H3C Named in the 2025 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Hybrid Mesh Firewalls

Recently, Gartner has published its 2025 Magic Quadrant™ for Hybrid Mesh Firewalls, recognizing H3C a Niche Player for its Hybrid Mesh Firewall (HMF) solution. As enterprises accelerate digital and cloud transformation, firewalls are evolving from traditional single-point perimeter protection into intelligent security systems that span data centers, multi-cloud, and edge environments. For H3C, this inaugural Magic Quadrant report highlights next-generation firewall solutions capable of supporting hybrid and multi-cloud infrastructures—reflecting not only a major evolution in cybersecurity technology but also underscoring the growing importance of centralized management, consistent cross-environment protection, and intelligent operations. H3C regards this inclusion as a reflection of our forward-looking vision and strategic alignment with the evolution of next-generation firewall technologies.

Enterprises today are increasingly challenged by the complexity of multi-cloud and hybrid IT environments. Unified security management, global visibility, and cross-domain policy consistency have become critical priorities. Hybrid Mesh Firewalls (HMF) have emerged to meet these demands, offering unified control and cross-domain coordination that help organizations overcome modern security obstacles. Based on Gartner’s analysis, the core features of HMF can be summarized around four key themes:

1.Flexible Deployment: From Hardware-Centric to Multi-Dimensional Protection

HMF supports multiple firewall form factors—including hardware, virtualized, and cloud-native deployments—enabling organizations to choose or mix solutions that best fit their needs. This ensures end-to-end coverage from on-premises data centers to public clouds and edge nodes, forming a highly adaptive unified security architecture.

2.Unified Management: From Fragmented Operations to an Intelligent Hub

Through a cloud-based unified management platform, HMF delivers centralized policy configuration and cross-domain security visibility. This greatly reduces operational complexity while improving policy consistency and efficiency across diverse environments.

3.Multi-Cloud Integration: From Basic Compatibility to Deep Coordination

HMF offers support not only for traditional data centers, enterprise perimeters, and branch offices, but also deeply integrates with hybrid and multi-cloud settings. It provides native security for continuous integration/delivery (CI/CD) pipelines, cloud-native control components, and IoT devices.

4.Enhanced Protection: From Basic Defense to Cloud-Native Immunity

HMF is designed to combat emerging threats such as domain-based attacks, IoT vulnerabilities, and cloud-targeted intrusions. With mature cloud-native integration and automation, it empowers organizations to implement security shift-left and continuous protection within agile business environments.

H3C Recognized for HMF Solution, Pioneering Cross-Domain Intelligent Security

H3C’s HMF solution is built on an elastic and integrated security architecture. Its unified cloud management platform connects multi-functional hardware firewalls, virtual firewalls, and container firewalls. Augmented by AI-driven threat detection and subscription-based security services, the solution delivers consistent, visible, and efficient protection across hybrid environments—including data centers, multi-cloud, and edge deployments. It also extends beyond traditional perimeters to embrace cloud-native, zero-trust, and SASE frameworks, facilitating a shift from siloed security to end-to-end intelligent protection.

On the hardware side, H3C offers a diverse firewall portfolio designed to support a wide spectrum of customer requirements—from desktop-level applications to distributed firewalls for ultra-large data centers. These solutions are recognized for their reliability, intelligence, high efficiency, and low carbon footprint. For instance, the H3C SecPath M9000-X series delivers a maximum throughput of 8 Tbps, supports 60 million new connections per second, and handles up to 3.2 billion concurrent sessions. Offering carrier-grade reliability and ultra-low latency, it not only fulfills stringent security requirements but also consumes over 50% less power than comparable devices—supporting global sustainability initiatives.

On the software front, H3C’s firewalls operate on the self-developed Comware operating system. Integrated with advanced application and data security detection engines—and powered by cloud-scale security data and AI models—the series accurately identifies complex threats and delivers cloud-native, intelligent, and converged network security capabilities. Furthermore, H3C’s unified management platform incorporates zero-trust gateways, SD-WAN gateways, and cloud firewalls, offering flexible deployment options ranging from hardware-based virtual firewalls to software-based and containerized firewalls. This exemplifies H3C’s innovative and forward-looking approach to firewall technology, as well as its comprehensive capability to provide tailored security across diverse scenarios.

Looking ahead, H3C remains committed to its "Active Security and Service Driving" philosophy. By deeply integrating security capabilities with customers’ business transformations, H3C strives to continuously elevate information security standards and provide a solid foundation for intelligent digital evolution across industries.

Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Hybrid Mesh Firewalls, 21 August 2025.

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