Dr. Ravi_Sharma - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Executive Officer at SST Infotech India Pvt Ltd
Real User
Top 5
It's a solidly stable device with minimal downtime
Pros and Cons
  • "We like FortiGate-VM's IPS features and its ability to create multiple virtual firewalls."
  • "Fortinet support needs improvement. The response times are lackluster. Fortunately, the product is stable and we seldom have issues. Also, it takes months for them to deliver hardware when we order it."

What is our primary use case?

We have a private cloud environment with two firewalls and a physical host with a total storage capacity of approximately 5 terabytes running on VMware. The private cloud is a payment services gateway processing transactions from 1,500 outlets nationwide. We have around a thousand virtual machines, and all of them use Fortinet. 

What is most valuable?

We like FortiGate-VM's IPS features and its ability to create multiple virtual firewalls. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have used FortiGate-VM for five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability is one area where Fortinet stands out. We don't see dropped sessions or downtime. The hardware is extremely stable, and our utilization stays well below the limits. 

Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate-VM
December 2023
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate-VM. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2023.
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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

You need to upgrade your box to scale, but it's easy to migrate from one to the other. 

How are customer service and support?

Fortinet support needs improvement. The response times are lackluster. Fortunately, the product is stable and we seldom have issues. Also, it takes months for them to deliver hardware when we order it. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

It's easy to install and configure FortiGate-VM. One engineer can finish the job in half a day. 

What was our ROI?

You will recover your investment if you purchase the right size and use it for six or seven years. However, you'll lose money if you need to replace or upgrade the box after three years. It's critical to buy the correct size from the start.

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

FortiGate-VM is a little expensive compared to Sophos. You pay a fixed license for the box, but there are various options if you need to upgrade. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate Fortinet FortiGate-VM nine out of 10. It's a solid product overall, but Fortinet support has a lot of room for improvement. I wouldn't recommend it for an enterprise use case. It might work, but you should test it first. They have various options, so you should pick one that meets your business requirements and your environment.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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Independent Consultant at a educational organization with 201-500 employees
Reseller
A good brand that integrates well with other Fortigate products and decent pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution integrates well with other Fortinet products."
  • "his is not a good solution for enterprises. It's better for smaller companies."

What is our primary use case?

I primarily use the solution as a firewall. It's used for security. I use it for the DMZ. It's related to architecture and is strategically positioned in the network. 

What is most valuable?

Based on its position, it offers good control over the communication between users and the data center. It's a good unified solution, and you can manage everything from the Fortigate portal.

It's a familiar solution to our clients. We don't spend time selling it. The brand is very popular and recognizable. 

The solution integrates well with other Fortinet products.

The pricing is fine. 

It's a good solution for small to medium-sized companies. 

What needs improvement?

The integration can be a bit easier. You need to maintain the integrations. You shouldn't have to. For example, in Cisco, you don't have to maintain integration that same way.

The support could be a bit better.

There are no missing features or items we would like to see in the future.

This is not a good solution for enterprises. It's better for smaller companies. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for the last six years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is mostly stable. I'd rate it six out of ten. The updates and availability, however, are not so smooth. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is not so scalable. It's not necessarily difficult to scale. However, it is not easy either. 

I'd rate the scalability seven out of ten overall. 

Typically, my clients are small to medium-sized entities. 

How are customer service and support?

I'd like to see better support. They are okay. They could be better.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

I also have experience with Cisco solutions.

At the perimeter, we also use Palo Alto. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very easy. It's not complex. I'd rate the ease o setup eight out of ten. 

The deployment might take two to three days. It's pretty fast to get everything up and running. 

I did not handle the deployment in a hands-on way, so I don't have information on the technicalities in terms of what steps were taken.

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

The pricing is okay. I'd rate it eight out of ten in terms of affordability.

What other advice do I have?

I'm a Fortinet reseller. I'm not sure which version of the solution we're using. We're likely using version seven or six. 

We use cloud and on-premises deployments. 

I'd recommend the solution to other small or medium-sized companies. I would not recommend it to enterprises. 

I would rate the solution eight out of ten. It is unified, and it is easy to integrate into other Fortinet products. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
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Buyer's Guide
Fortinet FortiGate-VM
December 2023
Learn what your peers think about Fortinet FortiGate-VM. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2023.
745,775 professionals have used our research since 2012.
MuhammadHaris - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Lead at Lemon Commuications
Real User
Top 10
Very reliable and easy to deploy and manage
Pros and Cons
  • "The setup is simple."
  • "Technical support could be better."

What is our primary use case?

Whenever I need to deploy a Fortigate firewall, I go on Fortinet and do a trial license and work on it.  

The use case depends on the requirements. The requirements change from client to client. 

What is most valuable?

The virtual firewall feature is very good.

The solution is easy to deploy and manage, which makes it easy to test.

The products never disappoint us.

There are a lot of features that overlap and are similar to other products.

The setup is simple.  

What needs improvement?

I haven't had much of a chance to work on the VM environment too much. I don't have any notes for improvement. 

Technical support could be better. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for two or three years on and off. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable and reliable. There are no bugs or glitches when handling testing in the lab environment. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. You can expand it easily. 

How are customer service and support?

I'm not sure if there is a local person in Pakistan. Whenever I try to contact support, there is always a delay and I have not been so happy with the support services on offer. 

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

I also use Sophos. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is pretty straightforward. With the deployment of any type of firewall, you do have to do some workarounds. As long as you know the specifications, you are good to go. I'd state the ease of setup eight out of ten. 

The deployment, so long as it is not a migration, only takes a few hours. 

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

They do offer a one-month free trial. 

They offer affordable pricing. It was not expensive. I'd rate it seven or eight out of ten in terms of affordability. 

What other advice do I have?

We are Fortinet partners. 

The solution is pretty good. 

I would recommend the solution to others. I've had a great experience with the virtual environment. 

I'd rate the solution eight 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
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PeerSpot user
Solution Architect at Ambsan
Real User
Top 20
Feature rich, responsive support, and quick remote implementation
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate-VM are the ease of use, IPS system, application filter, web filtering, and email security. Additionally, there is a migration tool that other vendors do not provide. We only need to upload the configuration file to the tool, and it converts everything, except the passwords, and gives us the new configuration, which we can directly upload on the firewall. This migration process takes a maximum of 15 minutes."
  • "The solution can improve by adding separate interfaces for proxy and flow-based usage."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Fortinet FortiGate-VM for network-level security.

There is a cloud and on-premise version of the solution available.

Our company deploys this solution to many companies.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate-VM are the ease of use, IPS system, application filter, web filtering, and email security. Additionally, there is a migration tool that other vendors do not provide. We only need to upload the configuration file to the tool, and it converts everything, except the passwords, and gives us the new configuration, which we can directly upload on the firewall. This migration process takes a maximum of 15 minutes.

What needs improvement?

The solution can improve by adding separate interfaces for proxy and flow-based usage.

In the next release, the web application firewall should be integrated into the hardware. There is separate hardware for the web application firewall and for  FortiGate.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate-VM for approximately seven years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have approximately 30 users and 30,000 users.

This is a scalable solution.

I rate the scalability of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

The support from Fortinet FortiGate-VM exhibits high responsiveness. Whenever I raise a ticket on their portal, they typically respond within 15 to 20 minutes. In urgent cases, we can contact them via a ticket, and an engineer will be promptly assigned to assist.

I rate the support from Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

I have used multiple types of firewalls and vendors, such as Cisco Firepower. Palo Alto, and Sophos.

Palo Alto is a great solution but it is expensive. I would choose them over Fortinet FortiGate-VM but they are too expensive. For my use case, Fortinet FortiGate-VM is the best for the environment.

Fortinet FortiGate-VM has discounts for generalized partners.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup time of Fortinet FortiGate-VM depends on the policies and filters that need to be applied to different users. The time can vary a lot on the environment. Its time ranges from minutes to a month. However, we can do the process remotely and it takes approximately 10 minutes.

What about the implementation team?

We do the implementation of the solution.

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

The license can be purchased at intervals of one, three, and five years.

The price of the solution is in the middle range compared to the other vendors. However, the vendor is increasing the price gradually.

What other advice do I have?

One person is suitable in a 24-hour period for the maintenance of the solution. A three to five administrator maintenance team would be sufficient to cover all the maintenance shifts per week.

I highly recommend Fortinet FortiGate-VM to others.

I rate Fortinet FortiGate-VM a nine 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:
PeerSpot user
Network Administrator Team Lead at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
Real User
A full-featured virtual appliance with valuable monitoring and visibility features
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the visibility and monitoring features because they're easy to use to monitor traffic. Features like geo-blocking and more have AI, and we're currently using all of it. But for now, we're only using geo-blocking, and we're able to block traffic from different countries. I also like that it's highly responsive. VM04 is also very powerful."
  • "It would be better if it could provide you with options before completely blocking anything through the web filter. If you are doing a deep SSL inspection on the site if it says it's expired, it doesn't give you the option to continue at your own risk. I can't say that it's bad, but SSL internally isn't really a requirement. However, its security features can help. Right now, we have people going out and spending on purchasing the SSL certificates for internal sites."

What is our primary use case?

We use Fortinet FortiGate-VM for managing inbound and outbound internet traffic through our environment. Sometimes, we also use it for managing the site's internet outbound and routing. We also use it for IPSec on Azure. We also have an on-premises environment, and we're using it for IPSec on that environment. 

All the routing happens through it because we're swinging all the traffic on the Azure side through a firewall which is basically the gateway. It acts as the gateway and manages outbound traffic in that environment. We have also set up the SSL VPN for users. We do have FortiGate on-premise, and we set up the SSL VPN connection for users.

How has it helped my organization?

It made the routing of traffic seamless and it helped us with SD-WAN as well as load balancing.

What is most valuable?

I like the visibility and monitoring features because they're easy to use to monitor traffic. Features like geo-blocking and more have AI, and we're currently using all of it. But for now, we're only using geo-blocking, and we're able to block traffic from different countries. I also like that it's highly responsive. VM04 is also very powerful.

What needs improvement?

It would be better if it could provide you with options before completely blocking anything through the web filter. If you are doing a deep SSL inspection on the site if it says it's expired, it doesn't give you the option to continue at your own risk. I can't say that it's bad, but SSL internally isn't really a requirement. However, its security features can help. Right now, we have people going out and spending on purchasing the SSL certificates for internal sites. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Fortinet FortiGate-VM is a stable and very reliable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Fortinet FortiGate-VM is a scalable solution. It's very powerful, and I've never seen that machine running out of resources. It always worked.

How are customer service and support?

Tech support is okay, but we do a lot of management by ourselves. We have a third party that we use when we do implementations, and I haven't contacted Fortinet even though I have access to it. The local support that we use costs much less. 

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

I still remember using Check Point, and it took a long time to apply a policy. To install the policy, you had to wait for ten to 20 minutes or even 30 minutes. Fortinet FortiGate-VM instantly applies the policy on the FortiGate itself.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was difficult because we were all new when it came to the Azure environment. It was a little difficult to create space and understand that you have to have more than one interface. But once you get used to it. It's pretty straightforward.

It's straightforward if you have all that is required when you're clearing your traffic. If you're clearing your traffic already into your internal length to communicate with the firewall range, and you have information and understand it before the implementation, it will be very seamless. It will be stress-free when you understand the environment where you're going to implement it.

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

Our license is yearly, but we're thinking of going monthly. I think it's somewhere around 100,000 for VM04. Nowadays, everyone wants to be a hacker, so we believe in security. That's why we also have third-party people that we involve to make sure that we're secure. 

I don't think the costs are too bad. You still want to get advice from people who worked in security for many years, so you add a third party. The third party also said they would give their share like 100K, or 200K or something like that, so I don't think it's too expensive for security. I think it just adds more trust. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We have been using Check Point Firewall so it was easy to identity the difference.

What other advice do I have?

I will recommend the solution. If it's a first-time deployment in Azure, they need to understand a couple of things, like the interfaces we need to create. The good thing about FortiGate is that they don't hide how their devices work. You can go to their website and get every instruction that you need at any time. It's straightforward and even has pictures showing you what you should expect. I've done a few changes for the first time, and I didn't have to stress. But you must know the infrastructure well.

On a scale from one to ten, I would five Fortinet FortiGate-VM a 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: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
General Manager at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 20
Highly versatile, suitable for all size companies, and excellent support
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate-VM are its flexibility and scalability. This solution is available as a license, which allows us to activate it based on the specific needs of the customer. This gives us and the customer a great deal of versatility and customization options."
  • "There is always room for improvement in any solutions, including Fortinet's FortiGate-VM. Although the solution claims to have a superior throughput compared to other OEMs, upon closer examination and comparison, there is potential for significant improvement in this area. In today's rapidly evolving technology world, it is important to continuously strive for enhancement and development, and I believe Fortinet can make significant strides in this direction for the FortiGate-VM."

What is our primary use case?

The use case of FortiGate-VM is primarily for securing the perimeter of private clouds in the dedicated environment created for customers. This can be achieved through a virtual appliance or physical hardware solution. Beyond only perimeter security, some customers also require DDoS services, and FortiGate-VM can provide this through its own solutions that can be combined and offered as a bundle to meet the specific needs of the customer.

The solution can be deployed on-premise and on the cloud too.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate-VM are its flexibility and scalability. This solution is available as a license, which allows us to activate it based on the specific needs of the customer. This gives us and the customer a great deal of versatility and customization options. 

What needs improvement?

There is always room for improvement in any solutions, including Fortinet's FortiGate-VM. Although the solution claims to have a superior throughput compared to other OEMs, upon closer examination and comparison, there is potential for significant improvement in this area. In today's rapidly evolving technology world, it is important to continuously strive for enhancement and development, and I believe Fortinet can make significant strides in this direction for the FortiGate-VM.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Fortinet FortiGate-VM for approximately 18 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

I rate the stability of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable, it can be easily and effectively expanded as the customer's requirements grow and change. This makes it an incredibly agile solution that can be tailored to meet even the most demanding demands. There is some room for improvement in this area.

The solution is suitable for small to enterprise-sized companies.

I rate the scalability of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

The support from Fortinet FortiGate-VM is excellent, it is one of their strongest points.

I rate the support from Fortinet FortiGate-VM a nine out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of the solution is simple because everything comes with GUI. The entire infrastructure for the customer is simple to set up with the GUI.

The choice between an on-premise or cloud solution is a decision that ultimately depends on the specific needs and requirements of the customer. Currently, there is a trend towards utilizing cloud-based products as they offer a wider selection and can be easily deployed. On the other hand, some customers may prefer an on-premise setup, which involves deploying physical equipment on the customer's premises or a virtual machine from an OEM. The cloud solution offers greater agility, flexibility, and speed but can also present challenges, especially in the semiconductor industry where delivery times may be longer due to stress in the market. In conclusion, both options have their own advantages and disadvantages, and the decision between them should be based on the specific requirements of the customer.

Taking into consideration the magnitude of the entire implementation, the deployment process could potentially take approximately three weeks, assuming all necessary components are readily available for the physical setup. After this stage, the User Acceptance Testing (UAT) phase commences, which may last for an additional week. Subsequently, before the final implementation into production, the customer would conduct a final UAT to ensure all elements have been successfully deployed and functioning as intended.

I rate the initial setup of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

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

The price of the solution is competitive. Fortinet FortiGate-VM had a lot of advantages when it came to pricing. However, the competition has also geared up to a larger extent and it has become comparable now to the other solutions.

In terms of security, it is crucial to understand that the cost of security measures should not be the sole determining factor. The security of your overall infrastructure and setup must be a top priority, regardless of the price of security appliances or OEMs. However, when considering the entire solution, including the security infrastructure, the cost will play a crucial role in the final decision-making process.

It is imperative to choose the best available options, but the cost of the entire solution should not be exorbitant and prevent it from gaining approval from clients.

I rate the price of Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

What other advice do I have?

When evaluating the overall solution, it is important to consider both the benefits and drawbacks. Fortinet FortiGate-VM presents a multitude of advantages that make it a fantastic product choice. It offers exceptional stability, a scalable design, and unparalleled support from the manufacturer. It is with great confidence that I wholeheartedly recommend Fortinet as a reliable and valuable solution.

I would recommend this solution to others as long as it's fulfilling the requirements of the customer.

I rate Fortinet FortiGate-VM an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: MSP
PeerSpot user
CISO at a religious institution with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
A scalable solution that protects our mobile users
Pros and Cons
  • "The thing that I like the most is that they're very willing to work with us to resolve issues that they haven't taken care of before in their product."
  • "There should be integration with an active directory — with Microsoft."

What is our primary use case?

We use Fortinet FortiGate-VM as a firewall, for intrusion detection and prevention to protect our Azure data center, principal operation sites, and our mobile users. 

How has it helped my organization?

Together with the FortiAnalizer we have a better grasp of our security position and understand the type of adversary attacks our installations.

What is most valuable?

The thing that I like the most is that they're very willing to work with us to resolve issues that they haven't taken care of before in their product. 

The end-user protection suite is very good, including the log analysis feature that they now have.

What needs improvement?

The Fortinet solution has resolved the issues with Microsoft Azure active directory.  This integration allows us to build rules based on Grupo membership for access to data center assets on individual bases.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have used the Fortigate and Forticlient solutions for three years and they have proven to be very stable solutions.  

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Fortinet FortiGate-VM is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution has proven to be scalable to all our requirements. In the years using Fortinet, we have had no cases of scalability due to Fortinet. We have had to increase the firewall resources to deal with a large increase in Forticlient connections.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is very good.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We previously used Check Point. Though it is a good solution, the license costs became too high for our organization and obliged us to look for another option.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was a little complicated due to our engineers working on knowledge of Checkpoint and trying to replicate the same configurations.  Hindsight finds it may have been less complicated to build the rules from the ground up rather than importing them.

What about the implementation team?

Mostly through a vendor team at first, however, the process was plagued by miscommunications and inadequate scope definitions.

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

Be very clear with your security consultant who is proposing Fortinet as a solution regarding all the features and integrations you expect to achieve with the solution.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We reviewed Palo Alto, Barracuda, and Sophos.

What other advice do I have?

Overall, on a scale from one to ten, I would give this solution a rating of eight.

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: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Systems Engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Top 20
Straightforward and easy to manage
Pros and Cons
  • "I've found the UTM features and the SD-WAN to be most valuable."
  • "The operating system isn't stable, so it goes to memory counters every night."

What is our primary use case?

The majority of my use cases are firewalls and SD-WAN.

How has it helped my organization?

Most customers are moving to SD-WAN, so with FortiGate-VM, when solutions are traditional WAN, limitations have been addressed by the SD-WAN.

What is most valuable?

I've found the UTM features and the SD-WAN to be most valuable.

What needs improvement?

The operating system isn't stable, so it goes to memory counters every night.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for around ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This solution isn't very stable with the new operating systems compared to the old ones.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

FortiGate is scalable.

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

I've previously used Sophos, Palo Alto, and Check Point. We switched to FortiGate because it's straightforward and easy to manage and also has co-costing for customers.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward, and I'd rate my experience as four out of five. Depending on the environment, deployment takes between two to three months.

What was our ROI?

I would rate the ROI as four out of five.

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

Licensing is usually on an annual, two-year, or three-year basis. I would rate the product's pricing as four out of five.

What other advice do I have?

I'd give this solution a rating of nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate-VM Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: December 2023
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free Fortinet FortiGate-VM Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.