Top 10 Best Open-Source Firewalls for 2024

Untangle NG is an open-source firewall and gateway security platform that helps keep networks safe while accessing the internet. It provides a free core firewall platform with paid add-ons and a cloud-based management platform with a variety of deployment options for smaller teams. You can install the firewall on a dedicated appliance, a server, a virtual machine, or even in the public cloud, and use it to keep your entire company safe. It also has a range of flexible deployment options, including third-party hardware, as a virtual machine, or as a turnkey appliance. 

The Untangle NG cloud-based management console for remote management can either be deployed on-premises or as SaaS, and virtualized or cloud-based. Because Untangle Firewall software is available as a free download in multiple formats, it can suit all kinds of deployment needs. You can download a USB image, ISO image, or VMware image, and the company offers the same software package as standalone hardware, which you can connect to your existing network.

A Linux-based open-source and new-generation firewall solution, Shorewall is an open-source firewalling tool that not only makes the task of network security easier but also allows for much easier handling of zones. It has a range of features ready to use out of the box, including a Netfilter system for tracking and monitoring potential threats. Say, for example, you want to create a private internal network that can only be accessed by specific machines, a guest network that can be accessed by anyone or a network that can be accessed from machines outside your. With Shorewall, all of this is easy. 

The Shorewall tool allows for network partitioning and role-based access management. There’s support for multiple systems, a high number of network interfaces, and complete customization for modifying the firewall according to your requirements Blacklisting is also available for IPs, and companies can access features for mapping and traffic accounting, with tools for ease of virtualisation also built-in. The latest version of Shorewall was released in 2020.

Another Linux-based solution for open-source firewall protection, IPCop is a well-known solution for online security designed to help secure businesses and home networks alike. The platform’s sole purpose is to protect the networks it is installed on, implementing existing technology, outstanding new technology and secure programming practices IPCop to help those wanting to keep their computer networks safe do so. 

Though IPCop does demand some technical knowledge of firewalls and servers, it also provides a lightweight opportunity to enhance security for more advanced users. The image size is tiny at 60MB, and it’s suitable for a range of systems. Unfortunately, the last version of this product was released in 2019, but it’s still a great choice if you’re looking for heavily customisable firewall protection. 

The Endian Firewall Community, or EFW, is a powerful, open-source UTM and Firewall solution offering a unique combination of capabilities and features to help you keep your network secure. It can transform a bare-metal hardware appliance into a powerful and effective threat prevention and management solution comprising of a firewall, an antivirus, VPN, and content filtering capabilities all in a single solution. The software is available to access for free, but you’ll need to handle it yourself, as there’s no support available from the developers. 

With Endian,, you can quickly establish web and email security with powerful analytics When you download EFW, you don’t just get a turnkey Linux firewall solution – you also get unified threat management and an open-source anti-virus protection system. You can even unlock extra support in the form of powerful VPN services.

Available on its own or as part of a package, Smoothwall’s open-source firewall provides 7 layers of application control. The Smoothwall firewall combined with the Smoothwall filter offers companies a complete package for online protection. Alternatively, you can access the firewall on its own for bandwidth management, gateway anti-malware protection, and a real-time dynamic threat filter.

Focused on the UK education environment, the Smoothwall firewall is one of the most exciting tools on the market, with thousands of forum members contributing to the Linux and GNU-based solution at all times. The OS is even security-hardened to reduce the risk of firewall vulnerabilities for users. For those in need of extra help, UK support is available.

The VyOS Open-source firewall network operates on the GNU/Linux environment, with a unified management interface for all functions. The solution comes with access to a free routing platform that competes directly with other commercially available solutions from leading network partners. The VyOS solution also runs on standard systems, so it’s suitable for use as a router and firewall platform for all kinds of cloud deployments. 

With VyOS, companies can access a comprehensive firewall system with access to industry routing protocols, multi-path and policy-based routing, and more. You can even set up the OS system on your specific VPN solutions for remote workers.

The OPNSense firewall is easy to use, free, and ideal for infinite scalability. This open-source project promises best-in-class virtual private networking, intrusion detection, and a powerful firewall with support for both IPv6 and IPv4 live views on passed and blocked traffic. Multi-WAN capability is included with hardware failover, state synchronization, and intrusion detection. 

Two-factor authentication is available throughout the system, both for the user and for services like VPN. Multi-language support is available for all kinds of customers, along with an intuitive user interface for easy access and development.

Otherwise known as an uncomplicated firewall, Ufx is a powerful program designed to make managing a netfilter firewall as easy as possible, The program provides a framework for managing netfilter, as well as a command-line interface for manipulating the firewall, to make navigating the complexity of firewall installation a breeze. Its easy-to-use interface is specially designed for people unfamiliar with firewall concepts, simplifying complicated iptables commands to help an administrator manage the complexity of setting up their firewall.

Ufw uses a command-line interface consisting of a small number of simple commands and uses iptables for configuration so that anyone can set up a netfilter firewall – no matter their skill level. It’s also the default configuration tool for UBunto and is developed to ease iptables firewall configuration and provide a user-friendly way to create an IPv4 or IPv6 host-based firewall. 

A Linux-based firewall intended to offer advanced network security for businesses, IPFire provides extensive protection from attacks through DDoS and internet connections. The software comes from a dedicated online community featuring thousands of developers. Aside from being powerful, IPFire’s software is also lightweight and easy to implement. You even get access to an Intrusion Detection System for analysing your network traffic and pinpointing potential exploits.

If attacks are detected within IPFire, you’ll be able to set the system up to automatically block the attacker. Like many leading firewalls, IPFire comes with a web-based management interface for setting changes. You can also configure the network to suit different needs, like advanced graphical and logging reports.

Widely regarded as the world’s most trustworthy open-source firewall, PfSense is a free-to-use solution for securing your business. Thousands of enterprises rely on this software to securely connect to the cloud and keep business data under wraps. The PfSense environment builds on the concept of stateful packet filtering, with a wide range of features you would generally only find in other, more expensive firewalls. 

With PfSense, companies can access a comprehensive network of security solutions for all kinds of environments. The platforms this company uses are among the most reliable in the world, engineered to deliver the best level of confidence, security, stability, and performance. PfSense also offers plenty of support in the form of a documentation tool, helping you navigate the complexities of installing your firewall.