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PeerSpot user
Responsable de Ingenieria at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Real User
Jan 24, 2018
It has allowed us to centralize every network service into one appliance
Pros and Cons
  • "The IPS module is my favorite because of the security advantage reached with a few clicks and its automatic updates."
  • "It has allowed us to centralize every network service into one appliance, administrating all traffic going in and out of my company, and giving us visibility of all network traffic in an easy way."
  • "We have experience stability issues, when the product sizing is wrong or on configuration errors."

How has it helped my organization?

It has allowed us to centralize every network service into one appliance, administrating all traffic going in and out of my company. Its given us only one point of monitoring and auditing, getting us visibility of all network traffic in an easy way. 

What is most valuable?

The UTM. In particular, the IPS module is my favorite because of the security advantage reached with a few clicks and its automatic updates.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Yes, we have experience stability issues, when the product sizing is wrong or on configuration errors.

Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate-VM
July 2026
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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Yes, we have experience scalability issues, but only when the product sizing is wrong.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is good.

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

We previously used mostly Cisco products. We changed because of support and feature costs.

How was the initial setup?

It is always complex when you migrate from a complex solution to another one.

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

It is an expensive solution if you are migrating from an open source solution. 

If you are in a licensed solution, like Cisco or Palo Alto, it is cheaper. I do recommend using it with a license, because it is a security solution and it needs updates.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Cisco, Sophos, and SonicWall.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend it 100%. Go ahead and implement it.

We are implementers of Fortinet among other things (Cisco, Sophos, HPE Networking, VMware, EMC, Zimbra, etc.).

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
it_user188481 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Admin at a healthcare company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Jan 24, 2018
Initial setup is very straightforward with a wizard, if needed
Pros and Cons
  • "Initial setup is very straightforward with a wizard, if needed."
  • "The web GUI is easy to use."
  • "From security changes to VPN setup to web filtering, changes happen now more quickly."
  • "​The tech support calls were not the best and could be improved. ​There have been times when we felt as if we knew more about the device than the support person on the phone.​"
  • "The tech support calls were not the best and could be improved."

How has it helped my organization?

From security changes to VPN setup to web filtering, changes happen now more quickly.

What is most valuable?

The web GUI is easy to use. 

What needs improvement?

The tech support calls were not the best and could be improved. There have been times when we felt as if we knew more about the device than the support person on the phone. 

For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

No issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

No issues.

How are customer service and technical support?

I would rate technical support as a seven out of 10. It is hit or miss. Most hits, but a few tech support calls were not the best.

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

We used ASA (ASA 5510) before this. You had to have ASDM loaded and fight with different versions of Java just to administer the device.

We needed to do an upgrade, and for the cost of a new ASA, we got two FortiGates which have a web GUI that do not rely on Java.

How was the initial setup?

Initial setup is very straightforward with a wizard, if needed.

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

Not applicable.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

No, we did not evaluate other options. It was the firewall rated numerically behind Palo Alto, and we could afford this one.

What other advice do I have?

It was no different than any other rollout. Do as much configuring before dropping it into your environment (especially if you are using content filtering with multiple groups) and make sure you are able to rollback to the old device, if necessary. 

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate-VM
July 2026
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate-VM. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: July 2026.
903,118 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Cybersecurity analyst at Cornerstone OnDemand
Real User
Top 20
Mar 18, 2024
An affordable firewall solution with enhanced security
Pros and Cons
  • "An enhanced security solution for any kind of alert that we have configured."
  • "The price and licensing of the solution can be better."

What is our primary use case?

We can control application filtering and UTM with Fortinet FortiGate-VM. We rely on it for configuring IP address filters, VPN settings, and point-to-site connections. We haven't encountered any issues with its use cases as a firewall.

How has it helped my organization?

The tool ensures inbound traffic, specifically on a specific port. We have Fortinet FortiGate-VM as well as F5 for application support.

What is most valuable?

It gives us an enhanced security solution for any kind of alert that we have configured.

What needs improvement?

The price and licensing of the solution can be better.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate-VM for 3 to 4 years. We are using the V7.4 of the solution.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the solution’s stability a six out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate the solution’s scalability an eight out of ten.

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

We have used Sophos and Palo Alto before. Palo Alto is expensive. Fortinet’s UI is more user-friendly. You can easily understand the source and destination requests.

How was the initial setup?

We have not faced any difficulty. We recently migrated our data center from on-prem to the cloud and then established the firewall.

What was our ROI?

The solution is more reliable for firewalls.

What other advice do I have?

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

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
it_user1752144 - PeerSpot reviewer
Cyber Security Analyst at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Jan 16, 2022
The firewall is excellent, but the load balancing is behind other competitors
Pros and Cons
  • "FortiGate-VM's firewall is excellent."
  • "FortiGate's application load balancing has to be improved. They need to improve a lot on the load balancing and RAF side. They are far behind Citrix in that regard."

What is most valuable?

FortiGate-VM's firewall is excellent. 

What needs improvement?

FortiGate's application load balancing has to be improved. They need to improve a lot on the load balancing and RAF side. They are far behind Citrix in that regard.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using FortiGate-VM for around three years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Yeah. It is stable. I don't say it's not a stable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In terms of scalability, I'd rate it six out of 10.

What other advice do I have?

I rate FortiGate-VM six out of 10.

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
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate-VM Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: July 2026
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Firewalls
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate-VM Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.