We compared SonicWall TZ and WatchGuard Firebox across several parameters based on our users' reviews. After reading the collected data, you can find our conclusion below:
Comparison Results: SonicWall TZ is highly praised for its user-friendly interface, robust features, and cost-effectiveness. However, there are areas that need improvement such as reporting, licensing, scalability, and support. On the other hand, WatchGuard Firebox is commended for its comprehensive features, ease of use, and reasonable pricing. However, it also has areas that need improvement including the interface, web blocker feature, reporting, customer support, security, configuration options, scalability, and integration.
"Initial setup is straightforward. There weren't too many issues with setting it up. It takes one hour or so."
"The features that I have found most valuable are the SD-WAN and their IP4 policy."
"The most valuable features are the possibility of having one fabric for switching on security."
"The most valuable features of Fortinet FortiGate are remote access, web filtering, and IPS."
"The email protection and VPN features are the most valuable."
"Fortinet FortiGate's reliability is valuable."
"Our project needs to link two sides through the internet. One of these was in Cairo and the other in another city. We used FortiGate as the integrating solution between the two locations, i.e. the Fortinet 30E & 100E."
"The initial installation is very straightforward."
"Offers the right amount of control without being incredibly convoluted and frustrating."
"The product’s filtering and URL-blocking features are valuable."
"I have found this solution to be easier to use when compared to other products, such as those offered by Cisco."
"Good site categorization and application controls."
"It protects against intrusion while allowing needed access."
"User-friendly firewall solution which scales well, is stable, and has high availability."
"The most valuable feature is the protection available, and then ease of use and flexibility."
"We are very much happy with the support."
"The firewall aspect and the branch office VPNs are the most valuable features... We don't have any issues with it. We don't have to spend a lot of time maintaining it."
"The most valuable feature is the GUI, especially the real-time bandwidth usage report. Also, its integration with WiFi access points is nice."
"It's hard to pick one feature over another. But if I had to pick one, the UTM would be the most valuable because of the notification. I get notified via email if there is any type of threat detection or alert, telling me something is wrong."
"It has everything we need in terms of functionality."
"The security that is used for defending from the attacks is very good."
"Regarding the reporting, I was in the Dimension server earlier today. It's very powerful. I like it. And the management features are easy to use. I like the fact that I can open up the System Manager client or I can just do it through the web if I'm making a quick change."
"The reports are detailed."
"The product's usability is good. It is straightforward and simple. One of the benefits is that it is easy to navigate and intuitive."
"Its reporting capabilities can be improved. It should have some out-of-the-box reporting capabilities and some degree of customization. The basic reporting that it currently has is not sufficient to create more usable reports. It needs some sort of out-of-the-box reporting. They try to make customers purchase FortiAnalyzer for this kind of reporting, which is an additional cost. Other firewall vendors, such as SonicWall and Sophos, provide this sort of reporting without any additional cost."
"It can be a little bit more user-friendly in terms of policy definition and implementation. It seems a little bit complicated, and it could be simplified."
"I would like to see improvements in the product's application rules."
"Technical support is good but the response time could be faster."
"The process of configuring firewall rules appears excessively complex."
"It would be a benefit if Fortinet would release a one-stop solution that is better integrated with other products and an automated emergency response system."
"FortiOS is not simple."
"Fortigate's hardware capacities could be improved."
"In general, the company needs to think contingently and integrate more security options."
"There is still room for improvement, and it's not advisable even if the organization has grown."
"The quality of tech support can vary."
"The interface and technical support are probably the two most important things that I would like SonicWall to improve."
"The solution should provide some additional ports."
"The monitoring is a little bit confusing."
"The price could be better for us in Bolivia."
"We encounter issues while generating new reports."
"A 12-hour power outage... got our batteries."
"I would like to see the devices made more flexible by adding modules to increase the ports that we can use."
"I haven’t dug deeply into the reporting features yet or if they are working well. However, I have generated several reports and there was too much unnecessary information, in comparison with the reporting features in the Sophos firewall. Sophos' reporting is more readable and easier to configure."
"We would like to see granular notification settings and more advanced filtering in traffic monitoring."
"Sometimes, the writing rules are a little confusing in how am I doing them."
"The product's technical support services need improvement."
"The solution can improve by adding a feature to tag a MAC address of a computer system in the policy and more IP configuration settings."
"When working with WatchGuard, specifically in configuring Panda Security on the portal for the first time, it was challenging for me."
SonicWall TZ is ranked 12th in Firewalls with 78 reviews while WatchGuard Firebox is ranked 13th in Firewalls with 79 reviews. SonicWall TZ is rated 8.0, while WatchGuard Firebox is rated 8.4. The top reviewer of SonicWall TZ writes "Has efficient user access control feature and good technical support services ". On the other hand, the top reviewer of WatchGuard Firebox writes "Offers a streamlined deployment, intuitive interface and robust security features". SonicWall TZ is most compared with Sophos XG, Netgate pfSense, Meraki MX, SonicWall NSa and Cisco Secure Firewall, whereas WatchGuard Firebox is most compared with Netgate pfSense, Sophos XG, OPNsense, Meraki MX and Cisco Secure Firewall. See our SonicWall TZ vs. WatchGuard Firebox report.
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