OpenVPN Access Server vs. pfSense

We used it to connect our two offices together. It aids in secure file transfer for remote users. Some of the 3rd party software is only allowed to run on specific IP addresses due to the license and this is a way that remote users can utilize that software without being on-site

Incentivized

Because pfSense is built around open source software, it is very convenient to be able to deploy in the event of hardware failure. We once had a client with a proprietary router that failed. While the router was under warranty, the expected time for the new router to arrive was about 2 weeks. We decided to implement pfSense for the client as a stop gap and ultimately ended up deploying the full enterprise appliance. Being able to get up and running using commodity hardware was a huge win for the client. We've also had a great amount of success deploying pfSense hardware at apartment complexes. The DNS resolver works great and we've had no issues handling multiple VLANs with various DHCP scopes on it. Finally, we've had clients that require having a failover cluster. Utilizing the built in CARP capabilities, we've been able to provide a very robust failover system that requires little maintenance and no downtime in the event of equipment failure.

• Secure
• Easy setup
• 2 free users
• automatic updates

Incentivized

• Easy to use. Good user interface design! Easy to understand and easy to set up.
• Lower hardware requirement. 3 years ago, we used an old PC to run it. Now, we have changed to a router device with Celeron CPU and 8GB RAM. It runs smoothly with a 1000G commercial broadband.

Incentivized

• some times error logs are not clear
• Configuring 3rd party apps can sometimes be problematic
• Limited functionality for iPhone users, but I believe that is due to an apple issue.

Incentivized

• I did kind of mention a Con in the Pro section with OpenVPN.
• When I create a config for an employee other employees are able to login to that config.
• I could be doing something wrong when I am making it - I am not afraid to admit that as I am pretty new to all of this, but it seems like it builds a key and I would think the key would be unique in some way to each employee, but I could be wrong.
• I actually do not have a lot of Con's for this software - I did not get to set this up on our work network so I am not sure of any downfalls when installing.
• I installed this on my personal machine in a Hyper-V environment to get a feel for it before I started working on it at work and it seemed pretty smooth. I didn't run into any issues.

Incentivized

The interface is simple, has sane defaults, and is consistent throughout.

We found OpenVPN to be more cost-effective vs Azure. In addition, it was easier to install, deploy, and manage

Incentivized

While you can get the performance out of other products, pfSense offers the unique ability to put other services on the same device. Products such as Untagle's NG Firewall and SonicWall's TZ series offer cost effective options for firewall and VPN services, having incoming load balancing and connection proxies on the same device as the firewall offers extremely easy configuration and day to day management of network services

Incentivized

• Only 2 free users, it would be nice if they would expand to 5.
• Easy way to establish a VPN backbone between two locations
• Great for work at home or BCP events.

Incentivized

• Using pfSense has allowed us to build a professional network in our small office without needing a lot of proprietary hardware, saving thousands of dollars in IT infrastructure investment.
• The cost for using pfSense is free, so it's a great option for those who don't have a large IT budget
• pfSense utilizes all of the industry standard services to provide all of it's functionality, so support for service-level issues is readily available
• Because of how much work has been put into pfSense to make it rock solid and reliable, we're able to support our network with minimal IT staffing, saving us thousands of dollars/year in personnel alone.

Incentivized