FortiSwitch

My team and I like how easily it integrates with existing Fortinet technology. We had already bought into Fortinet firewalls, so configuring them to manage the FortiSwitches was an easy choice to make, since it greatly reduced our networking complexity. We also like the security features that are built into the switches such as network access control, device profiling, and micro-segmentation. Finally, the cost for these switches is reasonable compared to other technologies on the market. We found that some vendors charge extra for features that are built into FortiSwitches.

Zero touch and out of the box initial setup.

FortiSwitch is a seamless extension of the Fortinet Security Fabric when managed by a FortiGate Firewall, all FortiSwitch management happens directly from the FortiGate GUI, no need for separate vendor tools or login, giving the ability to control everything from a single pane of glass. FortiSwitch Units automatically discover and provision themselves when connected to an upstream FortiSwitch or FortiGate - Zero-Touch Auto Provisioning.

My team and I dislike the fact that it is difficult to integrate with other technologies. We have had some challenges with network communication between Fortinet and other switching equipment. The issues were able to be resolved, but it required a call with support. I'm also surprised at the number of security vulnerabilities that are disclosed with Fortinet products. I am grateful that patches are issued for these vulnerabilities in a timely manner, but downtime is needed in order to apply updates. Although this is something that affects every manufacturer, it seems like Fortinet is constantly issuing patches. A small issue that I dislike is that you must manually register the switch with Fortinet after it has been received, otherwise the company does not have a record of the device in their support portal. Most other vendors register the device with support at the time of sale and already have it in their system.

For its full use of functionality, it requires end to end Fortinet infrastructure.

If managed by FortiGate, FortiLink Mode disables its Layer 3 routing capabilities, and all traffic passes through the FortiGate Firewall, which becomes a bottleneck.