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Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs OpenVPN Access Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 31, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.3
Check Point Harmony SASE improves security and efficiency, but financial returns vary; benefits include remote access and reduced hardware needs.
Sentiment score
3.0
OpenVPN Access Server enhances remote work efficiency, reduces errors, and offers substantial long-term benefits despite initial costs.
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) blocked access to those URLs at the network level before users could click through.
We are saving 40% of our time, which is good.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.8
Check Point Harmony SASE customer service is generally praised, but experiences vary with reaction times and communication issues.
Sentiment score
3.2
OpenVPN Access Server's support is underutilized due to comprehensive online resources and strong community assistance with highly rated technical support.
I would rate support 10 out of 10.
People working really hard, listening to every issue and request, and replying within hours.
It was very good, and I would rate it an eight.
I have not dealt with support or customer service, however, the documentation is good, and I would rate it a seven out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Check Point Harmony SASE excels in scalability and integration, supporting dynamic workforces with robust network safety and flexibility.
Sentiment score
5.8
OpenVPN Access Server scales well, but some users face challenges with hardware limits, OS issues, and network conditions.
The cloud-native model ensures we are not tied to any specific location or hardware, which has been a great game changer in terms of agility.
I would rate it nine out of ten for scalability.
Check Point Harmony SASE's scalability is good; it can handle growth easily, allowing me to easily add another region and gateway to have more people join in.
It's not very easy to expand, and it would be beneficial if the process were simpler.
It does not utilize much memory or CPU on the VM.
I would give OpenVPN a six out of ten for scalability, as it's usually a single user or single device.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Check Point Harmony SASE is generally stable and reliable, despite occasional bugs, portal issues, and unexpected restarts.
Sentiment score
4.9
OpenVPN Access Server is stable and reliable, with minimal issues, though some challenges arise during updates or poor configuration.
There are some lags and glitches with connectivity, so I would rate the stability as between seven or eight out of ten.
After the last improvement, I can say it is much more stable now.
Check Point Harmony SASE is stable most of the time, but there are still some issues that are hard to troubleshoot.
 

Room For Improvement

Check Point Harmony SASE requires improvements in features, integration, performance under load, and user-friendly customization and connectivity options.
Users want a more intuitive OpenVPN Access Server with improved security, scalability, and simpler management and configuration processes.
A local data center in Turkey would enhance the product, as currently, our Internet traffic goes to another country, which is problematic for us.
One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers.
The product is lacking features that other competitors have, making it quite challenging to migrate customers to this solution because it feels very much unfinished.
If they had a one-click setup where you provide credentials instead of manually running commands, that would be beneficial.
If there was a dedicated plan for startups, it would be really helpful.
OpenVPN could improve in centralized management.
 

Setup Cost

Check Point Harmony SASE offers fair pricing with flexible licensing, ideal for larger enterprises but costly for smaller firms.
OpenVPN Access Server provides a cost-effective, flexible VPN solution with free community access and reasonable enterprise pricing.
Cost efficiency is a consideration, as SASE products are not the cheapest security products.
The cost is a bit expensive for most users.
It is a bit expensive.
My experience with pricing is excellent as the pricing is free.
The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for OpenVPN Access Server is really good, not that expensive.
 

Valuable Features

Check Point Harmony SASE provides comprehensive security features with seamless VPN integration, data filtering, and efficient access management for remote work.
OpenVPN Access Server offers user-friendly setup, strong security, compatibility, scalability, and efficient remote access across multiple operating systems.
The firewall management is the most valuable feature for me.
The Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) feature is a major highlight as it gives users seamless and secure access to internal resources without requiring a full-blown VPN, which improves both security and user experience.
The Zero Trust and segmentation have helped my team and our customers significantly because we are able to protect every scope and allow the work-from-home users to access internal resources while passing through a threat prevention gateway, ensuring that everything is safe.
The most valuable features of OpenVPN are its ease of use, client familiarity, end-user familiarity, operating system integration, and price points.
What I appreciate the most about OpenVPN Access Server is that it's very easy to set up.
Before using OpenVPN Access Server, only developers mainly had access to databases. We can create read-only users for databases and internally give them access using OpenVPN Access Server.
 

Categories and Ranking

Check Point Harmony SASE (f...
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
7th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Secure Web Gateways (SWG) (7th), Firewalls (16th), Anti-Malware Tools (6th), ZTNA as a Service (4th), ZTNA (3rd), Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) (5th)
OpenVPN Access Server
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) is 2.6%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenVPN Access Server is 15.4%, up from 15.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
OpenVPN Access Server15.4%
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81)2.6%
Other82.0%
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Nasseer Qureshi - PeerSpot reviewer
Delivers seamless and secure remote access while enhancing security posture
Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) offers strong features, but there are areas that could be improved. One area for improvement is integration with third-party identity providers. It works with standard SAML and SSO, but we would prefer deeper integrations with solutions such as Ping for more advanced identity-based policies. Additionally, a mobile-specific client or lightweight agent would be helpful for securing access from smartphones, especially in BYOD environments. We would appreciate more granular reporting and analytics, including better drill-down capabilities to investigate specific users or app activity. The logs are comprehensive, but filtering them can sometimes feel messy. The user interface on the management portal could be more intuitive, especially when managing multiple sites or remote offices. Some of the policy configuration steps are nested and could be streamlined.
Girraj Godia - PeerSpot reviewer
Has improved internal app access by allowing secure user onboarding and simplified network whitelisting
The plan for OpenVPN Access Server could be improved. When adding new people, better plans for startups would be beneficial. I'm working in a startup and sometimes people think we should take the enterprise plan or not. If there was a dedicated plan for startups, it would be really helpful. For instance, providing store credit for OpenVPN Access Server through a startup program, similar to YC's program which gives credit to new startups. UI-wise, OpenVPN Access Server is easy to manage, but the overall overview dashboard in the admin portal could be improved. Currently, you have to go through dropdowns to find where to add users or whitelist IPs. Creating an onboarding dashboard where an admin person can find these things easily would be beneficial.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Government
5%
Computer Software Company
17%
Comms Service Provider
11%
University
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business52
Midsize Enterprise18
Large Enterprise15
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise14
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Perimeter 81?
Even after restarting, it tries to quickly reestablish connection which is very helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Perimeter 81?
It's essential to consider the organization's specific requirements and budget. Here are some general recommendations: * Evaluate your needs * Understand pricing models * Request a quote * Compare ...
What needs improvement with Perimeter 81?
In terms of improvement, Perimeter 81 could enhance its reporting and analytics capabilities to provide more detailed insights into network activity. Additionally, expanding integration options wit...
How does Fortinet FortiClient compare with Open VPN Access Server?
Fortinet FortiClient is a feature-rich solution that is easy to use and deploy without sacrificing safety and security. It has a very fast connection rate and has a built-in VPN. With this solution...
What do you like most about OpenVPN Access Server?
OpenVPN Access Server is a simple and easy-to-use solution that I can use myself without anybody's help.
 

Also Known As

Check Point Quantum SASE
OpenVPN
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aqua Security, Cognito, Multipoint, Kustomer, Postman, Meredith
Verizon, Amazon, Disney, HP, Microsoft, IBM, Samsung
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony SASE (formerly Perimeter 81) vs. OpenVPN Access Server and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,008 professionals have used our research since 2012.