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SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM) vs. WatchGuard Network Security

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)

    Score8 out of 10
    N/ASolarWinds LEM is security information and event management (SIEM) software.N/A

    WatchGuard Network Security

    Score8.8 out of 10
    N/AWatchGuard Network Security is a network security and firewall software. WatchGuard includes secure Wi-Fi, multi-factor authentication, and network intelligence products and services designed for SMB’s.N/A
    Pricing
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Support
    Contact sales team
    Contact sales team
    Basic Security
    Contact sales team
    Contact sales team
    Total Security
    Contact sales team
    Contact sales team
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Considered Both Products
    SolarWinds
    No answer on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    88%
    Would buy again
    30 Answers
    96%
    Would buy again
    423 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    97%
    Delivers good value for the price
    28 Answers
    96%
    Delivers good value for the price
    407 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    91%
    Happy with the feature set
    31 Answers
    98%
    Happy with the feature set
    432 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    89%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    16 Answers
    95%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    362 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    89%
    Implementation went as expected
    25 Answers
    97%
    Implementation went as expected
    401 Answers
    Features
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)
    Comparison of Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) features of SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM) and WatchGuard Network Security
    Feature
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)
    8.9
    18 Ratings
    11% above category average
    WatchGuard Network Security
    -
    Ratings
    Centralized event and log data collection9.018 Ratings00 Ratings
    Correlation8.015 Ratings00 Ratings
    Event and log normalization/management8.018 Ratings00 Ratings
    Deployment flexibility10.018 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration with Identity and Access Management Tools8.013 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom dashboards and workspaces9.017 Ratings00 Ratings
    Host and network-based intrusion detection10.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Firewall
    Comparison of Firewall features of SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM) and WatchGuard Network Security
    Feature
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)
    -
    Ratings
    WatchGuard Network Security
    8.1
    537 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Identification Technologies00 Ratings8.4493 Ratings
    Visualization Tools00 Ratings6.9485 Ratings
    Content Inspection00 Ratings8.3517 Ratings
    Policy-based Controls00 Ratings8.9533 Ratings
    Active Directory and LDAP00 Ratings8.7448 Ratings
    Firewall Management Console00 Ratings8.6524 Ratings
    Reporting and Logging00 Ratings6.8521 Ratings
    VPN00 Ratings8.8514 Ratings
    High Availability00 Ratings8.2467 Ratings
    Stateful Inspection00 Ratings8.0479 Ratings
    Proxy Server00 Ratings7.8344 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    SonicWall NSA Series
    Score8.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    IBM Security QRadar SIEM
    Score8.9 out of 10
    Barracuda CloudGen Firewall
    Score9.6 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Microsoft Sentinel
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Software
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (46 ratings)
    8.7
    (555 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    7.3
    (2 ratings)
    8.0
    (45 ratings)
    Usability
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    7.9
    (123 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.9
    (7 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.5
    (7 ratings)
    Support Rating
    7.5
    (17 ratings)
    9.4
    (32 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (5 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.2
    (3 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.1
    (269 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.6
    (6 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.8
    (5 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.8
    (7 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.3
    (5 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM)WatchGuard Network Security
    Likelihood to Recommend
    SolarWinds
    Optimal for SolarWinds Security Event Manager needs for smaller companies - it is a very cool product but has some limitations around EPS (which gets chewed up quickly if you're doing it the right way & adding servers/storage/FW & other network devices)... Also pricing model is GREAT (not consumption-based, which is the greatest grift the SIEM industry has created).
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    It's well suited for businesses that want better features than a standard router, but are willing to pay the extra price for the product and someone to configure, set up and maintain the router. It's probably less desirable for home users or very small home offices or unqualified network users.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    SolarWinds
    • It does a great job of notifying us when accounts have been locked out. We can then find out the device on the network where the login attempt occurred.
    • Searching for incidents is now a lot faster with the implementation of the HTML 5 interface.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    • Incoming Torrent attempts were blocked, but outgoing (by a user) were permitted. Similarly, other direct attempts were summarily blocked.
    • provides full administrative support for analysis of usage and scope.
    • strong Wi-Fi support and security - area wi-fi maps
    • They think of all the things secure and I don't have to worry about it.
    • I have not identified anything else that needs improvement - I am well satisfied.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    SolarWinds
    • All SolarWinds product suffer from slow response times in management portals. SolarWinds SEM is no exception. While it is much preferred over a "thick client" there is much room for improvement in speed.
    • If you use the email alert features with SolarWinds make sure to prepare you staff and team for the large amount of emails they could receive. Make sure to reduce the number of alerts so your team does not ignore the alerts.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    • Better integration with VoIP services, such as templates for policies handling traffic for Bria or Asterisk endponts and servers.
    • Get webblocker to work without breaking secure websites.
    • Lower cost on endpoint agents for antivirus and include application control and webblocker with the agents.
    • Make the cost per endpoint with TDR and Netowrk access control lower than the cost of Antivirus licensing that is not integrated.
    • Make it easier to set up network access control and VLAN assignment by device, perhaps with templates.
    • Get webblocker and application control working with QUIC.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    SolarWinds
    It is pretty likely that we will renew SEM when the time comes up. It is easy to use and maintain so there isn't much of a need to replace this product. It is also a pretty fair price for the capabilities provided by the SEM
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    We have been renewing and purchasing new equipment for the last 20 years. This is because the equipment is easy to use and manage and also quite affordable. Compared to other products, Watchguard just works and has not had the issues with device security seen in other products. They have been a reliable partner.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    SolarWinds
    If you are familiar with SolarWinds then you can use this product it's as easy as that. If you have never used a SolarWinds product then it will take a minute to get how they do reports and make dashboards but that being said the tool is great and can make things very easy once you get a feel for how it works and get everything setup how you like it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    Although it might take some time to figure out, we have been able to use WatchGuard's online reference library and tech support to create/implement/modify all of our filtering rules and exceptions needed. There really has not been a shortcoming other than perhaps a learning curve.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    Availability has always been a strong point of this product, it is rare that watchguard does not have a solution for customers' network monitoring needs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    The performance of WatchGuard Network Security is very good, in the years that we have used the solution we have only had a single error and Watchguard itself was able to solve it. Furthermore, when purchasing any product, the partner always evaluates the capacity of the solution to recommend the most appropriate product for our needs.
    Incentivized
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    Support Rating
    SolarWinds
    The quality of support can vary depending on whom you end up speaking with. I was fortunate enough to work with a support representative who was very familiar with the product. He had even authored some of the support documentation on the website. On the flip side, I had two other experiences where I was simply directed to online training material.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    We have only had to contact them once during the initial set up to help bring the internet back on line. After that for the most part our systems have been automated, and could easily be checked form their online FAQ and Knowledge base that they provide. Everything else is easily handled from their browser based interface
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    We participate to a in person training and the three days of learning was really useful and complete to gain skill to solve the major part of the problem we encounter during our life. And more the in person training give us the opportunity to create a network with other WatchGuard partner.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    Online training is good for learning how to use the product. It does not teach security strategy because that is not its intent.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    WatchGuard Network Security offers varied methods of implementation. Their devices are very easy to set up manually, and for a more automated setup where many devices need to be deployed, they have different offerings like RapidDeploy (prepopulate a config for a specific device in the portal), registering the device's serial number to manage it through cloud services on first boot (including the option to populate a USB stick with basic interface setup if required) and the ability to run your own Management Server and register to be deployed serial numbers, so the device connects to your own hosted management server on first boot.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    SolarWinds
    Fortianalzyer can only do logs from FortiGate so usefulness is limited. Elasticsearch was a lot slower than Solarwinds and the filters were a lot harder to set up and use. The connectors for SEM were far more stable.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    I was not involved with the decision making for WatchGuard versus another product. However, I know WatchGuard is significantly less expensive than other brands. My overall preference would be Ubiquiti due to their continuous improvement of the product with tons of great features. I know WatchGuard is making great advances, but the progress seems slower in comparison.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    SolarWinds
    No answers on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    This product is very scalable since previously everything related to Watchguard was on premises but that has now changed with the inclusion of watchguard cloud. Now the product has evolved to have full control of firewalls at the cloud level.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    SolarWinds
    • For the price, it produced a decent value. It did a lot of the easy stuff well. I can't give any specific data given the objective of the product was to monitor very basic events in the environment.
    • There are free options that can do a better job.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    • We are blocking about 90% of malicious traffic coming into our network.
    • Our firewall allows us to setup a secondary WAN interface for redundancy.
    • We can isolate issues and determine whether traffic is being dropped outside our network or on the LAN.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    SolarWinds Security Event Manager (SEM) Screenshots

    Product screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshot

    WatchGuard Network Security Screenshots

    Screenshot of WatchGuard Cloud Customizable DashboardScreenshot of Threat Monitoring SummaryScreenshot of Device Security SummaryScreenshot of Automated ReportingScreenshot of User Authentication SummaryScreenshot of Endpoint Protection Summary