How about this one from Lanner? http://www.lannerinc.com/products/x86-network-appliances/desktop/?option=com_content&view=article&id=1879:nca-1031&catid=26:desktop It looks great but having trouble finding a reasonably priced source… -dw [image: NCA-1031_front.jpg] [image: NCA-1031_back.jpg]

Consider fitlet-XA10-LAN I've been using it for almost a year now. Uptime is about 300 days. I recommended it to a friend recently who bought it for pfSense too. He has 360 Mbps on his Internet connection and is getting full throughput. I tested it with iPerf and got 700 Mbps in both directions LAN to WAN with firewall and NAT enabled. I got about 160 Mbps of IPSec throughput in both directions testing with iPerf. It supports AES-NI. If you buy it, read my post on this site on how to tune the hardware and firmware. Without tuning, the throughput will be less than 200 Mbps.

Ran into the same error when trying to install pfSense (current version 2.3.4) to a new embedded appliance (IBOX-501 N10/Protectli type device) with SSD or CF from a USB or CDROM. Cause of the issue is related to GPT (GUID Patition Table) marked media, and can affect either the new SSD, CF and/or the USB install media. Using Windows, this is how I was able to correct the issue. Using Windows 7 PC with administrative rights Connect SSD or CF media to the Windows PC Open a command prompt (with admin rights) Start the DISKPART utility by typing DISKPART type LIST DISK and note the number of the drive that will contain the pfSense installation type SELECT DISK (number) type CLEAN and wait for the task to complete type CONVERT MBR and wait for the task to complete type EXIT remove the SSD or CF drive Seems that some USB thumb drives are shipped from the factory with GPT instead of MBR. If installing pfSense from a USB drive use the same steps above to prepare the USB media. Seems SanDisk and some Corsair USB drives are shipped from the factory with GPT. After completion, a USB drive can be set up to install pfSense using Rufus.

Ran into the same error when trying to install pfSense (current version 2.3.4) to a new embedded appliance (IBOX-501 N10/Protectli type device) with SSD or CF from a USB or CDROM. Cause of the issue is related to GPT (GUID Patition Table) marked media, and can affect either the new SSD, CF and/or the USB install media. The media needs to be adjusted from GPT to MBR. Using Windows, this is how I was able to correct the issue. Using Windows 7 PC with administrative rights Connect SSD or CF media to the Windows PC Open a command prompt (with admin rights) Start the DISKPART utility by typing DISKPART type LIST DISK and note the number of the drive that will contain the pfSense installation type SELECT DISK (number) type CLEAN and wait for the task to complete type CONVERT MBR and wait for the task to complete type EXIT remove the SSD or CF drive from Windows and install into pfSense device Seems that some USB thumb drives are shipped from the factory with GPT instead of MBR. If installing from a USB drive use the same steps above to prepare the USB media. Seems SanDisk and some Corsair USB drives are shipped from the factory with GPT. After completion, a USB drive can be set up to install pfSense using Rufus.

@GTX: I can just get a 2.5 IDE drive and put it in without any adapters? Sorry for the delay. Most of those boxes come with an IDE connector suitable for connecting a laptop style drive in a caddy. You will need an adapter to connect between the actual 2.5" IDE 44pin connector and the connector on the board. It's mentioned here: https://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/PfSense_on_Watchguard_Firebox#Further_Enhancements_3 Here's an example: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/253003464107 As I said before you definitely don't want to spend too much here because the 32bit hardware in that box has limited life at this point. Thanks, Steve

Something like the HP NC360T which can be had in the US market for $20 or so in slot PCIE_16_2 would do the trick. That's an older PCIe x4 card designed for servers, and it has 2 ports driven by an Intel chipset.  Some other people on this board can recommend similar cards, perhaps ones that are available cheap in your region, but the main gist is that you can get an Intel server NIC with 2 or 4 ports pretty cheap on the used market. I'd expect that you'd see significant benefit simply by using a second PCIe NIC rather than your current PCI one, no matter the chipset, but probably  not realize 1Gbps throughput until you get something with an Intel chipset.  The Realtek chipsets get a bad rap with FreeBSD and pfSense because the driver support is not on par with drivers for other operating systems, specifically Windows and Linux. And finally, if your internet connection uses PPPoE for authentication, look specifically for a NIC that uses the 'em' driver for Intel chips.  The HP I mentioned above does, as do the PRO/1000 NICs (as far as I'm aware).  There is something about the 'em' driver that makes it perform better with PPPoE over the 'igb' driver that some of the newer Intel NICs use.

Hi, sorry for bringing up the old post, but i have tried usb modem ZTE MF-825A and it just works when i put it in, just use it as WAN and its done.

Are use a Dell R210,  with dual 1GB WAN  connections ,  my LAN  set up is all 10GB Fibre The R210 handles it nicely,  You can pick up R210s online extremely cheap Make sure you have the latest Dell BIOS,  and you'll barely hear the fans :-)

I  use a Dell R210II - Xeon - 12GB ram, 250SSD With DUAL 1GB WAN  connections from two different providers No issues whatsoever handles it like a breeze, You can grab the R210's cheap

SSDs are so cheap now I wouldn't use in the other drive for any purpose.

I know this is an old post but I wanted to mention  I am using A Dell R210 II , Xeon/12GB Ram/250 GB SSD With the dual 1GB WAN  connections  From two different providers handles it with no problem,  We have 85 customers who back up to our location every night,  don't even notice them  when using the Internet / Network.

That's not a fault  …. It's a QOTOM "feature"  ;) Mac  Phys port  BSD name ----------------------------- xx6F    1          igb0 xx70    4          igb1 xx71    2          igb2 xx72    3          igb3 That's the layout on my i5 , and a lot of other people reports the same "swap". Now that you know it, you can just cable accordingly. If it were linux you could swap the ifname vs mac-addr , i don't know if you can on FreeBSD. But i don't see it as a problem , just a minor inconvenience. /Bingo

It refers to whether or not the NIC hardware takes care of the VLAN encapsulation/decapsulation or not. If it doesn't, the software has to examine all incoming packets, regardless of VLAN tag, to determine if it is relevant to the system, leading to higher CPU usage. If you only have a couple of VLANs and moderate traffic loads, this setting is inconsequential, but if you are plugging into a 10-Gig trunk port with many VLANs each carrying lots of traffic, then yes, you'd want that.

A lot of sellers on Aliexpress, eBay and Amazon call their stuff "pfSense firewall" without our permission. A lot of them preload pfSense, which is also against our policies. Including Qotom and their Protectli reseller. Is it OK (authorized) for the vendor to call it a "pfSense firewall"? Not OK.

@messerchmidt: E3 1220l v2 has more muscle, but uses more power. the later cpus use considerably less, but at a cost. I would go e3 1220, but up to you Do you know e3 1220l v2 idle power usage? I searched but all I came across was E3 1220v1.. and it used around 17-25w depending on the motherboard. considering V2 is Ivy and 17w vs 20w. it should use bit lower. But I couldn't find actual data. thanks,