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Cybersecurity · head to head

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station vs WireGuard

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station logo

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

Cybersecurity

Camera-vendor video management software with a free 32-channel tier for VIVOTEK devices

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
WireGuard logo

WireGuard

Cybersecurity

Modern, minimal-complexity VPN protocol with state-of-the-art cryptography

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only WireGuard has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: VIVOTEK VAST Security Station vAST 2 has entered end of maintenance with technical support and software files withdrawn, yet distributors still list VAST 2 licences, so a buyer can be quoted unsupported software without realising it.; WireGuard manual key management required; WireGuard does not provide automated peer discovery or key distribution mechanisms
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which VIVOTEK VAST Security Station and WireGuard actually diverge.

Attributes where VIVOTEK VAST Security Station and WireGuard differ
AttributeVIVOTEK VAST Security StationWireGuard
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelOne-time purchase per camera channelopen-source
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, Web, iOS, AndroidLinux, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, FreeBSD, OpenBSD

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

  • VSS Lite free tier
  • Per-channel licensing
  • Third-party camera support
  • Failover and TV matrix
  • Vision object analytics
  • Embedded NVR licensing
  • NDAA and TAA compliance

Only in WireGuard

Nothing recorded that VIVOTEK VAST Security Station does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

  • A school or small public building with fewer than 32 VIVOTEK cameras that needs a VMS at no licence costnot WireGuard
  • A United States public sector site that must meet NDAA and TAA procurement restrictionsnot WireGuard
  • An existing VAST 2 site that needs to migrate before the software falls further out of maintenancenot WireGuard
  • A mid-sized site standardising on VIVOTEK hardware with a handful of third-party cameras to absorbnot WireGuard

WireGuard

  • Site-to-site VPN connectivity for datacentres and branch officesnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station
  • High-performance VPN applications requiring minimal latency and CPU overheadnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station
  • Embedded systems and IoT devices with strict memory and storage constraintsnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station
  • WireGuard-based managed services (Tailscale, Mullvad VPN) providing abstraction over raw protocolnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station
  • Kernel module for Linux-based VPN appliances and firewallsnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station
  • Research and development in cryptographic protocol designnot VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

  • VAST 2 has entered end of maintenance with technical support and software files withdrawn, yet distributors still list VAST 2 licences, so a buyer can be quoted unsupported software without realising it.
  • The free Lite tier is hard capped at 32 cameras and VIVOTEK devices only, so a site that grows to 33 cameras or adds one third-party camera moves straight to paid Standard licensing.
  • VSS Professional includes no camera licences at all, so the edition that large deployments need starts from a higher effective price than the tier comparison suggests.
  • It is a camera manufacturer's VMS, so the third-party device list, analytics ecosystem and integration catalogue are all narrower than an independent platform like Milestone or Salient.
  • No pricing is published for Standard or Professional channels; everything runs through distribution, which makes budgeting a phased expansion difficult without repeated quotes.

WireGuard

  • Manual key management required; WireGuard does not provide automated peer discovery or key distribution mechanisms
  • No built-in support for address allocation or DHCP; all IP assignments must be manually configured
  • Limited to UDP; TCP encapsulation requires wrapper tools, making it unsuitable for environments blocking UDP
  • Stateless protocol design means lost packets trigger peer disconnection rather than transparent reconnection
  • Requires operational expertise to securely configure and deploy; not suitable for non-technical users without wrapper tools (Tailscale, Mullvad)

Pricing, plan by plan

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station

On request
  • VSS LiteFree
    • Free of charge
    • Up to 32 VIVOTEK cameras per server
    • No third-party camera support
  • VSS Standard$undefined/one-time
    • Up to 256 cameras per server
    • Eight camera licences included for VIVOTEK or third-party devices
    • Additional channel licences purchased individually
  • VSS Professional$undefined/one-time
    • Large scale deployments with failover and TV matrix
    • No camera licences included at all
    • Every channel purchased or upgraded from Standard

WireGuard

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the WireGuard review.

Which should you pick?

Choose VIVOTEK VAST Security Station if

  • You need vss lite free tier.
  • You work on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want per-channel licensing.
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station review

Choose WireGuard if

  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, FreeBSD, OpenBSD.
WireGuard review

Questions people ask

Is VIVOTEK VAST Security Station or WireGuard better?
Neither clearly leads. VIVOTEK VAST Security Station starts at On request and WireGuard at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, VIVOTEK VAST Security Station or WireGuard?
WireGuard has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for VIVOTEK VAST Security Station and Free for WireGuard.
Does VIVOTEK VAST Security Station or WireGuard run on more platforms?
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station runs on Windows, Web, iOS, Android. WireGuard runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, FreeBSD, OpenBSD.
Can I use WireGuard for free?
Yes. WireGuard has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. VIVOTEK VAST Security Station starts at On request.
What is VIVOTEK VAST Security Station best used for?
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station is most often used for a school or small public building with fewer than 32 vivotek cameras that needs a vms at no licence cost, a united states public sector site that must meet ndaa and taa procurement restrictions, an existing vast 2 site that needs to migrate before the software falls further out of maintenance, a mid-sized site standardising on vivotek hardware with a handful of third-party cameras to absorb. Of those, a school or small public building with fewer than 32 vivotek cameras that needs a vms at no licence cost and a united states public sector site that must meet ndaa and taa procurement restrictions are not what WireGuard is typically brought in for.
What can VIVOTEK VAST Security Station do that WireGuard cannot?
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station covers VSS Lite free tier, Per-channel licensing, Third-party camera support, Failover and TV matrix.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

VIVOTEK VAST Security Station: Should I still buy VAST 2?

No. VAST 2 has entered end of maintenance with support and software files withdrawn. VSS is the current product, and any VAST 2 licence still on a distributor price list should be questioned.

WireGuard: Is WireGuard free?

Yes, WireGuard is free and open-source software. The Linux kernel module is licensed under GPLv2; implementations for other platforms use MIT or Apache 2.0 licences. There are no licensing fees.

Source
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station: Is VSS Lite really free?

Yes, for up to 32 VIVOTEK cameras per server. It does not support third-party cameras and cannot exceed 32 channels.

WireGuard: How does WireGuard differ from IPsec and OpenVPN?

WireGuard replaces complex negotiation protocols and state machines with simple public-key cryptography. Its code is roughly 100 times smaller than IPsec, making it faster to audit, deploy, and maintain. It uses modern cryptographic primitives rather than legacy algorithms.

Source
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station: How many licences come with Standard?

Eight camera licences, usable for VIVOTEK or third-party devices. Professional includes none.

WireGuard: Can I use WireGuard for a commercial VPN service?

Yes. Several commercial VPN services (Mullvad, IVPN, ProtonVPN) use WireGuard as their underlying protocol. You must implement peer management, key distribution, and endpoint selection on top of the WireGuard protocol.

Source
VIVOTEK VAST Security Station: Is VIVOTEK NDAA compliant?

VIVOTEK publishes an NDAA and TAA compliant product list, which is why it appears in United States public sector specifications where Section 889 excludes several other manufacturers.

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