• [gentoo-user] Recommended hardware for router

    From whiteman808@21:1/5 to All on Mon May 19 22:30:01 2025
    Hello,

    I have a computer with the following specs:

    Motherboard: ASRock QC5000M Micro ATX
    RAM: 8 GB DDR3
    A cheap working 128 GB SSD available in the store
    Integrated AMD Radeon HD 8330 Graphics
    Power supply: Seasonic Ssp-350St2 Bulk 350W, Pc Power Supply (SSP350ST2)
    AMD FT3 Kabini A4-5050/5000 Quad-Core APU

    I want to install and configure on it GNU/Linux or OpenBSD so that this computer will serve as router

    Is it a good hardware for that purpose?

    Thanks

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  • From Matt Jolly@21:1/5 to All on Tue May 20 00:40:01 2025
    Hi,
    I want to install and configure on it GNU/Linux or OpenBSD so that this computer will serve as router

    Is it a good hardware for that purpose?

    Honestly, it's likely that even those specs are overkill for the
    intended purpose - compare to your bog-standard AIO modem/router
    which likely uses some flavour of ARM with <1/4 the RAM and clock
    speed.

    There's nothing stopping you from installing OPNsense or manually
    achieving the same result by installing Linux.

    You will require at least two interfaces on the device in order
    to act as a proper router, and the spec sheet for that ASRock
    board suggests a single gigabit ethernet port.

    Consider grabbing a nice, well supported, and relatively cheap, NIC
    such as an Intel PRO/1000 (or similar) to provide appropriate
    interfaces for your router.

    Cheers,

    Matt

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  • From Michael@21:1/5 to All on Mon May 19 23:54:35 2025
    On Monday, 19 May 2025 23:35:02 British Summer Time Matt Jolly wrote:
    Hi,

    I want to install and configure on it GNU/Linux or OpenBSD so that this computer will serve as router

    Is it a good hardware for that purpose?

    Honestly, it's likely that even those specs are overkill for the
    intended purpose - compare to your bog-standard AIO modem/router
    which likely uses some flavour of ARM with <1/4 the RAM and clock
    speed.

    There's nothing stopping you from installing OPNsense or manually
    achieving the same result by installing Linux.

    You will require at least two interfaces on the device in order
    to act as a proper router, and the spec sheet for that ASRock
    board suggests a single gigabit ethernet port.

    Consider grabbing a nice, well supported, and relatively cheap, NIC
    such as an Intel PRO/1000 (or similar) to provide appropriate
    interfaces for your router.

    Cheers,

    Matt

    Or perhaps take a look at a board built for this purpose, rather than trying
    to repurpose a MoBo more suited to a small desktop PC. For example:

    https://mikrotik.com/products/group/routerboard https://teklager.se/en/products/routers/


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  • From whiteman808@21:1/5 to Michael on Tue May 20 02:00:01 2025
    Can you recommend some Mikrotik model? I have an 8 Gbps optical fiber
    network, 8 Gbps download / 2 Gbps upload and I've started building my
    budget homelab. I plan to expand my network to support 10 Gbps Ethernet
    in the far future so router should have one 10 Gbps Ethernet port.

    I'll need to connect 1 Gbps TP-Link SG1024DE semi-managed switch, USB
    printer and some 1 TB external disk to router. Router should have the
    options that will be very useful when administering network like setting
    custom domain name, assigning static ip per MAC, MAC filtering, port forwarding, builtin firewall.

    I want to connect Wi-Fi access point separately, so no builtin wireless
    support needed.

    Most devices will be connected to the 1 Gbit Ethernet switch and maybe
    10 Gbit in the future, only devices like smartphone or laptop will use Wi-Fi.

    On 19 May 2025, 23:54:35, Michael wrote:
    On Monday, 19 May 2025 23:35:02 British Summer Time Matt Jolly wrote:
    Hi,

    I want to install and configure on it GNU/Linux or OpenBSD so that this computer will serve as router

    Is it a good hardware for that purpose?

    Honestly, it's likely that even those specs are overkill for the
    intended purpose - compare to your bog-standard AIO modem/router
    which likely uses some flavour of ARM with <1/4 the RAM and clock
    speed.

    There's nothing stopping you from installing OPNsense or manually
    achieving the same result by installing Linux.

    You will require at least two interfaces on the device in order
    to act as a proper router, and the spec sheet for that ASRock
    board suggests a single gigabit ethernet port.

    Consider grabbing a nice, well supported, and relatively cheap, NIC
    such as an Intel PRO/1000 (or similar) to provide appropriate
    interfaces for your router.

    Cheers,

    Matt

    Or perhaps take a look at a board built for this purpose, rather than trying to repurpose a MoBo more suited to a small desktop PC. For example:

    https://mikrotik.com/products/group/routerboard https://teklager.se/en/products/routers/


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  • From Matt Jolly@21:1/5 to All on Tue May 20 04:20:01 2025
    On 20/5/25 09:55, whiteman808 wrote:
    Can you recommend some Mikrotik model?

    Really it's going to come down to what your requirements are
    and how much you want to spend. Get something with sufficient
    ports for your current requirements and any (near) future expansion.
    Don't spend money on things that you don't need (the majority of my
    lab equipment was free or heavily discounted).

    A re-used SFF PC and cheap network card may be more cost effective
    than buying a new router!

    Note that switches are far more performant at, well, switching,
    so a 'dumb' router with a few ethernet ports might do the job well,
    and you can get a switch (or switches) that support your devices.
    Something a bit like one of these:

    https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005008591539955.html

    My homelab is a bit outdated at this point, but I have some decent kit
    that supports 10GbE/40GbE. Here's an older network diagram for my
    homelab, for context: https://jumpshare.com/s/1D6YRNZPjylI3Jpx3MEI

    It's been through a few iterations since, currently the NAS and
    PVE-hosted utilities have been consolidated onto a single server
    (90t+24t metadata/hot data bcachefs) for much lower bills!

    Since I rarely need to do things like spin up a full set of AD/CA infra,
    that I'm operating with a fraction of the RAM is barely noticable.

    At one point I had the router trunking VLANs to each switch over 40GbE,
    but had some issues with the mlnx2 drivers causing massive packet loss
    in one direction. With the PVE cluster inactive I'm just using the
    CRS354 and a couple of the 10GbE SFPs. I could split the 40s out into
    4*10GbE each, but I don't have a need for it at the moment, especially
    with my T4 having failed recently.

    I now just use an Intel SFP+ card on the router, trunking VLANs (to
    segregate traffic) to the CRS354, my APs are on a trunked port with
    default VLAN, most every thing else is just an appropriately VLAN'd
    access port.

    Mikrotik devices are relatively easy to run, and configuration can
    be as straightforward as SSHing into the device and running commands
    in the prompt (or using the WebUI).

    Also, while copper DACs are annoying they can be much easier than
    dealing with fibre in a dusty environment (though I've had good
    results with fibre polishing tools).

    Good luck with the lab.

    Cheers,

    Matt

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  • From Michael@21:1/5 to All on Tue May 20 11:56:05 2025
    On Tuesday, 20 May 2025 03:12:04 British Summer Time Matt Jolly wrote:
    On 20/5/25 09:55, whiteman808 wrote:
    Can you recommend some Mikrotik model?

    I can't recommend Mikrotik because I don't have any working experience with them. I only mentioned them as an example - other OEMs are available. What I was hinting at is if you buy something designed for the job, you are likely to pay less and obtain a hardware specification more suitable to your requirements. A desktop APU with a graphics core and a sound card are
    unlikely to benefit a router, unless you plan to connect a monitor, mouse and keyboard on it and use it as a ... desktop. :-)

    On the other hand mass produced kit reduces the cost and repurposing it has
    its own benefits, e.g. PCIe ports where multiport NICs can be plugged in.

    Depending on your needs and requirements you'd want to consider SFP+ or higher spec when you buy NICs to future proof it.

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  • From Jay Faulkner@21:1/5 to Matt Jolly on Tue May 20 16:30:01 2025
    On 5/19/25 7:12 PM, Matt Jolly wrote:

    A re-used SFF PC and cheap network card may be more cost effective
    than buying a new router!


    Note: do not make the mistake I once did and try using an external NIC.
    Even with fast enough USB speeds, it was never performant enough for a
    router :).


    -JayF

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  • From Matt Jolly@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 13:00:01 2025
    On 21/5/25 20:42, whiteman808 wrote:
    Will something bad happen if I reuse over-spec mentioned PC instead of
    buying a new Mikrotik, for example spending too much money on electric
    energy bills?

    Energy usage will likely be higher, but that's offset by the cost of
    having to buy low-power hardware if you already own something that
    you're planning to repurpose. The difference probably isn't as much
    as you'd think, at idle anyway. To measure it you need equipment that...
    costs money. You can estimate the maximum by looking at the components
    that you're going to use and comparing it with your utility rates.

    At the end of the day, a single 'real' server in your homelab might blow
    this out of the water - my SPARC drew 60W... when it was turned off!

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  • From whiteman808@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 12:50:01 2025
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    Will something bad happen if I reuse over-spec mentioned PC instead of buying a new Mikrotik, for example spending too much money on electric energy bills?

    Getting additional network card is no problem for me, I have in home an 4-port Intel NIC.

    Dnia 20 maja 2025 04:12:04 CEST, Matt Jolly <[email protected]> napisał/a:
    On 20/5/25 09:55, whiteman808 wrote:
    Can you recommend some Mikrotik model?

    Really it's going to come down to what your requirements are
    and how much you want to spend. Get something with sufficient
    ports for your current requirements and any (near) future expansion.
    Don't spend money on things that you don't need (the majority of my
    lab equipment was free or heavily discounted).

    A re-used SFF PC and cheap network card may be more cost effective
    than buying a new router!

    Note that switches are far more performant at, well, switching,
    so a 'dumb' router with a few ethernet ports might do the job well,
    and you can get a switch (or switches) that support your devices.
    Something a bit like one of these:

    https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005008591539955.html

    My homelab is a bit outdated at this point, but I have some decent kit
    that supports 10GbE/40GbE. Here's an older network diagram for my homelab, for context: https://jumpshare.com/s/1D6YRNZPjylI3Jpx3MEI

    It's been through a few iterations since, currently the NAS and
    PVE-hosted utilities have been consolidated onto a single server
    (90t+24t metadata/hot data bcachefs) for much lower bills!

    Since I rarely need to do things like spin up a full set of AD/CA infra,
    that I'm operating with a fraction of the RAM is barely noticable.

    At one point I had the router trunking VLANs to each switch over 40GbE, but had some issues with the mlnx2 drivers causing massive packet loss
    in one direction. With the PVE cluster inactive I'm just using the
    CRS354 and a couple of the 10GbE SFPs. I could split the 40s out into
    4*10GbE each, but I don't have a need for it at the moment, especially
    with my T4 having failed recently.

    I now just use an Intel SFP+ card on the router, trunking VLANs (to
    segregate traffic) to the CRS354, my APs are on a trunked port with
    default VLAN, most every thing else is just an appropriately VLAN'd
    access port.

    Mikrotik devices are relatively easy to run, and configuration can
    be as straightforward as SSHing into the device and running commands
    in the prompt (or using the WebUI).

    Also, while copper DACs are annoying they can be much easier than
    dealing with fibre in a dusty environment (though I've had good
    results with fibre polishing tools).

    Good luck with the lab.

    Cheers,

    Matt


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    <html><head></head><body><div dir="auto">Will something bad happen if I reuse over-spec mentioned PC instead of buying a new Mikrotik, for example spending too much money on electric energy bills?<br><br>Getting additional network card is no problem for
    me, I have in home an 4-port Intel NIC.</div><br><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="auto">Dnia 20 maja 2025 04:12:04 CEST, Matt Jolly &lt;[email protected]&gt; napisał/a:</div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-
    left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">
    <pre class="k9mail"><div dir="auto">On 20/5/25 09:55, whiteman808 wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 1ex 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid #729fcf; padding-left: 1ex;"><div dir="auto">Can you recommend some Mikrotik model?<
    </div></blockquote><div dir="auto"><br>Really it's going to come down to what your requirements are<br>and how much you want to spend. Get something with sufficient<br>ports for your current requirements and any (near) future expansion.<br>Don't spend
    money on things that you don't need (the majority of my<br>lab equipment was free or heavily discounted).<br><br>A re-used SFF PC and cheap network card may be more cost effective<br>than buying a new router!<br><br>Note that switches are far more
    performant at, well, switching,<br>so a 'dumb' router with a few ethernet ports might do the job well,<br>and you can get a switch (or switches) that support your devices.<br>Something a bit like one of these:<br><br><a href="https://www.aliexpress.com/
    item/1005008591539955.html">https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005008591539955.html</a><br><br>My homelab is a bit outdated at this point, but I have some decent kit<br>that supports 10GbE/40GbE. Here's an older network diagram for my homelab, for context:
    <a href="https://jumpshare.com/s/1D6YRNZPjylI3Jpx3MEI">https://jumpshare.com/s/1D6YRNZPjylI3Jpx3MEI</a><br><br>It's been through a few iterations since, currently the NAS and<br>PVE-hosted utilities have been consolidated onto a single server<br>(90t+24t
    metadata/hot data bcachefs) for much lower bills!<br><br>Since I rarely need to do things like spin up a full set of AD/CA infra,<br>that I'm operating with a fraction of the RAM is barely noticable.<br><br>At one point I had the router trunking VLANs to
    each switch over 40GbE, but had some issues with the mlnx2 drivers causing massive packet loss<br>in one direction. With the PVE cluster inactive I'm just using the<br>CRS354 and a couple of the 10GbE SFPs. I could split the 40s out into<br>4*10GbE each,
    but I don't have a need for it at the moment, especially<br>with my T4 having failed recently.<br><br>I now just use an Intel SFP+ card on the router, trunking VLANs (to<br>segregate traffic) to the CRS354, my APs are on a trunked port with<br>default
    VLAN, most every thing else is just an appropriately VLAN'd<br>access port.<br><br>Mikrotik devices are relatively easy to run, and configuration can<br>be as straightforward as SSHing into the device and running commands<br>in the prompt (or using the
    WebUI).<br><br>Also, while copper DACs are annoying they can be much easier than<br>dealing with fibre in a dusty environment (though I've had good<br>results with fibre polishing tools).<br><br>Good luck with the lab.<br><br>Cheers,<br><br>Matt<br><br></
    </pre></blockquote></div></body></html> ------WX2ENUG44JY1RBCRM6MBL8NZMETR2F--

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  • From whiteman808@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 13:00:01 2025
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    Does make sense buying new router or just repurposing this PC will be a better idea?

    Dnia 21 maja 2025 12:49:08 CEST, Matt Jolly <[email protected]> napisał/a:
    On 21/5/25 20:42, whiteman808 wrote:
    Will something bad happen if I reuse over-spec mentioned PC instead of buying a new Mikrotik, for example spending too much money on electric energy bills?

    Energy usage will likely be higher, but that's offset by the cost of
    having to buy low-power hardware if you already own something that
    you're planning to repurpose. The difference probably isn't as much
    as you'd think, at idle anyway. To measure it you need equipment that... >costs money. You can estimate the maximum by looking at the components
    that you're going to use and comparing it with your utility rates.

    At the end of the day, a single 'real' server in your homelab might blow
    this out of the water - my SPARC drew 60W... when it was turned off!



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    <html><head></head><body><div dir="auto">Does make sense buying new router or just repurposing this PC will be a better idea?</div><br><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="auto">Dnia 21 maja 2025 12:49:08 CEST, Matt Jolly &lt;[email protected]&gt;
    napisał/a:</div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">
    <pre class="k9mail"><div dir="auto">On 21/5/25 20:42, whiteman808 wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 1ex 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid #729fcf; padding-left: 1ex;"><div dir="auto">Will something bad happen if I reuse
    over-spec mentioned PC instead of buying a new Mikrotik, for example spending too much money on electric energy bills?<br></div></blockquote><div dir="auto"><br>Energy usage will likely be higher, but that's offset by the cost of<br>having to buy low-
    power hardware if you already own something that<br>you're planning to repurpose. The difference probably isn't as much<br>as you'd think, at idle anyway. To measure it you need equipment that...<br>costs money. You can estimate the maximum by looking at
    the components<br>that you're going to use and comparing it with your utility rates.<br><br>At the end of the day, a single 'real' server in your homelab might blow<br>this out of the water - my SPARC drew 60W... when it was turned off!<br><br><br></div><
    /pre></blockquote></div></body></html>
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  • From Alarig Le Lay@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 13:10:02 2025
    Hello,

    On Wed 21 May 2025 12:56:01 GMT, whiteman808 wrote:
    Does make sense buying new router or just repurposing this PC will be
    a better idea?

    I’ve always reused my old hardware for routers and it works very well.
    Right now my home router is a Shuttle DS81D and in datacenter I’m using several old Dell R210. All of that runs on Linux and the dynamic routing
    is done with net-misc/bird.

    --
    Alarig

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  • From Matt Jolly@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 13:10:02 2025
    On 21/5/25 20:56, whiteman808 wrote:
    Does make sense buying new router or just repurposing this PC will be a better idea?
    That's up to you and what makes the most sense right now. You can always
    change your mind later and repurpose the hardware for something else.

    My router is still a SFF desktop with a USB 4g dongle as a backup
    connection because it was 'cheap at the time'. It probably costs me more
    in power over the long run, but I haven't done the maths to know what
    the break even point on a N100 or ARM device would be like.

    Besides, letting perfectly good hardware go to (e)waste is a terrible
    thing to see, and I get a lot of my power (at least half the day)
    from solar.

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  • From Michael@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 12:36:07 2025
    On Wednesday, 21 May 2025 12:02:36 British Summer Time Matt Jolly wrote:
    On 21/5/25 20:56, whiteman808 wrote:
    Does make sense buying new router or just repurposing this PC will be a better idea?

    That's up to you and what makes the most sense right now. You can always change your mind later and repurpose the hardware for something else.

    My router is still a SFF desktop with a USB 4g dongle as a backup
    connection because it was 'cheap at the time'. It probably costs me more
    in power over the long run, but I haven't done the maths to know what
    the break even point on a N100 or ARM device would be like.

    Besides, letting perfectly good hardware go to (e)waste is a terrible
    thing to see, and I get a lot of my power (at least half the day)
    from solar.

    I tend to keep functionally good hardware going, until repair or upgrading the same old kit becomes uneconomic.

    An article presenting a particular microtic and its power consumption as a quick reference:

    https://www.servethehome.com/mikrotik-crs504-4xq-in-review-momentus-4x-100gbe-and-25gbe-desktop-switch-marvell/3/

    However, to do this properly it is best to refer to the actual kit specification. I would guess it will take quite a few years before any power savings will match the zero capital cost of a repurposed PC.
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