Hardware for pfSense

[Caveman]

Hey

Im stuck and cant decide which solution to go for, suggestions are welcome!

Option 1: Shuttle DS67U
Intel Celeron 3855U 1.6GHz 15W 2 Core, no HT
2 x Intel NIC (i211 / i219)
https://www.amazon.com/Shuttle-DS67U-Skylake-Celeron-Gigabit/dp/B01E01GU9Y

Option 2: Shuttle DH170 + G4560
Intel Pentium G4560 3.5GHz 54W 2c/4t
2 x Intel NIC (i211 / i219)
https://www.amazon.com/Shuttle-DH170-Skylake-chipset-Heatpipe/dp/B016B6B6PO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1495913830&sr=1-1&keywords=dh170

Option 2 will be about 60 USD more expensive. I have a 8GB DDR3L and 120GB SSD spare.
Both support AES-NI, and I assume G4560 wont be using anywhere near the 54W TDP in pfSense use.

What do you think, is option 2 totally overkill? Will Option 1 suffice, or will the extra horsepower of G4560 be good in pfSense?

I have 100mbit WAN, but I wanna use OpenVPN, Snort +++

[whosmatt]

@Caveman:

I have 100mbit WAN, but I wanna use OpenVPN, Snort +++

I'd go option 2.  It will offer everything you want for your current WAN connection plus some legs when your WAN connection inevitably gets upgraded.  And you're right about power consumption.  That 54W TDP number is a measure of the heat production of the CPU and dissipation potential of the cooling solution, and doesn't necessarily say anything about consumption at idle or at minimal usage.