Replacing FW6E for 2.5 gbe

[billybobkent]

I got a FW6E just under a year, at the time I was looking for a 2.5 gbe device to have some future proofing but there wasn't a lot of options then. I realized I have 1.2Gbps internet not just 1Gbps recently so I was looking at a N5105 or N6005 4x2.5 Gbe unit to replace my FW6E OPNSense firewall. I am leaning towards the N6005 even though it is a lot slower than my current FW6E that has a 5800U in it (almost 5x faster). I definiately over spec'd the firewall for my usage ( I don't expose ports and I don't run anything else on the device).

I started to read through the Topton thread and seems they are a gamble.
I don't mind waiting for AliExpress if it is considerably faster than Amazon, I still need to replace my Cable Modem and get a switch as I run 1gbe everywhere except a dedicated 10Gbe link between my proxmox and main PC.

I did a speedtest and noticed my FW6E peaks around 10-23% CPU during the test, I know it isn't a perfect test but that's pushing N6005 limits.

I'm not in a rush to upgrade as the extra 200Mbps isn't going to change much since I still have 40Mbps uploads but the options are much cheaper than I expected and I do want to get a 10gbe switch for Internet, NAS, and upgrading to wifi 6.

Seems grabbing one while there is still black friday pricing might make it worth doing now.

I'd also love a suggestion on a i7 unit with 2.5 gbe I might replace my Intel 2011 Proxmox server to save some power. i7 units with 2.5 Gbps are about half the passmark score as the FW6E.

 

[billybobkent]

I currently have a FW6E (5800U) which is more than enough for 1Gbps. I want to switch to a 2.5Gbe device, and I am not sure the N5105/N6005 will be enough, when I run a speed test I notice the CPU peaks around 15-23% which is roughly close to the max of the N5105 and N6005 is you compare passmark scores and take the % difference.

I suspect in real world use, it will be fine, but I also read some of the TopTon thread and reliability of the N5105/N6005 seem to be questionable. I regret buy the FW6E a little less than a year ago, but at the time getting 2.5 Gbe wasn't as easy. I'm not in a rush to upgrade as the difference isn't going to be huge from 1Gbe, but seems picking on up now at black friday prices might not be a bad idea.