Skip to content

VPN

We identified several open-source VPN solutions through technological monitoring and experience. Seven solutions were shortlisted for detailed analysis, focusing on their functional scope, implementation capabilities, maintainability, and compliance with security standards.

Evaluation Criteria

The VPN solutions were evaluated based on:

  • Functional scope: native features and extensible modules
  • Implementation and maintenance capabilities
  • Scalability for large-scale deployment
  • Integration simplicity with client systems
  • Project sustainability: governance, community size, licensing, and documentation

Key Features Required

The key features expected from the VPN solutions include:

  • Adherence to ANSSI recommendations:
  • Preventing users from altering the VPN connection means
  • Implementing a state-of-the-art IPsec VPN tunnel
  • Blocking split-tunneling and ensuring secure DNS configuration
  • Optional recommendation to block direct communication between mobile access devices
  • Double-factor authentication
  • Non-dependence on specific OS platforms
  • Industrialization: viability, scalability, and maintainability
  • Remediation phase to check and update software versions on mobile devices

VPN Solutions Analyzed

  1. LibreSwan
    - A community-driven IPsec VPN solution, based on IKEv1 and IKEv2 protocols.
    - Requires strong technical expertise for implementation and maintenance.
    - Limited commercial support and interoperability.

  2. StrongSwan
    - An IPsec VPN solution with modular architecture, supporting IKEv1 and IKEv2.
    - Provides better industrialization than LibreSwan but faces similar limitations.
    - Recently acquired by Secunet, indicating potential future improvements.

  3. OpenVPN
    - An SSL/TLS-based VPN solution known for its ease of implementation and use.
    - Supports various OS platforms with a client installation requirement.
    - Not a standard protocol and has some performance limitations.

  4. WireGuard
    - A modern and efficient VPN protocol, simpler to implement than IPsec.
    - Known for high performance and security but lacks industrial features natively.
    - Can be enhanced with third-party solutions like TailScale.

  5. SoftEther
    - A versatile multi-protocol VPN solution developed by the University of Tsukuba.
    - High performance and extensive protocol support but lacks comprehensive support and French localization.
    - Suitable for scenarios with a wide range of client OS requirements.

  6. Pritunl
    - A multi-protocol VPN solution tailored for enterprise use, supporting OpenVPN, WireGuard, and IPsec.
    - Provides advanced features like high availability, scalability, and extensive monitoring.

Page last modified: 2024-11-13 14:01:29