Compare OPNsense vs Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls (2024)

We performed a comparison between OPNsense and Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

Features: OPNsense is highly regarded for its ability to adapt and grow, its ability to allow guest access, its user-friendly interface, its versatility, its reliability, its intrusion detection and prevention system, and the availability of a free version. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls excel in their incorporation of machine learning, their ability to prevent attacks in real-time, their unified platform, and their robust security capabilities.

OPNsense has room for improvement in interface simplicity, bandwidth management, high availability, logging, integration, hardware updates, reporting, SSL inspection, and learning curve. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls can enhance customization, SD-WAN configuration, logging accuracy, management interface, documentation, VPN availability, training materials, external dynamic list feature, and internet filtering.

Service and Support: Some users find the customer service for OPNsense excellent, while others believe it could be enhanced. Opinions on Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls' customer service are divided. Some customers appreciate the support team's expertise and promptness, while others have faced challenges in contacting support.

Ease of Deployment: The setup process for both OPNsense and Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls is described as straightforward. Users with or without IT experience can easily navigate through either setup. The deployment time for both options can vary depending on specific circ*mstances. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls provide training materials that contribute to the simplified and user-friendly setup experience.

Pricing: OPNsense primarily incurs expenses for hardware, while the software is available for free. Additional costs may involve public IPs and underlying VMs. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls are generally perceived as having higher pricing due to licensing and subscriptions. Nevertheless, this higher cost is deemed reasonable given the level of security and features offered by the product.

ROI: OPNsense delivers cost savings within a short period, eradicating the need for ongoing expenses. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls enhance visibility, reporting, and security, streamlining administration and ensuring a sense of security.

Comparison Results: Based on user feedback, Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls is the preferred choice when compared to OPNsense. Users find the initial setup of Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls to be straightforward and easy. Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls is highly regarded for its embedded machine learning capabilities, strong security features, and comprehensive logging.

767,847 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Compare OPNsense vs Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls (2024)

FAQs

Why is Palo Alto the best firewall? ›

Since traditional firewalls have limited capacity and are only engineered to detect threats based on the pre-configured protocols, hackers can slip through. Palo Alto minimizes your risk by implementing advanced security protocols. It identifies every element that passes through your network or requests access.

What is the primary weakness of the Palo Alto Next-Generation Firewall? ›

Difficult Packet Flow Understanding: Beginners have struggled with understanding the packet flow in Palo Alto's product. Some users have expressed frustration at the complexity of the packet flow, finding it difficult to grasp how data is processed within the system.

Is OPNsense a next-generation firewall? ›

Along with acting as a firewall, it has traffic shaping, load balancing, and virtual private network capabilities, and others can be added via plugins. OPNsense offers next-generation firewall capabilities utilizing Zenarmor, a NGFW plugin developed by OPNsense partner Sunny Valley Networks.

What makes Palo Alto firewall different? ›

The only firewall with real-time (line-rate, low-latency) content scanning to protect you against viruses, spyware, data leakage, and application vulnerabilities based on a stream-based threat prevention engine.

Why is Palo Alto so famous? ›

Palo Alto is recognized as a global leader in cutting-edge technological development and is known as the "Birthplace of Silicon Valley.” This exciting mix of tradition and innovation makes Palo Alto an extraordinary destination for visitors.

What are the disadvantages of Palo Alto? ›

while the product excels in many aspects, the high device cost, coupled with premium support expenses, can be a significant drawback. Additionally, the affordability of small device series falls short compared to offerings from other vendors, posing a challenge for budget-conscious users.

What is the next generation Palo Alto firewall? ›

Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewalls are architected to safely enable applications and prevent modern threats. The PAN approach identifies all network traffic based on applications, users, content and devices, and lets you express your business policies in the form of easy-to-understand security rules.

What is the Next-Generation Firewall in cyber security? ›

A next-generation firewall (NGFW) is a firewall designed to protect against the modern cyber threats that companies face. In addition to the core functions of a firewall, NGFWs integrate a range of other capabilities to protect against advanced cyber threats.

Which firewall does OPNsense use? ›

OPNsense is a FreeBSD-based firewall and routing platform that is open source, easy to use, and easy to build.

Which is better, pfSense or OPNsense? ›

If you want high customizability and a large support community, pfSense is a good option. If you prioritize an easy-to-use interface and frequent updates, instead, OPNsense may be better. Ultimately, pfSense offers more flexibility for seasoned users, but OPNsense provides a more polished out-of-box experience.

Is OPNsense a router or a firewall? ›

OPNsense is an open source, easy-to-use and easy-to-build FreeBSD based firewall and routing platform. OPNsense includes most of the features available in expensive commercial firewalls, and more in many cases.

What makes Palo Alto Networks unique? ›

Extensible, Efficient Architecture

Palo Alto firewalls are based on a single-pass architecture that processes each packet just once for all security features or processes. This means that, unlike most other firewalls, Palo Alto NGFW performance does not degrade as more security features are enabled.

What is Palo Alto network best known for? ›

Palo Alto Networks offers an enterprise cybersecurity platform that provides network security, cloud security, endpoint protection, and various cloud-delivered security.

How Palo Alto is better than Fortinet? ›

Both Fortinet and Palo Alto deliver high network firewall security performance. Fortinet gains advantage on pricing, ease of deployment, and security effectiveness tests. Palo Alto gets the edge on core and additional NGFW features.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Errol Quitzon

Last Updated:

Views: 5956

Rating: 4.9 / 5 (59 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Errol Quitzon

Birthday: 1993-04-02

Address: 70604 Haley Lane, Port Weldonside, TN 99233-0942

Phone: +9665282866296

Job: Product Retail Agent

Hobby: Computer programming, Horseback riding, Hooping, Dance, Ice skating, Backpacking, Rafting

Introduction: My name is Errol Quitzon, I am a fair, cute, fancy, clean, attractive, sparkling, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.