Netgate pfSense Reviews & Product Details

Used pfSense software on a FreeBSD machine. When I saw Netgate was offering pre-configured hardware that was running it buying it was a no brainer. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Did have to contact support when I could not upgrade the Netgate 1100 to the latest build. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The product provides high level of security with high throughput, and is extremely reliable. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Can be a bit daunting with a high learning curve to set up the first time, for a non-technical person. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Low cost (in many cases free) firewall solution which can be run on no-brand hardware. Very stable. Advanced features such as load balancing, traffic shaping, multi-WAN support, hardware encryption support for VPN, etc. The capabilities of pfSense is comparable to very expensive enterprise grade systems that most SME's would be unable to afford. Incredibly flexible configuration allow policy based routing and incredibly granular control over how traffic is handled. Paid support available if required, making it ideal for budget commercial applications. Dedicated hardware is available if a turn-key solution is desired. However, the branded hardware is expensive for what it is, but comes with support, etc. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The move from pfSense CE to Plus has made the platform feel a little less "open" (although still based on open source software). Now, the only install images available are old and need to be upgraded to from CE to Plus, to get the latest release. Some of the advanced features, if customised, can produce unexpected behavior. For example, I'm using traffic shaping and multi-WAN and have unresolved issues with incorrect shaping being applied during WAN fail-over scenarios. Branded appliances are a little expensive for their technical specs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I like the ease through which I can set up network services. For instance it took minutes to create a self signed certificate for OpenVPN server and then setup clients on multiple operating systems including iOS. Now I can get to my gear behind the Netgate pfSense firewall using transport layer security from anywhere in the world without breaking the bank or fraying my nerves with complex setup. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The process of an upgrade from a blank device to a fully functioning set of services lacked guidance on device but the online guides were adequate. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

pfSense has an easy to use graphical user interface and plenty of documentation which can be referenced directly from the GUI. For those that enjoy command line, pfSense provides a CLI that is easy to use and that provides access to the core OS and additional controls. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

If you like spending money on expensive solutions then pfSense isn't for you. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I have been using pfsense since 2004 when it was monowall. It has changed greatly over the years and has added many enterprise features. It is affordable and scales well depending on the hardware it runs on.

We now have over 50 business customers using pfsense as their primary firewall. The only real problems we have had over the years are from hardware failures, but the software has always been rock solid, stable and secure. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The only real issue I would like to see resolved is the backup and restore feature. It works great if you back up and restore the same (or at least the same model) hardware. However, if you are restoring to a system with different NIC's it can because a real pain in the backside as none of the interface names will match up properly. You then have to manually edit the config file with a text editor and change all of the interface names to it will work properly.

I would love to see a restore wizard that compares the backup file to the current hardware and makes it simple to match up the new interface names to the old ones. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The support is absolutely very good in many ways.

1- The community is fantastic.

2- The pfSense documentation is extensive and thorough

3- The business support model is fantastic by its availability and openness

(We bought a TAC enterprise contract and find, it is of really very good value). Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Even though the WebGUI is well organized and very descriptive it falls short of describing the full aspects of parameters and their incidences.

It would be great if it could be linked to the documentation or a wiki or even specific forum posts. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

It is a highly customizable firewall and router that will fit most of our clients' use cases. BGP IP announcement along with L3 firewall and basic routing with no vendor lock-in. We can buy direct from Netgate or put on a VM and deploy in minutes. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

No REST API Support in 2023 is making us slow down our installation of new pfSense deployments. The fractured features between pfSense+ and pfSense CE are a concern as we cannot review and audit source code for our stricter clients regarding upgrading and change notes between versions. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The stable firewall rules and powerful control mechanisms offered by pfSense have allowed us to manage internet access effectively and securely. One of the great things about pfSense is that it provides advanced features, such as creating and managing VPN connections for remote access, handling ACME Certificates and HAProxies, implementing load balancing and failover, and even creating custom captive portal pages for guest access. The web interface is user-friendly and intuitive, and the support community is always available and responsive. I highly recommend pfSense to anyone looking for a flexible and powerful firewall solution. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

For less experienced administrators, it can be a frustrating experience and may require a steep learning curve. While pfSense is a powerful and flexible firewall solution, it may not be the best fit for those lacking advanced networking skills. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

All in one package. it has firewall and router and other plugins for proxy etc.. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Pfsense doe3s not have the any network monitoring packages etc.. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.