Palo Alto Networks Panorama Reviews

This is a solution that we implement for our customers.

It allows our customers to manage several firewalls from a central location. Some examples are securing the internet edge, data centers, micro-segmentation within the data centers, and securing their campuses.

The majority of the deployments are on-premises, however, we have more and more customers that are moving to the cloud. This solution is helping them to secure their cloud, as well.

Using this solution means that you can store logs for longer periods, up to perhaps two years, depending on your attached storage.

The most valuable feature is the ease of use that comes from the GUI. I have found that you can do almost everything from the GUI. You rarely have to log into the CLI, at perhaps once in six months or a year.

This solution offers a lot of advanced functionality that is easy to deploy and not available from other vendors. An example of this is credential theft. Credentials are sometimes collected through phishing emails or websites, and this solution helps to reduce that type of attack. Every five minutes, Palo Alto updates the list of phishing websites. You can set up a profile to ensure that if anybody tries to access such a website, whether it be Http or https, then the attempt will be blocked.

Palo Alto will automatically monitor the contents of POST messages and check to see if they contain credentials such as a username and password. If they do then it may indicate an attempt to steal credentials by an external site. The traffic will be blocked, the incident will be reported, and the admin will be notified.

This solution makes the lives of security admins very easy in cases, as an example, for configuring IPS. If you want to secure traffic between any two zones, we need to make sure that the applications are identified, the users are identified, and all of the security profiles are applied. These including antivirus, anti-spyware, and IPS. This solution makes the configuration very easy.

Each firewall is treated as a security sensor where the firewall talks to the cloud and a machine running artificial intelligence helps to detect malware or other threats. This is an important step in the protection that this solution offers.

The dual WAN functionality is missing in this solution.

This solution is very stable. It is a mature solution with a mature operating system. I have one firewall that has been running since 2010, and it is still upgrading to the latest software and still working.

This solution scales well.

We have many more than forty customers who are using this solution. One is a university with twenty thousand students, and we have deployments in large banks, different branches of government, etc. There are many thousands and thousands of users who are being secured.

The demand is very high and the standards are improving. Data centers are booming, and customers are looking for more enhancement in their platforms.

Technical support for this solution is awesome. However, I rarely open a case because their platform is very stable. Most of the cases are related to basic support, such as an RMA. I have seen other vendors like Fortinet or Cisco, where the enabling of a function means that you have to deal with support, and there are issues that come from that.

The initial setup of this solution is very easy. The length of time for deployment depends on how many policies you have, but the basic configuration should not take more than one hour.

For policy tuning, you need to review and tune the devices. Palo Alto has several tools to help with migration from the legacy approach of port-based policies to application-based policies.

Initially, Palo Alto looks expensive, but if you dig deeper then you will find that it is very comparable, or even cheaper than other solutions. For example, if you are looking for a one-gig next-generation firewall then you will start looking at the Palo Alto 850. If you compare the price of this to Fortinet, Worksense, Forcepoint, or Sophos, then you will see that they offer three or four gig performance at half the price. However, it is not true.

The reason for this is that not all of the security features are enabled. When you enable them, the performance degrades by more than ninety percent, and I have seen this happen in many different scenarios. This means that for the Palo Alto 1GB, it actually means 1GB with all of the functionality enabled. For the other vendors, you will never see their datasheet with all of the functionality enabled for a real environment with real traffic. It is based on lab traffic. Because the reality is that the performance of Palo Alto is better, it means that the price is better. When you compare models using real performance, and you do the calculation, you will see that Palo Alto is very comparable.

We have worked with many, many vendors, and this is the most mature next-generation firewall in the market. The performance of Palo Alto is very predictable, unlike other vendors who are faking their datasheet in terms of high-performance numbers that are unrelated to a real network, or real traffic.

Palo Alto provides numbers that reflect what is happening when all of the security functions are enabled, whereas other vendors do not show their performance will all of the functionality enabled. In reality, they are better than others. At the end of the day you are buying a security device, and you don't want to turn off any of the functionality to enhance your performance. Palo Alto is designed from day zero for performance and security.

This is the most mature next-generation firewall in the market and a solution that I strongly recommend.

The biggest lesson that I have learned from this solution is not to trust internet users. Whether it is regular users or employees, they do not like to be detected. They keep trying to work around the policies using different applications and peer-to-peer functionality. I have learned this because Palo Alto has full visibility to all types of traffic, and we're able to catch these scenarios and put security policies int place.

Palo Alto has done a lot towards closing gaps in security. Cloud security is not their only focus. It is concerned with the flows between VMs, storage, and containers. They are concerned with PCI requirements and compliance. They have also launched Cortex Analytics to help close gaps further. They are in a very good position to lead the future.

At the end of the day, everything is relative, and I would rate this solution a ten out of ten compared to other products. However, there is room for improvement.

Overall, I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.

It works as a centralized management solution for Palo Alto Networks firewalls. It allows administrators to manage all firewalls from a single interface, reducing the time and effort required for configuration. Panorama also provides pre-configurations and allows for easy deployment of configuration rules to multiple firewalls. Administrators can also leverage Panorama to change smart IPS rules to Panorama IPS rules, allowing for customization and flexibility in managing security signatures. It also simplifies the process of performing upgrades and complex tasks, making it a valuable tool for efficient firewall management.

If a large company uses Panorama as a log collector, it may require setting up multiple local collector devices due to potential limitations in handling firewall logs. It would be beneficial to improve the capabilities of Panorama to handle logs more efficiently, potentially reducing the need for additional local collectors. Adding more predefined dashboards as features would enhance the monitoring and reporting capabilities. The iOPS tools, which are currently offered separately, could be integrated into Panorama to eliminate the need for an additional dashboard or GUI.

I have been working with it for nearly four years.

It is a stable and reliable solution.

They offer two types of support: Partner Enabled Support and Premium Support. With Partner Enabled Support, partners can open cases with distributors who then relay them to Palo Alto. This process can be time-consuming, leading to customer dissatisfaction. Premium Support allows customers to directly open cases with Palo Alto, bypassing the distributor, but it comes at a higher cost. The majority of high-level clients opt for Partner Enabled Support, despite its drawbacks.

Positive

Among the various high-level firewalls that we previously used, including Check Point and Cisco, Palo Alto Networks Panorama stands out for its stability and ease of configuration. It provides a user-friendly interface that simplifies the process of managing firewall rules. 

Configuring firewall rules is generally straightforward and user-friendly. Certain advanced tasks, such as setting up local collectors and changing log types or indexing can be challenging for end-users. In such cases, assistance from partner companies or Palo Alto Support may be required.

Palo Alto products are generally priced higher compared to their competitors. Its higher price is justified by the reliability, scalability, and extensive feature set that is offered. 

The suitability of Palo Alto products and their pricing depends on the size and the requirements of the company. It would not be a good fit for smaller companies with a limited number of firewalls. For larger companies with multiple clusters or complex configurations, Palo Alto products are highly recommended due to their comprehensive range of features and capabilities. I would rate it nine out of ten.

Our primary use case is for layered firewalls and we are adding these firewalls to the panorama.

The most valuable item is centralization and we can get all of the router bases in a single window. 

I am observing that whenever pushing our configurations sometimes the configuration will not push properly and then we have to go to the individual firewall and save it again.

I have been using Palo Alto Networks Panorama for the past four years.

The stability is very good and once again I would rate it an eight out of ten.

The scalability is excellent. I would say on a scale of one to ten it rates an eight. We have around twenty who are using the solution.

Technical support is very good. From the time we do the initial ticket for assistance we see a response within the day.

The initial setup was done by the best through one of our senior network engineers.

The pricing is pretty average. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate it a five.

I would rate Palo Alto Networks Panorama a seven on a scale of one to ten.

The basic use case is when you have a lot of Palo Alto Networks firewalls. Panorama is a security management tool for all of your Palo Alto Network devices. Every time you create some configurations or when you need to manage a lot of branches with Palo Alto Network devices, and when you need to group these branches to use the policies, the configurations on a group of devices, it's useful. It's easier to use Panorama to manage stuff.

It's user-friendly. Users can easily manage the configurations, the policies, and the objects inside Panorama, inside the Palo Alto Network devices. 

It is really useful for big deployments. It's useful for users that have two devices. 

We have the ability to install Panorama in a public cloud deployment, and of course, Palo Alto also has their own cloud in which you can store the logs of all of your devices and basically get the reporting and get management for these logs through Panorama. Palo Alto has cloud firewalls and they are also manageable through Panorama. This is like a cherry on the top of all of your network security from Palo Alto in your organization.

The setup is easy.

It is not a cheap product. Some kinds of Palo Alto devices can cost a few thousands of dollars, and Panorama will be even higher. For the big customers that have a lot of devices, it is crucial to get all the benefits from the Palo Alto Networks portfolio regarding network security.

For a highly secure environment, they sometimes need only hardware appliances, not a virtual machine. 

Palo Alto Networks was the first vendor in my cybersecurity career. I started to work with Palo Alto Networks at my first job in a small integrator company in Ukraine. I've been working with Panorama for maybe 16 or 17 years. There was a small period of three years between this experience, and now I'm again working with Palo Alto Networks.

It's really stable. We have a public cloud and hardware and we have a virtual one, and all of them are really stable. We have not seen critical issues or a lot of comments from the customers that it is not a stable solution.

It's really scalable. It's based on the number of devices. If you need 25 devices, it will be one license. If you need thousands of devices to manage, it will be another kind of license. It's really scalable and can install the machines with the high availability mode, so it's really stable.

Support answers quickly. I have no issues with Palo Alto Network support. Basically, our company is an Accredited Support Center of the Palo Alto Networks for our customers and basically we are also providing support at the lowest levels. 

It's really straightforward to implement. It's not something where you need some special engineer. Palo Alto has a really great document portal, docs portal, where you can find all the needed information to deploy this. That said, it is really straightforward for any administrator who deployed something before. You just click next, next, next, you just then need to change a key, and that's all.

It's not the cheapest solution. It can be quite expensive. There are other less costly options available on the market.

I am working for an official distributor of Palo Alto Networks.

It is on-premises, and it has cloud abilities too. Public cloud deployments are available.

I can recommend the solution to new users and suggest, firstly, that they choose their mode of Panorama. They need to decide if they will deploy in a public cloud or maybe on-premises. If you have a lot of Palo Alto devices, you will need Panorama. If you have this significant amount of Palo Alto Network devices, when you get Panorama, you will get a lot of features that will make your life easier.

I'd rate the solution ten out of ten. 

We use Palo Alto Networks Panorama to monitor and have centralized control.

The most valuable features of Palo Alto Networks Panorama are centralized management. We can manage all our firewalls.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama could improve by making the solution less expensive.

I have been using Palo Alto Networks Panorama for one year.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama is a stable solution.

I have found Palo Alto Networks Panorama to be scalable and it is easy.

We have two engineers that use the solution.

I have previously used Fortinet FortiGate, but we found Palo Alto Networks Panorama had a lot more features and this is why we switched.

The initial setup of Palo Alto Networks Panorama was simple. The time of the implementation depends on the environment.

We used an integrator for the implementation of Palo Alto Networks Panorama.

The price of Palo Alto Networks Panorama could be lower.

I rate Palo Alto Networks Panorama an eight out of ten.

What's most valuable in Palo Alto Networks Panorama is that it allows us to see the status on the network side, particularly on the endpoint, because we also use it for the internal network.

As the cybersecurity threats have become more aggressive these days, Palo Alto Networks Panorama can still be improved, particularly on the security side, for example, more network management, and penetration test. Improving the security feature for internal endpoints is needed in the solution.

What I'd like to see in the next release of Palo Alto Networks Panorama is more training and more marketing.

I've been distributing Palo Alto Networks Panorama for ten years.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama is a very stable solution.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama is a scalable solution, and we don't have any issues scaling it.

For me, the technical support for Palo Alto Networks Panorama is good.

The initial setup for Palo Alto Networks Panorama is not complex.

My company pays for the licensing cost of Palo Alto Networks Panorama yearly, and it's all-inclusive, so there's no need to pay extra for some features.

My company has a partnership with Palo Alto Networks and it is a reseller of Palo Alto Networks Panorama.

The version of Palo Alto Networks Panorama being used would depend on the hardware side and the client, but I cannot remember the exact version. We are on a new version: version eight if I'm not mistaken.

My company has a team for the maintenance of the solution.

My rating for Palo Alto Networks Panorama is eight out of ten.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama can be used for managing all your files at once. Its primary use case is that it's a centralized management system for firewalls. For example: we have a company with four different sites, and each one of those sites has two Palo Alto networks in there, so rather than do one integration, then replicate it four times, what we do is we plug it all into Palo Alto Networks Panorama and make the change once, and it pushes out to all the firewalls, regardless of where those are located.

What I find brilliant in Palo Alto Networks Panorama is that you can create variables. The template stack function of the system is also valuable. You can create one profile for several firewalls, and I find that really, really cool. If there's a file on the network that needs to have an address arrangement, you can just import it similar to how you do a CSV import. It's a solid product and it does what it's supposed to do.

The ease of use of Palo Alto Networks Panorama is an area for improvement, because it's not very easy to use. The downside with the system is that you need a lot of comprehension to understand what it is. There are also risks associated with making a change, e.g. you can accidentally break your network which knocks off the firewall, and then you can't get back on again. If you know what you're doing, e.g. if you're a specialist, then there won't be any problems, in general.

It's important to gain an understanding of Palo Alto Networks Panorama, or the concept, before you start. It works like Palo Alto, but it doesn't at the same time, because you have templates, and the templates have to be applied before your variables, and then those variables directly affect your objects. It's important to understand how it works. I wish they could make it easier, and a bit more intuitive, but if you're doing the training, and you're properly in the system, then it will make sense the way it's explained to you, otherwise, it'll be hard to make sense of it.

It could be difficult to get to the stage you want to be on with this system. It's similar to a different language, and it's so hard to just do it on your own, but if you are in the culture and you're speaking to other people, then it becomes easier because you're doing it. That's the learning curve right there, e.g. if you've never done it before, you'll sit and look around saying: "What is this? I don't understand." If you're doing the training, and you're more involved in the product, or even if you speak to specialists, they will be able to help you, then you start to learning it and what it can do.

I've been dealing with Palo Alto Networks Panorama for four years now.

Palo Alto Networks Panorama is very, very scalable. The way the system works is that you have clustering, so you can have all these machines connect to each other in stacks. It's a completely scalable system.

Technical support for Palo Alto Networks Panorama is good. I'm giving them a score of four out of five.

The setup for Palo Alto Networks Panorama is quite difficult, because you're essentially building this one machine, then you have to create all the log ins, then once you've done that, you start registering your files, but you have to do an ingestion on them. You have to bring the file all in, and then it takes the config then puts the config back out again, but that config will then be a "protected config", so if I was logging onto that machine locally, I can't change that file.

The setup is quite easy just to build the machine, but to get it to work is quite difficult.

I've been dealing with version 10.0 of Palo Alto Networks Panorama. I'm a reseller of this solution.

One person could do the deployment and maintenance for Palo Alto Networks Panorama, but what we do in our office is: we have a buddy system. If there's a change that needs to be made, e.g. if someone does the work, someone verifies it, and then catches any problems there, because if you're managing several firewalls, one more change might break all of them. That's the risk that you're in.

My advice to others who are planning to implement Palo Alto Networks Panorama is to look at the use case, e.g. if you have two firewalls, or if you have several firewalls across the country, it's best to get a specialist in to help you deploy it. For a regular IT guy who works in a company managing the server, etc., it'll be such a hard learning curve to go through. Try and learn it yourself if you can, but if not, always defer to a specialist.

I'm rating Palo Alto Networks Panorama seven out of ten, just because it's quite difficult.

We have used this solution to design LLD, HLD and PLB queues as well as development queues. Once approved, we implement and configure drone and drone protections. We have also used this solution for App-IDs.

This solution is user-friendly. It is centrally managed and provides role optimization, without the need for additional tools. We also make use of URL filtering and App-IDs. 

We have experienced a few bugs which the team at Palo Alto don't have solutions for. 

In the next release, it would be good to have features which increase the processing power in clusters.

This is a stable solution.

This is a scalable solution. 

The technical team are knowledgeable and have helped us solve some complex issues. However, there are some team members who are not very knowledgable and some issues take longer than a week to resolve. 

Neutral

The initial setup is easy and takes less than three hours. The setup time does depend on migration activity and how much configuration needs to be done, as that takes additional time. 

I have worked with FortiGate and Palo Alto. Both are quite similar but I have experienced more bugs in FortiGate compared to Palo Alto. Both products have the same functionality, although FortiGate does have more features. 

Palo Alto has rule optimizers, reporting and many other capabilities built in and so other products (such as FortiGate or Check Point) do not need to be used with this solution. This is what makes Pal Alto affordable compared to other solutions. 
Compared to other firewalls, this is the most reliable solution. 

I would rate this solution a ten out of ten.