When using pfSense as a hotspot, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?

gcobr

So, I am considering to install Pfsense on an Intel Nuc (rugged chassis) with dual LAN and a wireless expansion card inside. I am considering to use it as my only wireless router at home. I am then wondering if I would be able to configure it to have a single SSID for both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz networks. Dedicated WiFi routers in the market have that sort of thing, and I am trying to avoid using a regular commercial WiFi router connected to my Pfsense mini-PC because I just don’t want that much hardware running 100% of the time at home.

stephenw10

Yes, you probably could. I'm not aware of any reason that couldn't happen. You would need two radios though so almost certainly two WIFI NICs.

However you need to be aware the wireless support in FreeBSD and hence pfSense is not good. There is no support for 802.11ac (or ax) so the absolute best your can get is a theoretical 450Mbps with a 3x3 .11n card. And in reality that would be ~300Mbps.

Steve

provels

@stephenw10 said in When using Pfense as a hotstop, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?:

There is no support for 802.11ac (or ax)

And who do we see about that?? JK, really, but I'm surprised that a standard introduced 10 years ago hasn't been solved. Not like I can do it myself, I'm just a DFU.

AndyRH

Have you considered not buying a router for WiFi and instead buying an AP? There are many good ones that do what you want and are better than routers.
To see for myself I ran pfSense with a wireless card, it worked, but it was not very good and lacked many features. I bought 2 APs and with one SSID my whole house has good coverage.
If you already have the HW then give it a try. I suspect you will be underwhelmed and look for another solution.

JKnott

@gcobr

My understanding is FreeBSD has poor WiFi NIC support. Go with a separate AP and avoid a lot of problems. A separate AP will often support PoE, which means you can put it wherever provides the best signal and not worry about having AC power handy.

stephenw10

Yup having a separate AP has many advantages. The biggest being you can position it somewhere useful for best coverage.

A current AP could even end up using less power than the WIFI NIC you would have to use in pfSense.

gcobr

@JKnott said in When using pfSense as a hotspot, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?:

@gcobr

My understanding is FreeBSD has poor WiFi NIC support. Go with a separate AP and avoid a lot of problems. A separate AP will often support PoE, which means you can put it wherever provides the best signal and not worry about having AC power handy.

Thanks. I am coming to the realisation that FreeBSD has poor support for many things. I am also trying to make a cellular USB modem work to no avail: https://forum.netgate.com/topic/134663/d-link-dwm-222-usb-lte-dongle/7

Dobby_

@provels said in When using pfSense as a hotspot, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?:

And who do we see about that?? JK, really, but I'm surprised that a standard introduced 10 years ago hasn't been solved. Not like I can do it myself, I'm just a DFU.

There where at one day the try out to support Intel AC cards, "but" due to the
dual-license it was not finished. So it was more or less a point where Intel
not really want it, as I am informed. Pointed to the iwlwifi(4) driver.

And by side other problems where coming up! The mainstream chipsets
were only sorted with a client mode as @stephenw10 was explaining,
but for your hotspot you will need a AP-mode. The code writer can´t
add something that is not given by the hardware. And on top of
all only the Intel Pro WiFi chipsets came with a AP-mode, but they are
only working fine with some Intel chipsets (soldered on the mainboard)
together with other chipsets from other manufacturers they don`t work!

Here you will be able to have an overview over that driver:
IWLWIFI(4)-Intel IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax wireless network driver

While iwlwifi supports all 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax the compatibility code
currently only supports 802.11 a/b/g modes. Support for 802.11 n/ac is
to come. 802.11ax and 6Ghz support are planned.

So it is more or less nothing to point to the pfSense team, but more to the
firmware and driver writer (coder) from FreeBSD.

gcobr

Considering that Netgate make money from FreeBSD, it would be reasonable to expect the company to fund the required improvements in the open source and give something back to the community, wouldn’t it?

Moreover, the company must be aware that a large number of their customers run small Pfsense appliances at home. In a world that is heading towards net zero emissions, it is reasonable to aim to run everything you need, including the WiFi hotspot, on a single powered appliance as a matter of efficiency.

I find it troubling that so many people just say things like “just add a separate access point” without any broader concerns.

Most domestic customers resort to Pfsense and the like because most ISPs are not helping and are pushing low-quality feature-limited modems, routers and firewalls down our throats. So, in many cases, the Pfsense appliance is already in addition to that. If we now add an access point, it already amounts to 3 appliances connected 24/7.

Dobby_

@gcobr

Considering that Netgate make money from FreeBSD, it would be reasonable to expect the company to fund the required improvements in the open source and give something back to the community, wouldn’t it?

Yes and no! Because the hardware must support AP mode and then you
may be able to write a driver that is using this capabilities from the
hardware and not vice versa.

Moreover, the company must be aware that a large number of their customers run small Pfsense appliances at home. In a world that is heading towards net zero emissions, it is reasonable to aim to run everything you need, including the WiFi hotspot, on a single powered appliance as a matter of efficiency.

You can do by using another WiFi card!
PC Engines APU4D4 - Compex WLE200NX - pfSense 2.7.2
PC Engines APU6B4 - SparkLan WPEA-127N - pfSense+ 24.03
Turris Omnia Router WiFi 6 - OpenWRT based router software

I find it troubling that so many people just say things like “just add a separate access point” without any broader concerns.

You can have luck or running against the wall, like all other things in the
entire life. You may be going with a small RouterOS router, or an OpenWRT
router in AP modus or perhaps with an Ubiquity AP of your choice.

But I know how you mean it, but pfSense is offering so many features
that you will be able to turn it into a fully UTM devices and please have
a look what are the cost of those units. So as I see it you may be better
of to add a small WiFi AP and then you will be best sorted if actual
WiFi ac/ax is a must be.

Most domestic customers resort to Pfsense and the like because most ISPs are not helping and are pushing low-quality feature-limited modems, routers and firewalls down our throats. So, in many cases, the Pfsense appliance is already in addition to that. If we now add an access point, it already amounts to 3 appliances connected 24/7.

Like here, I have several units like switches, NAS, routers or firewalls
but ok this is not helping out is you need hardware that is not supported
by your favorite OS. If money and electric power are the big concern, you
may be perhaps have a look on a small raspberry PI with an actual WiFi
card it should be the best thing because you may be able to change the
wifi cards!

It is like you modem try out, I got a very cheap modem (miniPCIe)
and an external USB case for I was setting it up in 45 minutes and
it was running like a charm for a long time for.

gcobr

@Dobby_ said in When using pfSense as a hotspot, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?:

Yes and no! Because the hardware must support AP mode and then you
may be able to write a driver that is using this capabilities from the
hardware and not vice versa.

Well, we're not talking about Netgate's hardware exclusively. This problem exists with any hardware due to the lack of support in FreeBSD. Therefore, funded software development would address the problem. In addition:

It would give back to the community of users that run Pfsense on other hardware
It would give back to the broader FreeBSD user community
It would allow Netgate to sell better hardware

provels

@Dobby_ said in When using pfSense as a hotspot, has anyone here ever configured it for a unified SSID (2.5Ghz and 5Ghz)?:

So it is more or less nothing to point to the pfSense team, but more to the
firmware and driver writer (coder) from FreeBSD.

No, I understand that, I'm just surprised that FreeBSD passed up the Compex WLE600VX (QCA9882) AC card. But even that hardware is so old the discussion is probably moot. I have Compex AR9280 and Apple AR9380 cards already that work OK in AP.

brimansd44

@AndyRH This is what I do. I have an ORBI setup as an AP plugged into 1 port of a 4 port NIC in my pfsense box, with a dhcp server for that interface enabled in pfsense.

JonathanLee

I use my Netgate 2100 for guest WiFi and a AP for secure access. It works great, all the game systems run on the guest WiFi compex card and my NAS and other desktops for work and stuff are behind the firewall. I have no issues with the WiFi on pfSense, it works fine for steaming. One thing it’s a bit difficult to get it to work correctly, the forum helped me a bunch getting it going. The more users that use it the better support and visibility it gets.

JonathanLee

@provels the Apple Card does not work on the 2100, I purchased one it only works for the Compex card. I got an Apple Card with 3 antenna ports. The antennas you use also make a big difference for what coverage you want, they have different gain and coverage shapes. Some are oval shaped coverage some are long lines some are circle like, I tested several different antenna for it.

rikazkhan

To achieve a unified SSID across both frequency bands (2.4GHz and 5GHz) in pfSense, you'll typically need to ensure that your wireless access points (WAPs) or wireless interfaces support this feature. Additionally, you'll need to configure the wireless settings within pfSense to broadcast the same SSID on both bands. Here's a detailed guide on how you can accomplish this:

JonathanLee

@rikazkhan I think you forgot the guide...