--- title: "openfirma vs fast-llm-security-guardrails" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/firma-ai-openfirma-vs-zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails" tools: ["firma-ai-openfirma", "zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails"] --- # openfirma vs fast-llm-security-guardrails *GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026* ## Verdict Pick openfirma if openfirma is a policy-enforcing sidecar for AI agents that uses Cedar policies to gate outbound calls, built in Rust under the GPL-3.0 license; pick fast-llm-security-guardrails if fast-llm-security-guardrails, also known as ZenGuard, is designed for the rapid deployment of security measures into AI agent systems to ensure they operate within defined trust constraints. [openfirma](https://firma-ai.github.io/openfirma/) reports 135 GitHub stars, 9 forks, and 8 open issues, last pushed Sep 11, 2026. [fast-llm-security-guardrails](https://zenguard.ai/) has 155 stars, 21 forks, and 0 open issues, last pushed Feb 3, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [openfirma's repository](https://github.com/Firma-AI/openfirma) and [fast-llm-security-guardrails's repository](https://github.com/ZenGuard-AI/fast-llm-security-guardrails). | | [openfirma](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma.md) | [fast-llm-security-guardrails](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Runtime enforcement boundary for AI agents with local sidecar | The fastest Trust Layer for AI Agents | | Stars | 135 | 155 | | Forks | 9 | 21 | | Open issues | 8 | 0 | | Language | Rust | Python | | Adopt for | Openfirma is a policy-enforcing sidecar for AI agents that uses Cedar policies to gate outbound calls, built in Rust under the GPL-3.0 license. | fast-llm-security-guardrails, also known as ZenGuard, is designed for the rapid deployment of security measures into AI agent systems to ensure they operate within defined trust constraints. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | GPL-3.0 | MIT | | Categories | AI Agents, Evaluation & Observability | AI Agents, Evaluation & Observability | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [openfirma](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma.md) | [fast-llm-security-guardrails](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Very active (96%) | Slowing (36%) | | Days since push | 0d | 222d | | Open issues (now) | 8 | 0 | | Stars delta | +29 (30d) | +1 (30d) | | Open issues delta | -9 (30d) | 0 (30d) | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: openfirma - **Adopt for:** Openfirma is a policy-enforcing sidecar for AI agents that uses Cedar policies to gate outbound calls, built in Rust under the GPL-3.0 license. ## Decision facts: fast-llm-security-guardrails - **Adopt for:** fast-llm-security-guardrails, also known as ZenGuard, is designed for the rapid deployment of security measures into AI agent systems to ensure they operate within defined trust constraints. ## Choose when ### Choose openfirma if… - openfirma is primarily Rust; fast-llm-security-guardrails is Python. - License: openfirma is GPL-3.0, fast-llm-security-guardrails is MIT. - Tags unique to openfirma: access-control, authorization, cedar-policy, guardrails. - When you need deterministic and call-level runtime enforcement that specifically leverages Cedar policies tailored for your needs. ### Choose fast-llm-security-guardrails if… - fast-llm-security-guardrails is primarily Python; openfirma is Rust. - License: fast-llm-security-guardrails is MIT, openfirma is GPL-3.0. - Tags unique to fast-llm-security-guardrails: ai-agent, ai-runtime, cx-agent, llm-guard. - Fast integration of privacy and security guardrails in environments where real-time evaluation and observability are critical. ## When NOT to use openfirma - Avoid if you prefer a solution not tightly coupled to Cedar policies, as Openfirma exclusively supports this policy framework. - Do not use if licensing is critical and you need permissive licenses, since Openfirma uses the GPL-3.0 license. ## When NOT to use fast-llm-security-guardrails - If your project requires a more customizable solution than what fast-llm-security-guardrails offers in its out-of-the-box configurations. - For teams that operate without established runtime environments like LangChain or LlamaIndex, as this may necessitate significant adaptation of ZenGuard. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between openfirma and fast-llm-security-guardrails? openfirma: Runtime enforcement boundary for AI agents with local sidecar. fast-llm-security-guardrails: The fastest Trust Layer for AI Agents. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose openfirma over fast-llm-security-guardrails? Choose openfirma over fast-llm-security-guardrails when openfirma is primarily Rust; fast-llm-security-guardrails is Python; License: openfirma is GPL-3.0, fast-llm-security-guardrails is MIT; Tags unique to openfirma: access-control, authorization, cedar-policy, guardrails; When you need deterministic and call-level runtime enforcement that specifically leverages Cedar policies tailored for your needs. ### When should I choose fast-llm-security-guardrails over openfirma? Choose fast-llm-security-guardrails over openfirma when fast-llm-security-guardrails is primarily Python; openfirma is Rust; License: fast-llm-security-guardrails is MIT, openfirma is GPL-3.0; Tags unique to fast-llm-security-guardrails: ai-agent, ai-runtime, cx-agent, llm-guard; Fast integration of privacy and security guardrails in environments where real-time evaluation and observability are critical. ### When should I avoid openfirma? Avoid if you prefer a solution not tightly coupled to Cedar policies, as Openfirma exclusively supports this policy framework. Do not use if licensing is critical and you need permissive licenses, since Openfirma uses the GPL-3.0 license. ### When should I avoid fast-llm-security-guardrails? If your project requires a more customizable solution than what fast-llm-security-guardrails offers in its out-of-the-box configurations. For teams that operate without established runtime environments like LangChain or LlamaIndex, as this may necessitate significant adaptation of ZenGuard. ### Is openfirma or fast-llm-security-guardrails more popular on GitHub? fast-llm-security-guardrails has more GitHub stars (155 vs 135). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are openfirma and fast-llm-security-guardrails open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (openfirma: GPL-3.0, fast-llm-security-guardrails: MIT). ### Where can I find alternatives to openfirma or fast-llm-security-guardrails? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [openfirma alternatives](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma/alternatives) and [fast-llm-security-guardrails alternatives](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails/alternatives) ([openfirma markdown twin](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma/alternatives.md), [fast-llm-security-guardrails markdown twin](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/firma-ai-openfirma-vs-zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, openfirma or fast-llm-security-guardrails? openfirma: Very active. fast-llm-security-guardrails: Slowing. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for openfirma and fast-llm-security-guardrails? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [openfirma trust report](/tools/firma-ai-openfirma/trust); [fast-llm-security-guardrails trust report](/tools/zenguard-ai-fast-llm-security-guardrails/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=firma-ai-openfirma`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=firma-ai-openfirma) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_