Fabric Management
One console for policy, one for logs. FortiManager pushes configuration and firmware across the estate with change control; FortiAnalyzer holds the log data, the reports and the retention your auditor asks about.
Where to start
Two products doing two different jobs that are frequently confused. FortiManager pushes configuration, policy and firmware across the estate with change control. FortiAnalyzer holds the log data, the reports and the retention. Large estates run both, and that is the intended architecture rather than an upsell.
For anything regulated, FortiManager's audit trail is often the purchasing reason on its own, every policy change attributed, timestamped and reversible is precisely what an assessor asks to see, and reconstructing it after the fact is not possible.
FortiAnalyzer sizing has two numbers and both bind. GB per day drives storage and licensing; sustained log rate decides whether it keeps up under load. Under-sizing shows up as dropped logs during the incident you needed them for, the most expensive mistake available in the Fabric, and one that is invisible until it matters.
Decide these first
How many devices AND VDOMs?
FortiManager's limit counts both together. A modest number of firewalls each running several VDOMs consumes capacity far faster than the device count suggests, and this is the most common sizing error on the product.
How many GB of logs per day, measured?
Estimating is unreliable. A FortiGate with full UTM logging and SSL inspection produces dramatically more than the same box doing plain firewalling, and the multiplier routinely surprises people.
How long must logs be retained?
Retention multiplied by daily volume gives the storage requirement, and it is usually set by regulation rather than preference. PCI DSS, HIPAA and state breach law all have opinions.
On-premises or cloud-managed?
Many small sites favour cloud management; few large sites favour on-premises appliances. Note that cloud logging means logs leave your premises, which for some regulated workloads settles the question.
Browse fabric management
FortiManager Centralized Management
One policy hierarchy, one change-control workflow, the whole estate
6 products →FortiAnalyzer (FAZ-150G through 3750G / VM)FortiAnalyzer Logging and Analytics
Where the logs live, the reports come from and retention is satisfied
8 products →FortiMonitor (NPMD / DEM)FortiMonitor
Network performance and digital experience monitoring, from the user's seat
1 product →FortiGate Cloud / FortiEdge CloudFortiGate Cloud & FortiEdge Cloud
Cloud-hosted management for estates that should not run their own management platform
1 product →