Fortinet FortiGate
Next-generation firewall and unified threat management
Overview
Fortinet FortiGate is a next-generation firewall (NGFW) platform providing advanced threat protection, SSL inspection, IPS, application control, and SD-WAN. The FortiOS operating system powers all FortiGate appliances and is updated frequently with new security capabilities.
Why Use It
FortiGate gives you enterprise-grade firewall capabilities at mid-market prices. For UK businesses that need serious NGFW features (IPS, SSL inspection, sandboxing) without Palo Alto pricing, FortiGate is the most popular choice among IT resellers.
Why Not
If your team lacks network engineering skills, the configuration complexity may require external support. Meraki's simplicity may be a better trade-off for IT generalist teams.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Excellent NGFW capabilities at competitive price point
- SD-WAN built in at no extra cost
- FortiGuard threat intelligence updated continuously
- FortiManager provides centralised policy management at scale
- Strong UK partner ecosystem and support
Cons
- Steeper learning curve than Meraki
- FortiOS upgrades require planning — occasionally introduce bugs
- GUI less intuitive than Meraki dashboard
- Requires networking knowledge to configure correctly
- Support quality varies by partner/tier
How to Get the Most Out of It
- Enable SSL deep inspection on outbound traffic to catch malware hiding in encrypted connections
- Use FortiGuard Web Filtering to block malicious and inappropriate categories without complex proxy setup
- Configure SD-WAN rules to prefer MPLS for critical traffic and broadband for best-effort
- Keep FortiOS updated — Fortinet patches critical vulnerabilities rapidly but exploits follow quickly
- Use FortiAnalyzer for log aggregation and compliance reporting across multiple sites