Please recommend a mini-pci card (probably atheros) that actually works (as AP)

apfusertoo

Hello,

I am installing pfsense to RUN AS AN ACCESS POINT on an old Dell laptop that has a minipci slot inside.

I do not want to gamble with cards - I am happy to pay any amount of money, I just need to know what b/g/n minipci card (probably based on atheros) will JUST WORK on pfsense, running as an access point.

I will buy whatever part number you say, so just tell me what to buy :)

It's minipci, as you can see here:

https://fixitfriends.com/system/image/instruction_lines/000/000/111/Dell-Latitude-C640-Wireless-Card-Fitting-Angle_medium.jpg

Thanks.

apfusertoo

One clarification - this is NOT mini-pci-E, it is just plain old mini-pci …

Thanks.

pvoigt

I've been making good experiences with a Compex WLM54SAG23 200mW (miniPCI), 2,4/5GHz (a,b,g):
http://varia-store.com/Hardware/MiniPCI-cards/Compex-WLM54SAG23-200mW-miniPCI-2-4-5GHz-a-b-g::533.html

Peter

apfusertoo

@pvoigt:

I've been making good experiences with a Compex WLM54SAG23 200mW (miniPCI), 2,4/5GHz (a,b,g):
http://varia-store.com/Hardware/MiniPCI-cards/Compex-WLM54SAG23-200mW-miniPCI-2-4-5GHz-a-b-g::533.html

Peter

Thanks Peter. I am really hoping for a non-anecdotal, authoritative "THIS is the card we all know is THE ONE" but if I cannot get that, I will try this one.

Also I was hoping for b/g/n, but again, I appreciate your help.

dhatz

@apfusertoo:

I am installing pfsense to RUN AS AN ACCESS POINT on an old Dell laptop that has a minipci slot inside.

pfSense / FreeBSD 8.x support of Wifi isn't "production quality" yet (note: this will probably change soon; FreeBSD developer Adrian Chadd has been working tirelessly on Wifi for the past couple of years).

Your best option would be to use an external AP.

stephenw10

There is currently no support for 802.11N at all.
Some Atheros cards with 'N' hardware are now supported in 2.1Beta but only at 'G' speeds. You could get one of these with a view to future support. :-\

I am using an older AR5005G minipci card which uses the Atheros 2413 chip with no problems.

Steve

NOYB

What dhatz and stephenw10 said.

I wanted to do the same thing with my DELL notebook pfSense. But lack of N support is showstopper for me.
Went with NetGear WNDR4500 dual band in dedicated AP mode. (side benefit of additional 4 LAN ports)

wallabybob

@apfusertoo:

I am really hoping for a non-anecdotal, authoritative "THIS is the card we all know is THE ONE" but if I cannot get that, I will try this one.

There are some reasons why this is not possble now and probably won't be possible for some years:
1. Some suppliers change the chipsets used in their cards without changing the model number. In such a case one particular revision of the card might use a supported chipset while another revision might use an unsupported chipset.
2. Some chipset suppliers don't provide open access to programming data for their chipsets making it very difficult to write open source device drivers.
3. The FreeBSD kernel developer community seems considerably smaller than the linux kernel developer community so there are fewer people to write new device drivers or port device drivers from other open source operating systems.