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    Optiplex 790 SFF 2011

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    • H
      HampsHump
      last edited by

      I am a newbie to pfSense. I have been reading all the good stuff here and watched a few videos on YouTube. I am excited about pfSense and want to give it a go.
      My experience is (very) limited to DD-WRT that I have been using for about 5 years. I have a working Optiplex 790 SFF, 2011 from a friend. It has a i5 2500 / 3.30GHz. I have installed a Tp-link 300Mbps PCI wifi adapter (TL-WN881ND) and have win 10 installed on it. Since it is not being used as intended, I would like to install pfSense and see how it goes.

      The top priority at home is wireless and everything else is secondary. I have 2 laptops, 2 desktops, printer, 2 handhelds, x-box, smart tv, roku, voip and about 5 phones.
      I am considering a used Intel Quad Port PCIe Ethernet Adapter Low Profile from ebay- suggestions are welcome. I would like to play around with it and improve my learning curve before I decide on a efficient future proof box. Are there any stumbling blocks that I need to watch for? Your suggestions are much appreciated.

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      • stephenw10S
        stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
        last edited by

        That 3.3GHz i5 is probably overkill unless you have a 1Gbps WAN and VPNs to setup.

        That wifi card probably is supported and that's relatively unusual, I don't know if you chose that especially for that reason?

        If you have only one Ethernet interface I would setup the box first with just that enabled. Trying to setup wifi as LAN as a first install would not be easy!

        With just one interface pfSense will allow you to connect to that address even if it's labelled WAN. Once you have that setup you can connect to it and add a firewall rule to prevent yourself being locked out and then assign the wifi card.

        Really though for best results you should add the quad port card and use an external access point.

        Steve

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        • V
          VAMike
          last edited by

          @HampsHump:

          I am a newbie to pfSense. I have been reading all the good stuff here and watched a few videos on YouTube. I am excited about pfSense and want to give it a go.
          My experience is (very) limited to DD-WRT that I have been using for about 5 years. I have a working Optiplex 790 SFF, 2011 from a friend. It has a i5 2500 / 3.30GHz. I have installed a Tp-link 300Mbps PCI wifi adapter (TL-WN881ND) and have win 10 installed on it. Since it is not being used as intended, I would like to install pfSense and see how it goes.

          The top priority at home is wireless and everything else is secondary. I have 2 laptops, 2 desktops, printer, 2 handhelds, x-box, smart tv, roku, voip and about 5 phones.
          I am considering a used Intel Quad Port PCIe Ethernet Adapter Low Profile from ebay- suggestions are welcome. I would like to play around with it and improve my learning curve before I decide on a efficient future proof box. Are there any stumbling blocks that I need to watch for? Your suggestions are much appreciated.

          Use an access point, don't try to use wifi in the pfsense box. It won't work well, and you'll waste a lot of time before you give up and get an access point.

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          • H
            HampsHump
            last edited by

            Thanks. Yep, bit of an overkill- just trying to put to use a machine that is not being used and at the same time save me some money.
            WiFi card- did not buy it deliberately for pfsense
            Ethernet- plan on getting a used 4 port NIC (as suggested on this forum)

            1. After installing quad port can I configure the wifi card effectively?
            2. Correct me if I am wrong. During installation you can configure WAN, LAN and Opt and via the UI you can assign Opt as wireless.(?)
            3. Can I use my tp-link router (has dd-wrt on it now) as an external AP? or do I need to invest in a Ubiquiti AP recommended on this forum?- its not cheap.
            4. Recommendations on a budget AP new or used?

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            • stephenw10S
              stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
              last edited by

              Yes, you can configure the wifi card after installation. At any time really.

              You can configure any number of interfaces during the initial install. Only one interface will allow you to connect by default though. If you assign only one interface that will be WAN. If you assign more than one then you will only be able to connect via LAN. Once you add firewall rules of course you can connect via any interface they allow.

              Yes you can use a modem/router/AP/switch combo device as an AP only.
              https://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/Use_an_existing_wireless_router_with_pfSense

              Steve

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              • H
                HampsHump
                last edited by

                Steve, Thanks. I will give it a try and will post with results.

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