Cheap pfSense setup

[whitey]

Is this still the cheapset/most affordable but solid choice for a pfSense platform?

ALIX.6F2

I've used these in the past and had good results for a low cost pfSense box but want to get feedback from fellow STH'ers if there is a better option out now for about the same price pricepoint as I know this hardware is a bit long in the tooth.

 

[whitey]

Aww damn, seems like the APU boards from PC Engines are a bit better now, gig eth, faster proc (64-bit compat or instruction set), 2-4 GB memory depending on model. $40-60 bones more though. Decisions decisions...

 

[Jeggs101]

Why not just virtualize it? I don't know, fewer cables and stuff seems like a win.

 

[whitey]

Why not just virtualize it? I don't know, fewer cables and stuff seems like a win.

I concur and I do typically virt these pfSense devices, this is a remote site that will not have virtual infrastructure at the location.

 

[TuxDude]

I'm not sure if you'd be able to get your hands on one, or how it is going to perform, but I did manage to get pfSense 2.2 to install on an old APC Infrastruxure Manager appliance, part # AP92200, that came out of our old datacenter and was headed for the trash. Inside is an Avalue ECM-3610 motherboard with a Via C3 CPU and pair of 10/100 NICs all soldered onboard (and some serial ports, PS2, USB, and VGA output, but except for the initial install pfSense won't be using any of those). That board plus a 3.5" IDE HDD and power supply are all crammed into the shortest-depth 1U rack mount device I've ever dealt with (6.5" deep).

From APC it comes with a custom BIOS that won't let you do much of anything, but you can get the stock BIOS off the 'net and flash it and then its just another low-power embedded system.

I'm hoping it performs well enough to serve as a home router/firewall/gateway as long as I don't try running anything extra/advanced on it (eg. no IDS, etc.)

 

[markarr]

I am using one of these at home and it works great on my 40x5 connection.

Building the Perfect Router/Firewall for $45 | Another Word for Nerd

(I think I may have an extra one or two in my basement)

 

[TuxDude]

I am using one of these at home and it works great on my 40x5 connection.

Building the Perfect Router/Firewall for $45 | Another Word for Nerd

(I think I may have an extra one or two in my basement)

Well that makes me feel better about my little APC-pfSense box, pretty much the same CPU so it should perform well enough.

Also reminds me that it does have a CF slot on the underside of the MB too (with the single SO-DIMM slot) - could save some power and weight if I swapped the HDD out for a CF card.

 

[markarr]

Well that makes me feel better about my little APC-pfSense box, pretty much the same CPU so it should perform well enough.

Also reminds me that it does have a CF slot on the underside of the MB too (with the single SO-DIMM slot) - could save some power and weight if I swapped the HDD out for a CF card.

Mine runs on a 2 gig cf card. I think I lose more power in the power brick than the thing uses.

 

[TuxDude]

Mine runs on a 2 gig cf card. I think I lose more power in the power brick than the thing uses.

Now I've gotta figure out if any of the CF cards I have around are big enough, and how I'm going to get the pfSense image onto one of them.

 

[nickscott18]

I am using one of these at home and it works great on my 40x5 connection.

Building the Perfect Router/Firewall for $45 | Another Word for Nerd

(I think I may have an extra one or two in my basement)

+1 on this setup - was using a very similar setup for several years without issue (Via C3 Motherboard, extra NIC).

 

[Marsh]

I used the Maxterm as pfsense router too.

Now, I strip the cheap MaxTerm client for its "pico" power supply.

 

[markarr]

I used the Maxterm as pfsense router too.

Now, I strip the cheap MaxTerm client for its "pico" power supply.

That is a great idea, I will have to do that to the one i fried the board in.

 

[Marsh]

That is a great idea, I will have to do that to the one i fried the board in.

You will need this cable as well
Molex IDE 2 Pin to 4 Pin ATX P4 12V Power ATX Cable Converter Adapter Connector | eBay

 

[dataoscar]

If you are doing VPN , these kind of devices may not be enough. Really depends on your connection.

 

[markarr]

If you are doing VPN , these kind of devices may not be enough. Really depends on your connection.

The VIA C3/C7 have the padlock hardware encryption. This should help with the ipsec, I haven't really tested it as I only have a 5mb upload on my home connection.

 

[dataoscar]

Correct. The Alix boards also have hardware crypto support. Both however are limited. Again it really depends on what your needs are.

I use my vpn for plain browsing and downloading and have a 100mbit connection.

 

[mstone]

A via c3 will bottleneck a fast connection these days. They were great for their time but I wouldn't spec one now. It's also getting harder to run current distributions on that instruction set. The APU will firewall upwards of 400Mbps, but doesn't have hardware crypto and will only vpn 100-200Mbps. (That's enough for my needs, and I'm happy with an APU.)

 

[markarr]

Correct. The Alix boards also have hardware crypto support. Both however are limited. Again it really depends on what your needs are.

I use my vpn for plain browsing and downloading and have a 100mbit connection.

With that connection yes the VIA is going to struggle. I only use the vpn for my offsite backup so the max I can get for upload is 5mb. Works great for me.

 

[Patrick]

I think that this space is going to get really interesting in the next few months.

 

[bds1904]

HP T5740 w/ pci-e expansion chassis: $55 on ebay
Intel Pro/1000 PT pci-e dual port NIC: $25 on ebay

What you get: ~450Mbit routing capability with 50Mbit OpenVPN AES-256 throughput in ~25w idle package.

Or upgrade to a GT7720(or GT7725) add an expansion chassis and get ~800Mbit routing and 85mbit OpenVPN throughput. Little more power usage though.