Netgate pfSense Plus Firewall/VPN/Router
Netgate | 24.11.0Linux/Unix, FreeBSD 14 - 64-bit Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
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Enterprise & Small Business ready
What do you like best about the product?
I have deployed 6100's in secure facilities and small businesses a like and im constantly impressed with the robustness not only of the software, but also the support model.
What do you dislike about the product?
A few lacking "features" to make administration on mass is a niggle, nothing major
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Multi Tenant buildings with fail over, CE+ secure networks for CNI and List X solutions
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Wide array of hardware with flexible software
What do you like best about the product?
The pfSense software is widely-known and very flexible. There are considerable resources on the Internet, from books to videos. Good technical support from Netgate.
What do you dislike about the product?
I'm used to configuring routers and firewalls for my advanced home network. pfSense had a learning curve for me. It would be nice if there were a more intuitive visual interface where it's more obvious that firewall rules and DHCP servers are based on interfaces, and aliases are definitions that go into the rules and such.
Also, it should be much easier to analyze and reduce bufferbloat and other common connection nonidealities.
Also, it should be much easier to analyze and reduce bufferbloat and other common connection nonidealities.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
The Netgage 1541 provides more than enough throughput for my 1.6 Gbps Internet connection. It provides support for the isolated wireless networks in my house, and has two 10 Gbase-T connections for connecting to my primary switch.
Best and only firewall used for our business and our clients
What do you like best about the product?
Simplicity yet powerful tools to configure the Firewall. Intuitive.
What do you dislike about the product?
Sometime the Firmware updates tend to brick the device
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
The range of harware to fit the size of the buinsess.
Easy to setup and understand. Lots of features.
What do you like best about the product?
It has ALOT of the capabilities I am looking to deploy all in a single box.
What do you dislike about the product?
I am still having issues with multiple wireguard tunnels. Reverted to openvpn.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Multiple egress routes based on rules.
Vpn using MFA and certificates.
Vpn using MFA and certificates.
Satisfaction
What do you like best about the product?
My general confidence in its high security level (on the condition that its configuration is errorfre)
What do you dislike about the product?
1. Sometimes I experience uncertainty in how to interpretate and/or configure and understanding consequences of firewall configuration commands.
a. One example of my experience: I did create firewall commands for an OPT interface (on SG-1100, as well as on SG-2100), in order to setup Netgear WiFi Routers R6020 to the OPT Interface as their WAN. However, when I looked at Netgear router logs, there used to be an abundancy of log entries indicating DOS Attack. Therefore, I assume that I didn't manage to secure the OPT interface against incoming traffic from the Internet.
b. Another example that I do not understand: Log entries in pfSense (System, General) containing text "now monitoring attacks", quite a lot of entries.
2. Use of PHP in pfSense which, to my knowledge, is not a completely reliable web language, and often is subject to security vulnerabilities.
a. One example of my experience: I did create firewall commands for an OPT interface (on SG-1100, as well as on SG-2100), in order to setup Netgear WiFi Routers R6020 to the OPT Interface as their WAN. However, when I looked at Netgear router logs, there used to be an abundancy of log entries indicating DOS Attack. Therefore, I assume that I didn't manage to secure the OPT interface against incoming traffic from the Internet.
b. Another example that I do not understand: Log entries in pfSense (System, General) containing text "now monitoring attacks", quite a lot of entries.
2. Use of PHP in pfSense which, to my knowledge, is not a completely reliable web language, and often is subject to security vulnerabilities.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Secure Electronic communication from my home (Stationary computers, Laptops, Smart phones, WiFi AP and router (since a few days, no longer including Netgear WiFi routers having OPT as its WAN interface)
Great alternative to edge firewalls / routers
What do you like best about the product?
pfSense has great documentation and even better support. Even TAC Lite users get to enjoy pretty much immediate professional support with staff based in Texas!
Setup is quite simple. Very sensible defaults out of the box. Uptime is pretty much determined by the frequenc of updates. It's rock stable and solid!
Setup is quite simple. Very sensible defaults out of the box. Uptime is pretty much determined by the frequenc of updates. It's rock stable and solid!
What do you dislike about the product?
Prices of their lower end appliances perhaps.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I use Netgate appliance with pfSense+ as my Edge firewall.
Full featured Layer 3 Solution for SME Networks
What do you like best about the product?
Stable routing and firewall solution, supporting HA, IPv4+6, boot environments, multiple routing alternatives, DoH and DoT, Wireguard and other VPN solutions. Firewall supports interface-based rules in addition to address-based ones, which is essential when WAN addresses or GUAs are dynamic. Freedom in selecting hardware platform, either Netgate's or third-party. Boot environment support makes it simple to switch between releases and configurations. Well-documented with a helpful community in addition to paid support. Integrates easily with Layer 2 switching and AP solutions from other vendors.
What do you dislike about the product?
Nothing. Even the smallest pfSense+ deployments require a yearly fee. pfSense CE is available for those who want a fee-free solution.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Switched to pfSense+ primarily for full-featured v6 support: GUAs + ULAs, interface-based firewall rules that enable firewall rules to track dynamic GUAs. Was previously using another vendors integrated L2+L3 solution. pfSense makes it simple to combine its powerful L3 features with other vendors L2 solutions.
Netgate user review
What do you like best about the product?
Someone that can help support the product when time is of the essence. Once we received our product, it was of high quality with high quality support.
What do you dislike about the product?
Their support is a bit clunky, and the ordering process was opaque.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
A reliable firewall gateway that I can learn once and keep as the main , industry standard firewall so I don't keep having to switch vendors.
Great pleasure to work with Netgate
What do you like best about the product?
We start with community products (pfSense virtual machine) and now with hardware products.
With two products, even with free version, we have lot a features, easy support and great fiablilty.
We has some issues but support come back quickly to us.
With two products, even with free version, we have lot a features, easy support and great fiablilty.
We has some issues but support come back quickly to us.
What do you dislike about the product?
Some issues with update (hardware don't restart after update) or update was not detected by products...
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Great firewall with a lot of features (NAT, GeoIP, IP Reputation, ...)
VPN support compatible with Fortinet VPN
VPN support compatible with Fortinet VPN
Great open source firewall, good hardware
What do you like best about the product?
I have been using pfSense for many years. First on my own hardware and later on netgates hardware. The System is easy enough to use but also gives you the ability to have fine tuned rules.
I think because the pfSense Firewall software is open source and has a very large community you have a higher chance to find solutions to edge cases than with other non-open source firewalls. Some solutions might feel a bit hacky but there's always a way to get the software to behave like you want
I think because the pfSense Firewall software is open source and has a very large community you have a higher chance to find solutions to edge cases than with other non-open source firewalls. Some solutions might feel a bit hacky but there's always a way to get the software to behave like you want
What do you dislike about the product?
I have had a few clients which have the 1000+$ Netgate 7100 hardware firewall which have had heat related problems (total freeze if the temperature exeeds a value that it was easily reaching in normal use).
After opening the case I realized the heat sinks were mounted in the wrong orientation (not with, but against airflow) which seemed to be a production error because later versions of this firewall had the fans on the side and the rotated orientation would make sense there but not with the version my customers had.
After fixing the orientation of the heat sinks I had no more overheating problems though. Thanks to the standard hardware it was easy enough to fix.
After opening the case I realized the heat sinks were mounted in the wrong orientation (not with, but against airflow) which seemed to be a production error because later versions of this firewall had the fans on the side and the rotated orientation would make sense there but not with the version my customers had.
After fixing the orientation of the heat sinks I had no more overheating problems though. Thanks to the standard hardware it was easy enough to fix.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
pfSense is a good blend of a for-profit company and open source software. They benefit from the large community which is there because it is open source, and companies benefit from having Netgate as a primary contact for support.
The market for open source firewall software is not very large and pfSense is the main choice for people who want to use open source and selfhostable software.
The market for open source firewall software is not very large and pfSense is the main choice for people who want to use open source and selfhostable software.
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