NetBox vs phpIPAM

NetBox is a network and infrastructure platform that keeps physical components, virtual assets, IPs, and VLANs in a shared source of truth. Its stated uses include data center infrastructure management, IP address management, network automation, and network source-of-truth work. Every action is recorded in an audit log. Teams can use the hosted SaaS edition, deploy NetBox in their own infrastructure, or use the open-source community offering. NetBox Labs describes itself as the commercial steward of the open-source project. Hosted plans are positioned for different scales and needs: Starter for infrastructure with hundreds of devices, Professional for infrastructure at scale and automation, and Premium for scaled environments requiring advanced security, compliance, and deployment options. NetBox Enterprise is self-managed, with an air-gap edition available. Enterprise subscriptions include 24/7 expert assistance and training. Named integrations include ServiceNow, Splunk, Ansible, Itential, Gluware, and VMware. NetBox Cloud offers SSO integrations with Azure, Okta, and Google. Prices for the named plans are not displayed; the pricing page directs prospective customers to sales.

phpIPAM is a self-hosted web application for managing IPv4 and IPv6 address space. It organizes addresses into sections and subnets and displays available subnet space. Network tools include VLAN and VRF management, NAT support, rack management, an address calculator, automatic subnet scanning, and IP status checks. Administrators can set group permissions for sections and subnets; listed authentication options include AD, LDAP, and Radius. The application also lists PowerDNS integration and a REST API for use by other software. URL rewriting is required for the API, and its documentation recommends SSL to protect Basic authentication credentials. Installation requires Apache with PHP or Nginx with PHP-FPM, plus a MySQL server. The software is free at free. Stable files are available through GitHub and SourceForge, and development releases through GitHub. A demo installation is available, while community support is directed to GitHub. The project also offers help with custom development, integration, bug fixes, and installation or upgrades.