Jen Kea DHCP Management Console vs OpenIPAM
Jen Kea DHCP Management Console
github.comOpenIPAM
github.comSide by side
| Figure | Jen Kea DHCP Management Console | OpenIPAM |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · DHCP Management Software | 8.4 (#5) | 8.2 (#7) |
| Authentication | Security controls include TOTP and WebAuthn/passkey MFA, trusted devices, login throttling, session timeouts, audit logging and HTTPS certificate upload. | Server mode supports SAML 2.0 single sign-on with Microsoft Entra ID and requires authentication for routes. |
| Deployment | Installation is offered through a guided shell installer or Docker Compose with either an external or bundled database. | The browser version can be opened from downloaded files, and the repository includes a Linux setup script for its optional backend. |
| Public API | The architecture documents REST v1 routes and Bearer API-key authentication that plugins can also use. | The backend exposes REST CRUD endpoints for companies, subnets, hosts, IPs, VLANs, ranges, locations, maintenance, templates, DHCP, settings, audit logs, backups, and search. |
| Purpose | Jen is a full-featured web-based management interface for ISC Kea DHCP Server, managing leases, reservations, subnets and infrastructure from a browser. | OpenIPAM is an open-source IP address management and CMDB tool for managing network and infrastructure inventory. |
| What it does | Jen is a browser-based console for managing ISC Kea DHCP leases, reservations, subnets and related infrastructure. | OpenIPAM is an open-source browser-based IP address management and configuration management database tool. |
Plans
In their own words
Jen Kea DHCP Management Console
Jen Kea DHCP Management Console is a free, GPL v3 web interface for managing ISC Kea DHCP Server. Operators can manage leases, reservations, subnets, and infrastructure from a browser, while the dashboard shows subnet utilization, lease activity, server status, HA state, and alerts. Lease tools include filtering active leases, releasing them, cleaning stale leases, converting dynamic leases to reservations, and CSV import or export. Subnet and pool edits are applied over SSH after Kea validation, a host-side backup, multi-server preflight, and rollback protection. Optional IPv6 support covers leases, devices, reservations, subnet pools, timers, and metrics. Alert channels include Pushover, Telegram, Slack, ntfy, Discord, email, and generic webhooks; optional plugins add network discovery, IPAM Lite, local DNS synchronization, and other functions. Jen connects through the Control Agent or direct daemon sockets, uses MySQL or MariaDB for Kea data, and uses SSH for configuration and service operations. The recommended guided installer runs on Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04, and Docker deployment is also supported. The project targets homelab-to-small-business operators managing a handful of servers, not large fleets.
OpenIPAM
OpenIPAM is a free, open-source IP address management and CMDB tool for network and infrastructure inventory. It manages CIDR subnets, IP assignments and reservations, duplicate-IP conflicts, VLANs, IP ranges, and subnet calculations. DHCP tracking covers scopes, leases, reservations, options, and utilization. Its inventory supports 14 host types, hardware lifecycle tracking, locations and racks, maintenance windows, and company records. It can run in a browser with local storage or use an optional Python Flask backend with server-side SQLite for multi-user access. Server mode adds SAML 2.0 single sign-on with Microsoft Entra ID, authenticated routes, and a REST API for entity management, cross-entity search, dashboard statistics, and JSON backup or import. The project describes signed session cookies with an eight-hour lifetime and user-attributed audit entries. CSV host import and JSON backup and restore, including DHCP data, are supported. Browser-mode data stays in the browser; server-mode data is stored in the server-side SQLite file. The plan costs nothing. Current browser support covers Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge, with WebAssembly and ES6+ required.