Router software requires updating to stay secure, this comparison provides an overview of third party options.
Project | Parent project | Software license | Latest release | Alexa rank | About |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
OpenWrt | Linux | GPL, etc. | 2023-05-01 [1] | 17,042 [2] | |
Commotion Wireless | OpenWrt | 2014-10-13 [3] | 422,643 [4] | ||
DD-WRT | OpenWrt | 2019-11-09 [5] | 27,104 [6] | ||
LEDE | OpenWrt | GPL, etc. | N/A | 72,901 [7] | Merged with OpenWrt |
RutOS | OpenWrt | GPL, etc. | 2020-01-15 [8] | 499,954 [9] | Operating System for Teltonika networking products |
LibreCMC | OpenWrt | 2018-04-02 [10] | 2,099,9734 [11] | ||
Roofnet | OpenWrt | N/A | N/A | N/A | Abandoned |
DebWRT | OpenWrt, Debian | 2017-01-02 [12] | 3,585,093 [13] | ||
HyperWRT | Linux | GPL | 2005-02-07 | N/A | Abandoned |
Tomato | HyperWRT | 2021-03-17 [14] | 360,330 [15] | ||
Oleg | ASUS Original | GPL | 2008-03-30 | N/A | http://oleg.wl500g.info/ |
Project | QoS | Guest AP | VPN client | VPN server | tor | addblock by domain/ip | Mesh | Package manager |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
OpenWrt | Opkg (3500) | |||||||
DebWRT | Dpkg (23168?) |
Project | Total | x86 | ARM | MIPS |
---|---|---|---|---|
OpenWrt | 499 [16] | x | x | x |
DD-WRT | many [17] | x | x | |
libreCMC | 11 [18] |
Project | Parent project | Software license | Latest release | Alexa rank | About |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Zeroshell | Linux | 2018-01-02 [19] | 466,964 [20] | for SBCs raspberry / orange pi | |
m0n0wall | FreeBSD | 2014-01-15 | 439,509 [21] | Abandoned | |
OPNsense | FreeBSD | Simplified BSD / FreeBSD License | 2024-01-30 [22] | 152,329 [23] | |
pfsense | FreeBSD 14.0 CURRENT | ALv2 | 2023-11-16 [24] | 26,342 [25] |
A network operating system (NOS) is a specialized operating system for a network device such as a router, switch or firewall.
An embedded operating system is an operating system for embedded computer systems. They are designed to increase functionality and reliability for achieving a specific task. Depending on the method used for computer multitasking, this type of operating system might be considered a real-time operating system (RTOS).
A light-weight Linux distribution is one that uses lower memory and/or has less processor-speed requirements than a more "feature-rich" Linux distribution. The lower demands on hardware ideally result in a more responsive machine, and/or allow devices with fewer system resources to be used productively. The lower memory and/or processor-speed requirements are achieved by avoiding software bloat, i.e. by leaving out features that are perceived to have little or no practical use or advantage, or for which there is no or low demand.
OpenVPN is a virtual private network (VPN) system that implements techniques to create secure point-to-point or site-to-site connections in routed or bridged configurations and remote access facilities. It implements both client and server applications.
The Linksys WRT54G Wi-Fi series is a series of Wi-Fi–capable residential gateways marketed by Linksys, a subsidiary of Cisco, from 2003 until acquired by Belkin in 2013. A residential gateway connects a local area network to a wide area network.
Technical variations of Linux distributions include support for different hardware devices and systems or software package configurations. Organizational differences may be motivated by historical reasons. Other criteria include security, including how quickly security upgrades are available; ease of package management; and number of packages available.
NDISwrapper is a free software driver wrapper that enables the use of Windows XP network device drivers on Linux operating systems. NDISwrapper works by implementing the Windows kernel and NDIS APIs and dynamically linking Windows network drivers to this implementation. As a result, it only works on systems based on the instruction set architectures supported by Windows, namely IA-32 and x86-64.
DD-WRT is Linux-based firmware for wireless routers and access points. Originally designed for the Linksys WRT54G series, it now runs on a wide variety of models. DD-WRT is one of a handful of third-party firmware projects designed to replace manufacturer's original firmware with custom firmware offering additional features or functionality.
There are a number of Unix-like operating systems based on or descended from the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) series of Unix variant options. The three most notable descendants in current use are FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and NetBSD, which are all derived from 386BSD and 4.4BSD-Lite, by various routes. Both NetBSD and FreeBSD started life in 1993, initially derived from 386BSD, but in 1994 migrated to a 4.4BSD-Lite code base. OpenBSD was forked from NetBSD in 1995. Other notable derivatives include DragonFly BSD, which was forked from FreeBSD 4.8.
Wireless network cards for computers require control software to make them function. This is a list of the status of some open-source drivers for 802.11 wireless network cards.
These tables compare free software / open-source operating systems. Where not all of the versions support a feature, the first version which supports it is listed.
Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) is a free and open-source virtualization module in the Linux kernel that allows the kernel to function as a hypervisor. It was merged into the mainline Linux kernel in version 2.6.20, which was released on February 5, 2007. KVM requires a processor with hardware virtualization extensions, such as Intel VT or AMD-V. KVM has also been ported to other operating systems such as FreeBSD and illumos in the form of loadable kernel modules.
GNU variants are operating systems based upon the GNU operating system. According to the GNU project and others, these also include most operating systems using the Linux kernel and a few others using BSD-based kernels.
Tinc is an open-source, self-routing, mesh networking protocol and software implementation used for compressed and encrypted virtual private networks. It was started in 1998 by Guus Sliepen, Ivo Timmermans, and Wessel Dankers, and released as a GPL-licensed project.
According to the Free Software Foundation Latin America, Linux-libre is a modified version of the Linux kernel that contains no binary blobs, obfuscated code, or code released under proprietary licenses. In the Linux kernel, they are mostly used for proprietary firmware images. While generally redistributable, binary blobs do not give the user the freedom to audit, modify, or, consequently, redistribute their modified versions. The GNU Project keeps Linux-libre in synchronization with the mainline Linux kernel.
Linksys manufactures a series of network routers. Many models are shipped with Linux-based firmware and can run third-party firmware. The first model to support third-party firmware was the very popular Linksys WRT54G series.
The WNR3500L is an 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi router created by Netgear. It was officially launched in the autumn of 2009. The WNR3500L runs open-source Linux firmware and supports the installation of third party packages such as DD-WRT and Tomato.
OpenWrt is an open-source project for embedded operating systems based on Linux, primarily used on embedded devices to route network traffic. The main components are Linux, util-linux, musl, and BusyBox. All components have been optimized to be small enough to fit into the limited storage and memory available in home routers.
LibreCMC is a Linux-libre distribution for computers with minimal resources, such as the Ben NanoNote, ath9k-based Wi-Fi routers, and other hardware with emphasis on free software. Based on OpenWrt, the project's goal is to aim for compliance with the GNU Free System Distribution Guidelines and ensure that the project continues to meet these requirements set forth by the Free Software Foundation (FSF). LibreCMC does not support ac or ax due to a lack of free chipsets.
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