Wifi Access Point with pfSense

[lilivetlsedu31]

Hello to all
I have installed a pfsense and I would like to be able to create a wifi access point.
I have several network cards but they don't seem to be recognised.
the pc is a : HP ProDesk 600 G3 Mini
the wifi cards are: intel dual band wireless -n 7260
or ALFA Network AWUS036NHA
Could you help me please?

[JKnott]

@lilivetlsedu31

The best thing to do is buy a proper access point. They can be put in the best location and often use PoE, so you don't need to have AC power handy.

[johnpoz]

Freebsd which is what pfsense runs on, not really wifi friendly.. I don't even believe they support AC?

As mention - best option is to buy an actual AP.. Shoot even some $20 soho wifi router used as just as AP would be better then trying to run it off some wifi card in pfsense.

Typical use case - would be take the wifi router you were using before you upgraded to pfsense as your router, and just use it as AP..

[stephenw10]

The Intel AC 7260 is supported by the iwm(4) driver but only in 802.11N mode and not in hostap mode, it cannot be an access point.

The AWUS036NHA is an Atheros AR9271 device which I don't believe is supported in FreeBSD.

But, yeah, use an external access point.

Steve

[Garrett 0]

I had a similar issue: Dell 9020m with m.2 slot, but needing to use a mpcie. I picked up an Atheros 9280 card and used this adapter in mine: “M.2 (NGFF) Key A/E/A+E to Mini PCI-E Adapter with FFC Cable”

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JFYSNVL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Works perfectly for me (but I had to get creative with mounting it).

Of course, an external AP would be less hassle. I am partial to Ruckus APs for their incredible antennas and software. You can find them on eBay.