# inverse-inc/packetfence

PacketFence is a fully supported, trusted, Free and Open Source network access control (NAC) solution. Boasting an impressive feature set including a captive-portal for registration and remediation, centralized wired and wireless management, powerful BYOD management options, 802.1X support, layer-2 isolation of problematic devices; PacketFence can be used to effectively secure networks small to very large heterogeneous networks.

Repository: https://github.com/inverse-inc/packetfence
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/packetfence
Homepage: https://packetfence.org
Language: Perl
License: GPL-2.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: nac, packetfence, network
Last push: 2026-08-26T15:14:51+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 88/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 67, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 5298, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 9, "gap_med": 185.0, "n_releases_24m": 5}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1678, forks 322 (observed 2026-08-28T04:05:20.864784+00:00)

## What it is
PacketFence is a free and open source network access control (NAC) solution with a captive portal for registration and remediation, 802.1X support, centralized wired and wireless management, and BYOD handling. It enforces access policies via SNMP, RADIUS, or inline modes and can isolate non-compliant devices on heterogeneous networks of any size.

## Use cases
- control who connects to my network and what they can access
- set up a captive portal for guest wifi registration
- enforce 802.1X authentication across wired and wireless networks
- quarantine non-compliant or infected devices on the LAN
- manage BYOD onboarding for employee personal devices
- assign VLANs dynamically based on user identity or device type
- integrate IDS and vulnerability scanning into network access decisions

## When to choose
- you need enterprise-grade NAC for campuses, hospitals, or large heterogeneous networks
- you want a self-hosted, GPL-licensed alternative to commercial NAC products
- you need broad switch and wireless controller support with multiple enforcement modes
- you require guest, BYOD, and compliance workflows in one system

## When to avoid
- you only need a simple firewall or VPN rather than device-level access control
- you cannot run a dedicated Linux server or manage a complex Perl-based deployment
- you need a lightweight tool for a small home network without policy enforcement

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: stable
- function: auth, authorization, security, networking, self-hosted, monitoring, api-framework
- domain: security, networking, self-hosted, developer-tools
- platform: self-hosted, cloud
- tags: network-access-control, nac, captive-portal, 8021x, byod, radius, vlan-enforcement, guest-network, ids-integration, perl, linux, web-server

## Member repositories
- inverse-inc/packetfence (main) score 88

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:20.864784+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T03:41:33.868452+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/inverse-inc/packetfence (fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:20.864784+00:00, sha 7099b6033eb3)
  - homepage: https://packetfence.org (fetched 2026-08-29T11:15:04.920816+00:00, sha 8231ccb90541)
  - site_page: https://www.packetfence.com/docs (fetched 2026-08-29T11:15:04.930844+00:00, sha 9c7bf322f977)
  - site_page: https://www.packetfence.com/features (fetched 2026-08-29T11:15:04.933130+00:00, sha a12a50aee467)
  - site_page: https://www.packetfence.com/pricing (fetched 2026-08-29T11:15:04.935202+00:00, sha 8db20f289fb8)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.