ProxyPass vs. VPN
Reach devices in customer networks — without a site-to-site VPN.
A VPN was built to join two networks you control. Reaching a fleet of devices in networks you don't control is a different problem — and a VPN solves it the hard way.
Short answer: A site-to-site VPN needs configuration and sign-off on the customer's network, struggles behind CGNAT, and opens a broad link between two networks. ProxyPass installs a single outbound-only node, needs nothing from the customer's IT, works behind CGNAT and LTE, and exposes only the access you define.
The honest comparison
| ProxyPass | Site-to-site VPN | |
|---|---|---|
| Firewall changes on their side | None | Required |
| Customer IT sign-off | Not needed | Required |
| Works behind CGNAT / LTE | Yes | No (needs a routable endpoint) |
| Setup time per site | One install command, minutes | Tunnel config on both ends |
| What is exposed | Only what you allow, per node & group | A broad route between networks |
| Scales to hundreds of sites | Per-node, central console | Per-tunnel management overhead |
Where a VPN still makes sense
If you own both ends of the connection — two offices, a data center and a branch — a site-to-site VPN is the right tool. You control the firewalls, you have routable endpoints, and you genuinely want the two networks joined.
ProxyPass is for the opposite situation: hardware or software you deployed into a network someone else owns, where you can't ask their IT to stand up a tunnel for you.
How ProxyPass does it instead
You install a lightweight node on any machine in the target network. It connects outbound over TLS — the same kind of connection any app makes to check for updates. From your side you then reach the device three ways: a CONNECT proxy for any TCP protocol (SSH, RDP, browsers), a REST bridge for HTTP devices on the LAN, and a WebDAV mount for files. No inbound port, no firewall rule, nothing for the customer to sign off.
See it on your own devices
Start a pilot — the typical first invoice is €0. We'll send your install script within 24 hours.