Prices being what they are, I'm having to think about what I can use to replace my current firewall. I wanted to go with a nice DEC2770, but my budget keeps being shrunk, and they are not allowing me to add $2k for that firewall.
So I'm looking at n355 powered "generic" boxes (probably CWWK inside) that have 6x i226 connections, dual nvme slots and a single DDR5 slot for either 16gb or maybe more.
Are the i226 drivers worked out to the point where I won't have to fool with things too much? Are these "generic" boxes even worth bothering?
The I226 drivers work just fine. There are also device with 4x I226 and 2x Intel 10GBps SFP+, which also work fine. The N3x5 variants get a lot hotter than the N1x0, so you probably want active cooling or consider one of the latter.
You can also buy these boxes from Protectli with warranty, but with a premium.
The issue with i226 was the nvram. Drivers work a-ok.
4x 226 + 1 or 2 sfp+ ports , seems good for doing some expansion.
N355 is about 2x the N150 on all fronts (more threads, more power, and price).