Portmaster

Open-source alternative to GlassWire and Commercial firewalls. A visual application firewall with DNS filtering, connection history, and privacy defaults.

A friendlier firewall for users who want visibility without manually reading packet logs.

At a glance

ReplacesGlassWire, Commercial firewalls
Open-source licenseGPL-3.0
PrivacyPer-app network rules and local DNS filtering expose background traffic.
Lightweight signalCombines outbound control and DNS protection in one desktop service.
Community healthActively developed open-source product
PlatformsWindows, Linux
Privacy advantage

Per-app network rules and local DNS filtering expose background traffic.

Less bloat

Combines outbound control and DNS protection in one desktop service.

Trust signal

Actively developed open-source product. Verify current releases and open issues in the source repository before critical deployment.

Should you switch to Portmaster?

A friendlier firewall for users who want visibility without manually reading packet logs. A successful migration starts with a small real project, not a feature checklist. Test the files, integrations, shortcuts, and collaboration steps you use every week before removing the existing tool.

Open source gives you inspectable code and a path away from vendor lock-in, but it does not eliminate tradeoffs. Support may be community-led, some commercial file formats may be imperfect, and self-hosted options require security updates and backups. Use the official website and source repository above to confirm current compatibility.

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