Best Self Hosted Alternatives to CyberArk Privileged Access Manager

Teleport is an identity-native access platform that unifies secure access to infrastructure (SSH), Kubernetes, databases, web apps, and desktops through a single control plane. It focuses on eliminating long-lived credentials by using short-lived certificates and strong identity, while providing centralized visibility and audit trails.

Key Features

• Unified access proxy for SSH, Kubernetes, databases, Windows desktops (RDP), and internal web apps
• Short-lived, automatically issued certificates (no shared SSH keys) and session-based access
• Built-in audit logging and session recording/playback (SSH and Kubernetes activity; RDP recording in supported editions)
• Role-based access control (RBAC) with fine-grained policies and access workflows
• Single sign-on integrations (e.g., SAML/OIDC providers) and device-aware access options
• Infrastructure discovery and inventory (nodes, clusters, apps, databases) with a central web UI and CLI (tsh)
• High availability and clustering for running Teleport at scale

Use Cases

• Replace bastion hosts and shared SSH keys with centralized, identity-based SSH access
• Provide secure, auditable Kubernetes access for platform and developer teams
• Centralize database access with consistent authentication, authorization, and auditing

Limitations and Considerations

• Some capabilities (notably certain enterprise features such as advanced access workflows/recording options) may require paid editions depending on your needs
• Operational complexity can be higher than simple SSH bastions due to certificate-based architecture and multi-component deployment

Teleport is well-suited for organizations that want consistent authentication and auditing across multiple infrastructure access methods. It provides a single access plane that scales from small teams to multi-cluster environments while improving credential hygiene and traceability.

Warpgate is a self-hosted access gateway (bastion) for managing SSH access to internal servers through a centralized entry point. It provides a web admin UI and policy controls to reduce direct key sprawl while improving visibility and auditing of interactive access.

Key Features:

• SSH bastion/access gateway to proxy connections to target hosts
• Web-based administration UI for users, roles, and targets
• Role-based access control (RBAC) to restrict who can access which hosts
• Centralized authentication and authorization at the gateway
• Audit logging of access events and administrative actions
• Session recording/playback for SSH sessions (for forensic review)
• Just-in-time / time-limited access policies (where configured)
• Multi-user support and team-oriented access management

Use Cases:

• Provide controlled SSH access to production servers without distributing keys widely
• Centralize and audit contractor or temporary access to infrastructure
• Record and review privileged sessions for compliance and incident response

Warpgate fits teams that need a lightweight, self-hosted alternative to commercial privileged access and bastion tooling. It focuses on tightening SSH access controls while adding observability (logs/recordings) around interactive administrative sessions.

Sshwifty is a small web application that provides SSH and Telnet access directly in your browser. It acts as a web terminal gateway so you can connect to remote machines without installing a local SSH client, and is commonly deployed behind an existing reverse proxy.

Key Features

• Browser-based terminal UI for SSH and Telnet sessions
• Lightweight single-binary distribution and container-friendly deployment
• Connection profiles/bookmarks for frequently used hosts (as supported by the UI)
• Optional authentication and access controls (configurable)
• Runs as a web server and proxies connections to target hosts

Use Cases

• Provide jump-host style web terminal access to internal servers for admins
• Offer browser SSH access in restricted environments (e.g., locked-down laptops)
• Simple remote access tool for homelab/server management without extra clients

Limitations and Considerations

• Exposes a powerful remote-access surface; should be placed behind TLS and strong authentication and restricted by network policy
• Feature depth is narrower than full remote-access suites (e.g., auditing/recording and advanced PAM features may be limited depending on deployment)

Sshwifty is best suited when you need a minimal web terminal for SSH/Telnet with straightforward deployment. With proper perimeter controls (TLS, auth, and network restrictions), it can serve as a convenient browser-based entry point to remote systems.

ShellHub is a centralized SSH access gateway and device management platform designed to control, simplify, and audit remote access to servers and IoT/edge devices. It provides a web-based control plane where devices enroll and users connect through controlled, policy-based access.

Key Features

• Device onboarding and inventory with identification and metadata
• SSH access brokerage (gateway) to enrolled devices without exposing them directly
• Web interface to manage devices, users, and access policies
• Role-based access control (RBAC) for organizing and restricting access
• Session visibility/auditing capabilities (connection and access tracking)
• Multi-device fleet management oriented to IoT/edge environments

Use Cases

• Centralize SSH access to production servers with controlled entry points
• Manage remote access to IoT/edge fleets (industrial gateways, kiosks, routers)
• Provide auditable operator/vendor access to customer or branch devices

Limitations and Considerations

• Feature depth and enterprise controls can vary by edition/version; verify required auditing/recording needs in the current release.

ShellHub fits teams that want a single place to enroll devices and broker SSH access with governance controls. It’s especially useful where devices are distributed, behind NAT, or otherwise difficult to access directly, and where access control and traceability matter.