Open source hardening projects
Every project in the registry tagged hardening, ranked by real GitHub adoption.
Lynis - Security auditing tool for Linux, macOS, and UNIX-based systems. Assists with compliance testing (HIPAA/ISO27001/PCI DSS) and system hardening. Agentles
HardeningKitty and Windows Hardening Settings
HardeningKitty - Checks and hardens your Windows configuration
Frequently asked questions
How many open source hardening projects are there?
This registry tracks 3 projects tagged hardening, with 20,851 GitHub stars between them. The most-adopted is lynis at 16,355 stars.
Are these hardening projects free to use?
Yes — 3 of the 3 carry an explicit open-source licence across 2 distinct licences, so there is no licence fee. Where a project also sells a hosted or enterprise version, the self-hosted path remains free.
Which hardening project should I choose?
The list above is ranked by GitHub stars, but stars measure attention rather than fit. Check three things on each card: the licence (permissive versus copyleft), the language it is written in, and the last-push date — a high-star project that has not been pushed in a year is a liability.
Are these hardening projects still maintained?
3 of the 3 were pushed in the last 90 days, and every card shows its exact last-push date so you can see the rest. Sort your shortlist by that date before committing to a migration.