IBM System x3550 M2

GabrieleMax

Hi guys,

this server was used for VmWare environment but now I'd like to use it like a PfSense Firewall but I tried a lot of time to install it and the first reboot fails always! :(

Here you can find the details of the server:
https://ibb.co/SQPDNmy
https://ibb.co/QDC4vHs
https://ibb.co/pjqLnBn
https://ibb.co/zXSsr4H
https://ibb.co/B4FYFfN
https://ibb.co/mzJCT90
https://ibb.co/kV76h9F

Regards.
GabrieleMax

stephenw10

All of those screenshots show the raid controller setup.

Where does it actually fail to boot? What error is shown?

I assume it boots the installer correctly and the install itself completes without errors?

What target drive did you install to?

Steve

mvikman

Did you actually set the the RAID arrays Virtual Drive as boot drive?
Looking at the last pic, it says "current=None"

But yeah, more info needed on the boot failure and possible errors.

GabrieleMax

@mvikman

I solved the issue, these are the steps:

Now after the first reboot PfSense is loaded but before I start to configure it I'd like to know if I choosed the right steps here below my dubts:

Should I choose Legacy (Auto UFS BIOS) and not UEFI (Auto UFS UEFI) installation?
In the partion scheme should I choose BSD or GPT?

Maybe you saw the errors at he point 5 and 6 but automatically the system finished the installation and I think these are not problems but I don't know for the use of the f.w. in the future ...

Regards.
GabrieleMax

stephenw10

Any of those combinations should work as long as the hardware/BIOS supports it.

I would personally choose ZFS on a large disk like that. The snapshots feature ZFS offers can be invaluable.

Steve

GabrieleMax

@stephenw10

Thanks for you reply! :)

I tried on https://ibb.co/YtbMRrb to use "Auto (ZFS)" but I had a boot loop and the o.s. wasn't load!

Now I could choose from BIOS (Legacy) and UEFI, maybe you read what happened at the end of the installation by UEFI and I don't know if that "issue" could be a problem during the f.w. using, could/should try with Legacy option or https://ibb.co/ZLkQx4P is not a problem?

Regards.
GabrieleMax

stephenw10

Those errors are a concern but if you only see them during install and not during normal operation I wouldn't be overly concerned.

Generally pfSense works better without hardware raid controllers in my experience. If you want to use raid using two disks in a ZFS mirror.

Steve

GabrieleMax

@stephenw10

I totally agree with you, I have other three PfSense (two 2.6.0 and one 2.5.2 which I should upgrade) and the hardware configuration is like what you said!

Tomorrow when I'll come to the office I'll remove two of the fours disks and I'll re-install PfSense in ZFS mode, I prefer to remove the hardware which I don't need to take care them in a drawer!

Regards.
GabrieleMax

Sergei_Shablovsky

@GabrieleMax said in IBM System x3550 M2:

@stephenw10

Tomorrow when I'll come to the office I'll remove two of the fours disks and I'll re-install PfSense in ZFS mode, I prefer to remove the hardware which I don't need to take care them in a drawer!

Let’s put my 5c on this:

x3550 M2 are old, but sufficient machine for pfSense, especially You give them 2 x Xeon X5690 (same stepping and version! + GREAT thermal grease!) and 24Gb of 1.333 ECC RAM (Hynix, Micron, Nanya…) AND switch OFF ALL unused hardware (except DVD/CD) and COM port sharing/redirects;
not forgot to FW update ALL (IMM -> uEFI -> DSA -> RAID -> backplane -> HDD -> onboard NIC) from IBM Support web System x3550 M2, 7978
FW UPDATE ARE IMPORTANT!

And better to replace HDD on SSD (better to set 2 in mirror as system and other 2 in mirror as for system logs exclusively).

And this hoarse able to grinding 5Gb traffic with Suricata/Snort + bunch of FW rules, VPNs and shapers… ;)

You may sure that this x3550 m2 working for You next 5-8+ years.
(Just buy 1 x EXTRA PSU (power supply unit) for hot-spare change if one of old would die because capacitors die.)