Software Alternatives & Reviews

Rockstor VS pfSense

Compare Rockstor VS pfSense and see what are their differences

Rockstor logo Rockstor

Rockstor is a free and open source NAS (Network Attached Storage) operating system.

pfSense logo pfSense

pfSense is a free and open source firewall and router that also features unified threat management, load balancing, multi WAN, and more
  • Rockstor Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-01
  • pfSense Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-20

Rockstor videos

Rockstor Linux NAS Software

More videos:

  • Review - Rockstor 3.9.1 NAS Storage Installation + Configuration + Overview on Oracle VirtualBox [2017]
  • Tutorial - How to Install Rockstor 3.8 NAS + Review + VMware Tools on VMware Workstation Tutorial [HD]

pfSense videos

pfsense Firewall Setup and Features in Depth Version 2.4

More videos:

  • Review - Pfsense: 5 Reasons to Use It
  • Review - Netgate SG-3100 Teardown / Speedtest / Review of this powerful pfsense packet pusher!

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Rockstor and pfSense)
Cloud Storage
100 100%
0% 0
Cyber Security
0 0%
100% 100
Cloud Computing
100 100%
0% 0
Monitoring Tools
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using Rockstor and pfSense. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Rockstor and pfSense

Rockstor Reviews

9 Of The Best FreeNAS Alternatives For Your Storage Needs
Rockstor is another excellent FreeNAS alternatives that come with a framework that can provide you with an open-source arrangement. The cost is reasonable, and it also provides you with a cloud server framework.
Top 7 FreeNas Alternative For Your PC
Rockstor is the free OS system released in GPL2 license & oriented to the NAS servers. This platform is based on CentOS 7, where Rockstor is added in the form of the additional RPMs, and the Anaconda installer is modified to make this the direct installation procedure. It is easy to install on basic hardware and virtualized with no issues.
Top 15 Best TrueNAS Alternatives In 2022
Users may quickly establish a reliable storage platform with the help of Rockstor’s four basic solutions, which come in the forms of personal cloud servers, SMB cloud servers, standard NAS servers, and custom solutions.
15 FreeNAS Alternatives 2020 | Best Storage Operating System
Rockstor is a free NAS management system and the best alternative to FreeNAS in 2020. It is an open-source, CentOS-based program and you can install it on any community hardware without advanced system requirements.The private cloud-based server system has a user-friendly, web-based UI that provides a secure shelter for information, online sharing provision, and snapshot...
15 Best FreeNas alternatives in 2020
This is based on Linux and BTRFS. This is provided with web UI that makes scheduling snapshots and replicating shares on single click. You can manage everything very easily with Rockstor’s web UI. This is why this is one of the best alternative to FreeNas in this list.

pfSense Reviews

Best pfSense Software Alternatives and Competitors
pfSense Software firewall is a robust, open-source security solution that is compatible with any hardware and can be tailored to meet your specific needs. It is a widely used technology, and many individuals seek dependable, popular software solutions with multi-device support, multiple concurrent connections, and protocol selections. Despite its usefulness, pfSense has...
The Best Open Source Router OS Software for Large or Small Networks
pfSense is a free and open-source router and firewall operating system based on the FreeBSD operating system. It is designed to be used on standard x86 hardware and can be deployed as a virtual machine or on dedicated hardware. pfSense offers advanced features and capabilities that are typically found in commercial routers and firewalls, making it an ideal solution for small...
Best free Linux router and firewall distributions of 2023
pfSense is one of the most popular operating systems today. It's a BSD-based system, similar to OPNSense, but with a longer history. pfSense started in 2004, and since then, it has grown to be the most well-known open-source platform in the industry. Although it gradually loses users to OPNsense, it's still an excellent system for new users because it has the most extensive...
Source: teklager.se
11 Best pfsense Alternatives To Secure Your Network
Unlike those of other available pfSense competitors, its capabilities allow it to be compared to commercial firewalls. You can also customize the pfSense firewall to match your needs based on the level of security and protection you want, as well as your specialist knowledge.
Top 7 pfSense Alternatives
Wait, I said alternatives to pfSense so what is this doing on the list? pfSense Plus recently forked away from pfSense community edition (CE). Over time pfSense Plus and pfSense CE will continue to diverge. pfSense Plus is expected to have more features.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, pfSense should be more popular than Rockstor. It has been mentiond 10 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Rockstor mentions (4)

  • Does the NAS market really suck or did I miss something?
    I see everyone talking about FreeNAS and TrueNAS but what about RockStor? https://rockstor.com/ I've been using their free version for about two years now and so far rock solid (bar the irritating nag screen everytime I go to the dashboard). Source: over 1 year ago
  • RAID ZFS etc, what to use when not buying all disks at once
    There are OSes (like unraid or RockStor) that give you a GUI for some things, but those are strictly optional. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Why is Amahi not a popular home server solution?
    Rockstor is another one that rarely gets talked about. I never used it, but it looks interesting and might be good if someone wants a WebUI for managing btrfs. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • NAS with BRTFS?
    If you're planning to make your own btrfs-based NAS, then you might find Rockstor interesting. Altought not perfect, I've been using it for a long time with zero issues. Source: about 3 years ago

pfSense mentions (10)

  • Need some help on setting up home network
    Https://pfsense.org (netgate hardware is used in businesses). Source: about 1 year ago
  • Is pfsense.org down, or is it just me?
    I am having trouble seeing available packages, updating pkg, or getting a response from pfsense.org. Is anyone else seeing this or am I going to spend the rest of my day chasing bugs? Source: over 1 year ago
  • Help with VLAN
    From the PIA Client to pfsense.org PING pfsense.org (208.123.73.69) from 10.6.112.128: 56 data bytes 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=0 ttl=49 time=49.455 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=1 ttl=49 time=51.927 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=2 ttl=49 time=49.333 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=3 ttl=49 time=49.133 ms 64 bytes from 208.123.73.69: icmp_seq=4 ttl=49 time=49.027 ms ... Source: over 1 year ago
  • Can Surveillance Station record offsite cameras ?
    The above setup is critical to a reliable system. I'd use enterprise quality routers for a store and home connection. I personally use https://pfsense.org but there are many to choose from and several open source. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Exposing Synology to web: best/practical practices?
    What I would do is put that thing in DMZ and install a good router behind it like https://www.pfsense.org. No affiliation, just been my router for many years. There's also it's sibling https://opnsense.org. There are many, just get a enterprise quality router. Source: over 1 year ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Rockstor and pfSense, you can also consider the following products

OpenMediaVault - OpenMediaVault is the next generation network attached storage (NAS) solution based on Debian Linux.

MikroTik RouterOS - The main product of MikroTik is a Linux-based operating system known as MikroTik RouterOS.

TrueNAS Core - TrueNAS Core (formerly FreeNAS) is a storage operating system strong and robust enough to meet the needs of enterprise level businesses.

OPNsense - OPNsense® you next open source firewall. Free Download. High-end Security Made Easy™. Offers Intrusion Prevention, Captive Portal, Traffic Shaping and more.

XigmaNAS - File Sharing, OS & Utilities, and Security & Privacy

OpenWrt - OpenWrt is an open-source firmware based on Linux for wireless routers