CWWK/Topton/... Nxxx quad NIC router

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pigr8

Member
Jul 13, 2017
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I don't use openwrt, but I do use linux because, like @devast, I want CAKE SQM. To get somewhat equivalent functionality to CAKE in opnsense, you'd have to do htb+fq_codel since FreeBSD does not have a CAKE implementation. I don't think you can configure that from the GUI. The GUI config for shaping in opnsense is, IMO, pretty limited. CAKE works great for fairness and shaping and also works with hardware offload. The disadvantage is it uses quite a bit more CPU than fq_codel (but less than htb+fq_codel).

i dont know about htb+fq_codel but i think fq_codel as limiter in pfsense does a good job and would be hard for me to see the difference with cake in openwrt but that's just me.
 

fta

Active Member
Feb 19, 2017
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i dont know about htb+fq_codel but i think fq_codel as limiter in pfsense does a good job and would be hard for me to see the difference with cake in openwrt but that's just me.
Then you're not doing shaping of flows, which is totally fine. For those of who do want to shape our flows, it's built in to CAKE.
 

Unrest5078

New Member
Jan 10, 2023
4
7
3
Trying to decide and order one from amazon europe (HUNSN store), and after reading more than 30 pages, still I'm not sure if the Y fins are preferred (run cooler) or the normal ones?

As it seems 5 and 6 ports have their disadvantages, so I'll go with the 4 ports one.
However, I don't see the difference is between RJ36 and RJ44. They look identical in the pics (Y fins), except one is 10 euro more expensive.

Any thoughts?
 

Tzvia

Member
Sep 5, 2022
35
15
8
Trying to decide and order one from amazon europe (HUNSN store), and after reading more than 30 pages, still I'm not sure if the Y fins are preferred (run cooler) or the normal ones?

As it seems 5 and 6 ports have their disadvantages, so I'll go with the 4 ports one.
However, I don't see the difference is between RJ36 and RJ44. They look identical in the pics (Y fins), except one is 10 euro more expensive.

Any thoughts?
Well, just looking at Amazon... it appears that the RJ36 has 4 USB-2 ports and the RJ44 has 2-USB 2 and 2 USB-3 ports... I would always get USB-3 if given the choice over USB-2.. even if only for faster program/OS installs from USB...
 

devast

Member
Jun 28, 2023
37
30
18
Trying to decide and order one from amazon europe (HUNSN store), and after reading more than 30 pages, still I'm not sure if the Y fins are preferred (run cooler) or the normal ones?

As it seems 5 and 6 ports have their disadvantages, so I'll go with the 4 ports one.
However, I don't see the difference is between RJ36 and RJ44. They look identical in the pics (Y fins), except one is 10 euro more expensive.

Any thoughts?
It doesn't matter what "brand" you buy, essentially it will be the same hw. Maybe you get better after sale support and warranty from hunsn comparted to some random aliexpress seller. The question then becomes, does it worth the premium for you?
5 and 6 ports do not make much sense. If you want a switch, buy a switch. It's cheaper, more power efficient, etc. These mini pcs do not have any switching chip integrated into them, everything is done by software. 4 ports should be more then enough for almost anyone.
 
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koyote

New Member
Sep 18, 2023
2
0
1
Hi everyone,

I'm thinking of getting one of these to replace my fitlet2.
I have two questions:

1. Has anyone run the latest OPNsense bare metal on the n100? Or is Proxmox still required?
2. Has anyone tried the CWWK M1 out:
I like the form factor and it comes with a fan so might be better temperature wise.
It also uses usb-c for powering, which is quite nice.
Bit reluctant to be the first person to try it though :)
 

GammelFar

New Member
Jun 27, 2023
5
2
3
Hi everyone,

I'm thinking of getting one of these to replace my fitlet2.
I have two questions:

1. Has anyone run the latest OPNsense bare metal on the n100? Or is Proxmox still required?
2. Has anyone tried the CWWK M1 out:
I like the form factor and it comes with a fan so might be better temperature wise.
It also uses usb-c for powering, which is quite nice.
Bit reluctant to be the first person to try it though :)
I think OPNsense has worked on bare metal for a while now? pfSense works after the latest update. Havent tried myself though.

I run mine from a 30W Gan PD usb charger. With a usb-c to 12V cable. Have a 65w on the way, so i can run more sata disks.
 

devast

Member
Jun 28, 2023
37
30
18
2. Has anyone tried the CWWK M1 out:
I like the form factor and it comes with a fan so might be better temperature wise.
It also uses usb-c for powering, which is quite nice.
Bit reluctant to be the first person to try it though :)
I like the form factor too. But i dislike how expensive it is, compared to other options. I also like that it has a tf card slot, though that doesn't matter for proxmox/opnsense. I also dislike the usb-pd input. If it can do 19v input, they should just use a dc barrel. Then you'll have options to run it from a pd charger with a 20v cable, or any other 19v adapter.
 

fta

Active Member
Feb 19, 2017
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5 and 6 ports do not make much sense.
It depends on how you like to set things up. For example, I have a management port, wan port, vlans port, lan port, and a test port. The test port has been invaluable in optimizing my routing/firewall/shaping setup. The sixth port I have bridged into the lan port and has low speed stuff connected to it.
 

gordinho

New Member
Jul 17, 2023
2
1
1
Anyone doing PPPoE and VPN for 1.5gb or more? Curious how future proof this is for us stuck on PPPoE providers.. my current pfsense box can't handle 1gbit over PPPoE while handling vlans etc so I need to upgrade.

That r86s looks awesome but if you have a n100 why not use it with some more VMs and a couple more ports I guess..
 
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alexw1982

Member
May 20, 2015
56
26
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Germany
I like the form factor too. But i dislike how expensive it is, compared to other options. I also like that it has a tf card slot, though that doesn't matter for proxmox/opnsense. I also dislike the usb-pd input. If it can do 19v input, they should just use a dc barrel. Then you'll have options to run it from a pd charger with a 20v cable, or any other 19v adapter.
Additionally, being limited to a 2242 NVME and soldered RAM would not outweight the form factor for me :)
 

jw1803

New Member
Sep 15, 2023
1
2
3
Trying to decide and order one from amazon europe (HUNSN store), and after reading more than 30 pages, still I'm not sure if the Y fins are preferred (run cooler) or the normal ones?

As it seems 5 and 6 ports have their disadvantages, so I'll go with the 4 ports one.
However, I don't see the difference is between RJ36 and RJ44. They look identical in the pics (Y fins), except one is 10 euro more expensive.

Any thoughts?
There are three editions of 4 ports:
1. 1 NVME x 4 and 4 USB 2.0
2. 1 NVME x 1, 2 SATA 3.0, 4 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0, and 1 USB C
3. 2 NVME x 1, 2 SATA 3.0, 5 USB 2.0 and 1 USB 3.0, and 1 USB C

Configuration 2 and 3 basically split 1 NVME x4 into SATA, USB 3.0 and USB C. Same for 5 ports and 6 ports configurations. You can just check the number of USB 3.0 ports to identity the differences.
 

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ToniCipriani

Member
Sep 6, 2023
40
22
8
What resources do you guys give OPNsense i proxmox? Cores, memory, hd space?
Mine's only 2 cores, 4GB memory and 40GB storage for now, close to what I put for pfSense bare metal previously. But then I only have a 25/10Mbps DSL connection to deal with, lol.
 

ToniCipriani

Member
Sep 6, 2023
40
22
8
There are three editions of 4 ports:
1. 1 NVME x 4 and 4 USB 2.0
2. 1 NVME x 1, 2 SATA 3.0, 4 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0, and 1 USB C
3. 2 NVME x 1, 2 SATA 3.0, 5 USB 2.0 and 1 USB 3.0, and 1 USB C

Configuration 2 and 3 basically split 1 NVME x4 into SATA, USB 3.0 and USB C. Same for 5 ports and 6 ports configurations. You can just check the number of USB 3.0 ports to identity the differences.
For the 6L version, I suspect the 2 NVMEs are configurable. There's this jumper on my board that seemingly disables one of the slots, so it might give an extra lane to the other slot, not sure.

Also shown is the internal USB 2.0 header, which I am planning to use for the Bluetooth portion of the wireless card I am putting in, just need the pinout for it.

Asking the seller for a clarification right now.
 

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TvdH

New Member
Jul 17, 2013
18
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The Netherlands
Due to good results with my CWWK N5105 at ~9W (Proxmox, 64GB, 2xNVMe), I'm condering an additional one based on the N100 as an NVMe based low power NAS.

Thinking about the N100 CW-AL-4L variant, which is the one with an M.2 x4 port. Will use the additional adapter board 1x4 to 4x1 to support 4 NVMe drivers. The CPU itself is a bit overpowered for NAS use. I have seen a few mentioning the adapter board in this thread (thanks for the pictures!), but have not yet seen someone actually using it as a little nas with up to 4 drivers. If so, please let me know as I'm currious about your experience so far.
 

alexw1982

Member
May 20, 2015
56
26
18
43
Germany
Due to good results with my CWWK N5105 at ~9W (Proxmox, 64GB, 2xNVMe), I'm condering an additional one based on the N100 as an NVMe based low power NAS.

Thinking about the N100 CW-AL-4L variant, which is the one with an M.2 x4 port. Will use the additional adapter board 1x4 to 4x1 to support 4 NVMe drivers. The CPU itself is a bit overpowered for NAS use. I have seen a few mentioning the adapter board in this thread (thanks for the pictures!), but have not yet seen someone actually using it as a little nas with up to 4 drivers. If so, please let me know as I'm currious about your experience so far.
Cooling might be a challenge because you cannot mount a fan if you put the adapter board in there. Depending on how busy the NAS is, the 4 NVMEs might get quite hot without air flow. However this could be solved with this 3d printable housing extension ...
 
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koyote

New Member
Sep 18, 2023
2
0
1
I like the form factor too. But i dislike how expensive it is, compared to other options. I also like that it has a tf card slot, though that doesn't matter for proxmox/opnsense. I also dislike the usb-pd input. If it can do 19v input, they should just use a dc barrel. Then you'll have options to run it from a pd charger with a 20v cable, or any other 19v adapter.
Yeah the price (and the fact that there does not seem to be anyone who's tested it) are the main factors keeping me away from it.
There's not even a picture of the internals as far as I can see :(