pfsense VS OPNSense

Our pfsense tutorials

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Feature Comparison of the OPNsense Plugin Sensei by Sunny Valley Networks

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⏱️ Timestamps ⏱️
0:00 Intro pfsense vs OPNSense
2:33 m0n0wall pfsense OPNSense history
3:38 OPNSense fork
4:41 OS Differences and Security
7:33 OPNSense pfsense domain controversy
11:55 Real World Business Usage
14:50 Interface Differences
19:58 IDS IPS Snort Suricata
21:50 Wireguard
24:06 OpenVPN
24:55 Packages
27:04 Diagnostics
29:33 Logging

#Firewall #pfsense #OPNSense

[LAWRENCESYSTEMS]

Our pfsense tutorials

The Fork statement

Feature Comparison of the OPNsense Plugin Sensei by Sunny Valley Networks

FreeBSD Wireguard Commits

⏱️ Timestamps ⏱️
0:00 Intro pfsense vs OPNSense
2:33 m0n0wall pfsense OPNSense history
3:38 OPNSense fork
4:41 OS Differences and Security
7:33 OPNSense pfsense domain controversy
11:55 Real World Business Usage
14:50 Interface Differences
19:58 IDS IPS Snort Suricata
21:50 Wireguard
24:06 OpenVPN
24:55 Packages
27:04 Diagnostics
29:33 Logging

[markarca]

One thing I like about OPNSense is built-in ZeroTier One support through a community plugin.

[Filakhtov]

Thank you very much for this side-by-side comparison and a history lesson. One thing I think is worth adding, which is also the only reason I pick OPNSense over pfSense these days is the availability of the official API. I am running OPNSense as a VM and I have automation tools that allow changing things over an API… so the tool would take a snapshot, apply changes and perform a quick test. If everything goes well - it discards a snapshot. If something goes sideway - it just restores the snapshot and reports the problem for me to look at. This can be even more powerful in the HA setup.

[jonathanwoodard]

Finally!!! Thank you for doing the comparison!

[erl-grey]

19:15 automatically generated rules are hidden by default to keep the interface a bit cleaner in opnsense, you should find it when you click on the dropdown.

[BrianThomas]

Thank you for navigating this topic. Despite all of the controversy thats all over this subject. You did a great job as always in explaining things without ranting and throwing more mud.

[Gnzuk]

I moved over to OPNSense and prefer it now. I've also got Grafana and not setup too.

[PrayragE]

Thank you! Was deciding where to begin with open source firewalls and this video helped me solidify my choice.

[joseroda]

Thanks Tom for this review and side by side comparison. I thi k you did a great job staying unbiased while throwing some personal pepper to the products. Afterall, everyone comes here to hear your opinion and not to hear what he/she wants to hear, so your subjective opinion also matters as long as it is funded. Thanks again.

[somewhereoutthere]

Great job giving a well balanced overview of both systems. You’re definitly right to insist on the common origin of both systems. Have some common sense!! Love it

[fourtwanky]

Thank you for reviewing this in the way that you did! I was not expecting this video, and I'm SO GLAD you did this video! I love using OPNsense, and I'm really glad to hear your opinion of its comparison to pfsense.

[vijgai]

As a first time user, I find the OPNsense search & side menu way more user friendly. Again, that's just me.
I don't use unbound. I have used NextDNS for a long time & have the CLI running on my OPNsense firewall. Works very well and gives me lot more control with kids in the house.
OPNsense has snort as well in addition to suricata.
The community is way more friendly on the OPN side to new users. The PF community seems very hostile from my experience to similar questions asked.

[notsure]

Thank you for acknowledging the time issue. YT vids have dates on them, but well over half the articles / techie how-to's and whatnots don't have the most basic journalistic feature ... the date. Or even a version you can deduce an approximate date from.

[joshc]

this is perfect!! i was wandering myself before i built a new router. i am glad it was you covering it as i knew it would be a more in-depth coverage.

[satamototo]

Good work, First step is done. Now if you go deeper in Sensei, will find it very useful, even without subscription. In the web filtering you can set preset to Permissive, Moderate or High and after put in User Defined Categories whatever you need. Works like a charm and not slowing down the web like a proxy.

[talbech]

Thanks for taking the time to review these two great products. I have customers using both products and must say they are very similar and it all comes down to personal preference with regards to the UI. I wish you had spent a little more time on OPNsense before comparing though.

[abigchair]

I know this is an old video but just wanted to let you know this was very very helpful. I did not know about the history, and this actually made me much more wary and cautious about trusting the stewardship of pfSense, and so I will select a more agnostic hardware solution.

[wilsonking]

Look at the Youtube performance metrics on this video. I knew this topic would be a solid hit for your channel!

[TudorGeorgescuNL]

The difference: in pfBlocker you do all the hard work; in Sensei Murat Balaban does all the hard work and you sit down and relax. Bonus: Sensei does not work at DNS calls level, it actually inspects the connections to see where they go to.

[therevoman]

I've been waiting for this video for EVER... Literally.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your opinion and perspective align with mine in many areas and I respect your reviews.