Pfsense custom build help $450 budget from ($200)
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If you are smart and buy used boxes on bay it will be within your $200
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If you want something small and cheap that doesn't look too bad:
http://ark.intel.com/products/58917/Intel-Atom-Processor-N2800-1M-Cache-1_86-GHz
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pfsense-2-2-HP-t5740-Intel-Atom-N280-2G-RAM-2G-Flash-SSD-3gig-NICs-Wireless-/251815636232
I would throw in a cheap SSD for a full install and call it done.
For $300+ you can get something abit "nicer" I guess.
Anyway - Its up to you.
Its actually pretty nice for $100… Assuming it fires up and all is working well. I think it would be fine.
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$200 = used tech.
I would spend a bit more and go gigbyte celeron j1900, 4-8gb ram, itx case with psu, a hd or small ssd
or athlon 5350, asus am1 mobo @ itx , 4-8gb ram, itx case, dual intel pcie nic off ebay, small hd or ssd (this system has aes-ni)
this is the pcie-card -> http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Intel-Pro-Dell-X3959-Dual-Port-Gigabit-Ethernet-NIC-Card-PCI-E-D33682-card-/171665728765?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27f81324fd
should be supported. double check please.
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I really don't mind use tech if its solid tech. Just me?
I have never been burned. I just look for reliable mobo and solid caps… etc etc.$100? Its not so big a gamble.
Of course Web Site hosting needs another box.
I assume you don't want to host on the pfsense box directly. -
I am more interested in buying the hardware and building it myself. More of a sentimental value. I also plan on using http://www.amazon.com/TL-ANT2424B-Directional-Parabolic-connector-resistant/dp/B003CFATOW/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1423019637&sr=8-5&keywords=tplink+antenna any thoughts on that?
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After a lot of reading and talking to "Kejianshi" he/she has helped me narrow down to an Supermicro Atom C2758. My only questions is what is the difference from "Supermicro Atom F2758" VS "Supermicro Atom C2758"
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FM4M7TQ/ref=s9_simh_gw_p147_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=0JMQYZYFD0V62GEB6E1B&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1970559082&pf_rd_i=desktop
VS
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GO9E61K/ref=psdc_1048424_t2_B00FM4M7TQ
The only thing I noticed is that the Supermicro Atom C2758 has a form factor: Mini-ITX while the Atom F2758 has a form factor: MicroATX
I decided to up my budge from $200 to around $450 in hoping to build a quality piece of hardware for my basic needs. AKA just learning more networking
Any feedback would be great.
Also thanks again "kejianshi" you have really helped me a lot.
Also I am using Amazon because I have found the price to be about the same as newegg other then a mark up of $4 on amazon. But I have Amazon Prime and thats 2 day shipping.
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You haven't mentioned what bandwidth you hope to get through the firewall which is absolutely crucial in any hardware decision.
Steve
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I really don't know the difference in those two and I wonder if the FC is just referencing FC-BGA 1283 socket?
Maybe someone else knows better.
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stephenw10, for the record, I agree. Knowing the bandwidth needs is important. I recommended that board because he asked me "If you were going to spend $400 +/- , which board would you pick?"
Easy - The 8 core atom. It can run pfsense in a couple of cores plus other things you might want to add also.
However, I still think you can get away with spending $150ish if all you need is pfsense on a 100/100 plan or lower typical home connection.
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You haven't mentioned what bandwidth you hope to get through the firewall which is absolutely crucial in any hardware decision.
Steve
I currently have around 100mb with my current provider. I use OpenVPN and my bandwidth takes a huge hit currently. I didn't state what speed I need because I am using this for educationally purpose. I also noticed that the Micro Atx has extra pci slots.
I plan on using 4g ecc ram. I feel that this setup is going to fit more then what I actually need. I just can't see a real difference between the two motherboards.
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I've got a couple of these http://www.ebay.com/itm/Apex-Mini-ITX-AL-8250SFX-Intel-D410PT-Atom-2GB-DDR2-160GB-DVD-RW-Complete-PC-/281582664738?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item418fa27c22 that I yanked the dvd drive from and added a dual broadcom Gig NIC card to (three NIC's total). I don't need all of them. If you want one, I'd send it to you for $65 plus whatever the actual shipping cost is.
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It's hard to recommend anything other than the Rangely Atoms right now since so many of the reference platforms are going that way. If you can afford it.
If you need to push 100Mbps of VPN traffic that immediately rules out some things, both the previously linked older Atom boards for example.Steve
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Thanks "stephenw10" if you had to pick between the two boards what one would you pick? Between the two its about a $30 price difference. How much bandwidth do you think the Atom C2758 or Atom F2758 can handle?
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I've got a couple of these http://www.ebay.com/itm/Apex-Mini-ITX-AL-8250SFX-Intel-D410PT-Atom-2GB-DDR2-160GB-DVD-RW-Complete-PC-/281582664738?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item418fa27c22 that I yanked the dvd drive from and added a dual broadcom Gig NIC card to (three NIC's total). I don't need all of them. If you want one, I'd send it to you for $65 plus whatever the actual shipping cost is.
Honestly that looks great and the offer is appreciated, I am looking to build something myself. I am a young college student that just got out of high school. This system that I am building would be for educational purpose. I don't need top end sever hardware, just something that is not low end and won't really do anything for me.
If any questions arise please ask. Or any feedback would be great.
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if you had to pick between the two boards what one would you pick? Between the two its about a $30 price difference. How much bandwidth do you think the Atom C2758 or Atom F2758 can handle?
There's not much in it. I guess if you have a space requirement go for the mini-ITX.
It can handle a lot of bandwidth. >1Gb/s of firewall/NAT. >1Gbps of VPN once Quick Assist is enabled by all accounts. These Atom CPUs are nothing like Atoms of old.
Steve
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if you had to pick between the two boards what one would you pick? Between the two its about a $30 price difference. How much bandwidth do you think the Atom C2758 or Atom F2758 can handle?
There's not much in it. I guess if you have a space requirement go for the mini-ITX.
It can handle a lot of bandwidth. >1Gb/s of firewall/NAT. >1Gbps of VPN once Quick Assist is enabled by all accounts. These Atom CPUs are nothing like Atoms of old.
Steve
Wait these newer Atoms can handle 1GB NAT WAN to LAN???/ hmmmm…
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Read up on your motherboard to be sure you can install only 4gb RAM. Go to the manufacturer website, nowhere else. I got a supermicro c2758 board and while I wasn't shopping for 4gb ram I also don't think I saw it in the list of compatible configurations. You need 2 sticks for most of these boards. I got 2x8gb sticks for mine so I can upgrade to 32 if performance is good enough for extra VMs.
The rest of you, go read intel's documentation for these rangely c2*58 chips. They are intended to replace i7s and even e-series chips for router, firewall and vpn duty.
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Biggest difference I see is the memory type supported and the input power options. If you are going with one of these boards, I would go with the same one used by the pfSense team in there store. I'm not sure, but I would guess it is probably the A1SRi-2758F.
You could purchase it in a cbare bones config with case and power if you wanted to up your budget.
http://www.supermicro.com/products/system/1u/5018/sys-5018a-ftn4.cfm
http://www.amazon.com/Supermicro-Rackmount-Barebone-Components-SYS-5018A-FTN4/dp/B00G3ED7D4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423114535&sr=8-1&keywords=SYS-5018A-FTN4
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816101837&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-PC--pla--Server+Barebones-_-N82E16816101837&gclid=CPH49vuJysMCFQYJaQodLm4AWw&gclsrc=aw.ds
A1SRi-2758F
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/atom/x10/a1sri-2758f.cfmKey Features
1. Intel
Atom processor C2758, SoC,
FCBGA 1283, 20W 8-Core
2. Up to 64GB DDR3 1600MHz ECC
SO-DIMM in 4 DIMM sockets
3. Quad GbE LAN ports
4. IPMI with dedicated LAN
5. 2x SATA3 and 4x SATA2 ports
6. 1x PCI-E 2.0 x8 slot
7. 4x USB 3.0 (2 rear, 1 via header,
1 Type A), 2x USB 2.0 ports (rear)
8. 12V DC or ATX Power input
9. Operating Temperature: 0°C - 60°C
10. 7-Year product lifeA1SRM-2758F
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Atom/X10/A1SRM-2758F.cfmKey Features
1. Intel Atom processor C2758, SoC,
FCBGA 1283, 20W 8-Core
2. Up to 64GB DDR3 1600MHz ECC or
non-ECC UDIMM in 4 DIMM sockets
3. Quad GbE LAN ports
4. IPMI with dedicated LAN
5. 2x SATA3 and 4x SATA2 ports
6. 1x PCI-E 2.0 x8, 1x PCI-E 2.0 x4
7. 7x USB 2.0 ports
8. Operating Temperature: 0°C - 60°C
9. 7-Year product life -
Biggest difference I see is the memory type supported and the input power options. If you are going with one of these boards, I would go with the same one used by the pfSense team in there store. I'm not sure, but I would guess it is probably the A1SRi-2758F
A1SRi-2758F
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/atom/x10/a1sri-2758f.cfmKey Features
1. Intel Atom processor C2758, SoC,
FCBGA 1283, 20W 8-Core
2. Up to 64GB DDR3 1600MHz ECC
SO-DIMM in 4 DIMM sockets
3. Quad GbE LAN ports
4. IPMI with dedicated LAN
5. 2x SATA3 and 4x SATA2 ports
6. 1x PCI-E 2.0 x8 slot
7. 4x USB 3.0 (2 rear, 1 via header,
1 Type A), 2x USB 2.0 ports (rear)
8. 12V DC or ATX Power input
9. Operating Temperature: 0°C - 60°C
10. 7-Year product lifeA1SRM-2758F
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Atom/X10/A1SRM-2758F.cfmKey Features
1. Intel Atom processor C2758, SoC,
FCBGA 1283, 20W 8-Core
2. Up to 64GB DDR3 1600MHz ECC or
non-ECC UDIMM in 4 DIMM sockets
3. Quad GbE LAN ports
4. IPMI with dedicated LAN
5. 2x SATA3 and 4x SATA2 ports
6. 1x PCI-E 2.0 x8, 1x PCI-E 2.0 x4
7. 7x USB 2.0 ports
8. Operating Temperature: 0°C - 60°C
9. 7-Year product lifeMotherboard
I have decided to go with A1SRM-2758F - the reason being is that it holds two PCI slots and can use ECC or non ecc. I plan on using ECC
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Atom/X10/A1SRM-2758F.cfm
Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811108065
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144139
Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167190
Ram
Not sure yet… this board can do ECC or Non-ECC
I would like ECC.Network Card
Not sure yet. I also want a wireless adapter since this board has two pic slots. Any ideas? I would also like an intel board.Looks like my build went from $200-450 now I am just not sure....
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You dont need a network card. It has 4 Ethernet ports on it. Me personally, I would use a router with DHCP turned off as a WAP. Lot better control and feature set. You can also upgrade it at a later date . Use one of the ethernet ports WAN, 1 Lan and 1 connected to the WAP. That leaves one free.
If you wanted to save a little money, you could go with a 2558 board. As a pure pfSense machine, it would probably serve you fine.
http://www.amazon.com/Supermicro-Mini-A1SRI-2558F-O-Motherboard-Combo/dp/B00HS4NLHA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423115896&sr=8-1&keywords=A1SRi-2558F
While it cost more, the 2758 is a stronger board. If you possibly wanted to run VMs I would go with the 2758.
That the problem with putting one of these together, feature creep and the associated cost.
