FreeRDP vs noVNC
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted remote access & vpn options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
FreeRDP
Free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol
VS
noVNC
VNC client that runs entirely in the browser
| Feature | FreeRDP | noVNC |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MPL-2.0 |
| Language | C | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | bare-metal, docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 13,527 | ★ 13,911 |
| First released | 2009 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Microsoft RDP | RealVNC |
Why pick each one
Choose noVNC if…
- Released under the MPL-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 13.9k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is FreeRDP or noVNC better?
noVNC is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider FreeRDP if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are FreeRDP and noVNC free and open-source?
Yes. FreeRDP is licensed under Apache-2.0 and noVNC under MPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FreeRDP and noVNC with Docker?
FreeRDP: check the project docs for container support. noVNC: yes.