frp vs RustDesk Server
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?
frp
Fast reverse proxy to expose local servers behind NAT
VS
RustDesk Server
Self-hosted relay and ID server for RustDesk
| Feature | frp | RustDesk Server |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 108,622 | ★ 10,209 |
| First released | 2016 | 2021 |
| Replaces | ngrok | TeamViewer |
Why pick each one
Choose frp if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 108.6k GitHub stars
- Written in Go
Choose RustDesk Server if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 10.2k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is frp or RustDesk Server better?
Neither is universally better. frp has the larger community, while RustDesk Server is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are frp and RustDesk Server free and open-source?
Yes. frp is licensed under Apache-2.0 and RustDesk Server under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run frp and RustDesk Server with Docker?
frp: yes. RustDesk Server: yes.