overview
client profile
industry
VPN and secure network access
size
Mid-sized, USA-based service provider
focus
Developing new OpenVPN protocol features and extensions for its secure networking platform
challenge
The customer needed to introduce new features and extensions to the OpenVPN protocol but could not build proprietary changes without upstream coordination, as it would result in protocol incompatibilities between the widespread open-source project and the proprietary solution. They faced three key obstacles:
- Community compliance: any modifications to OpenVPN had to be accepted by the open-source community and merged upstream.
- Feature delivery delays: without upstream acceptance, feature releases risked fragmentation or rejection.
- Limited internal resources: they required external expertise to design and shepherd features through the public review process.
Mandelbit’s solution
Mandelbit implemented a collaborative, upstream-focused approach:
1. Co-designing features
- Worked alongside the customer’s engineers to design new OpenVPN features and extensions.
2. Implementation and submission
- Implemented code changes and submitted them to the OpenVPN project following strict community standards and compliance requirements.
3. Community engagement and compliance
- Actively handled feedback from the OpenVPN community to ensure smooth acceptance and merging.
results
- Reduced approval time: consistently shorter time to get changes accepted upstream compared to the customer’s prior attempts.
- Faster feature delivery: upstream acceptance enabled the client to integrate new features more rapidly into their products.
- Long-term maintainability: features became part of the official OpenVPN codebase, eliminating future divergence risks.
client impact
The client was highly satisfied with Mandelbit’s technical work and community management. The partnership evolved into a long-lasting relationship, crucial for sustaining rapid product development and delivering new secure networking features in a timely fashion.
key takeaways
By combining deep technical expertise with open-source community engagement, Mandelbit enabled a VPN and secure network access provider to deliver new OpenVPN features quickly, achieve upstream compliance, and build a more sustainable codebase for future development and long-term maintainability.