Soekris net6501 - full install on SLC mSATA?
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Serial is serial, so I suspect that your work will be helpful on Soekris. :)
In the past I have run RC releases at home, but that was when there was a feature in the RC that I needed… what is new in 2.1? Now that I have an mSATA I can "fall back to" in the case, I could load up RC on a USB drive.
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Thanks for all your feedback. I'm planing to buy a net6501 in Q3/Q4 2013 for running pfSense as soon as I've saved the money for it. However, there are only very few shops selling Soekris in Germany. Maybe, I will have to buy at Soekris Europe.
I don't know of anyone other than Soekris.com that sells Soekris boards in the US. Looks like the Europe store is your best bet.
It's good to hear that heat is not a problem even with the -70 model. I'm currently having three options in mind for running pfSense: 1.) Transcend SLC mSATA, 2.) 2,5'' 5400 rpm SATA harddsik (probalbly Western Digital) 3.) Transcend 4 GiB CF (150x) with SATA2CF converter. Options 2.) and 3.) are being used with different hardware at this time.
For NanoBSD on mSATA, I booted the serial memstick and imaged it on-the-fly (fetch -o - http://somewhere/whatever-2g.img.gz | gzip -dc | dd of=/dev/adX, obviously not exactly that, but essentially)
You can get USB to mSATA adapters and image that way, but I didn't want to spend anything more on it.
Big Scary NOTE: If you want to run NanoBSD on the mSATA, you must use these settings: http://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Boot_Troubleshooting#NanoBSD_on_Newer_Hardware
Useful information in Q3/Q4 2013 for me when - hopefully - having my own Soekris box. However, I've not yet found any USB to mSATA adapter.
I would strongly recommend AGAINST a spinning drive inside a Soekris, at least not for the main media. Maybe as a secondary location to run a Squid cache (which you can disable if the drive fails), but the heat wouldn't be the best thing for it. If you did insist on using a rotational disk, look for drives rated for industrial or automotive use - they are able to handle higher temperatures.
I don't know if USB to mSATA exists. You can get mSATA to standard SATA converter boards though, and then you can use a typical "drive rescue" connector that has standard SATA connectors on it.
I don't see the point of your option #3 (CF + CF to SATA converter), unless you have SLC CF cards and you are running a full install from there instead of embedded. The serial-console platforms really run well with the NanoBSD embedded installs, which are already tuned to generate ZERO writes to the media other than config changes and RRD & DHCPD databases (if you enable periodic saving of these).
My net6501 was running NanoBSD from a tiny 4GB USB drive without any problems. The net6501 even has an internal USB port, so if you get a small enough drive (Sandisk Cruzer Fit for example) it can be installed inside the case. I was using mine outside just so I could remove it if necessary to reflash, but I never really had to touch it.
I only replaced it with mSATA because I didn't like how long it took to duplicate slices on the slow USB stick. mSATA is quite a bit faster.
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@bradenmcg:
I don't know of anyone other than Soekris.com that sells Soekris boards in the US. Looks like the Europe store is your best bet.
Thanks for your advice. It's interesting to hear that even in the US there are rare but none Soekris sellers. Today I've googled around and even found one German shop not too far from home: bytemine Shop.
@bradenmcg:
I would strongly recommend AGAINST a spinning drive inside a Soekris, at least not for the main media. Maybe as a secondary location to run a Squid cache (which you can disable if the drive fails), but the heat wouldn't be the best thing for it. If you did insist on using a rotational disk, look for drives rated for industrial or automotive use - they are able to handle higher temperatures.
I don't see the point of your option #3 (CF + CF to SATA converter), unless you have SLC CF cards and you are running a full install from there instead of embedded. The serial-console platforms really run well with the NanoBSD embedded installs, which are already tuned to generate ZERO writes to the media other than config changes and RRD & DHCPD databases (if you enable periodic saving of these).
My net6501 was running NanoBSD from a tiny 4GB USB drive without any problems. The net6501 even has an internal USB port, so if you get a small enough drive (Sandisk Cruzer Fit for example) it can be installed inside the case. I was using mine outside just so I could remove it if necessary to reflash, but I never really had to touch it.
I only replaced it with mSATA because I didn't like how long it took to duplicate slices on the slow USB stick. mSATA is quite a bit faster.
You're probably right when advising not to use spining parts. My option #3 is intended for a NanoBSD and not a full install. I've been making good experiences with it in combination with a Jetway board. To be honest, my favorite is the SLC mSATA with a NanoBSD image. When studying the Soekris website today afternoon I've seen the internal USB option. It's much cheaper than the mSATA solution. Good to know that its reliable.
Did you try any wireless card with the net6501? Will Ubiquiti SR71-E work under pfSense 2.0.3 with net6501 at 802.11g speed? Interesting is that the datasheet specifies an AR9220 while it is mostly described as based on an AR9280.
Do you recommend the Soekris standard desktop case or the Soekris 19" rack case? I suppose the rack case offers more space, e.g. PCIe card plus harddisk and has power supply included.
Peter
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My Soekris installations are on small shelves / etc so the smaller case works for me. It is not in an area where I would want wifi - I use an Apple Airport in bridge mode as an AP in the main portion of my house, and then I have an older DLink A/B/G AP (dual-band) that I use to cover my garage.
If you have a standard 19" rack then the rackmount case is nice. Also the rackmount case includes PSU. The smaller cases use an external power brick - it isn't very large, but it's one more thing to keep track of.
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@bradenmcg:
My Soekris installations are on small shelves / etc so the smaller case works for me. It is not in an area where I would want wifi - I use an Apple Airport in bridge mode as an AP in the main portion of my house, and then I have an older DLink A/B/G AP (dual-band) that I use to cover my garage.
If you have a standard 19" rack then the rackmount case is nice. Also the rackmount case includes PSU. The smaller cases use an external power brick - it isn't very large, but it's one more thing to keep track of.
Currently I tend to buying the 19" rack: More space and included PSU. I do not have a professional 19" rack but a wide wooden shelve originally ment beeing used as furniture. It's width is ~19" and it is currently only carrying one real 19" device. So I could live with both options. But I still have one unused Transcend 8 GiB 2,5" SLC SATA flash device that I would like to test with the Soekris machine (NanoBSD installation). I do not want to consume the space which might be needed by a later PCIe x 1 card. That's why I tend to the 19" rack.
Peter
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I also put an atheros mini-pci-e wifi card in mine, drilled a couple antenna holes in the PCI expansion slot cover, and stuck on some Antennas. I should really experiment more with that one of these days, I haven't really put it through its paces.
Could you please tell me the model of the miniPCIe wifi card or at least the chipset. Might it be AR9220 or AR9280? Is it working correctly an g speed?
Peter
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I also put an atheros mini-pci-e wifi card in mine, drilled a couple antenna holes in the PCI expansion slot cover, and stuck on some Antennas. I should really experiment more with that one of these days, I haven't really put it through its paces.
Could you please tell me the model of the miniPCIe wifi card or at least the chipset. Might it be AR9220 or AR9280? Is it working correctly an g speed?
It was an AR5xxx card, a pull from an Acer Aspire One netbook. I don't have it in the Soekris (I had to hastily put it to use with an hdd so the wifi bits had to come out, the way I wired it up the antennas were in the way)
I have a mini-pci AR9280 in my ALIX right now on 2.1 and it works fine though in 802.11g. I suspect the pci-e equivalent would be OK, but can't say for certain.
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It was an AR5xxx card, a pull from an Acer Aspire One netbook. I don't have it in the Soekris (I had to hastily put it to use with an hdd so the wifi bits had to come out, the way I wired it up the antennas were in the way)
I have a mini-pci AR9280 in my ALIX right now on 2.1 and it works fine though in 802.11g. I suspect the pci-e equivalent would be OK, but can't say for certain.
Ah, thanks, sounds good. I will give my unused Ubiquiti SR71-E (miniPCIe) a try before buying anything else.
Peter
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Sorry for bringing back an old thread but i've ordered a 6501-70 with slc msata ssd. Are the changes required for booting from msata listed here: http://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Boot_Troubleshooting#NanoBSD_on_Newer_Hardware
persistent across updates? This is going to be installed remotely and i'd like to limit any possible complications. If an update is capable of stopping the device from booting I think I will go with a USB drive install over msata (will be nanobsd regardless). Thanks!
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Sorry for bringing back an old thread but i've ordered a 6501-70 with slc msata ssd. Are the changes required for booting from msata listed here: http://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Boot_Troubleshooting#NanoBSD_on_Newer_Hardware
persistent across updates? This is going to be installed remotely and i'd like to limit any possible complications. If an update is capable of stopping the device from booting I think I will go with a USB drive install over msata (will be nanobsd regardless). Thanks!
Yes, changes to loader.conf.local are preserved across updates.
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Sorry for bringing back an old thread but i've ordered a 6501-70 with slc msata ssd. Are the changes required for booting from msata listed here: http://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Boot_Troubleshooting#NanoBSD_on_Newer_Hardware
persistent across updates? This is going to be installed remotely and i'd like to limit any possible complications. If an update is capable of stopping the device from booting I think I will go with a USB drive install over msata (will be nanobsd regardless). Thanks!
Yes, changes to loader.conf.local are preserved across updates.
Excellent, thank for clearing that up jimp!
