Algo VPN vs OpenVPN Access Server

Algo VPN is a set of Ansible scripts for creating a personal WireGuard and IPsec VPN. It can be deployed to listed cloud providers, including DigitalOcean, Amazon Lightsail and EC2, Microsoft Azure, Google Compute Engine, and others, or to an Ubuntu server managed by an advanced user. The listed server platform is Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. Algo supports IKEv2 and WireGuard, and generates WireGuard configuration files and QR codes for iOS, macOS, Android, and Windows clients, plus Apple profiles for IPsec. Helper scripts let administrators add or remove users after deployment. Optional features include ad blocking through a local DNS resolver and limited SSH users for tunneling. The project says it minimizes logging by default and automatically rotates and deletes logs after seven days. However, cloud providers may see network traffic metadata, and an ISP can see a connection to the VPN server. Algo does not claim to provide anonymity or censorship avoidance. It is free and distributed under the AGPLv3, but cloud infrastructure costs are separate. Its local installation guide warns that it overwrites firewall rules and has no uninstall option, so deployment is intended for a dedicated VPN server.

OpenVPN Access Server is a business VPN hosted in a customer's environment, including Linux systems, virtual appliances, containers and public clouds. Its free plan lasts indefinitely, includes all features, requires no credit card and permits up to two simultaneous connections. Growth costs $7 a month per connection and supports up to 2,000 connections; Enterprise & IoT has custom pricing and unlimited connections. A 14-day trial is available for five or more connections. Administrators have a Web UI, self-service client UI, CLI, REST API and automation templates. Authentication options include PAM, RADIUS, LDAP, SAML, local and custom methods. User- and group-level access controls are available, as are protocol and port restrictions. Identity, device and location context can be used to control application access. OpenVPN Connect supports Windows, macOS, Android, iOS and ChromeOS. Deployment options include Docker, Hyper-V, VMware ESXi, Kubernetes Helm and public cloud marketplaces. The listed security and compliance items include SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001:2022, HIPAA and GDPR.