Nitiz Sharma

Ever wondered why your FortiGate firewall offers two inspection modes – Flow-based vs Proxy-based? Let's break it down in under 90 seconds – and trust me, you’ll never forget it Flow-based inspection works like a smart express lane in a firewall – scanning packets on the fly as they pass through. There’s no stopping or buffering – just real-time threat detection with minimal delay. It’s the go-to choice when speed is critical, like for real-time apps, voice calls, or video streams. Real-time packet inspection Low latency performance IPS & Antivirus supported Ideal for high-throughput traffic Now proxy-based? That’s your strict airport security. Every packet is fully unpacked, scanned, and repacked before moving forward. This means deeper inspection, better for web filtering, DLP, and SSL scanning." Full content buffering Deep inspection Higher resource usage Best for sensitive environments Use flow-based when you need speed – like gaming, VoIP, or large traffic volumes. Use proxy-based when security is top priority – like in banks or compliance-heavy networks So next time you configure that FortiGate policy – ask yourself Do I need speed or scrutiny? That’s the real game-changer." Like, Share & Subscribe for more Network Security wisdom