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F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM)

Score8.4 out of 10

9 Reviews and Ratings

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What is F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM)?

F5 Networks offers the F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager, a firewall software combining a number of features including DDoS, DNS security, and other protections.

Categories & Use Cases

Key Features

Learn about the best (and worst!) features F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) has to offer, as determined by TrustRadius' reviewers.
Based on 9 ratings of F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM)'s features
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Top Performing Features

  • Active Directory and LDAP

    Integration with Active Directory and LDAP directories

    Category average: 8.5

  • VPN

    VPN's implement encryption and anonymize IP addresses

    Category average: 9.1

  • Proxy Server

    A proxy server changes your IP address and masks the origin of your network traffic

    Category average: 8.5

Areas for Improvement

  • Reporting and Logging

    Custom and summary reports, and log files enabling analysis of security incidents, application usage and traffic patterns

    Category average: 8.3

  • Visualization Tools

    Visualization tools present administrators with data on applications traversing the network, who is using them, and the potential security impact.

    Category average: 8.1

  • Firewall Management Console

    Either command-line or web-based interface for centralized control and management

    Category average: 8.1

Reviews

What users are saying about F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM).
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Great experience with F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager

Incentivized
Ali Can ÇobanView profile
Network Security Engineer in Information Technology at Turkiye Is Bankasi (10,001+ employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

F5 AFM offers unparalleled protection against cyber threats by seamlessly integrating with your network infrastructure and providing comprehensive security policies. Its advanced capabilities empower administrators to effectively manage and mitigate risks, ensuring continuous availability and optimal performance for your applications and services. With F5 AFM, you can confidently safeguard your network assets while maximizing productivity and minimizing downtime, making it an essential component of any modern IT ecosystem.

Pros

  • Threat Prevention and Mitigation
  • Application Layer Security

Cons

  • Complex Configuration
  • Enhanced Threat Intelligence Integration

F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) - Excellent Module for Firewall Functionality

Incentivized
Verified User
Engineer in Engineering (10,001+ employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) to segment traffic and prevent third-parties from accessing services outside of what they are permitted to access, per contractual documentation and other associated forms. With AFM, we are functionally protecting ourselves, our customers, and mission critical infrastructure, allowing our work to continue as necessary for the flying public.

Pros

  • Stress monitoring for load balanced traffic
  • Machine learning capabilities for contractual reporting
  • DDoS and other attack mitigation

Cons

  • More intuitive user interface
  • Better naming conventions
  • Fewer navigation steps to prevent abstraction

Other Software Used

F5 BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM), F5 BIG-IP Local Traffic Manager (LTM), F5 BIG-IP SSL Orchestrator

F5 BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager (AFM) is good for basic port blocking

Incentivized
Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology (5001-10,000 employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use AFM to do basic port-based protections for both external VIPs and internal datacenter traffic

Pros

  • Port based controls
  • Ease of using address objects

Cons

  • Ability to use external dynamic lists

Other Software Used

Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Firewalls - PA Series

Value for money

Incentivized
Verified User
Employee in Information Technology (10,001+ employees employees)

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use F5 [BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager] as a load balancer and for SSL offloading. We have created AFM iRules to manage attacks such as DDoS and threat intelligence.

Pros

  • Load balancing using pools
  • SSL offloading
  • iRules for threat handling

Cons

  • The GUI icons are very small and Overall UI can use some refreshing
  • The training on the tool is not easily available and mostly involves a high cost
  • The support or third party implementation teams could use some improvement

Most Important Features

  • It offers vast options of types to configure load balancing
  • The security plane of this tool is very competitive
  • It is a very useful and one of the top WAFs available in the market

Return on Investment

  • When we had to decide on whether to buy different hardware our team were all in support of renewal for F5 [BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager]
  • F5 [BIG-IP Advanced Firewall Manager] requires proper training on tools and clear concepts of packets, headers, and content to create WAF policies
  • Overall, we are satisfied by the ROI provided by our F5 AFM and GTMs

Alternatives Considered

Radware Alteon

Other Software Used

Infoblox DDI (BloxOne), LogicMonitor, OpSmart ITSM / CMDB

F5 Advanced Firewall Manager is a robust and solid solution

Incentivized
Verified User
Manager in Information Technology (10,001+ employees employees)

Pros

  • Central management.
  • Strong security.

Cons

  • If unsure, can be overly cautious.
  • There are few changes the end user can make.

Return on Investment

  • Easy maintenance reduces support hours.
  • Consistent experience reduces user learning curve.

Alternatives Considered

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager

Other Software Used

Gainsight, Gainsight PX, OneDrive

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