Firewalls come in many forms. There are hardware-based next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) at the data center and branch office, as well as virtual appliances in private clouds. Increasingly, cloud-native and SASE-based solutions are protecting remote users and SaaS platforms.

Each plays a vital role in protecting digital assets. Together, they often create operational complexity that slows response and stretches already overburdened security teams. Thus, this leads to the challenge for today’s enterprises in managing firewalls consistently across every environment.

At WEI, we help organizations meet this challenge by utilizing centralized platforms, such as Palo Alto Networks Panorama and Strata Cloud Manager. These tools unify NGFW operations across physical, virtual, and cloud environments, allowing IT leaders to simplify oversight and improve their security posture.

Fragmented Management Creates Enterprise Risk

As enterprise networks grow, security teams are tasked with protecting traffic across data centers, private and public cloud platforms, remote users, and branch offices.

This broad attack surface is often guarded by different NGFW deployments. Without centralized oversight, management becomes fragmented, resulting in inconsistent policies, slower responses to threats, and a higher likelihood of configuration errors.

Gartner states that 99% of all firewall breaches are caused by misconfigurations. This risk is driven not by the technology itself, but by disconnected tools and manual oversight. Centralized platforms address this by providing teams with a comprehensive view of their environment and a consistent method for enforcing security policies.

Watch: Cyber Warfare & Beyond Roundtable With WEI

Palo Alto Networks Panorama: Central Control for NGFW Environments

Palo Alto Networks Panorama is built for managing large-scale next-generation firewall environments. Whether you use hardware appliances, virtual firewalls, or container-based deployments, Panorama provides a single point of control.

With Panorama, organizations can apply firewall automation to create consistent policies using shared templates, manage devices by business unit or geography, and aggregate logs for centralized analysis.

Panorama also supports thousands of firewalls, allowing teams to scale quickly and apply updates without manual rework.

WEI helps organizations deploy Palo Alto Networks Panorama to consolidate control and maximize their investment in next-generation firewall technology.

Strata Cloud Manager: AI-Powered Intelligence and Unified Operations

Strata Cloud Manager supports hybrid and cloud-first enterprises with centralized management and AI-driven insight. It combines configuration, analytics, and policy management into one platform for both NGFW and Prisma Access deployments.

It enables real-time visibility into threats and traffic, applies policies consistently across form factors, and uses integrated firewall automation to detect and fix policy gaps. It also includes predictive tools to identify network issues before they escalate.

Strata Copilot, its natural language interface, lets teams ask security-related questions and receive actionable answers instantly. With built-in best practice checks, Strata Cloud Manager also helps maintain compliance with standards like CIS and NIST.

At WEI, we help clients implement this platform to strengthen security across cloud and hybrid deployments while reducing manual oversight.

Why Firewall Automation Should Be a Priority

Manual security operations no longer meet enterprise needs. Teams must move faster, reduce errors, and maintain control as their infrastructure evolves.

Firewall automation is now essential. Palo Alto Networks Panorama supports it through RESTful APIs, scheduled updates, and Zero Touch Provisioning. Strata Cloud Manager expands on this by automatically resolving misconfigurations and using telemetry data to recommend improvements.

Comparing Two Powerful Platforms

Palo Alto Networks Panorama and Strata Cloud Manager both support centralized NGFW management but address different needs.

Panorama excels at managing hardware and virtual next-generation firewalls, offering structured policy deployment, reusable templates, role-based access, and log aggregation. It is ideal for organizations with a significant physical or virtual footprint seeking control and standardization.

Strata Cloud Manager, designed for cloud and hybrid environments, adds AI-driven intelligence, predictive analytics, and natural language querying. It helps detect misconfigurations, optimize policies, and resolve performance issues before they impact users. It also enforces security best practices in real time and provides complete visibility across NGFW and SASE deployments.

Both platforms support firewall automation, though Strata Cloud Manager introduces broader automation and insight. Many enterprises use both Panorama for device-level configuration and policy control, and Strata Cloud Manager for visibility, analytics, and real-time decision support.

Measurable Business Outcomes

Centralized firewall management delivers results. Using policy templates and firewall automation improves team productivity and supports compliance with internal and external standards.

Clients using Palo Alto Networks Panorama streamline audits and policy changes. Those using Strata Cloud Manager uncover hidden vulnerabilities and optimize performance more quickly. With both platforms in place, security teams gain the confidence and control to support new projects and growth initiatives.

It’s Time to Reimagine NGFW Management

Managing firewalls the old way, with siloed tools and reactive processes, no longer meets enterprise demands. Centralized platforms like Strata Cloud Manager and Palo Alto Networks Panorama provide the unified operations, intelligence, and control needed to protect today’s complex environments.

Whether you are deploying physical appliances, virtual machines, or cloud-based NGFWs, these platforms allow you to centralize policy, enforce standards, and embed firewall automation across your network.

WEI can assess your current state, guide your transition, and help you deploy the right solution for your goals. Our deep expertise in next-generation firewall strategy ensures you get the best outcome possible.

Final Thoughts

If you are exploring centralized firewall management, WEI is ready to help. As a trusted partner for both Palo Alto Networks Panorama and Strata Cloud Manager, we can:

• Demonstrate platform capabilities in your environment
• Help you plan your roadmap to centralization
• Provide deployment, training, and long-term support

Let’s start a conversation that positions your team for stronger, more agile security.

Next Steps: Ready to take control of your network security? This WEI tech brief shows how centralized management of Palo Alto Networks NGFWs empowers IT leaders to cut risk, tighten security, and boost performance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments. Explore the strengths of Panorama and Strata Cloud Manager, and see how organizations are achieving 50% fewer breaches and 229% ROI, insights you can act on today to modernize your security strategy.