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    Intel NUC-like recommendations for home usage? (100MB fiber & ~3 VPN users)

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    • X
      xelibri
      last edited by

      @BlueKobold:

      Perhaps in Canada? Its available for $192 there (APU1D4)!

      Whish my english was that good. :P I'm actually from Finland. :)

      Today I've noticed that MSI has also released some very solid boxes http://ipc.msi.com/product/pages/ipc/MS-9A69.html which might be perfect for pfSense. Knowing MSI I'm sure these models won't be as cheap as those chinese ones.

      Yes you are right that buying random box from Aliexpress is a bit of a risk when it comes to HW support.

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      • ?
        Guest
        last edited by

        If your budget does not permit more then give it a try. If its first rig then why not..I just went off on a brand tangent!!!

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        • ?
          Guest
          last edited by

          Whish my english was that good. :P I'm actually from Finland. :)

          Ok here we go, the PC Engines APU 1D4 is able to get here from the Varia-Store as a
          complete bundle pre-installed with pfSense! Board, Case, PSU and 16 GB mSATA for 250 €
          but if you buy this things all as a single spare part you only have to pay 187 € and then a
          WiFi card could also be in the game for you if this is a must be and on top the shipping cost
          of ~13 € (12.49 €) they are shipping world wide to nearly every country in the world!

          The language can be changed to english in the upper right corner:
          PC Engines Bundle

          Single spare parts of the PC Engines APU:
          Board ~169 €
          PC Engines Enclosure for APU1D Series ~14 €
          16 GB mSATA ~34 €
          Null modem cable ~2 €
          A PSU must match the coutry regulations of Finland and is able to get for ~6 € - 7 € also in the shop.
          Shipping cost ~13 €

          are in total amount of money = 239 € and you got all you need to install pfSense!

          Available spare parts that could match also or could be interesting also for you are the following:
          UBNT SR71-E ~40 €
          Compex WLE200NX ~25 €
          (Two WiFi miniPCIe cards)

          Wall mount kit for the APU case ~10 €
          (able to chose over the drop down menu from the case section)

          ALIX RTC Batterie Kit ~6 €
          (Spare part CMOS battery)
          PC ENGINES Flash recovery board for apu ~17 €
          (If something went wrong with an BIOS update!)
          SATA data / Power Y-cable for APU
          (to hug up a SSD or HDD)

          Today I've noticed that MSI has also released some very solid boxes http://ipc.msi.com/product/pages/ipc/MS-9A69.html which might be perfect for pfSense. Knowing MSI I'm sure these models won't be as cheap as those chinese ones.

          But there is no price out now and this was only promoted in the press until now and not launched yet.

          Yes you are right that buying random box from Aliexpress is a bit of a risk when it comes to HW support.

          If money is the real problem you could also save some more month your money and then you will be able
          to buy something more fancy but the APU board is one of the most common boards used for pfSense and
          other firewalls without the need of all packets and services, as you was also describing it here.

          And if at any day some or more GB LAN Ports are needed or a real HDD/SSD sould be installed
          you could then go with this two things to upgrade the appliance pfSense since 2.2.x is supporting it.
          APU case for SSD and two more GB LAN ports
          miniPCIe > 2 GB LAN Ports

          Or if at some days it must be a 19" solution for a cabinet or rack mount so you can easily go with this case
          here also from the Varia-Store, so this APU board is widely used and supported to do or realize anything you
          might to go or wish to do. 19" dual case

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          • M
            messerchmidt
            last edited by

            Shuttle DS57U3 series

            you need to go i3+ to get aes-ni: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101163

            i would just diy my own pc in a matx or itx build

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            • M
              messerchmidt
              last edited by

              this is cheaper

              http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173097

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              • S
                switchman
                last edited by

                @xelibri:

                Isn't this http://www.hystou.com/products/mini-pc-thin-client/mini-desktop-computer/barebone-fanless-mini-computer-desktop-pc-intel-celeron-1037u-htpc-alloy-case-with-usb30-1084.html way smarter choice because of better price and faster CPU? Physically it is a bit bigger but that is not a problem especially for this price difference.

                There's a whole thread on these boxes, https://forum.pfsense.org/index.php?topic=75415.0.  Basic consensus, by people that own them is that they appear to work fine, if you get the version with the intel nics.  I have one and there are no issues.  I use it as a pure router, no wireless or other functions.  I purchased mine from here, http://www.aliexpress.com/store/800900.  This is the basic info I posted about it, https://forum.pfsense.org/index.php?topic=75415.msg489551#msg489551.

                There is no support, so if there are any issues, you must pay to ship back to china.  If you want support, I would suggest a name brand board.  I would probably go with one new atom boards if I was building one now.  As you want three VPNs, I would probably stay away from this board.

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                • X
                  xelibri
                  last edited by

                  Does anyone know which ethernet chip this model http://www.pcpsol.com/index.php?m=Products&a=show&id=113 is using? So far it looks to be the best among MSI http://ipc.msi.com/product/pages/ipc/MS-9A69.html

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                  • X
                    xelibri
                    last edited by

                    OK. After doing some research I found out that EMB-S294B1-M is using Realtek's NICs so that's about it.

                    At this moment the only i3 boxes which are using Intel NICs are:

                    MSI MS-9A69 & Shuttle DS57U3

                    MSI is almost impossible to buy atm and Shuttle is over 400€(after RAM and SSD/USB storage). :( The hunt goes on…

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                    • X
                      xelibri
                      last edited by

                      Has anyone spoted any new NUC-like models with Intel's LAN chips & HW AES-NI support?

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • jahonixJ
                        jahonix
                        last edited by

                        Your best bet is still:
                        https://store.pfsense.org/SG-2220/    or
                        http://store.netgate.com/ADI/RCC-DFF-2220.aspx

                        With your purchase you support this project AND you get 1 year Gold-Membership ($99) with all the benefits as well.

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                        • E
                          edwardwong
                          last edited by

                          @BlueKobold:

                          @xelibri:

                          Isn't this http://www.hystou.com/products/mini-pc-thin-client/mini-desktop-computer/barebone-fanless-mini-computer-desktop-pc-intel-celeron-1037u-htpc-alloy-case-with-usb30-1084.html way smarter choice because of better price and faster CPU? Physically it is a bit bigger but that is not a problem especially for this price difference.

                          It is a really shiny platform but do you know if this is or will be supported by pfSense?
                          If it runs not on this bare bone you spend money for nothing! But to make a break between all the solutions
                          or to come closer to the point that you will be able to build one good box, it could be that this ready to go
                          solution is able to buy for you.
                          Jetway 4 GB LAN Port
                          Jetway 5 GB LAN Port

                          Otherwise it would be goo to know what exactly your budget is! This will help many times more then
                          we play here a guesswork game.

                          Don't choose the 5xLAN one, it's 1 x LAN onboard + 4 x LAN using daughter board, which is PCI-E x1 only, definitely won't be able to run at full speed at the same time.

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                          • X
                            xelibri
                            last edited by

                            @jahonix:

                            Your best bet is still:
                            https://store.pfsense.org/SG-2220/    or
                            http://store.netgate.com/ADI/RCC-DFF-2220.aspx

                            With your purchase you support this project AND you get 1 year Gold-Membership ($99) with all the benefits as well.

                            As I've already stated I do not want Atom box because of poor AES-NI support.

                            I've just found this box under 200€ (excluding RAM) with dual Intel NICs: http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Partaker-I4-Mini-Computer-Fanless-Mini-PC-Windows-10-Core-i3-4010U-i5-4200U-i7-4510U/32608793402.html

                            ps. Thans for the Prime Circle tip. Based on a few songs they sound very good. ;)

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                            • JeGrJ
                              JeGr LAYER 8 Moderator
                              last edited by

                              As I've already stated I do not want Atom box because of poor AES-NI support.

                              That is not a very informed decision of you. You can't compare earlier 3-digit Atom CPUs with current top of the Line Atoms like the Exxxx or even the mentioned C2000 Atom Cores. Those are FAR better than their old bad reputation. As already confirmed, a C2758 Appliance for example DOES support AES-NI AND QuickAssist and can easily rund and encrypt near Gigabit wirespeed. A C2358 or C2558 (the 2 and 4 core variants) are also having support for AES and QA and do happen to satisfy those, that need around 100-200MBit/s fully encrypted. So no need for strange or shady desktop'ish CPUs with high TDPs.

                              Don't forget to upvote 👍 those who kindly offered their time and brainpower to help you!

                              If you're interested, I'm available to discuss details of German-speaking paid support (for companies) if needed.

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                              • E
                                edwardwong
                                last edited by

                                Can you be more specific, what do you mean by "poor AES-NI support"?
                                The ATOM CPU is running a different AES-NI instruction, or something else? My understanding is, the instructions are the same for all Intel CPU if they are marked as "AES-NI" capacble

                                @xelibri:

                                @jahonix:

                                Your best bet is still:
                                https://store.pfsense.org/SG-2220/    or
                                http://store.netgate.com/ADI/RCC-DFF-2220.aspx

                                With your purchase you support this project AND you get 1 year Gold-Membership ($99) with all the benefits as well.

                                As I've already stated I do not want Atom box because of poor AES-NI support.

                                I've just found this box under 200€ (excluding RAM) with dual Intel NICs: http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Partaker-I4-Mini-Computer-Fanless-Mini-PC-Windows-10-Core-i3-4010U-i5-4200U-i7-4510U/32608793402.html

                                ps. Thans for the Prime Circle tip. Based on a few songs they sound very good. ;)

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • X
                                  xelibri
                                  last edited by

                                  Another solid option for pfSense HW: https://geizhals.eu/shuttle-xpc-slim-ds68u-peb-ds68u001-a1525974.html

                                  http://www.shuttle.eu/fileadmin/resources/download/docs/spec/barebones/DS68U_e.pdf

                                  • Dual Intel NICs
                                  • AES-NI support
                                  • Various storage options (SD card, USB, SSD etc)

                                  Quite solid price even with a single 2 or 4GB DDR3 memory stick.

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • M
                                    messerchmidt
                                    last edited by

                                    zoltac ci323/ci325

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                                    • W
                                      W4RH34D
                                      last edited by

                                      One of the new NUC's has thunderbolt.

                                      Does BSD support external pci cages for nics?

                                      Did you really check your cables?

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