New Office Network: Out of the Box
Opening a new office used to start with furniture, floor plans, and car parking. Today, it starts with connectivity.
Reliable networking has become a norm that many organisations no longer give it much thought. Shared offices and serviced spaces often provide a network as part of the facility, and for some businesses, that is sufficient. Others prefer full control and choose to build and operate their own network stack complete with firewalls, switches, and Wi-Fi access points.
While some businesses choose to use shared office or third-party network facilities, others build and manage their own network stack to satisfy operational or security requirements.
When a new office comes online, the immediate needs are usually:
- Wi-Fi access points for user connectivity
- Network switches to interconnect devices and often provide power for those access points
- A firewall to securely connect the internal network to the Internet and enforce policies
Selecting the right vendor and product set for these components is a practical business decision that depends on existing skill sets, long-term supportability, and management overhead, not just headline specifications or marketing preference.
At Virtual Graffiti we observe that many organisations aim to simplify their infrastructure footprint. Reducing the number of vendors involved in infrastructure generally reduces:
- the number of management consoles and disparate tools
- the variety of vendor-specific skills required internally
- the friction involved in troubleshooting and coordination of teams
Over time, this consolidation naturally translates into operational efficiencies and cost savings. However, those benefits are a consequence, not the starting point.
The challenge is that not all vendors are equally positioned to support a complete office network. Some excel at firewalls but lack switching capabilities. Others offer strong WiFi solutions but rely on partners or third parties for the rest of the stack. These gaps can reintroduce complexity precisely where consolidation was meant to eliminate it.
How Organisations Typically Choose
The selection journey is rarely linear. It typically begins with an assessment of existing in-house skills. That naturally forms Option #1 so the team already knows and can support with confidence.
From there, Option #2 often emerges through peer recommendations, industry conversations, or brand aspiration.
What matters most is not choosing the “best” vendor in absolute terms but choosing the one that aligns with your operational reality, internal capabilities, and appetite for complexity.
| Category | Sophos | SonicWall | Fortinet | Cisco / Meraki |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Firewall (Typical Models) | XGS 108 / 118 / 138 NGFW with strong endpoint and security integration | TZ270 / TZ470 / NSA 2800 NGFW focused on SMB and mid-market edge security | FortiGate 60F / 90G / 120G High-performance NGFW widely deployed across different size networks | Meraki MX68 / MX85 / MX250 Cloud-managed security appliances integrated into Meraki Dashboard |
| Managed Switches (Typical Models) | Sophos Switch CS110 / CS210 series L2/L2+ switching with 24 and 48 port PoE options | SonicWall SWS12 / SWS14 series PoE switches designed for SonicWall ecosystems | FortiSwitch FS108F / 148F / 248E series with broad portfolio from access to aggregation | Meraki MS130 / MS210 or even Cisco Catalyst 9300 switches for any network size |
| Wi-Fi Access Points (Typical Models) | AP6 420 / 840 Wi-Fi 6 access points managed via Sophos Central | SonicWave 621 / 681 Wi-Fi 6 APs integrated with SonicWall firewalls | FortiAP 221E / 431F Enterprise-grade Wi-Fi with tight FortiGate integration | Meraki MR76 / CW9176D1 Cloud-managed Wi-Fi with strong analytics and visibility |
| Strengths | Lower operational overhead due to fewer management tools. Well suited for organisations prioritising simplicity with solid quality security | Strong firewall lineage and clear positioning for small and midsized offices. Single-vendor approach | Strong performance, broad portfolio and scalability. Suitable for organisations standardising on one vendor globally | Highly intuitive cloud management model. Strong visibility, analytics, and user experience features |
| Weaknesses | Limited depth in switching portfolio compared to larger networking vendors. Less suitable for complex campus designs | Narrower switch and AP portfolio for larger networks relative to competitors | Higher learning curve for teams without Fortinet experience. Licensing and management complexity can increase over time | Ongoing licence dependency for management and functionality. Higher cost profile compared to SMB-focused vendors |
Thinking Beyond the Hardware
Building a network for a new office involves more than selecting boxes. It is about aligning technology with internal capabilities and long-term operational objectives. A unified stack can reduce the number of management consoles and vendor relationships, but the final choice should be informed by existing skills, future growth plans, and the environment the network must support.