Anchor vs Veyon
Anchor
plinklabs.orgVeyon
veyon.ioSide by side
| Figure | Anchor | Veyon |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | €24/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 4 | 3 |
| Spec score · Classroom Management Software | 9.5 (#1) | 8.1 (#9) |
| Audience | The maker describes Anchor as classroom software made by teachers for schools using managed or bring-your-own-device Windows laptops. | The maker describes Veyon as intended for students, teachers, and educational institutions. |
| Integrations | The teacher page names Microsoft 365, Smartschool, and GeoGebra as selectable bundles; sign-in uses existing school Microsoft accounts. | Veyon supports LDAP and Active Directory, with commercial add-ons for Microsoft Entra ID and dynamic network discovery. |
| Licence | Anchor is released under the GPL-3.0 licence and is self-hostable. | The core project is released under the GNU General Public License version 2. |
| Purpose | Anchor lets a teacher run a classroom focus session where student Windows laptops enforce an allowlist of apps and websites, with off-list activity shown live on a dashboard. | Veyon provides classroom management tools for teachers, school authorities, and IT administrators. |
| Rating on G2 | 4.7 out of 5 from 30 reviews, but the opened G2 profile is for Anchor FM podcast hosting rather than Plink Labs classroom Anchor. | 4.6 out of 5 from 5 reviews |
| Security and privacy | Anchor observes only during an active teacher-started session and does not record on-allowlist work, keystrokes, page contents, screenshots, passwords, or browsing outside sessions. | The privacy policy says personal-data processing follows GDPR and that Veyon Solutions has technical and organisational safeguards, while warning that internet transmission cannot be absolutely secure. |
| Self-hosting | Each school runs its own backend in its own Azure subscription, and Plink Labs says it operates no backend and receives no student data. | The product runs directly on endpoint computers and can be deployed on an organisation’s own infrastructure without a required cloud service. |
| What it does | Anchor lets a teacher run a timed classroom focus session whose app and website allowlist is enforced on student devices while off-list activity appears live on a dashboard. | Veyon is free classroom-management software for monitoring and controlling computers, remote support and digital teaching. |
Plans
Anchor
- AnchorFree
- Anchor softwareFree
- Azure hosting estimate€24 a month
- Azure hosting estimate with larger database€43 a month
In their own words
Anchor
Anchor is classroom software for schools using managed or bring-your-own-device Windows laptops. A teacher starts a focus session for a class, selects allowed app and website bundles, and watches student states and off-list events on a dashboard. Microsoft 365, Smartschool, and GeoGebra are named selectable bundles, and teachers sign in with existing school Microsoft accounts. Off-list apps are set aside rather than closed; off-list Microsoft Edge pages show a block page with an access-request option. Anchor provides activity monitoring, web filtering, and device controls, but no live screen view or behavior tracking. It observes activity only during an active teacher-started session. During that session, the extension sends off-allowlist visits, unblock requests, integrity signals, and liveness heartbeats to the school backend. Each school runs a single-tenant backend in its own Azure subscription. Anchor is GPL-3.0 licensed, self-hostable, and publicly auditable. It is free, with no licence fee or per-seat charge, though Azure hosting costs may apply.
Veyon
Veyon is classroom management software for teachers, school authorities, and IT administrators using Windows and Linux computers. It displays connected screens in an overview and supports screen broadcasts and screenshots. Teachers can remotely view and control workstations, send messages, lock screens, distribute files, collect work, open websites, and start programs on selected computers. Administrators can perform remote power actions and centrally log users in or out on computers or groups. Veyon supports LDAP and Active Directory, while commercial add-ons include Internet Access Control, Auvidus device controls, Chat, an Entra ID connector, network discovery, and Screen Recorder. The maker says it runs directly on endpoints without mandatory cloud dependence and can operate on customer infrastructure. Veyon Core is open source under GPLv2 and free. Commercial add-ons use annual 12-month or perpetual licenses, with quotes based on organization and deployment details. The pricing note says paid plans start at €250/yr.