FortiManager
Network management tools
Secure web gateways
Web security software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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What is FortiManager
FortiManager is a centralized management platform for administering Fortinet security devices, primarily FortiGate firewalls, across distributed environments. It supports policy configuration, device provisioning, firmware management, and compliance-oriented change control from a single console. Typical users include network and security operations teams managing multiple sites, MSSP-style operations, or large Fortinet deployments that require standardized configurations and audit trails. It is commonly deployed as a virtual appliance, hardware appliance, or cloud-based instance depending on scale and operational requirements.
Centralized policy and device control
FortiManager consolidates configuration and policy management for many Fortinet devices into one administrative plane. It supports shared objects, policy packages, and templates to standardize configurations across sites. This reduces repetitive per-device changes and helps teams enforce consistent security posture. It also supports role-based administration to separate duties across operations teams.
Change workflow and auditability
FortiManager includes revision history, approval workflows, and logging that support controlled change management. It can track who made changes, what changed, and when changes were installed to devices. These capabilities help with internal governance and external compliance requirements. They also reduce risk from ad hoc configuration edits on individual devices.
Lifecycle and fleet operations
FortiManager supports device provisioning, firmware management, and configuration deployment at scale. It can coordinate upgrades and push standardized settings to groups of devices, which is useful for multi-site rollouts. This operational focus aligns well with network management tool use cases where teams need repeatable processes. It is particularly relevant when managing large numbers of branch or edge security appliances.
Primarily Fortinet ecosystem focused
FortiManager is designed to manage Fortinet devices and does not function as a broad multi-vendor network management platform. Organizations with heterogeneous network stacks may still need separate tools for non-Fortinet infrastructure monitoring and configuration. This can increase tool sprawl in mixed environments. Fit is strongest when Fortinet is the standard security edge platform.
Not a full SWG itself
Although it supports managing web security and secure web gateway-related policies on Fortinet devices, FortiManager is not the enforcement point for web filtering or gateway inspection. Secure web gateway capabilities depend on the underlying FortiGate/FortiProxy and associated subscriptions. Buyers evaluating it as web security software should treat it as a management layer rather than a standalone gateway. This distinction affects licensing, architecture, and expected outcomes.
Complexity at large scale
Policy package design, ADOM segmentation, and object inheritance can add administrative complexity as deployments grow. Teams often need strong operational discipline to avoid configuration drift and unintended policy impacts across device groups. Initial setup and ongoing governance can require specialized Fortinet expertise. This can lengthen implementation time compared with simpler single-site management approaches.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| FortiManager (Hardware models: 200G, 400G, 1000F, 3000G, 3700G) | Not published — contact Fortinet or an authorized reseller. | Hardware appliance SKUs; default device/VDOM counts vary by model (e.g., 200G=30, 400G=150, 1000F=1,000, 3000G=4,000, 3700G=10,000). FortiCare support available as subscription or bundled options. (See Fortinet product page). |
| FortiManager Cloud (PaaS) — device-count subscription tiers (3 / 10 / 100 / 1000 devices) | Not published — contact Fortinet or reseller. | Cloud subscription SKUs are published (example SKUs: FC0-10-MVCLD-227-01-DD, FC1-10-MVCLD-227-01-DD, FC2-10-MVCLD-227-01-DD, FC3-10-MVCLD-227-01-DD). Used for FortiManager Cloud; licensing enforced at login. (See FortiManager Cloud licensing docs). |
| FortiManager VM (VM-BASE, VM-10-UG, VM-100-UG, VM-1000-UG, VM-5000-UG, VM-U-UG) | Not published — contact Fortinet or an authorized reseller. | VM is sold in stackable license tiers (device quotas, GB/day logs, and VM form factors vary). Subscription VM images and perpetual/BYOL options exist; contact reseller for pricing. (See FortiManager VM documentation). |
| Marketplace PAYG / BYOL options (AWS/Azure/Google) | PAYG/on‑demand pricing is provided via cloud marketplace listings (not published on fortinet.com). | Fortinet supports PAYG (on‑demand) via cloud marketplaces and BYOL (perpetual or subscription obtained from reseller). Fortinet documentation directs customers to marketplace product pages for up‑to‑date on‑demand pricing. |
Seller details
Fortinet, Inc.
Sunnyvale, California, USA
2000
Public
https://www.fortinet.com/
https://x.com/Fortinet
https://www.linkedin.com/company/fortinet/
