Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

ZeroShell VS CGPulse

Compare ZeroShell VS CGPulse and see what are their differences

ZeroShell logo ZeroShell

Zeroshell is a Linux distribution for servers and embedded devices aimed at providing the main...

CGPulse logo CGPulse

Scan Azure and AWS resources against 621 policy rules. Auto-remediate findings, track compliance frameworks, integrate via API.
Visit Website
  • ZeroShell Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-04-19
  • CGPulse
    Image date //
    2026-04-24
  • CGPulse
    Image date //
    2026-04-24
  • CGPulse
    Image date //
    2026-04-24
  • CGPulse
    Image date //
    2026-04-24

CGPulse is a multi-cloud governance platform for DevOps, security, and compliance teams managing Azure and AWS environments. It was built for the gap between enterprise CSPM platforms priced in five figures per year and free open-source scanners that leave you without workflow, ownership, or remediation tooling.

The platform continuously scans cloud resources against 621 policy rules - 305 Azure, 175 AWS, 16 cross-cloud, and 95+ organizational controls - mapped to 19 compliance frameworks: SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR, PCI DSS, NIST 800-53, CIS v8, CIS AWS v3, FedRAMP, NIST CSF, and ten more. Findings are surfaced with evidence trails, severity, and actionable remediation copy.

Key capabilities:

  • One-click auto-remediation for supported Azure and AWS misconfigurations
  • Infrastructure-as-code export: Terraform and Bicep templates generated from findings
  • Scheduled scans: daily, weekly, monthly, or hourly on Business tier
  • REST API with 26 endpoints for CI/CD pipeline integration
  • Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for AI assistants - Claude Code, Copilot, and any MCP client can run scans, read results, and trigger fixes
  • Role-based access control: Owner, Admin, Contributor, Viewer
  • PDF compliance reports for audit evidence
  • External database sync to push scan snapshots into customer-owned Cosmos DB
  • Custom rule authoring via YAML editor

Pricing starts free for a single Azure plus single AWS account; paid Team is โ‚ฌ99/month and Business is โ‚ฌ299/month with self-serve Stripe checkout. Onboarding takes about 60 seconds - connect cloud accounts via OIDC and first scan runs immediately.

ZeroShell

Pricing URL
-
$ Details
-
Platforms
-
Release Date
-

CGPulse

$ Details
freemium โ‚ฌ99.0 / Monthly
Platforms
Azure AWS
Release Date
2026 April
Startup details
Country
Estonia
Employees
1 - 9

ZeroShell features and specs

  • Comprehensive Feature Set
    ZeroShell offers a wide range of networking features including VPN, load balancing, QoS, and firewall functionalities, making it a versatile solution for network management.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, ZeroShell allows users to access, modify, and customize the source code to suit their specific needs, fostering a more flexible and community-driven development environment.
  • Web-Based Management
    ZeroShell provides a user-friendly web-based management interface, which simplifies the process of configuring and managing network settings for users without requiring deep technical expertise.
  • Virtualization Support
    It is available as a Live CD or can be run on virtual machines, providing flexibility in deployment and reducing the need for dedicated hardware resources.

Possible disadvantages of ZeroShell

  • Limited Community Support
    As a niche software solution, ZeroShell may not have a large community for support and troubleshooting, which could be a limitation for users seeking assistance and updates.
  • UI and Usability
    The user interface, while functional, may be considered outdated and not as intuitive compared to more modern solutions, potentially requiring a steeper learning curve for new users.
  • Scalability Concerns
    ZeroShell might not be suitable for very large scale deployments as it lacks some of the capabilities and optimizations found in enterprise-grade solutions.
  • Potential Security Issues
    As with any open source project, ensuring regular updates and security patches can be a concern, particularly if the project is not actively maintained.

CGPulse features and specs

No features have been listed yet.

Analysis of CGPulse

Overall verdict

  • I don't have verified information about CGPulse (cloudgovernancepulse.com) as it appears to be a niche or possibly new product/service that isn't well-documented in my training data. I cannot provide an accurate assessment without risking giving you false information.

Why this product is good

  • I don't have reliable data on this specific product's features, pricing, or performance
  • I cannot verify claims about cloud governance capabilities without confirmed sources
  • Providing fabricated details would be misleading and potentially harmful for your decision-making

Recommended for

  • Unable to determine without verified product information
  • Recommend checking the official website directly for features and pricing
  • Consider looking for independent reviews on platforms like G2, Capterra, or Gartner Peer Insights
  • Reach out to their sales team for a demo and to ask specific questions about your use case
  • Check if they offer a free trial to test the product yourself

ZeroShell videos

ZeroShell Webinar

More videos:

  • Review - Zeroshell Router Easy Setup

CGPulse videos

No CGPulse videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to ZeroShell and CGPulse)
Perimeter Security And Firewalls
Cyber Security
0 0%
100% 100
Operating Systems
100 100%
0% 0
Cloud Services
0 0%
100% 100

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing ZeroShell and CGPulse.

What makes your product unique?

CGPulse's answer:

Three things. First, an MCP server. Claude or any MCP client can run compliance scans, read findings, and trigger auto-remediation through natural language. No other CSPM ships this. Second, public self-serve pricing (โ‚ฌ99/โ‚ฌ299/month, Stripe checkout, no demo required) in a category where the norm is six-figure enterprise contracts. Third, every finding ships with Terraform and Bicep templates so teams apply fixes through their own change management, not a vendor UI.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

CGPulse's answer:

Price and speed to value. Wiz, Prisma Cloud, Orca typically start at $50k/year with six-week rollouts and sales gatekeepers. CGPulse is โ‚ฌ99 to โ‚ฌ299 per month with public pricing and a 60-second self-serve onboarding. You get 621 policy rules across 19 compliance frameworks (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI DSS, CIS v8), the same category coverage, without enterprise overhead. For teams preparing their first audit, that's the difference between starting this quarter or next year.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

CGPulse's answer:

Small and mid-size DevOps and platform teams, typically 10 to 200 people, running production workloads on Azure and AWS. Often they're preparing for their first SOC 2 or ISO 27001 audit, or their first customer security review. Many have tried open-source scanners (Prowler, ScoutSuite) and found the detection useful but the workflow missing. Others have been quoted by enterprise CSPM and found it outside their budget. CGPulse is built for the gap between those two.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

CGPulse's answer:

.NET 10 with Blazor Server for the portal. Azure Cosmos DB for tenant and scan data, Azure App Service plus Azure Functions for the backend, Azure Service Bus for scan orchestration. Cloud scanning uses the Azure ARM SDK and AWS SDK directly. No agents, no proxies. Stripe for subscription billing. MCP server built on the ModelContextProtocol.AspNetCore library. Hosted entirely in Azure North Europe with per-tenant Cosmos partition keys.

What's the story behind your product?

CGPulse's answer:

It started a year ago with a simple wish: one clear view of what was actually running across my Azure and AWS accounts. Not console-hopping, a real map. Once the map was working, the obvious next layer was security. Not "here's a VM" but "here's a VM and here's what's wrong with it".

What I kept wishing for was honest answers with honest fixes. Not a red light on a dashboard, but guidance you can act on. Real automation where it's safe, and clear "do this, then this" steps where it isn't.

So a small scanner became a rule engine. Rules became compliance frameworks. Findings grew actual Terraform, Bicep, and CLI you can run. Then AWS support landed on top.

CGPulse today is a multi-cloud governance platform built around three promises: Connect, Govern, Protect. Connect your Azure and AWS accounts and see every resource in one view. Govern with 621 policy rules across 19 compliance frameworks. Protect with auto-remediation where it's safe and IaC export where the change needs human review.

User comments

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Reviews

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

ZeroShell Reviews

Best free Linuxย router and firewall distributions of 2023
Although Zeroshell never reached the point of being good enough to be recommended, we had high hopes for it in 2019 when we started maintaining this list of recommendations because it was developed from scratch rather than based on another system and had some innovative features. Unfortunately, the system got officially abandoned in September 2021. No longer maintained and...
Source: teklager.se
5 Router OS Turns Old PC Into High Performance Router And Enterprise Network Switch
Zeroshell is a Linux distribution for servers and embedded devices aimed at providing the main network services a LAN requires. It is available in the form of Live CD or Compact Flash image and you can configure and administer it using your web browser.
A Feast of Linux-Based Routers
I've also done tutorials on ZeroShell for LinuxPlanet, covering several topics: introduction and setup, setting up RADIUS server for Enterprise Wi-Fi encryption, configuring captive portal, Internet gateway and router, and creating bonded VPNs for higher throughput and failover.
The Hunt For the Ultimate Free Open Source Firewall Distro
Any chance for an overview/update of the top contenders? Your last update was 2015 and we are closing fast on 2020. I'd like to see a revisit of top contenders only - ideally free but feel free to include a commercial version or two if it is really that much better. In particular I'd appreciate more drill down on pfsense vs zeroshell. I've begun playing with zeroshell but...

CGPulse Reviews

We have no reviews of CGPulse yet.
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing ZeroShell and CGPulse, you can also consider the following products

pfSense - pfSense is a free and open source firewall and router that also features unified threat management, load balancing, multi WAN, and more

Wiz - The leading cloud infrastructure security platform that enables organizations to rapidly identify and remove the most pressing risks in the cloud.

Emsisoft Online Armor Firewall - Emsisoft Online Armor Firewall is a freemium online firewall protection system by the Emsisoft that is based on the own independent protection technology of the Emsisoft.

Lacework - Lacework is a highly trusted platform that provides security for Cloud Environments, DevOps, and Containers.

TinyWall - Lightweight and non-intrusive firewall

Aqua Security - Aqua Security provides a security solution for virtual containers.