DNS Redirector - Feature Comparison Chart
 
For the purpose of this comparison we are assuming DNS Redirector is being used for web filtering only.  
 
Feature  

OpenDNS

 

DNS Redirector

Publicly available   After April 29, 2006   Since July 8, 2003
Cost   Currently free,
some features may require a paid account in the future.
  Affordable commercial licenses,
free for personal, non-profit, and light business use.
Expiration   Currently none, website indicates basic DNS service will always be free, additional features may be available only with a paid account.   None, we don't want to aggravate system administrators with software activation or renewal techniques, it will keep working forever.
Installs behind
your firewall
  No, hosted service   Yes, on Windows servers
Works regardless
of Internet provider
  No, if the ISP forces their DNS then OpenDNS will not work.   Yes
Customize
blocked page
  Somewhat customizable   Yes, use any web-server software to serve your own HTML, ASP, PHP blocked page, or our samples.
Customize
not found page
  Somewhat customizable   No, non-existent or misspelled domains don't resolve anywhere, as DNS was meant to be.
Turn blocking off/on,
for certain users
or with a password
  No, the service cannot distinguish between individual clients on the inside of your network. (all clients are seen as coming from the same IP as your Firewall or NAT device)   Yes, each client is identified by their inside IP address.  Individual clients can turn blocking off/on based on whatever method you develop; login script, Active Directory integrated, or unique password.
Multiple tiers of site
availability vs. blocking
  Not within the same network, configurable based on the external IP of your Firewall or NAT device.   Yes, up to 3 levels per running instance of DNS Redirector.  Achieve more levels by running multiple instances of the software, even on the same server.
Ability to block
everything
  No, OpenDNS relies on revenue from advertisers, as a result many advertisement domains
(which often serve spyware/
malware) cannot be blocked.
  Yes, block everything and allow only a handful of sites that you specify.
  - or -
Block certain categories and any other domain names you choose.
Block surfing after hours, bypass for some users   No   Yes
Redundancy   Yes, using Anycast routing to direct DNS traffic to 1 of their 6 datacenters.  Provides 4 IPs.   Yes, run as many DNS Redirector servers as your licensed for.
Third party data-mining,
proxy, or security concerns
  Non-existent or misspelled domains still resolve, and to a 'guide' page with advertisements, today this is the bulk of their revenue stream.  Google and some other site traffic is proxy'd by their servers.  Historical data is kept to produce statistical data to account holders.   DNS resolution is kept between you and your ISP.
Statistical data   Yes, lots of cool graphs and tables   Option to log all DNS query/responses and actions.
Provide network down
or emergency message
  No, if the Internet connection is unavailable so is OpenDNS.   Yes
Support   via Email or online forum   via Email, phone, or screen-sharing with a license, on-site consulting is also available.
Funding/motivation   Started by David Ulevitch; received $2 million in venture capital from Minor Ventures/CNET founder Halsey Minor.  Offers faster, smarter, safer DNS resolution.  Makes $20K per day in advertising revenue.   Started by JP Maurer; built out of necessity for a family-focused hotel offering free WiFi.  Expanded use of the software to customers of his IT consulting firm thereby eliminating support calls for the cleanup of spyware, malware, and porn.
 
Data in the table above was collected from each company's public website.  Accurate as of the last update of this page on Feb 10, 2009.
Features and specifications are subject to change without notice; contact the company offering service for the latest information.
ScrubIT was listed here but seems to be closed.  DNS Advantage is also offering a free service similar to OpenDNS.

 
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