Skip to main content

⚡ Gatwy vs Apache Guacamole

Apache Guacamole is a well-established, battle-tested remote access gateway — and it's been the go-to choice for years. But it was designed in a different era. Gatwy was built from the ground up with a modern stack, a single-container philosophy, and the features that today's teams actually need.

Here's how they compare.

🏗️ Architecture & Deployment​

GatwyGuacamole
Single container deployment✅❌
Lightweight image (~150 MB)✅❌
No Java runtime required✅❌
No external database required✅❌

Why it matters: Guacamole requires orchestrating three separate services — the guacd daemon, the Java/Tomcat web application, and a MySQL or PostgreSQL database. That's three containers to maintain, monitor, and upgrade. Gatwy ships everything — app server, database, and TLS — in a single ~150 MB container. One docker compose up and you're done.

🌐 Protocol Support​

GatwyGuacamole
RDP✅✅
SSH✅✅
VNC✅✅
Telnet✅✅
SFTP file browser✅⚠️ Basic sidebar only
SMB file browser✅❌
FTP file browser✅❌

Why it matters: Both tools cover the core remote protocols. But when you need to browse files on a Windows share (SMB) or an FTP server, Guacamole can't help — you'll need a separate tool. Gatwy handles it natively with a full-featured file browser across all three file protocols.

📁 File Management​

GatwyGuacamole
Browse files✅⚠️ SFTP sidebar only
Upload & download✅⚠️ SFTP only
Rename files✅❌
Copy & paste files✅❌
Move files✅❌
Create folders✅❌
View file info & permissions✅❌
Change permissions (chmod)✅❌
Multi-file selection✅❌

Why it matters: Guacamole's file support is a narrow SFTP sidebar inside SSH sessions — upload, download, and that's about it. Gatwy gives you a proper file manager with rename, copy/paste, move, permission editing, and multi-select bulk operations. It's the difference between a workaround and a workflow.

🎬 Recording & Audit​

GatwyGuacamole
RDP session recording✅✅
SSH terminal recording✅❌
SSH command-level audit log✅❌
Password redaction in logs✅❌
File activity recording✅❌
Recording encryption at rest✅❌
In-browser playback✅✅
Click ripple indicators (RDP)✅❌

Why it matters: Guacamole records graphical sessions (RDP/VNC) but leaves SSH completely unrecorded — no terminal replay, no command history. Gatwy records SSH sessions as asciinema, logs every command with timestamps, automatically redacts passwords from audit trails, and encrypts all recordings at rest. For compliance and forensics, there's no comparison.

🔒 Security & Access Control​

GatwyGuacamole
Granular RBAC (22 permissions)✅❌
Custom roles✅❌
Per-protocol access control✅❌
Connection sharing (user/role)✅⚠️ Link-based sharing only
LDAP authentication✅✅
OpenID Connect SSO✅✅
MFA (TOTP)✅✅
IP access rules✅❌
IP lockout audit log✅❌
Brute-force lockout✅⚠️ Extension required
Idle timeout with countdown✅⚠️ Basic timeout only
Encryption key management✅❌
Encrypted backups✅❌
Runs as non-root✅✅

Why it matters: Guacamole's permission model is simple — users, groups, and connections. That works for small teams, but it can't express rules like "this role can use SSH and SFTP but not RDP" or "share this connection with the DevOps role only." Gatwy's RBAC has 22 distinct permissions across 6 categories, with fully custom roles and per-protocol control.

🖥️ User Experience​

GatwyGuacamole
Modern dark UI✅❌
Tabbed sessions✅❌
Tab drag-and-drop reordering✅❌
Split view✅❌
Connection search✅❌
Connection tags & filtering✅❌
Drag-drop connection sorting✅❌
Copy on select / paste on click✅❌
Auto-close disconnected tabs✅❌
Persistent folder state✅❌

Why it matters: Guacamole's GWT-based UI is functional but shows its age — no tabs, no split view, no drag-and-drop, no search. If you manage dozens of connections, navigating Guacamole can be tedious. Gatwy's modern React interface is built for power users who live in the terminal.

💾 Backup & Administration​

GatwyGuacamole
Encrypted full backup✅❌
One-click restore✅❌
Connection import/export (JSON)✅❌
Health check endpoint✅✅
Version update notifications✅❌
Audit trail with diffs✅ Field-level before/after⚠️ Connection logs only
Notification log retention✅ Configurable (default 90d)❌

Why it matters: Backing up Guacamole means separately dumping the database, copying recording files, and managing config files across multiple containers. Gatwy exports everything — database, recordings, and encryption key — into a single password-protected .geb file. Restore is a one-click upload.

🔔 Notifications & Alerting​

GatwyGuacamole
Email / SMTP alerts✅❌
Telegram alerts✅❌
Slack alerts✅❌
Webhook alerts✅❌
No-code rule builder✅❌
Multi-event triggers✅❌
Alert on login / lockout / IP block✅❌
Alert on config changes✅❌
Delivery history & retry✅❌
Configurable retention✅❌

Why it matters: Guacamole has no built-in alerting — you'd need to wire up external log shippers, SIEM integrations, or custom scripts to get notified when something important happens. Gatwy includes a full no-code rule engine that lets you define exactly which events trigger which alerts, and deliver them to email, Telegram, Slack, or any webhook — no plugins required.

The Bottom Line​

Apache Guacamole is a proven, reliable tool that has served the community well. It's the right choice if you need SAML support, RADIUS authentication, or have an existing Java infrastructure.

Gatwy is for teams who want:

  • 🏎️ Faster setup — one container, zero dependencies, running in under a minute
  • 📁 Real file management — not just a sidebar, but a full file browser across SFTP, SMB, and FTP
  • 🔍 Deep audit trail — every SSH command, every file operation, every login — all logged and searchable
  • 🔔 Built-in alerting — email, Telegram, Slack, and Webhook notifications with a no-code rule builder
  • 🔐 Granular security — 22 permissions, custom roles, per-protocol access, encrypted everything
  • ✨ Modern UX — tabs, split view, drag-and-drop, search, tags, dark theme