Anchor

Anchor is a teacher-led focus tool for schools running Windows laptops, with a school-hosted backend and an allowlist teachers can change during class. It suits schools that want session-bound oversight without collecting a continuous record of student work; its soft enforcement is not a substitute for a hard lockdown.

Its appeal is a narrow, auditable classroom workflow at no licence cost. The trade-offs are Azure hosting, Windows-and-Edge-only student support, and the school’s responsibility for deployment and support.

Overview

Teachers select a class, start a focus session, choose permitted app and website bundles, and can adjust those permissions as a lesson unfolds. They can review student states and events on the dashboard, then end enforcement for the class. This gives teachers room to shift resources mid-lesson, while keeping the product centered on classroom focus rather than broad device administration.

Off-list apps are set aside instead of being closed, and blocked pages in Edge offer students a way to request access. That is a less disruptive approach to keeping a class on task, but it also makes Anchor guidance rather than a firm barrier: the maker acknowledges that a determined student can bypass it, with tampering surfaced as an integrity signal.

Key features

Teacher-controlled allowlists

Teachers can alter allowed bundles during a session and monitor student states and events from the dashboard. Microsoft 365, Smartschool, and GeoGebra are named as selectable bundles, and sign-in uses existing school Microsoft accounts. This setup is most useful when a lesson has a known set of approved tools and teachers need to respond to access requests without ending the session.

Monitoring limited to active sessions

Anchor observes students only after a teacher starts a session. It does not record approved work, keystrokes, page contents, screenshots, passwords, or browsing outside sessions. During a session, it sends off-allowlist page visits, unblock requests, integrity signals, and liveness heartbeats to the school's backend. The boundaries are meaningful for schools seeking focused oversight rather than continuous surveillance, though those event records still require the school to set and manage retention. The default configuration prunes raw session events after 30 days while keeping summaries.

School-controlled hosting and auditability

Each school runs its own single-tenant backend in its Azure subscription, and both student devices and the dashboard communicate only with that backend. Self-hosting and the public GPL-3.0 source give schools the ability to inspect the software and keep the service within their own deployment. In return, Azure hosting costs may apply, and schools must run the backend themselves.

Pricing

Anchor — free (billed Free) has no licence fee or per-seat charge. The plan includes a self-hosted backend for a single school per deployment; Azure hosting costs may apply. There is no free trial because the product is free. This is a strong fit for a school willing to host and administer the service, but not a no-cost turnkey option: the school still bears infrastructure and operational responsibility.

Platforms

Student support is limited to Windows 10 version 1809 or later and Windows 11, using Microsoft Edge; teachers use a web dashboard. The maker says there is no student agent for Mac, Chromebook, iPad, or phone, and other browsers are outside the supported student-device scope. Anchor therefore fits a Windows-and-Edge classroom, not a mixed-device rollout.

Who it's for

Anchor is aimed at teachers and schools using managed or bring-your-own-device Windows laptops who want classroom focus sessions with adjustable allowlists and bounded monitoring. It is a better match for schools comfortable operating a self-hosted Azure deployment than for those seeking vendor-run infrastructure or a support desk: product questions go to GitHub issues, and there is no support ticket queue. Schools requiring strict prevention of bypasses, or student coverage across multiple device types and browsers, should look elsewhere.

Pros and cons

Pros

• No licence or per-seat fee: the free plan avoids software charges, with Azure hosting as the remaining stated cost.
• Session-scoped observation: monitoring begins only when a teacher starts a session and excludes approved work, keystrokes, page contents, screenshots, passwords, and off-session browsing.
• School-run, auditable deployment: a single-tenant backend, self-hosting, and public GPL-3.0 source suit schools that want control over operation and review.
• Flexible class sessions: teachers can change allowed bundles live and students can request access to blocked Edge pages.

Cons

• Soft enforcement: a determined student can bypass restrictions, so it is not suitable when hard lockdown is essential.
• Narrow student-device scope: only Windows and Edge are covered, excluding common classroom devices and other browsers.
• School bears hosting and support: Azure costs may apply, schools operate their own backend, and there is no support ticket queue.

Alternatives

For a free classroom tool specifically for iPad and Mac, choose Apple Classroom; Anchor is the closer fit for Windows-and-Edge sessions with school-hosted infrastructure.

Veyon is another open-source option, with a free GPLv2 core and paid commercial add-ons available by quote; consider it if its Linux, Windows, and self-hosted platform range better matches your environment.

LiveSchool offers Android, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows support, plus a free school-year pilot for one grade level; it may suit schools that need broader platform coverage or a bounded pilot.

Lightspeed Classroom is the alternative to consider if you want a product included in Lightspeed’s integrated ecosystem, with personalized quote pricing.

Classwize is a paid alternative for readers comparing classroom management products.

classroom.cloud is a paid option with a free trial and support for Android, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows; consider it if a trial and broader device coverage matter.

GoGuardian Teacher uses custom pricing based on enrollment, product bundles, contract length, and professional services, making it an option for schools evaluating a quote-based purchase.

KyberClassroom is a paid alternative with a free trial and cross-platform support; its displayed KyberGate Basic price is $5 a year, billed annually at $5/device/year for 1,000–4,999 devices.

Browse the Classroom Management Software category for more options.

Verdict

Choose Anchor if your school uses Windows laptops with Edge, can run an Azure-hosted single-school deployment, and wants a free, auditable focus tool that limits observation to active sessions. Its combination of live allowlist controls and restrained monitoring is compelling for that setting. Look elsewhere if you need reliable lockdown against determined bypasses, support for other student platforms or browsers, or a hosted service with a support queue.