Install nano on SD card + SSD vs. SSD-only install vs. full install vs. HDD

[masgo]

Hi,
I am planning an OPNsense installation and I am not completley sure whats the best way to go.

From what I have read so far, installing the nano image on an SD card gives me a (mostly) read-only installation with a lot of Stuff in RAM. Are there any other relevant differences?

Also, I could put an SSD into the OPNsense server. Obviously I could install OPNsense there, but I like the idea of having a read-only installation. So, is there a possibility to use the nano install and make the logs and RRDs go to the disk?

Also, how about using a cheap HDD for the logs and RRDs. From what I have read, the disk performance is irrelevant as long as I am not using a proxy server. Am I right?


If I go for the SD card install: is it possible to do a kind of "safe" upgrade? Something like: backup everything to a USB drive (which could serve as a replacement for the SD) and then upgrade?

As a background information: I plan to use a HP Microserver Gen 8 with an additional HP NC364T 4x Gigabit NIC as Hardware.