PACKETPERF

Primary Device

Cisco Secure Firewall 220
Cisco Secure Firewall 220
★ 3.3 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: 2 Gbps (ASA software, stateful inspection, HTTP 1024B; 1500B UDP per footnote)
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: 1.5 Gbps (FTD software, FW + AVC + IPS, 1024B; AVC + IPS also 1.5 Gbps)
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: 1.5 Gbps (ASA, 450B UDP L2L); 1.2 Gbps (FTD, 1024B TCP with fastpath)
  • Max Sessions: 100K concurrent firewall connections (ASA); 30K concurrent sessions with AVC (FTD)
  • New Sessions/sec: 80K new connections per second (ASA); 6K new connections per second with AVC (FTD)
  • Interfaces: 4x 1000BASE-T (RJ-45) + 1x 1G SFP fixed data ports, plus 1x 1000BASE-T management port; no network modules; max 5 data ports
  • Form Factor: Compact fanless desktop unit, 1 RU rack-mountable with accessory, wall-mount option; 1.15 in x 9.2 in x 7.8 in, 2.6 lb

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Fanless, silent operation (0 dBA) suited to branch offices and small desks; Compact footprint with rack and wall-mount options; Low power draw (12.7 W typical, 19 W max) on a single external 30W AC supply; Supports both ASA and Threat Defense (FTD) software images via separate SKUs (CSF220-ASA-K9, CSF220-TD-K9); Active/Standby high availability and up to 5 VRF instances on FTD; Built-in 4x 1GbE copper plus 1G SFP for flexible uplinks; Broad price point for a Cisco-branded next-generation firewall; MTBF rated at 700,000 hours
  • ✘ Cons: Throughput is limited to about 1.5 Gbps with threat prevention enabled, so it does not suit multi-gigabit WAN links; Only 1G interfaces, with no 10G SFP+ option listed on the official datasheet; No clustering or multi-instance support, which limits scale-out; No redundant power supply; Maximum 50 VPN peers and 30K concurrent sessions with AVC on FTD are modest for larger sites; Software image is fixed per SKU (ASA or FTD), so switching platforms requires a different appliance; Official datasheet does not publish a USD list price, so pricing depends on reseller quotes
  • Est. Price: $839 - $1,136

Compare Against

Ubiquiti Cloud Gateway Max
Ubiquiti Cloud Gateway Max
★ 4.9 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: 2.5 Gbps (routing, IDS/IPS off)
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: 1.5 Gbps (IDS/IPS on)
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti; WireGuard/Site-Magic VPN up to 500 Mbps (third-party review, untested method)
  • Max Sessions: Not published
  • New Sessions/sec: Not published
  • Interfaces: 5x 2.5GbE RJ45 (1 WAN + 4 LAN, one LAN port can be remapped to a second WAN)
  • Form Factor: Compact desktop, 142 x 127 x 30 mm, USB-C 5V/5A power (max 16.1 W)

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: 2.5GbE WAN and LAN ports on a compact, low-power chassis (max 16.1 W); 512GB built-in NVMe storage on the standard SKU for local UniFi data; Integrated UniFi controller with IDS/IPS and no license or subscription fees; Supports 300+ clients and 30+ UniFi devices; Multi-WAN capable through the remappable LAN port
  • ✘ Cons: Only 1.5 Gbps with IDS/IPS enabled, well below the 2.5 Gbps routing figure; IPsec VPN throughput, session counts and new sessions per second are not published; No PoE output and no built-in Wi-Fi access point; No LAG/LACP support; 500 Mbps VPN throughput is limiting for high-volume site-to-site tunnels
  • Est. Price: $240 - $279

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