OpenNetAdmin
opennetadmin.com
What it is
OpenNetAdmin is a free, open-source, self-hosted IP address management system for tracking network attributes and supporting configuration work. Its inventory can include DNS names, IP addresses, subnets, MAC addresses, IPv6 addresses, VLANs, DHCP pools, NAT, and custom attributes. Administrators can manage records through an AJAX-enabled web interface or use the command-line interface for scripting and bulk work. The project describes the inventory as manually maintained and authoritative, with discovery tools helping to populate and audit it. Templates and backend processes can generate DNS, DHCP, and router configurations, including for distributed servers. Other capabilities include overlapping DNS views, plugins, LDAP and local authentication, and configuration archives with syntax-highlighted comparisons. BIND-DLZ can query the ONA database directly, and host actions can link to applications such as Splunk, Nagios, Cacti, and Base. The core is released under GPLv2.0, though some add-ons may have separate licenses. The features page says multiple database backends are possible, but only MySQL is tested.
Spec sheet
- Purpose
- OpenNetAdmin tracks IP network attributes, including subnets, hosts, IP addresses, MAC addresses, and DNS names.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Intended users
- The maker describes use in small and large organizations that need to track network changes and automate repeatable configurations.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Deployment
- The download page offers the current release, tagged releases, and add-ons; the project README instructs users to install it on a web server.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Integrations
- User-defined host action links can connect records to tools such as Splunk, Nagios, Cacti, and Base; the page describes Puppet and MCollective integration as in progress.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Support
- The community page directs users to GitHub issues for questions and problem reports and provides documentation links.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- License
- The project repository says OpenNetAdmin is released under the GPLv2.0 license.Read 9 Oct 2026 · github.com
- Authentication
- The feature page lists LDAP and local authentication backends, plus locally stored user and group permissions.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Authoritative inventory
- The maker says ONA is intended to be manually maintained as an authoritative source that drives network configuration, with discovery tools helping populate and audit its data.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Automation
- It can generate templated configurations and DNS and DHCP server configurations, including for distributed servers.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Configuration history
- Per-device configuration archives can store multiple entries and compare them with syntax-highlighted diffs.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Database support
- The site describes an ADODB abstraction layer for multiple database backends and says only MySQL has been tested.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Development status
- The project README says a recent update addressed incompatibilities with newer PHP, MySQL, and operating system versions, while noting that little else fundamentally changed.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
- Interfaces
- It provides an AJAX web interface and a command-line interface for batch management and scripting.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- IPv6 and DNS
- Features include IPv6 addressing and DNS records such as A, CNAME, PTR, NS, MX, TXT, and SRV.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Network automation
- Backend processes can build DHCP, DNS, and router configurations, while templates support configuration generation.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Network records
- The feature list includes IPv6 addressing, DNS records, overlapping DNS views, VLANs, DHCP pools, NAT tracking, and custom attributes.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Notable limits
- The site lists Puppet and MCollective integration, continuing DNS and DHCP configuration work, and several discovery tools as in progress.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Plugins and authentication
- A plugin framework supports extensions and authentication backends; the listed available backends are LDAP and local authentication.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Scale example
- The feature page reports a deployment handling 40,000+ subnets, 670,000+ hosts, and 721,000+ IP interfaces on a 400 MHz PPC server with 2 GB of memory.Read 9 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Security and access
- The feature list describes local user and group authorization with configurable group rights, as well as LDAP authentication support.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
- Web and CLI
- It provides a centralized AJAX-enabled web interface and a command-line interface for scripting and bulk work.Read 8 Oct 2026 · opennetadmin.com
Plans and prices
Strong points and limits
Strong points
- Tracks subnets, DNS, DHCP, and IPv6.
- Web and command-line interfaces are available.
- Generates DNS, DHCP, and router configurations.
- Configuration archives include syntax-highlighted comparisons.
- LDAP and local authentication are supported.
Limits
- Only MySQL is tested among database backends.
- Some modules or plugins may have separate licenses.
- Several integrations and discovery tools are in progress.
Who it suits
OpenNetAdmin suits network teams that want a self-hosted authoritative inventory for address management and repeatable configuration generation. It is particularly relevant where CLI-based bulk work, IPv6, DNS, or DHCP management is needed.
Verdict
OpenNetAdmin combines network inventory with configuration generation and record history in a self-hosted package. Teams should account for its manually maintained inventory model and the limited database testing noted by the project.
Where Specifiction places it
- DDI Management Platform#3 of 158.0
- IP Address Management Software#12 of 438.1