A-Packets vs CloudShark
A-Packets
apackets.comCloudShark
qacafe.comSide by side
| Figure | A-Packets | CloudShark |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $8.25/mo | $29/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 20 | 2 |
| Spec score · Network Packet Analyzer Software | 9.4 (#1) | 8.1 (#13) |
| Spec score · Network Protocol Analyzers | 9.4 (#1) | 8.1 (#11) |
| Deployment | OnPrem supports Docker Compose, Kubernetes with Helm, and air-gapped deployments, with captures and reports stored in infrastructure controlled by the customer. | CloudShark Enterprise is available as an OVA and can also be deployed in Docker environments. |
| Integrations | OnPrem supports local passkey two-factor authentication, LDAP/Active Directory, SAML 2.0, OAuth through Google, Microsoft, and GitHub, and SCIM provisioning. | The REST API connects CloudShark Enterprise with ticketing systems, SIEM platforms, capture appliances, and other automation tools. |
| Purpose | A-Packets analyzes PCAP and PCAPNG captures for incident response, forensics, and protocol inspection. | CloudShark Enterprise is a centrally deployed packet analysis platform for network and security teams. |
| Support | OnPrem inquiries normally begin with a 30-minute fit call, and the maker says it replies to requests within two business days. | QA Cafe provides CloudShark installation, user, administration, and API guides, and directs customers to support by email. |
| System requirements | The Docker Compose deployment requires Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or RHEL 8+, Docker Engine 24+, at least 8 GB RAM and 80 GB free disk. | The OVA is officially supported on VMware ESXi 7 or 8 and requires a 64-bit x86_64 CPU; other hypervisors may work but are not officially supported. |
Plans
A-Packets
- Public analysisFree
- Public analysisFree
- Starter Workspace$11.99 a month
- Starter Workspace (monthly)$11.99 a month
- Starter Pack$14.99, paid once
- Starter Pack$14.99, paid once
- Professional$24.99 a month
- Professional (monthly)$24.99 a month
- Standard Pack$44.99, paid once
- Standard Pack$44.99, paid once
CloudShark
- CloudShark Personal$29 a month
- CloudShark EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
A-Packets
A-Packets analyzes PCAP and PCAPNG captures for incident response, forensics and protocol inspection. It reconstructs HTTP sessions, maps communicating hosts and services, examines wireless artifacts, extracts files, identifies credential exposure and flags suspicious events. The hosted analyzer accepts native capture files from tools such as Wireshark and tcpdump. Public analysis costs nothing, requires no signup and accepts uploads up to 25 MB, but the resulting page is public. Private workspace plans include reports and a REST API key: Starter Workspace (monthly) is $11.99 a month, Professional (monthly) is $24.99 a month, and Advanced (monthly) is $49.99 a month. Yearly workspaces are $99 a year, $199 a year and $399 a year, respectively. One-time packs cost $14.99 as a one-time purchase, $44.99, paid once or $99.99, paid once. Subscription analyses have permanent private storage; credit-pack reports are deleted after 30 days. OnPrem supports customer-controlled storage and air-gapped deployments, but analyzes captures case by case and does not decrypt TLS payloads, capture continuously or alert.