Content

Global Management System

The SonicWALL Global Management System (SGMS) is a Java-based application that is used for managing large numbers of installed SonicWALL firewalls, SSL VPN devices, and wireless access points. The utility offers a few key features that makes the product worthwhile to SonicWALL enterprises. The first feature is the ability to push SonicWALL SonicOS software upgrades to large numbers of devices at once. This is quite a time-saver when an administrator does not have to upgrade each device individually. The second handy feature is the ability to push configuration updates to multiple SonicWALL devices at the same time. The third feature is the ease of creating SonicWALL VPNs through the SGMS interface. While creating a VPN with SonicWALL devices is easier than with many other manufacturers, there is a time savings here which can be realized as well.

As with other applications, the installation of the SGMS product hung up when looking for a database installation. Somehow, we had missed that SQL was needed for this product. The installation other than the SQL error was very straightforward and the utility installed the version of Java that was needed for the application to operate.

The documentation for the SGMS was clearly superior to other products in this category. The SGMS product had the standard indexed and searchable PDF user guide, but SonicWall also provides live action tutorials on the SGMS product that can be used in a split screen set-up to configure the system along with the guide in the video.

SonicWALL provides support through phone and online resources. The purchase of a SonicWALL product includes support for a period of time, and additional support is available for purchase. There is an online knowledge base available to the public and it includes documents for downloads.

The SonicWALL Global Management System is priced based on the number of SonicWALL units which will be managed through the product. The cost per unit at the smaller number of units is a bit on the high side relative to other products in this Group Test, but if your organization has a larger number of units, the time savings will make the cost more manageable.

Product title
Global Management System
Product info
Name: Global Management System Description: Price: $1,995 for a 10 node license, plus support
Strength
Makes life easier for an administrator with a large SonicWall install base
Weakness
Only supports SonicWall products
Verdict
A good product for a specialized marker. It is easy to see this product performing well in a managed firewall service provider environment.

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