090 | ZeroTier and NetBird: When a Mesh Network Is Needed Here and Now

2025-08-22

When Zero-config VPN Means More Than Just Tailscale

Although Tailscale has become the benchmark for simplicity, it’s not the only player in the Zero-config VPN field. ZeroTier and NetBird offer similar functionality but with important architectural and ideological differences.

ZeroTier: A Virtual Ethernet Switch

ZeroTier is one of the first and most well-known services implementing the mesh network concept. It works on the principle of a virtual local network. Instead of relying on the WireGuard protocol, ZeroTier uses its own protocol and creates a virtual L2 switch (Layer 2) that unites all devices into a single local network. Each device gets an IP address from a virtual subnet and can “see” other devices as if they were connected to the same physical switch.

088 | The Rise of Zero-config VPN: Mesh Networks on WireGuard

2025-08-20

Evolution of Remote Access

Traditional VPN services, which most of us are familiar with, work on the “hub-and-spoke” principle (star topology). This means that all traffic from the client to the protected network passes through a central server. This approach has drawbacks:

• Configuration complexity: Manual setup, port forwarding, and key management are required.
• Performance: All traffic, even between two remote clients, must go through the central server, which increases latency.
• Single point of failure: If the central server goes down, the entire network stops working.

A new concept — Zero-config VPN — solves these problems by using a mesh network architecture.