Home
Help
Search
Login
Register
OPNsense Forum
»
English Forums
»
General Discussion
»
[SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements
« previous
next »
Print
Pages: [
1
]
2
Author
Topic: [SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements (Read 17521 times)
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
[SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
on:
November 05, 2015, 05:16:22 pm »
I am a newb here, but have been impressed by what I see.
I have setup firewalls for several of the schools I have worked at using IPCop. I used minimal old xp thinclients to do the job. I am now doing contract repair work on the side and want to replace a sonicwall unit with one that has OPNsense on it. The business has 7 workstations and a Windows 2008 server.
I am looking for a recommendation for an inexpensive good looking box to install OPNsense on for the business.
Any Recommendations?
«
Last Edit: November 07, 2015, 09:41:28 am by franco
»
Logged
jschellevis
Administrator
Full Member
Posts: 156
Karma: 37
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #1 on:
November 05, 2015, 05:37:07 pm »
It does depends on what you call cheap, but take a look at these:
Cheapest with Gbit ports we offer:
https://www.applianceshop.eu/opnsense-small-ghz.html
Dutch Design, High Quality with Intel Gbit ports:
https://www.applianceshop.eu/opnsense-a10-dual-core-desktop.html
Alternatively you can alway convert an old pc to OPNsense ;-)
Cheers,
JOs
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #2 on:
November 05, 2015, 05:41:23 pm »
unfortunately that is about twice as much as I was hoping to spend
I am fine with a box with no OS and installing and configuring myself...
Logged
HrvojeS
Newbie
Posts: 16
Karma: 3
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #3 on:
November 05, 2015, 06:23:42 pm »
Hello rubantin,
Here are at least three posts discussing hardware suitable for OPNsense:
https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=1502.msg4566#msg4566
https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=260.msg955#msg955
https://forum.opnsense.org/index.php?topic=673.msg2033#msg2033
If you use the search function, you may find a lot more. I personally have a Biostar Viotech 3100+ (
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138187
) that I picked up a long time ago for USD$90. My choice in this was because of Via Padlock which gave OpenVPN access to hardware AES encryption to reduce CPU usage. Along with the case it was under $150.
You'll find a lot of basic options for under $200 if you just dig a little. Hope this helps. Best regards,
Hrv
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #4 on:
November 05, 2015, 09:01:13 pm »
Thanks. I am working with a small business with 7 workstations, the only access to the internet is for surfing and updates. The dental software resides on the server and has no interaction off site. I would be using the appliance between the server and the modem. With this being the case, what kind of hard drive space and CPU power would I really need?
Logged
HrvojeS
Newbie
Posts: 16
Karma: 3
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #5 on:
November 05, 2015, 09:25:25 pm »
Hello rubantin,
I am a newb here too (less than 10 days) and also am impressed at what I see. I have been using pfSense as my home firewall since 2008 (1.2.1) and am currently testing OPNsense in VMs as a permanent replacement. I'm here because my requirements include multi-wan functionality and OpenVPN implementation on edge.
For possibly cheapest embedded solution you should look here:
http://pcengines.ch/apu1d4.htm
Even though I'd like to, I do not own any of their products. I don't think you'll find anything cheaper than that. If you want cheaper, you should look for used old Linksys routers, or even any generic computer store off-the-shelf routers will do, as OPNsense may be an overkill for your simple implementation.
Hope this helps. Best regards,
Hrv
Logged
franco
Administrator
Hero Member
Posts: 17473
Karma: 1587
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #6 on:
November 06, 2015, 12:56:57 pm »
A warm welcome to both of you.
You can also get away with older workstation (or set-top boxes) PCs and a PCI(e) card extension like the Intel 1000/PRO to bring the ethernet port count to two or three total. Make sure they have 1 GB of RAM (that requirement comes with our FreeBSD base system setup), everything else should be ok on any 5-8 yo hardware.
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #7 on:
November 06, 2015, 02:44:11 pm »
Why is a 40 gigabyte SSD a minimum requirement? How important is 40 gigabyte, and how important is the speed of a SSD? Would a 16 gigabyte SD card be sufficient?
Logged
franco
Administrator
Hero Member
Posts: 17473
Karma: 1587
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #8 on:
November 06, 2015, 05:20:47 pm »
40 GB SSD for proxy caching, logs and other things in larger setups. You can get a away with 2 GB if needed.
If you can, try to use the USB installer to bring the system onto the SD card on the target system itself. If not, the Nano image has a preinstalled system for direct flashing. With the Nano image, the RAM can be as low as 512 MB for normal operation, because it skips the installer.
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #9 on:
November 06, 2015, 06:53:04 pm »
So. memory speed is not really an issue for a small business? Keep in mind that this business only uses the internet for backups, updates, email and surfing.
Logged
franco
Administrator
Hero Member
Posts: 17473
Karma: 1587
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #10 on:
November 06, 2015, 07:03:34 pm »
If we are talking 100M and below that's no issue.
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #11 on:
November 07, 2015, 01:53:08 am »
i just ordered this:
Order Placed: November 6, 2015
Amazon.com order
Order Total: $238.17
1 of: PicoPSU-90, Cyncronix 90W 12V DC-DC ATX mini-ITX
$28.94
1 of: ADATA USA Premier Pro SP600 2.5-Inch 64 GB SATA III Synchronous NAND SSD ASP600S3-64GM-C
$38.99
1 of: Kingston HyperX Impact Black 4GB 1600MHz DDR3L CL9 SODIMM 1.35V Laptop Memory (HX316LS9IB/4)
$22.99
1 of: Gigabyte Built-In Intel Celeron J1900 (2.0 GHz) Dual LAN Mini ITX DDR3 1333 NA Motherboard GA-J1900N-D3V
$89.99
1 of: Kastar LCD AC Adapter 12V 6A with 3-Prong Power Cord Power Supply for LCD Monitor and LCD TV
Sold by: LE Tech (seller profile)
$8.50
1 of: M350 Universal Mini-ITX PC enclosure PicoPSU compatible;
$44.50
Payment information
Item(s) Subtotal: $233.91
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
-----
Total before tax: $233.91
Estimated tax to be collected: $4.26
-----
Grand Total: $238.17
Logged
franco
Administrator
Hero Member
Posts: 17473
Karma: 1587
Re: Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #12 on:
November 07, 2015, 09:41:18 am »
Looks promising, let us know how it performs.
Logged
rubantin
Newbie
Posts: 30
Karma: 1
Re: [SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #13 on:
November 09, 2015, 04:24:18 pm »
What do you all think of this option for future referece?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TD8MTFY?refRID=JKASFWPB77V21VCEE237&ref_=pd_lutyp_simh_2_4
Logged
jmvelez
Newbie
Posts: 4
Karma: 0
Re: [SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements
«
Reply #14 on:
November 09, 2015, 06:03:58 pm »
This unit is $215 and very good quality.
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/BAS-High-Performance-Core-Router-Intel-D525-1-8Ghz-dual-core-support-ROS-Mikrotik-PFSense-Panabit/2053826581.html
Logged
Print
Pages: [
1
]
2
« previous
next »
OPNsense Forum
»
English Forums
»
General Discussion
»
[SOLVED] Cheap Box that meets requirements