What users are saying about
20 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener noreferrer'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 8.7 out of 100
Based on 20 reviews and ratings
13 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener noreferrer'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 8.6 out of 100
Based on 13 reviews and ratings
Likelihood to Recommend
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
I would say a small business with a basic firewall and security needs would be a perfect fit for the Barracuda CloudGen firewall. I know that they soon end up leaving the NG models and are moving forward with the F series firewall. I think the F series is a much more difficult to manage device and doesn’t offer simplistic configuration or use and lacks cloud control so I don’t understand the move on Barracuda’s part to nix a great easy to manage the firewall. I do think that the NG line is maybe too simple for bigger businesses and would lack some main features that they would require.

Verified User
Manager in Information Technology
Defense & Space Company, 201-500 employeesSonicWall NSA Series
SonicWall NSA is an excellent mid-range firewall suitable for branch office locations that expect a lot of network traffic. The higher-end NSA can take the bandwidth requirements of thousands of users while using Deep Packet Inspection and Antivirus features. We currently have SonicWall NSA deployed in a high availability mode configuration, and amazingly can failover to the backup hardware without dropping VPN connections. SonicWall NSA series is not recommended for companies who integrate VPNs with Cisco devices, as I've had difficulties with the VPN staying up.
IT Infrastructure Manager
Pace SupplyWholesale, 1001-5000 employees
Feature Rating Comparison
Firewall
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.9
SonicWall NSA Series
8.0
Identification Technologies
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.6
SonicWall NSA Series
7.8
Visualization Tools
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.2
SonicWall NSA Series
7.2
Content Inspection
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
8.4
SonicWall NSA Series
8.0
Policy-based Controls
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.8
SonicWall NSA Series
8.4
Active Directory and LDAP
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.5
SonicWall NSA Series
8.0
Firewall Management Console
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
8.3
SonicWall NSA Series
8.4
Reporting and Logging
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
6.5
SonicWall NSA Series
6.0
VPN
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
8.6
SonicWall NSA Series
9.0
High Availability
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
8.8
SonicWall NSA Series
8.6
Stateful Inspection
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
8.2
SonicWall NSA Series
8.0
Proxy Server
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
7.7
SonicWall NSA Series
—
Pros
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
- The management software is excellent. It make it much easier to manage the firewalls than some of the other vendors.
- Watching real-time traffic is easy to do when trying to troubleshoot a users issues getting to a particular service.
- Support from Barracuda has been excellent. We rate their phone and online remote support as being the best in the business.
- We like the QoS and Traffic shaping of the NG Firewalls. They help is manage our limited bandwidth, so that business critical resources are available over lesser critical resources.
- Integration with Active Directory makes it easy to identify users activities in logs.

Verified User
Project Manager in Information Technology
Higher Education Company, 201-500 employeesSonicWall NSA Series
- Ease of configuration. Easy to add WAPs, etc.
- Reliable.
President, Principal
Klaxon IT SolutionsHospital & Health Care, 11-50 employees
Cons
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
- Not come across any yet! A nice-to-have could be a mobile app which allows you to monitor it on your phone or mobile device.

Verified User
Manager in Information Technology
Education Management Company, 1001-5000 employeesSonicWall NSA Series
- The logging interface is voluminous and difficult to get quick and good information from.
- SonicWall NSA is trying to mimic Palo Alto Network's investigative features but falls far behind.
IT Infrastructure Manager
Pace SupplyWholesale, 1001-5000 employees
Usability
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall 5.5
Based on 1 answer
Easy enough to use and configure using the management UI. Reporting from the web filter is a little clunky, and not very user friendly. To be perfectly honest, once it's set up and running, there isn't a lot to do from the day-to-day side of things, which is not a bad thing.

Verified User
Professional in Information Technology
Education Management Company, 51-200 employeesSonicWall NSA Series
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall 8.4
Based on 6 answers
I could go on and on about how good Barracuda's support really is. I have yet to have a problem they didn't help me fix and I always learn something when talking with them. The story that best describes my overall experience with Barracuda's support is this: When I first put in the xSeries they had a problem with a policy route. There was a bug in the code and in the one situation I was it, it just would not work. I went up the levels of support and they couldn't fix it. Well, next thing I know I am on the phone with 2 of the guys that programmed the thing and they work out the solution in no time and get me going. That is support. That is what I have come to expect from Barracuda. If the tech on the phone doesn't know the answer, they do not stop until they find it. Grant it, I also have to admit I do not call support with every problem, I try to work it out on my own first as that is how I learn best, so when I do call support it is going to be complicated.
Senior Network Engineer
Pine Belt Mental HealthHospital & Health Care, 501-1000 employees
SonicWall NSA Series
SonicWall NSA Series 9.0
Based on 3 answers
Cost, ease of use and reliability after implementation. It's a great and easy product to use to meet the needs of smaller organizations that want a more "legitimate" setup without going overboard or spending Cisco money. Great product. Can be rack mounted or stand alone. VPN easy to setup and update. A great product to start with and grow with in a developing organization.
President, Principal
Klaxon IT SolutionsHospital & Health Care, 11-50 employees
Alternatives Considered
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
Our Cisco firewall was always difficult to make any changes against. It had no user-friendly GUI interface. We were calling technical support most of the time whenever we needed to make any changes. The Barracuda CloudGen Firewall has a GUI interface which we are looking forward to getting better acquainted with as we move off of our old Cisco. Of course, Barracuda's technical support is always there and is top notch!
Vice President of IT
GiumarraFood & Beverages, 201-500 employees
SonicWall NSA Series
SonicWall NSA series interface is way better than either Watchguard or Checkpoint. Even though people want to dismiss SonicWall NSA, they have the advanced features of its competitors, but with the easy interface. With all things being equal, I consider Palo Alto Networks to be the most preferred enterprise firewall, with SonicWall NSA being second and the rest trailing far behind.
IT Infrastructure Manager
Pace SupplyWholesale, 1001-5000 employees
Return on Investment
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
- Positive: highly customizable and can control the entire network from one location.
- Positive: all services and processes work very well and are reliable.
- Positive: MSPs looking to deploy and control numerous firewalls with ease, this is hands down the best product.
- Negative: very high learning curve, definitely not a one-and-done firewall. Requires a lot of dedicated time to get the machine running the way you want.
Service Manager
Accellis Technology GroupInformation Technology and Services, 11-50 employees
SonicWall NSA Series
- Saved money on implementation and administration staff.
- Covered the sophisticated needs of many organizations.
President, Principal
Klaxon IT SolutionsHospital & Health Care, 11-50 employees
Screenshots
SonicWall NSA Series
—Pricing Details
Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
General
Free Trial
Yes
Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No
SonicWall NSA Series
General
Free Trial
—Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No