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it_user1544361 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Consultant at Wavednet Group
Consultant
Enhanced security features, easy to use for all users, and has informative reports
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution has very good security features, is easy to use for administrators and users, and has informative reports."
  • "I would like to see in future releases a tool to scan for malicious packets and give the location of where they are coming from."

What is our primary use case?

We are an IT solution company and we provide network security. This solution is used for securing your network.

What is most valuable?

The solution has very good security features, is easy to use for administrators and users, and has informative reports.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see in future releases a tool to scan for malicious packets and give the location of where they are coming from. Nowadays all over the world is suffering from ransomware threats. If they could map where those packets are coming from and make the packet monitoring more efficient it will be helpful to prevent more of these kinds of threats.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for approximately five years.

Buyer's Guide
Sophos XG
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Sophos XG. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
859,957 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution has been highly stable.

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

We have used SonicWall and Fortinet in the past.

How was the initial setup?

The installation is very easy for anyone. The configuration is straightforward, all the information is available through a quick Google search.

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

The price can be a bit steep but for the number of features, it is worth it. Additionally, the enterprise version of this solution is priced well for all the features that you receive.

If you are thinking about implementing Fortinet, SonicWall, or any other product you will pay extra for additional security features and might need to purchase additional licenses. If they just spend a little more on this solution they will get the extra features for the same amount.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

This solution has security features that in other solution you have to purchase them as add-ons, such as malware and email filters. Comparing this solution overall to competitors it is by far the best.

What other advice do I have?

I rate Sophos XG an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. partner
PeerSpot user
IT Manager for Network and Security at a religious institution with 51-200 employees
Real User
Good reporting and scalability with great anti-spam capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "They really work scalability into the solution at the outset."
  • "The SD-WAN could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

We are primarily using Sophos XG for the identity base, policies, load balancing, and SD-WAN. Right now we have separate, different branches, therefore, we need to integrate it with SD-WAN. Of course, with SD-WAN, we need to do the load balancing, the VPN failovers, and also watch the connectivity. We are more particular on the link, and also the implementation of user policies.

What is most valuable?

The Multi-Link, or the Multi-Wan, SD-WAN, is extremely valuable to our organization.

The Anti-Spam and the Gateway Anti-Virus capabilities have been very useful.

The solution offers a very good Network Ring, QRS, and landing management. 

We've found that the reporting is very good overall.

They really work scalability into the solution at the outset.

What needs improvement?

The SD-WAN could be improved. It is not yet full-blown; it's only basic, really. They need to move on with the algorithm on how the SD-WAN works, and how it works in comparison to other brands of SD-WAN. Sophos should study those algorithms on how they do the SD-WAN to learn a few things that may help them build out their own solution.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution and various other Sophos solutions for a while.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

If you do the right planning, most of the time Sophos is good for five years. It depends on the recommendations as well. Sometimes the Sophos team or supplier will show you the number of users or number of networks and they'll illustrate to you a plan most suited to what you have and what you might have. They assess everything and give you a five-year plan. That way, if you need to expand, they've already taken that into consideration at the outset and there's room to scale.

We have about 100 users.

Due to the pandemic, we don't really have any plans to expand. We may be downsizing a bit. We'll see.

How are customer service and technical support?

We've been satisfied with Sophos' technical support. They are very helpful and responsive. Their staff is quite knowledgeable.

How was the initial setup?

I've worked with Sophos previously and we had a different setup. In terms of implementation, sometimes there are complex setups and sometimes the setup s are more basic. Right now, we have a complex setup. We need to ensure interconnectivity between our branches. We'll have different networks, different sites, and a lot of complexity. 

It doesn't really take too long to deploy, however. The support from the supplier is good. They're always available to assist. They are well-trained and they are already familiar with the setups and configuration so they're doing a pretty good job in terms of helping us.

What about the implementation team?

The supplier, the reseller, the partner of Sophos, is doing the change for the end-users. Most of the basic configuration has already been already done by us, however, for more complex areas, we could ask them, and they could come to us to configure it for us.

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

The pricing is based on the acquisition cost.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We have evaluated a few different solutions. We've looked at Palo Alto and FortiGate products. In terms of our end-point security, we've also looked at Trend Micro and a few others.

What other advice do I have?

We are just a customer and an end-user.

We are using the latest version of the solution.

ON a scale from one to ten, I would rate this solution at an 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
Sophos XG
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Sophos XG. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
859,957 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer1509573 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Engineer at a engineering company with 11-50 employees
Real User
Easy to deploy and configure, good documentation, and works as advertised
Pros and Cons
  • "It is very easy to configure and straightforward. The firewall rules are straightforward. It works great out of the box. It has been working as advertised, and I haven't had any issues with it."
  • "Its user interface is a little bit slow."

What is our primary use case?

We are using it for our VPN and firewall. It acts as our firewall for the external portal into our network.

What is most valuable?

It is very easy to configure and straightforward. The firewall rules are straightforward.

It works great out of the box. It has been working as advertised, and I haven't had any issues with it.

What needs improvement?

Its user interface is a little bit slow.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for a couple of weeks.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It has been up and running for probably three weeks and hasn't had any issues. I didn't have a lot of time on it yet to make a good call about that, but so far, so good.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It scales for our purposes. We're a very small office. We have 25 users on the system. We're an engineering consulting company, so all remote users are accessing our network

It is being used quite heavily, and I don't see any need to increase its usage at all at this point.

How are customer service and technical support?

I didn't have any direct interaction with Sophos. Their online documentation is very good. It is much better than Cisco.

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

It was a replacement for Cisco ASA Firewall. Our Cisco licensing had expired, and it was very expensive. Sophos XG is a lower-cost solution for the same thing. It was also easier to configure.

How was the initial setup?

It was very simple. It took a couple of hours.

What about the implementation team?

We had a partner, and they did the initial setup and walked us through it. Our experience was very good.

Its maintenance is very simple. You need less than one administrator for its maintenance.

What was our ROI?

I expect to see ROI in a year or two.

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

Its licensing cost is around 700 bucks a year or something like that. It is 100 bucks a month at the most. It seems to be standard licensing with no additional costs.

What other advice do I have?

I would advise others to go through the Sophos demos. They are very good, and they walk you through configuration and use cases. Their online documentation is very helpful in not only configuring it but also selecting a proper model to deploy.

I would rate Sophos XG an eight out of ten for ease of use and cost.

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
Dipl. Ing. at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Reseller
Easy to manage and lots of functionality
Pros and Cons
  • "The user interface is very good. It's already quite simple and easy to use."
  • "Recently, I've had a problem with updating things."

What is our primary use case?

The solution is primarily used as a firewall with all the "next Generation" functionality. We sell this solution to our clients.

What is most valuable?

I prefer the solution to other Firewalls as it is very intuitive to manage.  

The product offers a more complete set of security functionality at one price . It differentiates more in objects to protect like web server protection or email protection.

Troubleshooting is easy with XG Firewall because of clear arrangement of troubleshooting features in GUI.  I like the ease of use.

The Base License includes already VPN, network protection and web protection functionality and you have a wireless controller on top. The data stream analysis and security features are built-in; these are the main features we need these days.

The user interface is very good. It's already quite simple and easy to use.

What needs improvement?

Recently, I've had a problem with updating firmware. Updates should be more stable . The last update I did was not successful and ended in a unusable device. Also the support case i opened for it could have been more effective.

I don't use all of the features and therefore it would be difficult to evaluate if anything is missing.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been dealing with the solution for around 12 months or so. It's been about a year at this point.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

From the update side, the last update didn't run successfully and this is not good for us as the customer needs this device to access the internet. If this device is failing and it has no connection to the internet  it is a great problem for the customer.

It may be possible to implement a second device in a fail-over cluster and this would avoid such a problem as then if one device fails in the updating process, the other device could be take over, and so it would be not such a great problem. That said, in this scenario, you have to sell two devices. That would be the best way to ensure stability, however.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the solution is limited according to sizing. You buy one device with specific performance parameters, which should be equivalent to the customer's needs, and this device is not able to customize to a higher level. If you need to grow, you must buy another device with higher parameters.

In our case, the customers we work with have small setups. They aren't large organizations. Sophos told us about a sizing guide in the future.

How are customer service and technical support?

We are a reseller and  our first and only support case was not very effective. It should not be used as a guideline.

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

We also resell Cisco products.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not overly complex.  The process is straightforward. A company shouldn't run into problems but need a understanding of the device and the functions.

The deployment process depends on the requirements. A good planning is beneficial.

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

The pricing is good due to the fact that you get so much functionality from one overall solution. The base license covers all features you need to protect against threats from internet. Setting up the device basically is intuitive and there are a lot of help from internet community.

What other advice do I have?

We are a reseller of both Cisco and Sophos.

We're using the latest version of the solution for our clients.

I'd rate the solution at an nine out of ten. We've  been satisfied with the product, however, there is still more they could do in testing updates.

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. Reseller
PeerSpot user
Alex Clerici - PeerSpot reviewer
System Integrator IT Manager at Tecnimex S.r.l.
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Very good at web and application filtering with a great GUI
Pros and Cons
  • "The stability has been excellent."
  • "Technical support could be improved. They aren't as responsive as they could be."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution as a comprehensive security device.

What is most valuable?

The VPN capabilities are quite good.

The solution is very good at web and application filtering.

It's quite a comprehensive security solution.

The performance the solution offers is excellent. Compared to the older solution, and especially on the cloud, it can reach very good performance. It depends on the licenses, of course. 

The graphical user interface is excellent. 

The intrusion protection module is very useful.

You can easily connect the solution to cloud management.

The stability has been excellent.

What needs improvement?

Technical support could be improved. They aren't as responsive as they could be.

It would be ideal if we could have a more populated and detailed knowledge base. Generally, the new features must be tested before applying them to the production side. I would like to see more case studies, more application notes, and so on.

We would like to see an improvement in mail management. When passing from FG Series to XG Series, some mail features have been lost. We would like to regain them.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've used the solution for many years - before it was even Sophos. Sophos, some years ago, was Astaro AG. Sophos acquired Astaro AG. We have at least ten years of experience with the solution.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We've found the stability to be very good. It doesn't crash or freeze. There are no glitches. The performance and reliability are excellent. 

Occasionally, we do have to do a debug, however, that's typical of all firewall solutions.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the solution is very good overall. If a company needs to expand it, it can do so.

We have about 200 people using the solution.

How are customer service and technical support?

The reaction times of technical support are slow. They should be more responsive. We're not completely satisfied with the way they handle it.

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

In the past, I've had some experience with SonicWall, Fortinet, and with a Linux solution. However, compared to other solutions, we prefer Sophos.

How was the initial setup?

It's better to be certified to install in a good manner. You need to understand what you are doing. Sophos offers the chance to certify at different levels. There are commercial levels and technical levels.

The time it takes to deploy depends on the complexity of the setup and environment. It can take a few hours or a few days. It can even take a week if the architecture is very advanced.

Generally, you need to be an engineer to handle maintenance. We have three people at our office that can handle implementation and setup as well as maintenance.

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

You need a license to use the solution. We offer the license as a box license, or we can offer a license like an MSP, as a service provider. We often acquire the licenses and we give them to our customers as an MSP.

What other advice do I have?

We are an authorized partner for Sophos.

We're using the latest version of the solution.

I'd recommend the solution, especially over, for example, Cisco. 

I'd rate the solution ten out often. It's really worked well for us.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
PeerSpot user
it_user794232 - PeerSpot reviewer
CIO LATAM at i-Track Systems Development, S.A. de C.V.
Reseller
Great cost benefits, reliable, easy to set up, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of this solution is that the license offers everything."
  • "It is complicated to get the reports if you are not experienced with Sophos."

What is our primary use case?

We implement different security solutions. We also integrate the different environments and secure them, based on the customer's needs.

Our customers are from banking or financial institutions, insurance institutions, telecommunication companies, advocacy companies, construction companies, and retail companies.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of this solution is that the license offers everything. You don't have to purchase a license for the VPN, or the mobile VPN, or for any other features that the firewall works with. That is the best thing about Sophos. 

They include everything on the firewall as a base and if you want other exclusive services or to add more security to your service, you would have to purchase the full license.

To me, the cost benefits are the best.

What needs improvement?

They can improve all indicators, all KPIs, all the scores, the consoles, and the monitors. These are all areas that need improvement.

These areas need to be more clear for the customers. You have to have good experience working with Sophos to know how to get to the forums and to get to the information that you want from the beginning.

It is complicated to get the reports if you are not experienced with Sophos. For example, if you want to get a report on what the firewall is doing, you have to be a very experienced engineer.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using Sophos XG for three years.

The version we use is up to the customer and their environment's needs. For example, if the customer has a small infrastructure, we implement a small firewall, which could be an XG 115 or an XG 125.

For larger companies, we implement an XG 450 or XG 500.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is very good. Stability is the main reason we use Sophos.

We have no complaints about the reliability, performance, or stability. It's a very strong product.

We are currently building the security architecture and we are trying to build according to the customer's requirements. The plan is for 35% growth in the next three years.

Our clients are usually medium to large-sized businesses. 

We currently have 23 engineers to maintain this solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Depending on the firewall that you are using, or that you purchase with the biggest supply end, you can add other cards that can grow with some other services.

How are customer service and technical support?

We provide technical support to the customers. We provide our own SOC to support the security solution and we complement the Sophos support plan.

Their technical support is fair, as well as the forums. Today there are only webinars, but we are trying to keep up with the latest technologies and trends.

We are also trying to keep up on how the hackers work because we are working with different associations of security worldwide that way we know the best way to protect our customers and what we need to sell to our customers.

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

We work with several brands. Sophos is in the top sales.

Previous to Sophos XG, we were working with Sophos and Cyberoam.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. It's easy, using the wizard.

If you go outside the wizard and you are not an experienced engineer, it could get a little tricky.

Our implementation strategy is to have clear communication with the customer. Implementation is based on 99% of the information that the customer is providing to your other anything else.

It can take five days to deploy.

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

The license includes most of the features that are necessary, but the basis of the firewall does not include everything, which helps us to continue to sell.

When comparing with Palo Alto and Cisco, Sophos is cheaper.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The top three solutions that we sell and that the customers consider are Sophos, Palo Alto, and Cisco.

The main difference is the pricing.

What other advice do I have?

We try to sell some cloud services but in Mexico, customers are not familiar with the cloud services yet. We are starting to grow, but it is very common that customers prefer services on-premises.

We do not only plan for the sales, but we also plan with the customers and their growth, and how we are going to increase their services. We also consider what will be selling to the customers in the next three years. We plan with the customer, as well.

When we sell a firewall, it is not for sale for right now, it's for sale for long-term use. We build long-term relationships with our clients.

My suggestion to others who are interested in using this solution is to try it. The only way to know how well it works is to try it.

Sophos XG is an excellent solution and I would rate it an 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
PeerSpot user
Programmer / Analyst at Maridive & Oil Services
Real User
A firewall solution with many good features
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the web filter, application filter, and VBA."
  • "Their updates can be faster and more regular."

What is most valuable?

I like the web filter, application filter, and VBA. There are so many good features. The most powerful thing is clearly the software. I can easily do whatever I want.

What needs improvement?

Their updates can be faster and more regular. Right now, it's updated monthly. When I need to update the firmware, I want it done within weeks, not months. There are also some changes in version 18, like rules, that aren't needed.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Sophos XG is a very powerful and stable solution. It's more stable than Cyberoam.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Sophos XG is scalable.

How are customer service and technical support?

Technical support is good and easy to deal with. If I have a problem, I open the ticket, and I call, and the problem's solved automatically by them.

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

We used Cyberoam ten years ago and then transferred to Sophos. We switched because it was the latest technology.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was very easy because you can follow the manuals, follow your past experiences, and so on. We also need about three to six people a day to maintain this solution.

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

At first, I thought the price was very high. But when I read about the machine's features, we decided to go with it. Now I think the price is reasonable.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would give Sophos XG a nine.

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
Ryan Dominic Momblan - PeerSpot reviewer
System Engineer at Microgenesis Business Systems
Real User
Stable with good web-filtering and the application control
Pros and Cons
  • "We've had good experiences with technical support."
  • "The solution could be improved if it offered more documentation or at least provided more information about the products themselves."

What is our primary use case?

Most of our clients are primarily using the solution for the network protection it offers them.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable aspects of the solution are the web-filtering and the application control.

The solution is stable.

We've had good experiences with technical support.

The product is scalable.

What needs improvement?

The solution could be improved if it offered more documentation or at least provided more information about the products themselves. If there was a virtual assistant of some kind that would help clients familiarize themselves with everything, that would be very helpful.

It would be helpful to get some insights into new features so that we are able to relay information to clients effectively.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution technically since 2019, however, I haven't really been able to focus on it too much. Right now, I am refreshing my knowledge on Sophos XG.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable. There aren't bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's very reliable overall.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have clients from various sized companies, and the solution works well with all of them.

There seems to be pretty good scalability potential, at least up to a point.

How are customer service and technical support?

We've been in touch with technical support and found them to be very accommodating. We are very satisfied with eh level of support they provide to us.

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

While I may have other colleagues on different solutions, my main focus is Sophos at the moment.

How was the initial setup?

When we're talking about the initial setup for the Sophos XG it can either be simple or complex. It will depend mostly on the infrastructure of the client.

Deployment times also vary, according to the complexity.

Typically, the client handles the maintenance process themselves.

What about the implementation team?

We handle the implementation process for our clients.

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

We have a platinum partnership with Sophos at this time.

I'm more on the technical side. I don't really have any insights into licensing and pricing as it's not an aspect of the solution I directly deal with on a regular basis.

I'd advise those considering any solution to really take the time to study the product and understand different aspects of it. Every solution is different, and therefore it's important to be able to navigate them. Doing some extra research at the outset will ensure you don't purchase the wrong firewall, which can be a waste of time and money.

I would rate the solution at a nine out of ten. We're quite happy with the product so far.

What other advice do I have?

We're using the latest version of the solution at this time.

We're integrators and resellers.

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
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Sophos XG Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: June 2025
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Firewalls
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Sophos XG Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.