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Director at Pixels IoT Ltd
Real User
Excellent at blocking problematic IP addresses
Pros and Cons
  • "Is good at blocking IP addresses."
  • "Lacks instructional videos."

What is our primary use case?

My primary use case is for controlling incoming traffic from various countries and blocking IP addresses if necessary. I'm the company director and a user of pfSense.

What is most valuable?

A key feature is being able to block IP addresses. This is a good product and I have no issues with it.

What needs improvement?

I'd like to see some instructional videos as opposed to documentation. It would be helpful for beginners and start-up companies. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for a couple of months. 

Buyer's Guide
Netgate pfSense
August 2025
Learn what your peers think about Netgate pfSense. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This solution is stable.

What other advice do I have?

It's worth giving this product a shot and testing it out because it's free and community based.

I would rate the community version a 10 out of 10. 

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
it_user1612161 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior System Administrator at KnowledgeNet
Real User
Is stable and easy to install
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a stable solution. It is also easy to install and can be deployed and maintained by one team member."
  • "pfSense has some limitations in detecting site sessions. We want to control internet usage based on sites and their content, and pfSense doesn't perform this function."

What is most valuable?

It is a stable solution. It is also easy to install and can be deployed and maintained by one team member.

What needs improvement?

pfSense has some limitations in detecting site sessions. We want to control internet usage based on sites and their content, and pfSense doesn't perform this function.

The site itself could be improved; it's not easy to find the things that you want to implement and apply.

It would be good if it had more features like Sophos does.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using pfSense for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable product.

How was the initial setup?

The installation was easy. I was able to install it in two hours maximum. Only one person is needed for deployment and maintenance.

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

Currently, we don't pay for a license.

What other advice do I have?

We have fifty users in our organization, and I can recommend pfSense. On a scale from one to ten, I would rate it at eight.

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
Netgate pfSense
August 2025
Learn what your peers think about Netgate pfSense. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: August 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer1614375 - PeerSpot reviewer
Owner with 11-50 employees
Real User
An open source firewall solution with many valuable features, but there are some bias and network intrusion issues
Pros and Cons
  • "I mostly like all of it. Whatever we use is valuable."
  • "There are some bias issues and some intrusions in our network that have to be addressed. So, we're thinking of changing this firewall to something like a professional hardware-enabled firewall."

What is our primary use case?

We use pfSense as a firewall and proxy server. We use it to apply different restrictions for different users from some data locations.

What is most valuable?

I mostly like all of it. Whatever we use is valuable.

What needs improvement?

There are some bias issues and some intrusions in our network that have to be addressed. So, we're thinking of changing this firewall to something like a professional hardware-enabled firewall.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with pfSense for many years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

pfSense is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

pfSense is a scalable solution. We have about 200 users in our company.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would give pfSense a seven.

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
Infrastructure Administrator at CFA-INSTA
Real User
Customizable, easy to use, and reliable
Pros and Cons
  • "The main features of this solution are customization and ease to use."
  • "The configuration of the solution is a bit difficult."

What is our primary use case?

This solution can be used for a firewall, VPN, and VLAN.

What is most valuable?

The main features of this solution are customization and ease to use.

What needs improvement?

The configuration of the solution is a bit difficult.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have found this solution to be scalable.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical support was good in my experience.

How was the initial setup?

The installation is easy and can take approximately one day.

What about the implementation team?

We did the implementation of the solution and we have five technicians available for implementation and maintenance.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to those wanting to implement this solution is that if you are new to configuring this solution I would seek assistance. You most likely will have problems if you have not done it before.

I rate pfSense 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
reviewer1475910 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Consultant at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Consultant
Easy-to-use interface, with good web blocking and it's open-source
Pros and Cons
  • "The interface is straightforward and easy to use."
  • "Also, simplifying the rules for the GeoIP. Making it simpler to understand would be an improvement."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use case of this solution is to protect our business network.

What is most valuable?

I like the fact that it is open-source.

The Surakarta and the web blocking functionality seems to be quite good. It's not perfect, but none of them are.

The interface is straightforward and easy to use.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see the dashboard modernized.

If you look at some of the other providers, their dashboard is more modern looking.

Also, simplifying the rules for the GeoIP. Making it simpler to understand would be an improvement.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using pfSense for approximately one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It seems to be relatively stable. I haven't had very many issues.

If I do have any issues, it is more to do with the way that I have configured it. Other than that, it works fine.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's a scalable solution. We have 14 computers with more powerful hardware that allows us to deal with larger networks.

Apart from what you see on the interface, you can also use the command line to create a cluster if you need to.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward once you read the manual.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I did evaluate another solution but felt that the cost was too high for what it was. Based on the consumer market, I didn't feel that it was at the enterprise level.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend reading the manual and the administration book. It has all of the proper information.

Many will jump into pfSense without reading the manual properly, or taking the time to understand the definitions, and how to set it up properly.

If you don't, then you might have a bad experience, which would not be fair to the product.

To give a fair comparison and trial, definitely read the technical documentation before implementing it.

Given the fact that it's open-source, relatively easy to use, and it seems to do the job quite well, I would rate pfSense a ten out of ten. I think it deserves that.

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
reviewer1356246 - PeerSpot reviewer
Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Easy to install, good support, and good value for the price
Pros and Cons
  • "The scalability is very good, where you can do an HA configuration and then bring in another box, if necessary."
  • "I would like to see different graphs available in the reporting."

What is our primary use case?

We use pfSense for our firewall protection.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features are ease of installation and support.

What needs improvement?

The domain blocking lists need to be improved. The supported list for domain blocking is community-maintained, and I would like to see something from the manufacturers of pfSense that is a little more global.

I would like to see different graphs available in the reporting.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using pfSense for two months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

pfSense is quite stable. It is one of the pros.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability is very good, where you can do an HA configuration and then bring in another box, if necessary. We have ten users in the organization.

We get very little usage and have no plans to increase it.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical support is A+, pretty good.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward.

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

This solution provides enterprise-level features at a fraction of the cost of an enterprise firewall.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution a nine 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
it_user1136043 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at alfascan
Real User
Provides more control and a deeper insight into network traffic
Pros and Cons
  • "This solution has increased the level of security, given us more control, provided a deep insight into network traffic, and is a great VPN solution."
  • "We would like to see ready-made profiles to cover most users' needs."

What is our primary use case?

We use this solution as our firewall, proxy, IDS, IPS, and VPN.

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has increased the level of security, given us more control, provided a deep insight into network traffic, and is a great VPN solution.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features are the Proxy IPS and VPN.

What needs improvement?

We would like to see ready-made profiles to cover most users' needs. 

For how long have I used the solution?

Three years.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Managing Director at VPN Technologies
Real User
Protects our network from attacks
Pros and Cons
  • "This solution has helped our organization by protecting our network from attacks."
  • "This product needs improvements with respect to reporting and auditing."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary uses for this solution are as a network firewall and a VPN Server. 

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has helped our organization by protecting our network from attacks.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the proactive network protection.

We also find the following components valuable:

  1. pFBlocker
  2. Squid
  3. SquidGuard
  4. Firewall

What needs improvement?

This product needs improvements with respect to reporting and auditing.

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 Netgate pfSense Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: August 2025
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free Netgate pfSense Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.