strongSwan
The facts below are what the maker publishes about strongSwan, checked and dated. Our editors have not written about it yet.
Plans and prices
From strongSwan's own pricing page, checked 8 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| GPLv2 open-source license | Free | Open-source GPLv2; most components also have an optional commercial non-GPL license |
| Commercial license and support | Priced on request | Commercial non-GPL license available for most components; optional support has two response-time/SLA levels |
The facts
Each one read from strongSwan's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Access model
- vpnchecked 22 Sep 2026
- Admin control level
- advancedchecked 22 Sep 2026
- Audit logs
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Authentication
- Authentication options include EAP methods, X.509 certificates, pre-shared keys, and IKEv2 multiple authentication exchanges.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Cryptography
- It supports NIST elliptic-curve groups, X25519, Ed25519, and multiple classic and post-quantum key exchanges, including ML-KEM.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Distribution
- The download page links to distribution binary packages, source archives, a Docker image for trying the software, and the Android app.checked 8 Oct 2026
- IKE protocols
- It supports IKEv2 and IKEv1, IPv6 tunnel and transport connections, MOBIKE, NAT traversal, and IKEv2 message fragmentation.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- A NetworkManager plugin integrates strongSwan with Linux desktops, and an Android app is available.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Key protection
- Private keys and certificates can be stored on smartcards through PKCS #11 or protected by a TPM 2.0.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Modularity
- Its plugin system can add cryptographic algorithms, credentials, authentication methods, configurations, and access to IPsec and network stacks.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Notable support limit
- The listed core developer offers development work and licensing, but not commercial configuration support.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Project history
- strongSwan launched in 2005 as a fork of the discontinued FreeS/WAN project.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- strongSwan implements Internet Key Exchange protocols to secure IP traffic in policy-based and route-based IPsec VPN scenarios.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Release signing
- The project says releases and security patches are signed with its published PGP key.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Security advisories
- The project publishes vulnerability advisories and machine-readable OSV records, with patches linked from advisories.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Site-to-site networking
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Support
- Free support includes documentation, GitHub Discussions, and an IRC channel; commercial support is also available from listed providers.checked 8 Oct 2026
Where it runs
- Device posture
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Platforms
- The project says it runs on Linux and has been ported to Android, FreeBSD, macOS, iOS, and Windows.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Supported platforms
- Linux,Android,FreeBSD,macOS,iOS,Windowschecked 22 Sep 2026
The company
- Founded
- 2005checked 28 Sep 2026
- Ownership
- The project page says secunet Security Networks AG acquired strongSwan's intellectual property rights in June 2022.checked 8 Oct 2026
Money
- Free plan
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
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