IPsec VPN Throughput: 8 Gbps (1024B TCP, fastpath); ~11 Gbps projected with VPN offload on FTD 7.2
Max Sessions: 2,000,000 concurrent
New Sessions/sec: 130,000 (FTD with AVC); a separate ASA-style table lists 300,000, unverified
Interfaces: 8 x 1G RJ45, 8 x 1/10G SFP+
Form Factor: 1RU appliance
Curation Review
✔ Pros:Compact 1RU form factor for internet edge and private cloud perimeters; 17 Gbps threat prevention throughput (FW+AVC+IPS) at 1024B; 2M concurrent sessions and 3,000 maximum VPN peers; Supports both ASA and Firewall Threat Defense (FTD) software images; 8 x 10G SFP+ ports for high-speed uplinks
✘ Cons:Threat prevention throughput of 17 Gbps is modest for large enterprise or data center deployments; 8 Gbps base IPsec VPN throughput; Subscription licenses for threat defense, URL filtering and malware protection are sold separately and add significant ongoing cost; Cisco's official list price was not found, and retailer prices vary widely by SKU, refurbished status and software image; Some spec figures conflict across reseller pages and should be checked against Cisco's official datasheet
✔ Pros:25G SFP28 and 10G SFP+ uplinks at a gateway price point; 23.5 Gbps routing throughput; 1 million concurrent sessions; 18-core ARM CPU with 16 GB RAM; hot-swappable redundant PSUs; supports 500+ UniFi devices and 5,000+ clients; manages through UniFi Network controller with a single pane of glass
✘ Cons:IPsec VPN throughput of 580 Mbps is low for a gateway at this price; IDS/IPS throughput of 12.5 Gbps halves routing performance when threat inspection is enabled; SSL/TLS inspection is limited to about 10,000 concurrent sessions; port configuration differs across listings and should be verified; frequently out of stock at major US retailers, with a $170 memory surcharge at some resellers; no built-in Wi-Fi, so it depends on separate UniFi APs and switches; reviewers cite a steeper learning curve than consumer-grade routers