PACKETPERF

Primary Device

Palo Alto Networks PA-445
Palo Alto Networks PA-445
★ 3.3 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: 2.7 Gbps App-mix (newer datasheet value; some older sources list 2.8 Gbps HTTP / 2.2 Gbps App-mix)
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: 1.25 Gbps (newer datasheet value; some older sources list 1.0 Gbps)
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: 1.1 Gbps (newer datasheet value; some older sources list 1.6 Gbps)
  • Max Sessions: 200,000 concurrent sessions
  • New Sessions/sec: 34,000 (some sources list 37,500 or 39,000)
  • Interfaces: 8 x 1GbE ports (1 x SFP/RJ-45 combo, 7 x RJ-45 per listed sources), 1 x RJ-45 1GbE management port, 1 x RJ-45 console, 2 x USB, 1 x micro-USB console
  • Form Factor: Desktop
  • Storage: 128 GB eMMC
  • MTBF: 29 years (PA-400 Series reference, not model-specific)

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Low entry price for a Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewall; Full PAN-OS feature set with App-ID, User-ID and threat prevention; Compact desktop form factor suited to branch and small office deployments; 200,000 concurrent sessions and 34,000 new sessions per second; Centralised management through Panorama and Strata Cloud Manager; 128 GB eMMC onboard storage
  • ✘ Cons: Throughput is limited to about 2.7 Gbps App-mix and 1.25 Gbps threat prevention, so it is unsuitable for high-bandwidth sites; Only 1GbE interfaces, with no 10GbE uplink; Threat prevention, URL filtering and other security features require separate paid subscriptions; Published spec values differ between datasheet revisions and resellers, so figures should be confirmed against the current official datasheet; Requires a Palo Alto Networks subscription and support plan for full functionality
  • Est. Price: $2,200 - $2,754

Compare Against

Ubiquiti UniFi Cloud Gateway Fiber
Ubiquiti UniFi Cloud Gateway Fiber
★ 5.0 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti; 5 Gbps IDS/IPS-secured routing throughput is the only headline figure (reviewer and retailer listings)
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: 5 Gbps IDS/IPS
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: Not published
  • Max Sessions: Not published; 500+ simultaneous users and 4,000-entry MAC address table
  • New Sessions/sec: Not published
  • Interfaces: 2x 10G SFP+; 1x 10GbE RJ45 (10G/2.5G/1G); 4x 2.5GbE RJ45 (2.5G/1G/100M/10M); 2 of the 6 WAN-capable ports are default WAN (1x 10G SFP+ and 1x 10GbE RJ45), with the other ports selectable as WAN
  • Form Factor: Compact desktop; 212.8 x 127.6 x 30 mm; 675 g without SSD
  • CPU / RAM: Quad-core ARM Cortex-A73 at 2.2 GHz / 3 GB RAM
  • Storage: Optional NVMe SSD up to 2 TB (NVR storage)
  • PoE Budget: 30W total from one PoE+ port (port 4)
  • Max Power Consumption: 29.4W excluding PoE output

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Lowest-cost Ubiquiti gateway with 5 Gbps IDS/IPS, rated above the UDM-SE's 3.5 Gbps at a lower launch price ($279 MSRP vs. $499); Multi-gig flexibility with 10GBASE-T, dual SFP+ and four 2.5GbE ports; Compact desktop design with optional NVMe storage for UniFi Protect/NVR use; Supports site-to-site VPN plus OpenVPN, WireGuard and L2TP server functions, with integrated PoE+ for one device; Managed through the UniFi Network controller with 500+ simultaneous user capacity
  • ✘ Cons: No official routing, IPsec or WireGuard throughput figures published by Ubiquiti; community WireGuard numbers (around 400-500 Mbps) are unverified; Only one PoE+ output port (30W total) versus eight PoE ports on the UDM-SE; Lower device and user capacity and less storage expansion than the UDM-SE; No published IPsec tunnel or concurrent session limits; Reseller prices now often run above the launch MSRP (about $320-$346 USD at US resellers)
  • Est. Price: $279 - $346

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