Mini PC with WIFI

Started by lfirewall1243, July 03, 2019, 01:29:54 PM

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Hello,
i am looking for a small Pc's minimum 2x Ethernet and with Wifi Support. The device only have to manage 1x RDP Session over OpenVpn and SIP-Calls over OpenVPN.
Thanks :)
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Good luck with WIFI and *-BSD...

What usecase do you want to cover with WIFI?

July 05, 2019, 03:19:31 PM #2 Last Edit: July 05, 2019, 03:21:10 PM by lfirewall1243
Should be for Home Office.
I know FreeBSD and Wifi isn't the best. haha.
But the Wifi is only for 1-2 mobile devices which should be usable in the HomeOffice.

Maybe a small PC with a supported 3rd Party Wifi Card?
This one could work i think: Atheros AR 9280  https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=7343.msg33306#msg33306
But the linked Thread is older, is it still working?
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I have a ,,Zotac ZBOX CI323 nano" at home, which has a WIFI adapter, but it doesn't work with OPNsense as accesspoint, so I use an old TP-Link WIFI-Router with OpenWRT as accesspoint. I use this setup as testenvironment...

finding the right WIFI adapter that works with *-BSD and as accesspoint is not that easy task... so I'd go for an extra box with WIFI... less pain than finding the right WIFI adapter... just my opinion...


Hi,
if the mini-pc supports a m-pcie slot you can use a wifi card that works (i.e. Atheros 9280). But be sure that the slot is a fully connected m-pcie slot! On some cheap boards the m-pcie slot only supports usb devices! On such boards you can use only wifi cards like this: http://www.sparklan.com/p2-products-detail.php?PKey=9adaen4e2OQr_sx8KpwYixWurg61VGfLm-OWEBdFRA&WPER-150GN

Another possiblity to provide wifi is to use a supported usb device! I used such solution some years ago with OPNsense. I've used some usb wifi dongle with RT5370 Chipset. Works fine, but only with 54Bit speed!

best regards
Dirk

PS: Since 2 Years i've use an extrenal AP for wifi. Better wifi area and much better speed!  ;)


Quote from: monstermania on July 09, 2019, 08:55:02 AM
Hi,
if the mini-pc supports a m-pcie slot you can use a wifi card that works (i.e. Atheros 9280). But be sure that the slot is a fully connected m-pcie slot! On some cheap boards the m-pcie slot only supports usb devices! On such boards you can use only wifi cards like this: http://www.sparklan.com/p2-products-detail.php?PKey=9adaen4e2OQr_sx8KpwYixWurg61VGfLm-OWEBdFRA&WPER-150GN

Another possiblity to provide wifi is to use a supported usb device! I used such solution some years ago with OPNsense. I've used some usb wifi dongle with RT5370 Chipset. Works fine, but only with 54Bit speed!

best regards
Dirk

PS: Since 2 Years i've use an extrenal AP for wifi. Better wifi area and much better speed!  ;)
Thank you :)
Are they both working in Access Point mode?
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Quote from: lfirewall1243 on July 26, 2019, 10:22:44 AM
Thank you :)
Are they both working in Access Point mode?
I've used 2 AzureWave AW-NE772 m-pcie cards (Atheros 9280). Works fine in ap mode with OPNsense 17.7.x. One  card configured with 2.4 Ghz and one with 5 Ghz.
A speed test of my configuration (german): https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=6691.msg28825#msg28825

With usb wifi devices it was a bit tricky. I've tested several devices with different Ralink chipsets (RT2800/3070/5370). Some works in AP mode, some not.  ::)
Some works for 1 or 2 days before they died. All the usb wifi ran very hot in ap mode!
But after some testing i got 2 stable working usb sticks into my OPNsense (used this from 16.1.x up to 17.7.x). One used for internal wifi and the other for guest wifi. But be aware that usb wifi only works up to 54 Mbit. This was enough for my 8Mbit internet connection i've used at that time.

But since OPNsense 18.1.x i using an external ap. Works much better than any of the above wifi! And with PoE i placed the ap at optimal position into my flat.

Quote from: monstermania on July 30, 2019, 08:33:53 AM
Quote from: lfirewall1243 on July 26, 2019, 10:22:44 AM
Thank you :)
Are they both working in Access Point mode?
I've used 2 AzureWave AW-NE772 m-pcie cards (Atheros 9280). Works fine in ap mode with OPNsense 17.7.x. One  card configured with 2.4 Ghz and one with 5 Ghz.
A speed test of my configuration (german): https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=6691.msg28825#msg28825

With usb wifi devices it was a bit tricky. I've tested several devices with different Ralink chipsets (RT2800/3070/5370). Some works in AP mode, some not.  ::)
Some works for 1 or 2 days before they died. All the usb wifi ran very hot in ap mode!
But after some testing i got 2 stable working usb sticks into my OPNsense (used this from 16.1.x up to 17.7.x). One used for internal wifi and the other for guest wifi. But be aware that usb wifi only works up to 54 Mbit. This was enough for my 8Mbit internet connection i've used at that time.

But since OPNsense 18.1.x i using an external ap. Works much better than any of the above wifi! And with PoE i placed the ap at optimal position into my flat.

Thank you | Danke dir :)
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