Most IT teams know they need NAC. Very few have it — not because they don't care, but because the available solutions were designed for enterprise projects with six-figure budgets. PortGuard was built to close that gap.
Cisco ISE is an exceptionally capable platform. It's also designed for large organisations with dedicated network security engineers, multi-year procurement cycles and significant professional services budgets. The implementation isn't a task — it's a project measured in months and headcount.
PacketFence is a powerful open-source NAC platform. It requires deep Linux expertise, ongoing server maintenance, and a willingness to own and operate infrastructure rather than simply use it. The software is free. The time and expertise required are not.
The result is a large number of organisations that need network access control and don't have it — not because they can't see the value, but because the available tools weren't built for their scale, their team size, or their timeline. PortGuard was built specifically for those organisations.
PortGuard delivers the core outcomes of enterprise NAC — authenticated access, network segmentation, BYOD control, guest isolation — with a deployment model built for teams that run lean.
| Criterion | PortGuardNAC | Cisco ISE | PacketFence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Target organisation | SMB, MSP, mid-market | Large enterprise | Technical teams |
| Deployment timeline | < 1 day | 3–12 months | Weeks to months |
| Expertise needed | Network admin | Cisco-certified eng. | Linux administration |
| Cost model | Transparent, per-site | Enterprise licence | Free + hidden ops cost |
| Support | Dedicated team | Enterprise contract | Community forums |
| MSP multi-tenancy | Built-in | Complex add-on | Manual build |
| Entra ID integration | Native | Via SAML/LDAP proxy | Manual scripting |
| 802.1X / RADIUS | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dynamic VLAN | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ready-to-run appliance | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| GPG-signed updates | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Compliance evidence | ✓ | Enterprise add-on | Partial |
PortGuard ships as a hardware appliance or virtual machine. It integrates with your existing switches, Wi-Fi infrastructure and identity provider. There is no rip-and-replace — your current infrastructure stays exactly where it is.
Define who gets on the network, where they go and which devices are allowed — through a web interface designed for network administrators, not network architects. No professional services contract required to change a policy.
See every connected device, its identity, its network location and its health status from the moment PortGuard is live. No configuration sprint before you can read the dashboard.
PortGuard is designed for IT teams of one to twenty, not for enterprise security operations centres. The interface, the documentation and the support model all reflect that reality.
You need to control BYOD, isolate guest traffic and demonstrate network access control for a security audit — without a consultancy engagement or a dedicated network security team.
See all featuresYou manage multiple client networks and need a single platform that isolates each customer while giving you one operational view. PortGuard's multi-tenant architecture was built for that workflow.
Become a partnerYour clients need network access control as part of a Zero Trust or compliance programme. PortGuard deploys fast, integrates with their existing identity stack, and produces the evidence their auditor needs.
View the featuresYou need to demonstrate network segmentation and device authentication for ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials Plus or SOC 2. PortGuard provides the technical controls and the structured audit trail.
Book a demoPortGuard is built on open, well-established security standards. Here's what each one means in practice — without the jargon.
| What it's called | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| 802.1X authentication | Devices must prove their identity before they get network access — not after an incident happens |
| Dynamic VLAN assignment | Users and devices automatically reach the right network segment without manual switch port configuration |
| EAP-TLS / certificate auth | High-assurance device trust — no passwords to steal, rotate or accidentally share |
| PEAP / MSCHAPv2 | Username and password authentication with a protected tunnel — simpler to deploy where certificates aren't yet in place |
| Microsoft Entra ID / LDAP | Your existing user directory drives network access — no separate identity system to manage or keep in sync |
| Captive portal | Guest users see a branded login page before reaching the internet — and never your internal network |
| BYOD policy enforcement | Personal devices that don't meet your security requirements are blocked or redirected automatically |
| CVE / CVSS vulnerability scanning | Know which connected devices carry known security weaknesses before attackers exploit them |
| SNMP integration | PortGuard communicates with your existing managed switches and Wi-Fi hardware — no new infrastructure required |
| GPG-signed updates | Every update is cryptographically verified before installation — protecting against supply-chain attacks |