and assigning it. Then, configure the firewall and set up your gateway. After that, you can add and monitor your endpoints through your firewall.

If you have the licensing and highly vulnerable documents, you can implement it quickly.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing and licensing for Fortinet would vary. They had a bundle for FortiGate from Fortinet. They do not abandon the bundle between physical and virtual machines. With the license, the device is very useful.

What other advice do I have?

You can maintain and work with your endpoint through the firewall.

FortiClient is very easy, useful, and practical. We can monitor the endpoints.

Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Socipart67 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at TiThink
Real User
Good security and support and easy to make secure remote connections
Pros and Cons
  • "The service is centralized."
  • "Cloud services are very expensive for us."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution as a VPN. It's to help our remote employees connect. We use it mainly for security reasons so that our staff has clean, secure, internet access.

What is most valuable?

The security is good. It helps us avoid attacks. The antivirus database is quite strong. 

It's helpful in that it allows us to create secure remote connections. 

The service is centralized.

What needs improvement?

We don't have matching infrastructure in our company for our customers as it is too expensive. It's difficult to see the licenses due to the cost. We don't find it too expensive as we do not have too much infrastructure, however, our customers have more infrastructure and need more and therefore it can get pricey.

Cloud services are very expensive for us. 

We'd like Fortinet to offer bundled options in the future. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for seven to eight years so far. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is quite a stable solution. I'd rate it nine out of ten. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have around 20 people using the solution right now. Our engineers from the system department handle the solution. 

The product is quite scalable. I'd rate the ease of expansion at a nine out of ten. 

How are customer service and support?

I've dealt with support in the past and they are helpful and responsive. Typically, items are dealt with by the next business day. They are very fast to respond. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We did not previously use a different solution.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not very simple. 

The time it takes to deploy depends on the environment. If you are adding some rules in, it could take a few hours. If you have everything organized ahead of time and you have all of the rules decided beforehand, it is pretty easy. An implementation like that can go pretty fast. 

What about the implementation team?

We handled the setup ourselves. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is expensive. We found the cloud to be very expensive. 

Licensing is usually paid yearly.

What other advice do I have?

We are Fortinet partners. 

We're using the latest version of the solution. We renewed our hardware just last year. 

I'd recommend the solution to others. I'd rate the product nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiClient Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: June 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiClient Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.