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OpenVPN Access Server vs SonicWall Netextender comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 6, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

OpenVPN Access Server
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SonicWall Netextender
Ranking in Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
16th
Average Rating
6.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Enterprise Infrastructure VPN category, the mindshare of OpenVPN Access Server is 13.3%, down from 15.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall Netextender is 3.9%, up from 3.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Infrastructure VPN
 

Featured Reviews

Bertrand Moutault - PeerSpot reviewer
An easy-to-use tool with which its users can access networks from home or external locations
Sometimes OpenVPN Access Server is difficult to connect to, and in our company, we don't know why it is difficult. The product may not connect if we lose connection at times. There are certain shortcomings in the product's stability that need improvement. In general, I want to improve the connect connectivity of the solution since I sometimes face stability issues.
JayPrajapati - PeerSpot reviewer
Allows using a custom port for the VPN connection and provides very satisfactory customer support
In the past, customers wanted an application that could run directly upon starting the PC, automatically connecting to the firewall. We were not able to do it in NetExtender. This was something customers wanted, but we couldn't provide due to NetExtender's limitations. I feel NetExtender might have rolled out this feature. In future releases, introductions of AI features would be really helpful. For example, we faced a situation where a customer wanted to allow Office 365 access without any kind of internet, just through the local internet. Office 365 has multiple dynamic IPs and URLs that can be updated daily, making it difficult to allow. If there were an AI-based solution that could bring those URLs and new IP addresses to the firewall and add them to the rule, that would be very helpful. That is just one scenario; there are multiple things AI could help with.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is very easy to look at the quality of the connection and the bandwidth and do an investigation if there are problems on the network."
"It is open source and therefore affordable for small projects."
"OpenVPN Access Server provides remote secure access."
"It allows our employees to work remotely across Mac, Windows, and Linux platforms."
"Security is the most valuable feature."
"The most valuable features of OpenVPN are its ease of use, client familiarity, end-user familiarity, operating system integration, and price points."
"It can scale well."
"Provided the easiest UX for our end-users and had the greatest interoperability with all the operating systems we used, including but not limited to: iOS, Android, OS X, Windows, and Linux."
"My company opted for this solution because it can individually perform. Basically, we don't require load balancers and all those additional feature sets or additional devices that might be required. The solution can handle the certificate, DNS queries, and all that stuff individually."
"It allows us to work remotely."
"The initial setup is pretty straightforward."
"The best features of the SonicWall Netextender were its ease of use."
"The most valuable feature for the Netextender is the ease with which we can integrate it with SAML."
"The solution provides high availability."
"NetExtender works very well. I never had an issue with it, and it has been working well for me. In terms of management, you have good control over the destination. You can use NetExtender to set the policy and the static route for a client. You can modify it based on what your client needs or can access. You have good control over routing."
"One of the most valuable features of SonicWall Netextender is the integration of VPN accounts with Microsoft Identity Management, which enables us to enforce secure access through Microsoft Intune and conditional access policies. This helps ensure that only authorized individuals are able to access the VPN, rather than anyone with knowledge of a password."
 

Cons

"I'd like to have more control over the users when they are accessing the network."
"The logs should be made easier to read."
"They may have this already, but it would be nice to be able to get more notifications if a site drops unexpectedly."
"The stability had room for improvement."
"OpenVPN could improve in centralized management and enhance the GUI configuration steps."
"The stability of the solution could improve."
"There are certain shortcomings in the product's stability that need improvement."
"There are tasks that require logging onto the server to run commands, which is not intuitive through the UI."
"The solution takes up a lot of bandwidth."
"The product does not work well."
"Sometimes you can get bounced around through the departments until you find the right one. Sometimes if you don't have the most current support contract or your license is out of date, they won't even talk to you."
"Right now, you have to load each license on to an appliance. You can't pool across multiple appliances. So, you end up having to do a lot of administrative work to recover if an internet provider goes down, and you cannot leverage it as easily into a DR solution."
"They need to rewrite the software to make it a usable product."
"In future releases, introductions of AI features would be really helpful."
"There must be a multi-factor authentication enabled or integrated by default with it in order to be integrated with NetExtender."
"The UI could be a little better."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing has a fixed pricing."
"It is an open-source solution, so we don't pay for anything."
"The Pro Edition has a reasonable price per user."
"At one point I had to purchase addition connection licenses. I was very pleased with the pricing and licensing; so much easier than navigating the confusing jungle of Microsoft and Cisco licensing and pricing. That alone made the product a delight to manage."
"The solution is free of cost."
"Begin with the community version and upgrade to paid one if the need arises."
"One of the valuable features of OpenVPN is that it is free for a single user."
"OpenVPN Access Server is a cheap corporate solution."
"The solution is cheap itself, not too costly."
"The solution has a pretty good price."
"You have to pay for its license. There are some other companies that provide a VPN client for free. When you buy NetExtender, its license is available for one, three, or five years."
"After a certain number of users, you require extra licensing."
"The price of SonicWall Netextender is reasonable. Whether it's a small shop with only five users or a larger operation with 130 users, we have received no complaints or objections regarding cost from any of the clients we are looking to deploy it with."
"Compared to others, it is cheaper. When we compare it with Palo Alto, Check Point, or Fortinet, it is a little cheaper."
"Cost wise, it would be a few hundred dollars for the base appliance with the first five clients. Then from there, your cost per seat depends on how many you're getting. It's a one-time cost, and then you have a few hundred dollars a year for the maintenance contract once you get the one-time seat costs out of the way."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Educational Organization
8%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Educational Organization
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OpenVPN Access Server?
My experience with pricing is excellent as the pricing is free.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SonicWall Netextender?
Pricing is a simple thing. We have the key, and we need to enter it in the SonicWall official portal. That's all. Compared to others, it is cheaper. When we compare it with Palo Alto, Check Point, ...
What needs improvement with SonicWall Netextender?
In the past, customers wanted an application that could run directly upon starting the PC, automatically connecting to the firewall. We were not able to do it in NetExtender. This was something cus...
 

Also Known As

OpenVPN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Verizon, Amazon, Disney, HP, Microsoft, IBM, Samsung
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about OpenVPN Access Server vs. SonicWall Netextender and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
857,162 professionals have used our research since 2012.