SoftEther VPN
Business VPN software
Network security software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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Completely free
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Free version
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- Information technology and software
- Energy and utilities
- Construction
What is SoftEther VPN
SoftEther VPN is an open-source VPN platform that provides remote-access and site-to-site connectivity using a server-and-client architecture. It targets IT teams that need to deploy VPN services on Windows, Linux, macOS, and other environments, including self-hosted and lab use cases. The software supports multiple VPN protocols (including its own protocol as well as SSL-VPN, L2TP/IPsec, and OpenVPN compatibility modes) and includes a GUI-based management tool for administering VPN hubs, users, and policies.
Multi-protocol VPN support
SoftEther VPN supports several VPN protocols and compatibility modes, which helps organizations connect a wider range of client devices and integrate with existing VPN configurations. It can accept connections using L2TP/IPsec and an OpenVPN-compatible mode in addition to the native SoftEther protocol. This flexibility can reduce the need to standardize on a single client stack across all endpoints.
Cross-platform deployment options
The server and client components run across common operating systems, enabling deployment on existing infrastructure rather than requiring a dedicated appliance. This is useful for teams that want to host VPN services in a data center, on a virtual machine, or in a cloud instance. The approach also supports mixed environments where administrators manage Windows-based tools while hosting servers on Linux.
Open-source and self-hosted
SoftEther VPN is available as open-source software, which can be advantageous for organizations that prefer self-managed security tooling and want transparency into the codebase. It can lower licensing barriers for pilots, labs, and smaller deployments. The project also provides a feature set that can cover both remote-access and site-to-site VPN needs without requiring a separate product.
Operational overhead for enterprises
SoftEther VPN is typically deployed and maintained by the customer, including patching, monitoring, backups, and capacity planning. Organizations that need centralized policy enforcement, managed updates, and vendor-operated infrastructure may find the operational burden higher than with managed access platforms. High-availability design and global access performance depend on how the customer architects the deployment.
Limited enterprise governance features
Compared with enterprise-focused access services, SoftEther VPN generally requires more external tooling to meet requirements such as advanced device posture checks, integrated identity governance workflows, and consolidated reporting across multiple sites. While it supports authentication options, deeper integrations (for example, with modern conditional access and endpoint compliance) may require custom configuration. Audit and compliance reporting capabilities are more basic than those found in dedicated enterprise access suites.
Project stewardship and support model
As an open-source project, formal vendor-backed SLAs and guaranteed support channels may not be available in the same way as commercial offerings. Organizations that require contractual support, long-term maintenance guarantees, or certified builds may need to rely on internal expertise or third-party providers. Release cadence and roadmap are not governed by a commercial product organization.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| SoftEther VPN (open-source) | Free / $0 (no cost) | Full-featured VPN server & client distributed under Apache License 2.0; no paid tiers, downloads and source available from official site. |
