# mini-ITX for pfsense/FreeBSD 7



## samiam (Feb 15, 2009)

Hello.  First post, so if I step on any toes, be assured it is inadvertent.  I've recently become sufficiently incensed (and concerned) enough about Verizon DSL's policy of force-upgrading the firmware on broadband modems (even customer-owned units) that I am now motivated to roll my own FW to sit between said modem and the rest of my equipment.  I am looking for a cheap, easy way to achieve good visibility and control of what is getting in and out of my home network (no potential conflicts in that criteria, right ;?)  A quick review suggests that pfSense may be a good software choice.  Assuming that is valid, I need to identify candidate hardware.  I'd like to keep it small.  pfSense seems to need 256MB RAM and 2 ea. NICs.  I'd like to be able to run this without an HDD, so CF card capability would be a plus.  It looks like the cheapest small-board hardware that can meet these requirements are mini-ITX/VIA mainboards from Jet and others.  Are there known compatibility issues between these mainboards (and the Realtek NICs with which they typically are equipped) and FreeBSD 7?  Is anyone here who has already done this willing to share some insights?  Other recommendations, opinions, and (especially;-) pointers to pages on this site where this topic has already been addressed are most welcome.  Thanks!

-Sam


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## trev (Feb 16, 2009)

Realtek gigabit NICs based on at least the 8111B and 8111C RealTek chips have issues from my personal and painful experiences with current Gigabyte motherboards (MA770-DS3, MA790X-DS4).

Really, the best advice is to avoid Realtek NICs if at all possible.


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## twinmos (Feb 28, 2009)

AFAIK Jetway J7F4K motherboard with dual Realtek 8110S 1GBit works perfectly under FreeBSD 7.0 (this is my home NAS server). 
Can't make FreeBSD 7.1 to work stable


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## honk (Feb 28, 2009)

twinmos said:
			
		

> AFAIK Jetway J7F4K motherboard with dual Realtek 8110S 1GBit works perfectly under FreeBSD 7.0 (this is my home NAS server).
> Can't make FreeBSD 7.1 to work stable



Did you run some benchmarks (e.g netio)? I'm interested how the gigabit nic's perform in the mini-itx boards.


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## twinmos (Feb 28, 2009)

netperf gives ~400 Mbps with ~80% load on it.


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