Dawarich vs MapServer
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted maps & gis options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Dawarich
Self-hosted location history tracker and visualizer
VS
MapServer
Open-source platform for publishing spatial data
| Feature | Dawarich | MapServer |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Maps & GIS | Maps & GIS |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Ruby | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 10,036 | ★ 1,206 |
| First released | 2024 | 1997 |
| Replaces | Google Maps Timeline | ArcGIS Server, Google Maps Platform |
Why pick each one
Choose Dawarich if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 10k GitHub stars
- Written in Ruby
Choose MapServer if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in C
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Dawarich or MapServer better?
Dawarich is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider MapServer if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Dawarich and MapServer free and open-source?
Yes. Dawarich is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and MapServer under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Dawarich and MapServer with Docker?
Dawarich: yes. MapServer: check the project docs for container support.