Akvorado vs FlowViewer
Akvorado
akvorado.netFlowViewer
flowviewer.netSide by side
| Figure | Akvorado | FlowViewer |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 0 | 5 |
| Spec score · Network Traffic Analysis Software | 8.1 (#4) | 8.1 (#5) |
| Spec score · Bandwidth Monitoring Software | 8.1 (#9) | 8.2 (#8) |
| Deployment | Akvorado is available as a Docker image or a prebuilt binary; the documented prebuilt binary is for Linux x86-64. | FlowViewer can be installed on a dedicated Unix server or virtual appliance. |
| Monitoring | The inlet, outlet, orchestrator, and console expose metrics through HTTP endpoints. | FlowMonitor provides RRD graphs for filtered traffic, with views covering periods from 24 hours to 3 years. |
| Purpose | Akvorado collects network flows, enriches them with metadata, and provides a web interface to explore the data. | FlowViewer is free software for analyzing Netflow data exported from an organization's network devices. |
| Support | The project directs users to its documentation and GitHub Discussions for help, and asks them to read troubleshooting guidance before opening a discussion. | The maker offers installation, router Netflow configuration, training, and custom hourly support. |
Plans
FlowViewer
- FlowViewerFree
- Custom SupportPriced on request
- FlowViewer Training$500, paid once
- Router Netflow Config$500, paid once
- FlowViewer Install$750, paid once
In their own words
Akvorado
Akvorado is free network-flow software that receives NetFlow, IPFIX, and sFlow records, enriches them, and exposes the results through a web interface. Its inlet forwards incoming flows to Kafka. The outlet parses and augments them before sending data to ClickHouse. SNMP can supply exporter and interface details, while IPinfo or MaxMind can add geographic information. Optional BGP routes received through BMP contribute AS numbers, AS paths, and communities. A Grafana plugin is available, and the inlet, outlet, orchestrator, and console expose HTTP metrics. Written in Go, Akvorado is delivered as a single binary or Docker image, but deployment requires Kafka and ClickHouse. Recommended resources are 8 vCPUs, 100 GB disk, and 16 GB RAM, with AMD64 or ARM64 listed. The console expects an authenticating proxy to provide user headers. Relational data can use SQLite, MySQL, or PostgreSQL; without one, data remains in memory and disappears on restart. Downgrades are unsupported. The license is AGPLv3.
FlowViewer
FlowViewer is free software for analyzing NetFlow data exported by an organization’s network devices. Its interface works with Carnegie Mellon’s SiLK software and also supports the older flow-tools collector. The toolset combines FlowViewer for text reports, FlowGrapher for charts, and FlowMonitor for longer-term traffic monitoring. It supports NetFlow versions 5 and 9, including IPv6, and offers filtering by address, port, interface, autonomous system, TOS, TCP flags, protocol, and next hop. More than 30 reports are available, and reports and filters can be saved. FlowGrapher charts bits, flows, and packets per second over a selected period; FlowMonitor provides RRD graphs for filtered traffic, with views from 24 hours to 3 years. Dashboards can give groups such as Security and Operations separate live views. FlowViewer is listed for Linux and web use and can be installed on a dedicated Unix server or virtual appliance; the software requires a Unix server. The free plan is free. Paid options include hourly support at a price agreed with the maker, router configuration at $500, paid once, training at $500, paid once, and installation at $750, paid once.