https://www.redeszone.net/noticias/redes/sucesor-pfsense-probamos-nfsensei-beta/
https://nfsensei.org/
I think this is completely new project from the scratch. Its not a fork of anything. I think they forked pf from OpenBSD to Linux. Yes this is Linux based firewall. Not to be confused with nfSense.
where is code?
The obviously AI generated logo I admit doesn't inspire much confidence in the project.
Quote from: Stormscape on August 08, 2026, 09:40:09 AMThe obviously AI generated logo I admit doesn't inspire much confidence in the project.
Im dont want to defend use of AI, but you do realize this guy is not some random dude that just decided to vibe code his own firewall. This is the co-creator of pfsense.
Quote from: Nullman on August 08, 2026, 09:54:01 AMyou do realize this guy is not some random dude that just decided to vibe code his own firewall.
This is the co-creator of pfsense.
I am guessing this part of the text says that indeed :
QuoteUno de los creadores (Scott Ullrich) del pfSense original, está desarrollando un nuevo proyecto llamado nfSensei, un nuevo sistema operativo orientado a firewall y router de código abierto.
:)
I guess it could become interesting for the folks out there that need Linux PPPoE processing power for their DIY Router in the future.
It will support VPP, and thats something that BSDs dont have.
Quote from: Nullman on August 08, 2026, 02:13:03 PMIt will support VPP, and thats something that BSDs dont have.
https://s3-docs.fd.io/vpp/26.10/
That sounds interesting!
/Needs more reading :)
Quote from: Stormscape on August 08, 2026, 09:40:09 AMThe obviously AI generated logo I admit doesn't inspire much confidence in the project.
The logo? No the WHOLE site is AI generated if you can't tell.
Quote from: Nullman on August 08, 2026, 02:13:03 PMIt will support VPP, and thats something that BSDs dont have.
It's not exactly turnkey, but it can be compiled with both netmap and DPDK (https://ipng.ch/s/articles/2024/02/10/vpp-on-freebsd-part-1/). VPP seems to be in a perpetual alpha/beta state.
Quote from: Melroy vd Berg on August 08, 2026, 02:35:48 PMQuote from: Stormscape on August 08, 2026, 09:40:09 AMThe obviously AI generated logo I admit doesn't inspire much confidence in the project.
The logo? No the WHOLE site is AI generated if you can't tell.
The weblog that's part of the website also mentions :
QuoteAI-native with on-device intelligence (Clyde)
But I have no idea what that's suppose to mean ?!
Hope it's optional because someone might like the software but does not want any "AI" crap on their network...
Quote from: Nullman on August 08, 2026, 02:13:03 PMIt will support VPP, and thats something that BSDs dont have.
At what network size and data throughput does this become relevant?
Quote from: RES217AIII on August 08, 2026, 10:25:57 PMAt what network size and data throughput does this become relevant?
VPP is a very fast and efficient packet processor and would allow to reach 10Gbit throughput on small, fanless devices.
E.g. the DEC740 can't do 10Gbit with OPNsense (it does 5-6 Gbit) and if the NICs were supported (which they are not) I could saturate my line.
Having said that: VPP seems best suited for routing, since it only supports ACLs (but they seem to be able to do firewall-ish rules).
Two articles about VPP on FreeBSD from Pim van Pelt (who used to run the SIxXS tunnel service with Jeroen Massar) for the interested:
https://ipng.ch/s/articles/2024/02/10/vpp-on-freebsd-part-1/
https://ipng.ch/s/articles/2024/02/10/vpp-on-freebsd-part-2/
He does work and develop for/with VPP (on Debian) and has got a lot of interesting articles about it, in a routing context.
The VPP support definitely sounds interesting, especially for a Linux-based firewall. I'm curious to see how this project develops. Has the source code/repository been made public yet?
Quote from: marvelolivia on August 10, 2026, 01:48:31 PMThe VPP support definitely sounds interesting, especially for a Linux-based firewall. I'm curious to see how this project develops.
VyOS has VPP support.
Quote from: marvelolivia on August 10, 2026, 01:48:31 PMHas the source code/repository been made public yet?
Not yet.
We all know how much time it takes for a project like this to get mature... if it started recently and suddenly it has all the features, I would say that it is likely completely AI coded.
Having said that, I also think that AI in good and responsible hands is "the tool" for coding but it will take time for this FW to reach a mature state as OPNSense has reached already.
Quote from: muchacha_grande on August 10, 2026, 05:58:51 PMWe all know how much time it takes for a project like this to get mature... if it started recently and suddenly it has all the features, I would say that it is likely completely AI coded.
Can't say how mature the project is at this moment, because there is no any official release I can find, so I suppose the dev considers it's not enough to publish it.
But anyway, it's being developed since 2004.
Quote from: Netlearn on August 30, 2026, 08:30:18 PMBut anyway, it's being developed since 2004.
Hahaha, no it isn't... If he actually started on January, I would be surprised.
The only reason we know of the project is that Ullrich is one of the pfsense cofounders. Other than that, this is a very unserious situation in my humble opinion.
Here: About (https://blog.nfsensei.org/about.html)
He describes his curriculum and states "2024 - Present" > "nfSensei - Starting from zero"
I don't know when he really began with the development. There is almost no info about the whole project.
It is interesting, especially VPP support. Routing across local LANs at 10g with less overhead would be nice, something I may start doing in my lab just to see what the results might be. My current lab OPN device has a quad port x710 card installed, so I could get 3 LAN all going at 10g if I wanted to test it, WAN is still very limited.
Quote from: Greg_E on August 31, 2026, 08:13:24 PMIt is interesting, especially VPP support. Routing across local LANs at 10g with less overhead would be nice, something I may start doing in my lab just to see what the results might be. My current lab OPN device has a quad port x710 card installed, so I could get 3 LAN all going at 10g if I wanted to test it, WAN is still very limited.
I know this doesn't apply to you, but for others who want to try DPDK-based software like VPP or DANOS: you definitely need recent firmware for Intel cards, as DPDK uses (at least by default) every hardware bell and whistle (https://doc.dpdk.org/guides/nics/overview.html) offered by the driver. I don't know about Aquantia/Marvell devices; I haven't used Mellanox/nVidia or newer Broadcom devices; Chelsio includes firmware in their (gigantic) driver.
DANOS requires much less investment to set up (or did, at least - VPP may have improved since I used it), but is dead like rock. (I don't even know whether Ciena still maintains Vyatta, as they closed off the docs.) VyOS may be an convenient option (for testing VPP), but I haven't looked at it recently either.
Quote from: Bob.Dig on August 31, 2026, 08:21:46 PMQuote from: Netlearn on August 31, 2026, 01:31:53 PMHere
Here what, you were wrong, about twenty years.
Yup! I made a typo in the first date. I meant 2024.
The line was "Here: About", being "About" the link to his curriculum description. Maybe easy to overlook. Apologies.
If he actually ships anything I will be more than surprised.
1) His LinkedIn very clearly states that nfSensei started when he left his last job on December of 2025, which is more believable than 2024 since the domain was registered late January 2026.
2) The guy has spent the last 15 years as a generic IT guy in marketing organizations. To the best of my knowledge without any coding projects on the side.
3) The AI coded site has the most nonsensical AI generated content I have read in years.
4) How can one have an open source project without sharing the source in any way? Especially in the beginning, feedback is very important.
Quote from: sopex on September 01, 2026, 12:02:02 AM2) The guy has spent the last 15 years as a generic IT guy in marketing organizations.
This is the key: "Marketing"
Still now source code, it's almost November.. Its a joke. Hard pass / red flag.
I don't understand all the rage here, are you guys 12? Let's see how it turns outt before you judge. Have you not learned anything from the pfSense - OPNsense beef?
I'm a tester of nfSensei and it got a lot going for it but as with all software, it will take time to mature. Scott will publish the code when the time is right. With all the hate and rage and his own history with the otherSense, who can blame him to be cautious?
Btw: if you want to try it out yourself, write an email to Scott.
Quote from: Melroy vd Berg on October 31, 2026, 03:43:00 PMStill now source code, it's almost November.. Its a joke. Hard pass / red flag.
Stop being so toxic.
Whats the problem if its open or not?
If just one more competitor which is good for business :)
Why so much rage?
I just saw this thread and was surprised by so much uninformed hatred. Like children hating on something childish.
pfSense started out as the top shelf alternative a long time ago. Then OPNsense came along with some different ideas to apply to the same overall concept. At first I wasn't interested because I used pfSense for pfBlockerNG. The ad blocker in the router allows the network to have fewer failure points (hint to people who use VM routers). AdGuard Home along with some upgrade issues with pfSense gave me the idea to switch over to OPNsense. It does the job I need.
pfSense at one time long ago had the most obnoxious hateful children posting in their forum. Eventually, they wised up and cleared them out and made sure that someone knowledgeable and helpful was always there to answer questions. That decision probably gave pfSense a lifeline as at one time the forum made a bad first impression for users.
The OPNsense forum is better than the old pfSense forum, but the children always need to make noise.
@bob9999 I'm not really understanding where you add more value to this discussion. If your aim was to disrespect some people on this forum (or in this thread) you've likely succeeded.
Quote from: franco on November 02, 2026, 01:13:53 PM@bob9999 I'm not really understanding where you add more value to this discussion. If your aim was to disrespect some people on this forum (or in this thread) you've likely succeeded.
A few posters evoked random gross disrespect toward a product that is starting life much as OPNsense started life. This general behavior is common on the internet for various other reasons. I found the harshness disrespectful. A few posters also seemed to question the anger those posters produced and stated so.
I just added some depth by putting the beginning of OPNsense into the discussion. Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't OPNsense a fork of pfSense, or something similar? If not, the similarities are astounding.
Many years ago around the time when OPNsense was starting out I think, pfSense had a few really bad apples in their forum who seemed to disrespect everyone directly and indirectly by their posts. pfSense wisely got rid of them. One carried the note -permanently banned - by his name. The internet has myriad examples of bad apples with poor attitudes who love to post. They infect everywhere so often that they are assumed to be part of the furniture at times. Thats a shame.
If my comment about failure points was offensive, well, the concept of failure points is a common one with quality control. VMs are a common area of debate.
I agree with your assessment about bad apples, but I don't see it here in the way you describe. A separate forum post may have been more effective for you to make your point.
There's reasonable doubt about AI use and vibe coding. We don't see the source code yet -- it's even suggested the source code may not be open sourced. We saw a lot of hype and news and teasers but no substance yet. There's a lot of valid scepticism. That's basically the whole situation.
If it succeeds it will be good.
Cheers,
Franco
I agree that AI is not yet a viable thing in that context. It reminds me of the brand new internet around 1999. Everyone with a few skills wanted a blog or a website. Cascading Style Sheets were advanced technology. Internet commerce was barely a thing and sounded ridiculous to some. Investor money flowed in unlimited amounts, just like today with AI. What's yet to see is will there be a similar bump in the road in the financial world when the dust settles in the coming months.
Someday AI will be as common and important but it is nothing more than a toy for most users today. It's just going to have to run its course, apparently.
FWIW, I read the thread again and the discussion is very technical and fruitful on the first page. The second page leaves some suspense of judgement to be desired, but it also points out the problems people have with the approach the project takes. The question is how to position yourself to something that you can't really put to the test as a whole, but appears to show in great detail how it will change the world. Usually, in open source, you'd find the opposite to be true and much easier to verify. The opposite approach resembles marketing like a commercial product would.
Cheers,
Franco
I will ask a question... If they are forking Mono (let's go back to the start) and OPNsense by derivative, does the current license require making the code open and available? I haven't looked at the code license for OPN, so not sure which method was chosen.
Quote from: Greg_E on November 04, 2026, 05:19:27 PMI will ask a question... If they are forking Mono (let's go back to the start) and OPNsense by derivative, does the current license require making the code open and available? I haven't looked at the code license for OPN, so not sure which method was chosen.
nfSensei is not a fork. The developer of nfSensei, Scott Ullrich was involved with forking Monowall many years ago which became pfSense.