FOG Project vs SmartDeploy
FOG Project
fogproject.orgSmartDeploy
smartdeploy.comSide by side
| Figure | FOG Project | SmartDeploy |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $91.67/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 2 | 3 |
| Spec score · OS Deployment Software | 8.7 (#4) | 7.7 (#13) |
| Spec score · OS Imaging & Deployment Software | 8.7 (#4) | 7.7 (#12) |
| Purpose | FOG Project is a free, open-source network computer cloning and management solution. | SmartDeploy helps IT teams deploy Windows operating systems, drivers, apps, and updates to on-premises and remote devices, including without a VPN. |
| Security | The FOG Client documentation says client-server communications use public-key infrastructure and AES-256 encryption after an RSA-4096 key exchange. | SmartDeploy says cloud data is encrypted at rest and communications use HTTPS with TLS 1.2; it also says it is SOC 2 compliant. |
| Support | Support is provided through a public forum, documentation, Discord and community resources. | The pricing page includes technical support in all three tiers, and Starter specifically lists expert email and phone support. |
| System requirements | Documented server operating systems include Ubuntu 16+, Debian 8+, CentOS 7+, RHEL 6+, Fedora 22+ and Arch Linux. | SmartDeploy works on Windows 10 or newer devices and Windows Server 2016 or newer, subject to its system and network requirements. |
Plans
In their own words
FOG Project
FOG Project is a free, open-source system for cloning and managing networked computers. It captures and deploys Windows, Mac OSX and Linux distributions, including hardware-independent images that can be used across different computer models. The project also lists multi-site installations and remote management, provided the FOG server is publicly reachable. That server must run on Linux; recommended options include server-oriented LTS distributions such as Ubuntu, Debian, Rocky Linux or AlmaLinux. FOG recommends configuring client machines to PXE boot first so imaging tasks can be sent without visiting each computer. The FOG Client supports host registration, hostname changes, scheduled power management, snapin installation and user tracking, with client installation described for Windows, Linux and OSX. Client-server communications use public-key infrastructure and AES-256 encryption after an RSA-4096 key exchange. The security guide recommends firewall rules and protecting the MySQL database and captured image directory. Community support is available through forums, a wiki and IRC. The Linux client lacks the FOG Tray, Active Directory joining and PrinterManager. FOG Project is free for commercial use; community support is free.
SmartDeploy
SmartDeploy has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.