We performed a comparison between OPNsense and SonicWall NSa based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Firewalls solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."It is easy to use. We chose this product for the possibility to have virtual domains (VDOMs). We are building another company in the group, and we would like to split the firewalling rules and policies between these two companies. Each company would be able to manage its own policies and security rules, which is an advantage of Fortinet FortiGate. We can define VDOMs, and every company can manage its own VDOM as if it has its own physical firewall, but in fact, we would be using the same physical appliance because we are also using the same internet lines. So, it allows us to reuse the existing resources without the disadvantage of having to compromise on policies and security. Each company can choose its own way of working."
"Layer-3 firewall and routing are the most valuable features."
"The payment function for applications is good."
"SSL-VPN is very useful for us and has been very reliable."
"The SD-WAN is the most valuable feature."
"The security features that they have are quite good. On top of that, their licensing model is quite nice where they don't charge you anything for the SD-WAN functionality for the firewall."
"Fortinet FortiGate is easy to use. Anyone can easily maintain it."
"It's an easy solution to set up."
"The initial implementation process is simple."
"The initial setup is easy. It only takes 15-30 minutes to deploy."
"The solution has high availability."
"It's more secure and more reliable."
"The most valuable features in OPNsense are reporting and visibility."
"We can open a new VPN connection easily. It's much easier than with Fortinet in our experience."
"What I like best about OPNsense is that, as a firewall, it's pretty good. I'm quite impressed with it. I had an excellent experience with OPNsense, which helped me achieve the targets I wanted."
"One of the most valuable features is the network checking. Additionally, the firewall and web filtering functionalities are highly useful."
"Easy to scale solution that provides advanced threat protection. Their technical support is very good, very knowledgeable, and easy to reach."
"With the deployment of the SonicWall NSA solution, we never suffered a problem due to invasion or contamination of any kind."
"The antivirus and items of that nature were quite helpful to have."
"What I like best about SonicWall NSa is the security it offers compared to other solutions in the market. Its reduction rate is also better than others."
"Setup is easy. Anyone with basic firewall experience can do it."
"The technical support is very good."
"It's very simple to use and the support is great."
"Compared to Cisco, SonicWall NSa is much easier to configure."
"The support structure needs to be improved because every time we contact them, there is a delay in the response."
"I think they need to improve more in order to be a competitor with the leaders of the field."
"WAN load-balancing could be a lot better at detecting when a link is poor or inconsistent, and not just flat out dead."
"Fortinet needs more memory to save the log files. We need it to save the logs on the hardware and not in the cloud. I know this feature is available in FortiCloud, but if we need this log locally, it is not available."
"I would like to see improvements in the product's application rules."
"The solution is very expensive."
"This product needs to have an analysis feature, rather than having the analysis done through the integration of a different product."
"The reporting in Fortinet FortiGate could improve. Customers are having to purchase additional reporting components. When I have used the Sophos solution it is a complete solution, in Fortinet FortiGate you have to use additional tools to have the features needed."
"There are issues with stability and reliability."
"I would like better documentation concerning the provided packages and their integration."
"The logging could improve in OPNsense."
"Given that OPNsense plays a pivotal role as a firewall, safeguarding against various threats, having a reliable backup ensures uninterrupted protection even if unforeseen events impact the primary virtual machine."
"Its interface should be a little bit better."
"There should be more technical documentation."
"An area for improvement in OPNsense is the hardware, which needs to be updated more frequently. DNS blocking is another good feature I want to be added to the solution. pfSense has a peer-blocking feature that I also want to see in OPNsense."
"The user interface could be improved, and the DNS section should be more intuitive."
"The reporting and monitoring are a bit complex and should be easier in SonicWall NSa because other firewalls I have experienced have been more simple, such as Palo Alto. We are able to receive a clear view of our network. As a general user with little experience, it would be difficult for them to handle."
"In terms of improvement, features like App Control do not work properly"
"We're not particularly fond of the way it generally performs. We are finding ourselves rebooting often. There are freeze-ups and that kind of thing. The stability needs to improve exponentially."
"They should consider upgrading the capabilities within the GUI."
"The pricing for this product in India is high and the fees should be reduced."
"SonicWall NSa has occasional bugs, particularly during upgrades, and that's an area for improvement."
"SonicWall NSa needs to make their product more user-friendly."
"The security standards for space and point of view should be improved so that the solution deploys in critical areas."
OPNsense is ranked 3rd in Firewalls with 36 reviews while SonicWall NSa is ranked 19th in Firewalls with 80 reviews. OPNsense is rated 8.4, while SonicWall NSa is rated 7.8. The top reviewer of OPNsense writes "Robust network security and management offering a user-friendly interface, open-source flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, with challenges regarding initial setup and the absence of official support". On the other hand, the top reviewer of SonicWall NSa writes "Great performance and security with reasonable pricing". OPNsense is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, Untangle NG Firewall, Sophos UTM and IPFire, whereas SonicWall NSa is most compared with SonicWall TZ, Meraki MX, Sophos XG, Cisco Secure Firewall and Check Point NGFW. See our OPNsense vs. SonicWall NSa report.
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