Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?

joshgreyz

Came across this article, https://www.netgate.com/blog/pfsense-software-embraces-change-a-strategic-migration-to-the-linux-kernel, and it's not clear if pfSense will continue to be both developed on FreeBSD and Linux or if it will be Linux only moving forward.

Where is the timeline for this? I'm unable to find it.

nimrod

@joshgreyz said in Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?:

https://www.netgate.com/blog/pfsense-software-embraces-change-a-strategic-migration-to-the-linux-kernel

Check the date on that news you linked.

joshgreyz

@nimrod The news link was written on April 1, 2024, but it does answer the question I asked:
Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?

Jarhead

@joshgreyz I think it does answer it... April 1st. Get it?

AndyRH

It is either true or a terrible joke. Most think a terrible joke because it is not outrageous or obviously a joke.
These posts will be around for years unless it is clarified.

Jarhead

@AndyRH It's already been clarified.

AndyRH

@Jarhead The page does not clearly state it is a joke, so these posts from people running across it will continue for years.

nimrod

The fact that it caused all this makes it a great joke. I feel sorry for people that dont get it. You people need to learn to relax sometimes.

mer

"Hey Siri, how do I know that I've done a successful April Fools joke?" Siri says "when people suffering from a data to keyboard malfuction think you are serious".

Jarhead

@AndyRH said in Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?:

@Jarhead The page does not clearly state it is a joke, so these posts from people running across it will continue for years.

True but that would defeat the purpose of the post.
I meant all you have to do is a quick search here and it's been clarified.

Dobby_

@joshgreyz

Only someone from the Netgate Team will be able to answer this question.

joshgreyz

LOL LOL LOL - let's make jokes at everyone's expense - good job everyone!

jpv9

@AndyRH
As of Sept 2024, I am still getting questioned about this post from clients. Netgate needs to put a postscript on the original post in stating this was an April Fool's Joke if it really is one.

AndyRH

@jpv9 Two things will always be true:

Not everyone is gifted with communication.
Not everyone can tell a joke.

Netgate could use improvement in these areas.

jwt

@jpv9 what if it wasn’t a joke?

johnpoz

@jwt you are a rascal Jim.. Lets just go along with the gag, and it wasn't a joke.. Then April 1 was a horrible choice for making it public ;)

Looking forward to next April fools - this one is going to be hard to top - heheh

nimrod

@johnpoz said in Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?:

@jwt you are a rascal Jim.. Lets just go along with the gag, and it wasn't a joke.. Then April 1 was a horrible choice for making it public ;)

Looking forward to next April fools - this one is going to be hard to top - heheh

What do you mean its hard? Just say that CE version is getting canceled.

johnpoz

@nimrod said in Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?:

Just say that CE version is getting canceled

Hahah - that would be good one, but we already get so many people thinking that is true anyway..

nimrod

@johnpoz

Yeah. But just imagine the amount of "i told you so" comments.

jwt

@nimrod said in Will Netgate keep developing pfSense on FreeBSD or is the switch to Linux going to be for all Netgate platforms?:

@johnpoz

Yeah. But just imagine the amount of "i told you so" comments.

Right?

So why give them what they want?

Netgate is the #3 contributor of sponsored commits to freebsd over the past 3 years.

bash-3.2$ git remote -v
origin	https://github.com/freebsd/freebsd.git (fetch)
origin	https://github.com/freebsd/freebsd.git (push)
bash-3.2$ git branch
  list
* main
  master
bash-3.2$ git log --first-parent --since=3year | sed  -E 's/\^.\*Sponsored.\[Bb\]y:\[\[:space:\]\]\*//p' | grep -i Sponsored  | sed s/.*[Ss]ponsored\ [Bb]y://| awk '{$1=$1};1' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | head -20
3344 The FreeBSD Foundation
1569 Netflix
 807 Rubicon Communications, LLC ("Netgate")
 616 Klara, Inc.
 448 Beckhoff Automation GmbH & Co. KG
 358 Chelsio Communications
 357 Arm Ltd
 314 Juniper Networks, Inc.
 266 NVIDIA Networking
 152 Netflix, Inc.
 130 NetApp, Inc.
 130 Innovate UK
 122 DARPA
 103 Stormshield
  91 Axcient
  71 Dell EMC Isilon
  64 https://www.patreon.com/cperciva
  64 Serenity Cyber Security, LLC
  59 Intel Corporation
  51 NVidia networking
bash-3.2$

and note that this misses 7 commits that are

Rubicon Communications, LLC (Netgate)

instead of

Rubicon Communications, LLC ("Netgate")

which uniq sees as a different string.

If you back off to 5 years (just prior to the pandemic) it's even more dramatic

bash-3.2$ git log --first-parent --since=5year | sed  -E 's/\^.\*Sponsored.\[Bb\]y:\[\[:space:\]\]\*//p' | grep -i Sponsored  | sed s/.*[Ss]ponsored\ [Bb]y://| awk '{$1=$1};1' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | head
5437 The FreeBSD Foundation
2079 Netflix
1079 Rubicon Communications, LLC ("Netgate")
 729 Klara, Inc.
 664 Chelsio Communications
 448 Beckhoff Automation GmbH & Co. KG
 357 DARPA
 357 Arm Ltd
 330 Juniper Networks, Inc.
 306 NetApp, Inc.
bash-3.2$

and

bash-3.2$ git log --first-parent --since=5year | sed  -E 's/\^.\*Sponsored.\[Bb\]y:\[\[:space:\]\]\*//p' | grep -i Sponsored  | sed s/.*[Ss]ponsored\ [Bb]y://| awk '{$1=$1};1' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | grep -i netgate
1079 Rubicon Communications, LLC ("Netgate")
  50 Rubicon Communications, LLC (Netgate)
  31 Rubicon Communications, LLC (netgate.com)
  20 Rubicon Communications, LLC (d/b/a "Netgate")
   6 Sponsored-by: Rubicon Communications, LLC ("Netgate")
   3 Rubicon Communications, LLC (“Netgate”’)
   2 Netgate, Inc.
   1 Rubicon LLC, (Netgate)
   1 Netgate

We have a lot of changes to pf coming in that are still in review. This is just some of them.

https://reviews.freebsd.org/p/kp/

So the question I wish people would ask: "Why would Netgate still be investing heavily in FreeBSD if they were just going to abandon it like people say?"