JumpServer vs Next Terminal
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted remote access & vpn options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
JumpServer
Open-source bastion host and PAM platform
VS
Next Terminal
Self-hosted SSH bastion with web terminal and audit
| Feature | JumpServer | Next Terminal |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 98 · Excellent | 90 · Excellent |
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 31,596 | ★ 5,646 |
| First released | 2014 | 2020 |
| Replaces | CyberArk, Teleport | Apache Guacamole, Teleport |
What are JumpServer and Next Terminal?
JumpServer
JumpServer is an open-source privileged access management bastion host that audits and controls access to servers, databases, and cloud resources. It supports SSH, RDP, VNC, and more.
- Privileged access management
- Session auditing and recording
- Multi-protocol support
- Web-based access
Next Terminal
Next Terminal is a self-hosted bastion host offering browser-based RDP, SSH, VNC and Telnet access with session recording and access control. It runs in Docker as a small set of services.
- Browser RDP/SSH/VNC
- Session recording
- Access control
- Self-hostable bastion
JumpServer vs Next Terminal: key differences
JumpServer is written in Python, while Next Terminal is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for JumpServer versus Apache-2.0 for Next Terminal. Next Terminal is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 4,096 MB for JumpServer. JumpServer is the more established project (first released 2014), while Next Terminal arrived in 2020. JumpServer has the considerably larger community, at 31,596 GitHub stars versus 5,646.
Why pick each one
Choose JumpServer if…
- Broad protocol support
- Full session auditing
- LDAP and SSO ready
Watch out for
- Heavy multi-component stack
- Docs partly in Chinese
Choose Next Terminal if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 5.6k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is JumpServer or Next Terminal better?
Neither is universally better. JumpServer has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are JumpServer and Next Terminal free and open-source?
Yes. JumpServer is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Next Terminal under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run JumpServer and Next Terminal with Docker?
JumpServer: yes. Next Terminal: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, JumpServer or Next Terminal?
Next Terminal has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 4,096 MB for JumpServer. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.