# strongswan/strongswan

strongSwan - IPsec-based VPN

Repository: https://github.com/strongswan/strongswan
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/strongswan
Homepage: https://strongswan.org
Language: C
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Topics: vpn, strongswan, ipsec, ikev2, vpn-client, vpn-server
Last push: 2026-08-26T14:43:58+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 87/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 63, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 5788, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 86, "gap_med": 97, "n_releases_24m": 8}
- flags: no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2954, forks 930 (observed 2026-08-28T04:07:32.109346+00:00)

## What it is
strongSwan is an open-source, modular IPsec-based VPN solution implementing the IKEv2 (and IKEv1) key exchange protocols for securing IP traffic. It supports site-to-site and remote-access VPNs with certificate and EAP authentication, and runs on Linux, Android, FreeBSD, macOS, and Windows.

## Use cases
- set up a site-to-site IPsec VPN between two office networks
- run a self-hosted IKEv2 VPN server for remote access
- connect a Linux or Android client to a corporate IPsec gateway
- build policy- or route-based VPN tunnels with X.509 certificate authentication
- authenticate VPN users with EAP-TLS or EAP-MSCHAPv2 via RADIUS
- secure IPv6 traffic with IPsec tunnel or transport mode

## When to choose
- you need a standards-compliant IPsec/IKEv2 VPN on Linux or embedded systems
- you want certificate-based or EAP user authentication with RADIUS support
- you need site-to-site tunnels between heterogeneous vendors
- you require IPv6 support, MOBIKE, NAT-traversal, or dead peer detection

## When to avoid
- you want a simple WireGuard-style setup with minimal configuration
- you need a user-friendly GUI-first consumer VPN product
- you require OpenVPN or TLS-based VPN protocols rather than IPsec

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: stable
- function: security, vpn, networking, cryptography, auth
- domain: security, networking, privacy, self-hosted
- platform: windows, bsd, cross-platform
- tags: ipsec, ikev2, ikev1, vpn-server, vpn-client, site-to-site, x509, eap, nat-traversal, c, linux, macos, android

## Member repositories
- strongswan/strongswan (main) score 87

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:32.109346+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 2026-08-30T07:32:37.066857+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/strongswan/strongswan (fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:32.109346+00:00, sha 3b55743cd75f)
  - homepage: https://strongswan.org (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.147180+00:00, sha bf6bb3962903)
  - site_page: https://strongswan.org/documentation.html (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.156357+00:00, sha 7d0c720784b4)
  - site_page: https://strongswan.org/about.html (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.158136+00:00, sha 591eb25d1448)
  - site_page: https://docs.strongswan.org/docs/latest/config/IPv6.html (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.159828+00:00, sha a75c73fb18ab)
  - site_page: https://docs.strongswan.org/docs/latest/features/ietf.html (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.161469+00:00, sha 9289dac5bd86)
  - site_page: https://strongswan.org/license.html (fetched 2026-08-29T09:47:51.163209+00:00, sha 553cffeed20a)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.