tunnelmole vs RPort
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?
tunnelmole
Open-source tunnel to expose local servers to the internet
VS
RPort
Remote management of computers behind firewalls
| Feature | tunnelmole | RPort |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Remote Access & VPN | Remote Access & VPN |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker, source | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,885 | ★ 20 |
| First released | 2021 | 2020 |
| Replaces | ngrok, localtunnel | TeamViewer, ngrok |
Why pick each one
Choose tunnelmole if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.9k GitHub stars)
Choose RPort if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is tunnelmole or RPort better?
tunnelmole is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider RPort if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are tunnelmole and RPort free and open-source?
Yes. tunnelmole is licensed under MIT and RPort under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run tunnelmole and RPort with Docker?
tunnelmole: yes. RPort: yes.