Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access Reviews

We use the product to connect devices to the network.

Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access benefits our organization by providing an easy-to-use interface. Comparatively, deploying policies on FortiSwitch is significantly faster and more efficient than on other platforms. In comparison, it takes only around ten minutes to deploy numerous policies on FortiSwitch; the same task could take days to complete when performed on other platforms. It is a more economical choice in terms of time and resource utilization.

The most valuable feature of FortiSwitch is its user-friendly interface, which facilitates easy management and propagation of rules throughout the network. Deploying rules based on various criteria, such as device type or manufacturer, is easy.

They could provide integration with Fortinet Authenticator.

We have been using Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access for one year. At present, we use the latest version.

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

We have around 100 Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access users in our organization. It needs to be more scalable. It is challenging in terms of expansion and requires purchasing additional units. I rate the scalability an eight out of ten.

We have a local team providing technical support. It is quite easy to reach them and raise the queries.

I have worked with Cisco and HP. We switched to Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access for better pricing.

Deploying FortiSwitch in our network for secure access is facilitated through the FortiSwitch interface. Within the web interface, we can create the necessary rules, which are automatically deployed across all devices in the network.

It is straightforward to deploy and integrate with other systems. We have a team of five engineers working on it. I rate the setup process a ten out of ten.

The platform's most valuable feature in terms of network security is the ability to utilize network access control to identify the device you connect and apply policies directly to the device.

We can link the FortiSwitch with other Fortinet security solutions to create a resilient network. If one device encounters downtime, the traffic is rerouted to another, ensuring continuous operation.

It's a comprehensive solution, and one needs to transition all the infrastructure to Fortinet's ecosystem. Later, managing all the aspects becomes straightforward, with a unified view across the entire network.

I rate it an eight out of ten.

We use the solution for internal networking in an office environment.

FortiSwitch scans for viruses on the network easily. I was using another firewall, but after Fortinet, I don't use any other.

Fortinet infuses the updates regularly. If you get updated, then you are secured. The updates did not cover all the threats. I use the solution in both the field and the main office. It centralizes everything. We had to dig deeper than the graphs or manually check if that device performed well. You can check the server so that you can access it easily. It provides us with the protection that we need.

Fortinet FortiSwitch is easy to configure and simple to use with support.

The product could have better prices, analytics, and better graphs.

I have been using Fortinet FortiSwitch for two years.

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

We have 250 users using this solution.

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

We have used Cisco and Ubiquiti switches. FortiSwitch frees you every time you set the switches or configure them over and over again. It is much better than other solutions.

The initial setup is simple and takes a few hours to complete.

We have achieved 10% ROI.

The solution is reliable and is working well. It has been a generation of investment. It is not very expensive, not much cheaper.

I recommend the solution.

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

We are mainly in the SMB market. Our primary use case are for on-site for secure access to the infrastructure. 

For us, visibility is the best feature, with integration to various things. We are pretty happy with it as it is.

The integration with the whole platform, so there's one dashboard for everything. It is one of the most valuable features. 

There is a bit of a learning curve with the initial setup. 

For data centers and large enterprises, Cisco has advantages, but FortiSwitches make a lot of sense for certain applications.

We have been using this product for a couple of years. It has been around three to four years. 

This solution has been very stable.

For us in the SMB market, everything has been working very well. So, we are not doing very big deployments.

e had some support tickets, but they were solved pretty quickly. I haven't had much contact with them, but our issues were resolved well.

Positive

We have worked with Cisco and a few other vendors. The deployment is easier with Fortinet.

In very complex environments, there is an advantage with Cisco switching, but that doesn't affect us much because we are not in that specific market.

We have good experience with setting it up. The initial setup is pretty easy; we have built a knowledge base. But there's a learning curve for beginners.

It went pretty smoothly for us. We have documented the deployment steps in our onboarding procedure.

The deployment takes two to three hours. Normally, there's one technician who does that. We have some maintenance procedures, but it's not difficult. It's pretty straightforward.

For us, the technical training was helpful. We did that. It's not strictly necessary, but it makes things a lot easier, especially to understand best practices.

We are quite happy with it. There are some complaints from our technicians, but overall, we are satisfied. 

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

The solution helps provide a seamless internet connection.

I can't comment much on the valuable features of the solution since I work in a cargo company that has outsourced its IT operations to another company. I can say that the product is easy to use.

I feel that the product's stability is an area where improvements are required.

I have experience with Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access. I use an older version of the solution.

It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

I don't know about the solution's technical support since Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is a product that is outsourced to others by our company. The product's technical support is good.

The initial setup of the product was easy.

The solution can be deployed in an hour.

There is another external IT team to take care of the deployment process of the tool since my company is only involved in the action of outsourcing the product to other companies.

The initial setup of the product was managed by one of the in-house teams in the company.

Price-wise, I find Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access to be an okay product. It is not an expensive product.

We are using those switches as our main switches on-site. Everything is FortiSwitch, and everything wireless is FortiAP.

The product is very secure. It's enterprise-level. Because we are always upgrading to the latest firmware and stuff, everything is very solid, and our network runs much better than before.

The pricing could be improved, and it could be easier to configure. As Fortinet comes up with different firmware and updates, I am sure these problems will decrease. They will finetune their upgrades and firmware to make upgrading to the next versions easy.

I've used the solution for about two years, and we're using the latest version.

The product is stable and reliable. It's an enterprise-grade switch. If you plug anything into any outlet in the office, it gets connected to a switch, and you'll be able to get analytics.

We used to get issues where people bring in their own devices, and once they get access to a network cable, they just plug into the network point and had access to browse the Internet. Now, even though all ports are connected to switches, you won't get anything if the port is not enabled.

About 500 people at our company use the solution.

We have managed service providers who have support licenses with Fortinet. We normally have a three-year support license with Fortinet, so anything beyond that is good. On-site, we are the first line of support, the managed service providers are the second line, and Fortinet will be the third line, in that order.

Before this, we were using Ubiquiti wireless access points. However, because that was not enterprise-level, the company policy changed that we should only use enterprise-level devices, and Fortinet was chosen over Cisco. We changed all the Ubiquiti access points to FortiAPs and all the switches that used to be HPE to FortiSwitches, and the firewall also is FortiGate so that they'll all work together to get alerts.

The setup is a bit complex, but it works once you get it right.

During deployment, we first deployed the firewalls before we came to the switches and the APs. We were fully set up for the firewalls and switches within three months. After that, it took a week to change all the APs to FortiAPs.

We have a managed service provider, so they are the ones we work with. They manage our backend systems, so they are the ones that did the deployment.

I have seen an ROI. My investment is very good because security is key for us. Our network is secure from the firewall down to the AP, and we have peace of mind.

We signed up for a three-year license for support and replacement. We've had one situation where one switch we were upgrading to the latest firmware failed after I rebooted. Fortinet came in to try and troubleshoot. They tried everything, but it still wasn't working, so they replaced the switch. The pricing is expensive.

We have cloud solutions as well, where we have FortiCloud, a cloud solution around our switches.

I rate the product a ten out of ten for reliability and scalability. It's sometimes a bit difficult to configure. If we want to add another FortiSwitch to uplink on another one, it is difficult to remember where we have to go to tell the other switch to also talk to the FortiLink. However, I am confident that that is a security feature because it means nobody can just get on and do anything. Overall, I rate the product a ten out of ten.

To anyone planning to use the product, we are scaling it to other mining sites as well. Because this is the first location, we've done everything here. Once everything is deployed here successfully, we will scale it onto the other sites. We are ready to install the product onto another site, which we have already put in the firewall. But instead of the switches, we went with the APs first and have deployed about 165 APs. Now, we are waiting for the switches to come in so we can also put in the switches to complete the work. We will then scale from there to the next site.

It is a multi-location solution used for security purposes.

The solution's most valuable features are ease of deployment and manageability.

They should enhance the solution's orchestration level. Also, they should integrate it with other Fortinet solutions. In addition, they should improve the cloud features and certain functionalities on the switching front.

I have been using the solution for more than eight years.

It is a stable solution from the security front. But there is still time to say for the switch as they are relatively new in the market. It may take a year or two for us to completely vouch for Fortinet from a switching or a wireless front, but they are working on it.

We have three to four customers using the solution.

The solution's technical support team is good. They provide round-the-clock support. But they need to scale up a bit more to reach the levels of tech support provided by LiveOps.

The solution is very straightforward to use and implement. The deployment takes 30-45 minutes. Once you plug it into the environment and remotely switch to FortiManager, it manages all the infrastructure.

We have to pay for the solution's subscription.

If someone is looking for a stable and cost-effective solution to secure the environment at the gateway, then Fortinet FortiSwitch is the right choice. It has a good lead time, is easy to deploy, and provides fast delivery. Also, locally certified resources are available for implementation purposes.

I rate the solution as a six.

The primary use case of the solution is for campus environments and their offices.

The solution has improved our organization by providing a single pane of glass for managing large networks. The solution improves our operational experience.

What stands out is the effective management and enhanced security provided by the solution's function as an extension of the firewall.

I have been using the solution for one year.

I give the stability a seven out of ten because we have noticed when we hook up phones the switching of ELANs et cetera doesn't work as it should. We have a workaround but we are not pleased with having to do this at the moment. They have a different approach to this method of working. We were used to a traditional environment and transitioning to this new environment requires learning and adapting to a new way of thinking. We haven't fully invested the necessary time and resources to fully understand how Fortinet's solution works. Therefore, we may need to allocate more time and seek guidance from Fortinet to fully understand certain aspects of the solution.

I give the scalability of the solution an eight out of ten.

We currently have 200 people using the solution.

Depending if opportunities arise we will consider expanding this implementation to include remote offices and other locations.

Technical support helps resolve our issues most of the time.

The initial setup is straightforward.

I give the deployment an eight out of ten. There is only one Gate with this and that can sometimes be a limitation, making it feel unusual at times.

I estimate the deployment would take around four hours to complete the process, given that the implementation involves more than ten switches, which is larger than a typical user setup.

The implementation was completed in-house. We are FortiGate-authorized resellers and do all the implementations ourselves.

We have seen a return on investment. The solution is more cost-effective in terms of operational expenses, as it is easier to operate compared to using multiple separate switches.

The solution is expensive but overall the cost makes sense. We acquire the license for a five-year period all at once, rather than incurring yearly license costs.

I give the solution a nine out of ten.

For new users, the only way to get the experience with the solution is by simply using it. The solution is simple and intuitive.

We use Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access to test and give access. 

The tool's VLAN feature is easy to understand. It was very good. 

We had experienced downtime. I would like to see it to be improved. 

I have been working with the product for two to three years. 

Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access is scalable. 

We chose the product because we worked with Fortinet's firewalls and switches and wanted to explore it hands-on. 

Fortinet FortiSwitch - Secure Access' deployment is neither easy nor difficult. It is a normal process and can be completed in two to three hours. 

The product's pricing is good. 

I rate the solution a ten out of ten. 

We are an integration company and help clients with the integration of Fortinet FortiSwitch.

It is a cheap and secure solution. The job switching and security features are better than other solutions.

The scalability and technical support can be improved.

I have been using the solution for two years.

The solution is highly stable. I rate the stability a ten out of ten.

It is a scalable solution. The scalability of the solution depends on the hardware. We like stacking the number of switches but the solution is not owing any number, it is fixed. All our clients are enterprises. I rate the scalability an eight out of ten.

The technical support team is good but since it is not very big it does not provide immediate response on errors or technical issues. I rate the support an eight out of ten.

Positive

The initial setup is easy. The time taken for deployment depends on the number of devices, number of files, and number of switches. If they have FortiAnalyzer and the vendors are on the full solution then it can take a day, two days, or even weeks. It depends on the number of end users. Two engineers are enough for the deployment of the full solution. One person is required for maintenance like updates, troubleshooting, and problem fixing.

The pricing is cheap and only a yearly licensing cost needs to be paid.

Users can use FortiSwitch as it is a cheap, stable, scalable, and secure solution. I rate the overall solution a ten out of ten.

We use FortiSwitch in conjunction with a FortiGate Firewall, as it simplifies the configuration process. The firewall will push all the configurations via the FortiLinks to the switches, meaning that we don't need to configure them separately. This is particularly useful for customers who require the use of a FortiGate Firewall. FortiSwitch can be used to connect various endpoints, such as cameras, workstations, IoTs, WAPs, IP phones, and doors, as well as servers to the network infrastructure.

We use FortiSwitch a lot in the UAE and have not had any critical issues with the switches.

Deploying the solution is a breeze, even a novice can do it. All we need to do is use the web browser, and we can configure all our servers. The licensing is also straightforward and easy to understand. The graphical user interface is very user-friendly, so we don't need to be tech geniuses to use the solution.

I believe that stacking, a feature that is available in Huawei and Cisco, is not available in Fortinet products unless when managed by FortiGate. Adding stacking would be beneficial if Fortinet could incorporate it into their switches.

I have been using the solution for a few years.

The solution is very stable.

The solution is scalable.

We have approximately three big clients (with approx. 10,000 users) who are utilizing Fortinet switches.

When we encountered a FortiGate Firewall that had expired, our client asked for a new license. The response from their support team was incredibly fast, and we were able to get the license right away with the client present. Their support was nice.

Positive

The initial setup is easy. The solution comes with a default IP address and we only have to enter it in the web browser to connect.

Deployment was not difficult, depending on the size of the environment. For a single switch, it could take around two to three hours to complete. Overall, it was a straightforward process.

The solution is cheaper than Cisco but more expensive than Huawei.

I give the solution an eight out of ten.

Having the opportunity to use the entire Fortinet ecosystem, will make our life much simpler. As opposed to buying separate vendor products, with Fortinet we can use FortiNAC, Fortinet Access points, FortiSwitch, and FortiGate. This will save us time and effort and we can rest assured that Fortinet is always looking to provide great customer support.