New Build - AMD System - OpenVPN & Firewall Useage
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Hi All
I know there are Plenty of Threads that are like mine, but i dont wish to Thread Hi-Jack
Looking for Recommendations on the AMD Systems (I prefer AMD & used to Building AMD) so ideally looking for something on an ITX Platform.
Needs to handle 10 to 80meg Sec OpenVPN & PPPOE/PPPOA on the WAN
Thansk!
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Hi All
I know there are Plenty of Threads that are like mine, but i dont wish to Thread Hi-Jack
Looking for Recommendations on the AMD Systems (I prefer AMD & used to Building AMD) so ideally looking for something on an ITX Platform.
Needs to handle 10 to 80meg Sec OpenVPN & PPPOE/PPPOA on the WAN
Thansk!
For 80Mbps OpenVPN the requirements aren't high. The APU2C4 is a tiny AMD-powered SOC with 3 Intel chipset NICs. That's where I'd look first.
But.. for an ITX system, I have a couple AM1 builds that have been really good to me. In fact, my current pfSense setup is running on one (albeit as a VM). I'd go with any of the available quad-core AM1 CPUs and 4GB of RAM, a small SSD, and a NIC such as the HP360T. All of the AM1 boards I've seen have a PCIe X16 slot that is X4 electrically. Very suitable for even a 4 port 1Gbps NIC. All the boards I've seen also have a Realtek 1Gbps NIC onboard, which will be fine for lower throughput requirements, but for $20-$40 USD for a used Intel chipset server NIC, I haven't felt the need to use it except for testing. In other words, you need to buy a NIC anyway, why not just buy a decent one with 2 or more ports.
One thing I've run into is that depending on the board you get, the fan control for the CPU cooler included with the AM1 CPUs can be hit or miss. There's no PWM; it's simply 3 wires. I've gotten around that with various fan-speed reducing adapters (either resistors or rewiring for 7 volts instead of 12). You can passively cool these CPUs in the right case. Google AM1 cooler and you should find some passive options. It doesn't take much; these are 25W parts at most, and they have a fairly beefy GPU compared to their competition from Intel. Since you're not using the GPU (except for basic console output) the actual power consumption even under full CPU load should be much lower than rated. My Sempron 2650 as a MythTV frontend uses a 60W PicoPSU and some generic 12V 4.5A adapter I had lying around and that's more than enough power, and that build uses the GPU for video decoding.
Good luck!
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Hi Whosmatt.
Thanks very much for the reply! Was actually looking at AM1 myself.
Your reply is greatly appreciated and thanks for the time you put into the reply…
Was looking at ITX and a basic setup, I've already purchased a Dual Port HP Network Card of sorts.
I also have a fibre card that I had from a previous Employment. I could use that in common junction with a good Switch.
Options are Endless.
Thanks for your help again, I shall definitely lean towards the AN1 Build with the additional Hardware!
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I also have a fibre card that I had from a previous Employment. I could use that in common junction with a good Switch.
Options are Endless.
Thanks for your help again, I shall definitely lean towards the AN1 Build with the additional Hardware!
Options are indeed endless. I would actually like to amend my suggestion to recommend specifically either the Athlon 5350 or the 5150. The Sempron CPUs are quite capable as well, but due to their lower clock speeds, they need a bit of trickery to best the ~75Mbps mark on OpenVPN. My 2650 could only manage about 70Mbps before I implemented multiple simultaneous clients. My Athlon 5350 was able to basically double that with a single client. I ended up downgrading my WAN connection, which is why I'm now able to use it as a VM host rather than running pfSense directly.
Also, if you're still looking at motherboards, I have two AM1 boards, the MSI AM1I and the ECS KAM1-I. Of those two, the MSI board is far better, though both are stable. The ECS board has issues with fan speed control for the CPU heatsink. That's the one I had to resort to adapter cables to slow the CPU fan down. Heat isn't a problem. But… The ECS board has a mini pcie socket... all depends on what you want I guess.
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Oh Blinder, I'm in the UK so older Processors or those that are considered Budget was tricky to get hold of at a good price..
And yes, I'm in the Market for both, either & or…
I did see Athlon floating about so I could look into that, but even second hand, people asking a fair bit for low end hardware, another 10 pounds geta you it brand new in most cases .
If your in the UK, would you be willing to part with any of your spare? At a price of course..
Again, thanks for the time out to drop the Advice, really appreciated!.
Thanks :)
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If your in the UK
I'm not, sorry. Not sure what pricing is like there but I think I spent $70 US for my 5350 and motherboard. That's what makes it so attractive. Simply blows away anything in that price range from Intel, IMO. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great hardware; about on par with my old Q6600, which was a beast of a CPU in its day, but I wouldn't spend a lot of money on it.
I think AM1 kind of stands alone in the market as a super cheap low power alternative to embedded solutions, one that offers amenities like PCIe slots. But it only makes sense at a certain price point. That's my opinion.
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I Happen to agree, AMD do a great platform for tasks such as this.
Including Home Audio & Video too!
I choose AMD as I just don't like the price tag for the performance. I prefer AMD as it "Just works" but yes, that's my Opinion in turn..
Question I need to ask, which may sounds daft! But does AMD AES Implementation the same as Intel's AES NI as AMD Just say "AES"
Would I be right in saying AMD use AES as a general term for all?
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Question I need to ask, which may sounds daft! But does AMD AES Implementation the same as Intel's AES NI as AMD Just say "AES"
Would I be right in saying AMD use AES as a general term for all?
It's a standard implemented by both Intel and AMD. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AES_instruction_set. So, in a basic sense, the software implements instructions to take advantage of AES-NI, regardless of vendor.
EDIT: To be clear, when AMD says "AES" they mean that their CPUs support AES-NI. The only x86 CPUs I can think of that are remotely "modern" and are discussed on this board that do NOT support AES-NI are Intel's J-1900 and family.
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Ahhhh Fantastic was just confusing when people say "This CPU has AES-NI" where as it just says "AES" for the most part..
Again, really appreciate your help, it's been a pleasure! I'm sure I'll be around to ask further stupid questions no doubt.
Love me some learning curve :D
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Love me some learning curve :D
Me too! And you're not asking stupid questions. We're all here to help and hopefully learn something.