Sophos

[zoomzoom]

My FreeNAS server was the first box I built, so I'm still a bit clueless about a few things here and there, one being the following:

• I've decided upon the SuperMicro X10SBA and Startech ST4000SPEXI PCIe quad LAN (Intel i350) [at least the dual], however I'd like the enclosure to be as slim as possible

Is it possible to buy some sort of adapter to convert a vertical PCIe slot to a horizontal one?

 

[Ericloewe]

Startech ST4000SPEXI PCIe quad LAN (Intel i350) [at least the dual]

Careful, those are fakes: https://forums.freenas.org/index.ph...ke-intel-i350-gbe-adapters-in-the-wild.38305/

 

[Ericloewe]

Is it possible to buy some sort of adapter to convert a vertical PCIe slot to a horizontal one?

Yes, the chassis vendor should have the appropriate risers available.

 

[zoomzoom]

Careful, those are fakes: https://forums.freenas.org/index.ph...ke-intel-i350-gbe-adapters-in-the-wild.38305/

Wow... thanks! Would that also imply StarTech is not a reputable brand? I know when I went to buy my USB3 PCIe card for my FreeNAS server, the Vantec model and the StarTech model looked identical; I went with Vantec as they had been around since '94 and were based out out Cali.

Yes, the chassis vendor should have the appropriate risers available.

Thanks that's a huge help, as I didn't know what the actual name of the adapter would be

 

[Ericloewe]

Would that also imply StarTech is not a reputable brand?

Somehwere between "Fell out of a truck in the shadiest alley of Shenzhen" and "Not exactly first-grade".

 

[zoomzoom]

So most quality quad LAN PCIe cards cost ~ 200, if not more (SuperMicro is $166; Intel i350 is ~$300]... I'd like to have at least 4 LAN ports and was curious what opinions might be for the following:

• Instead of the SuperMicro X10SBA (dual LAN) the SuperMicro A1SAi-2550F or A1SRi-2558F (quad lan w/ extra IPMI)
  • X10SBA: Celeron J1900 quad @ 2gHz TDP 10w $169.99
    • AOC-SGP-I4: Quad LAN Intel i350 controller $165.99
      • $336 total
  • A1SAi-2550F: Atom C2550 quad @ 2.4gHz TDP 14w @259.99
  • A1SRi-2558F: Atom C2558 quad @ 2.4gHz TDP 15w $249.99
    • All quad LANs are Intel C2000 controllers, IPMI is Realtek (IIRC)
  • All part #'s are SuperMicro

 

[pirateghost]

The 2558 is intended for networking use. I would probably go that route if I didn't already have a stack of Intel quad port NICs.

I want to warn you though, that you probably aren't going to want to use those extra ports as you would a standard router. Switching should be done on hardware vs software. Use them for segregating networks or playing with vlans/WiFi etc.

 

[zoomzoom]

The 2558 is intended for networking use. I would probably go that route if I didn't already have a stack of Intel quad port NICs.

I want to warn you though, that you probably aren't going to want to use those extra ports as you would a standard router. Switching should be done on hardware vs software. Use them for segregating networks or playing with vlans/WiFi etc.

Could you point me in the right direction on where I could read up on that? I'm experienced with basic networking as it pertains to my WRT1900ac and OpenWRT/DD-WRT, but I have no experience with more advanced forms of networking.

 

[pirateghost]

Could you point me in the right direction on where I could read up on that? I'm experienced with basic networking as it pertains to my WRT1900ac, but I have no experience with more advanced forms of networking.

What I'm saying is: use a switch for more ports, don't use your firewall.

Your wrt is actually a NAT device, switch, and access point all rolled up in one device. Among other services.

You configure your wrt as just an access point and use the LAN ports for connecting other devices, or get a real switch and use that. Don't use the extra ports on your new sophos router for any of that.

 

[zoomzoom]

Is the reason for hardware switching over software switching the speed advantage of hardware based switching?

 

[pirateghost]

Is the reason for hardware switching over software switching the speed advantage of hardware based switching?

Yes. Switches are much much faster than bridging your ports and going through your software layer

 

[zoomzoom]

Yes. Switches are much much faster than bridging your ports and going through your software layer

Since the WRT1900ac ports are bridged within the firmware, does that mean I would get better performance out of buying a switch and using the following layout:

• Router --> Switch --> LAN devices versus Router --> LAN devices

 

[pirateghost]

Since the WRT1900ac ports are bridged within the firmware, does that mean I would get better performance out of buying a switch and using the following layout:

• Router --> Switch --> LAN devices versus Router --> LAN devices

A switch built into a router should still be faster than running through a PC. I don't think you need to worry about that.

 

[zoomzoom]

When I eventually need to buy switches, is it better to buy managed or unmanaged?

 

[pirateghost]

Managed will get you vlan capabilities and a whole host of other options you may never use.

It all depends on your setup and network.

 

[zoomzoom]

Thanks! =]

 

[zoomzoom]

Is an internal DVD drive necessary or would an external one that's BIOS bootable suffice?

 

[pirateghost]

You don't need one at all

 

[zoomzoom]

I know you mentioned you run yours out of a VM... is there any differences or reasons why a person chooses either or? If it's personal preference, I'm thinking I may just pay the extra $75 and upgrade to the octa core 2758 since it seems like a waste to run just UTM on a fairly decent server board ;)

 

[jgreco]

So most quality quad LAN PCIe cards cost ~ 200, if not more (SuperMicro is $166; Intel i350 is ~$300]...

The Silicom PEG6i is a popular six port NIC with the ESXi folks, and is based on the 82571EB which I *believe* works fine with FreeNAS. Often only $100 on eBay.

Found out about those a few months after sourcing some Intel quads on eBay for ~~$140 each and was I ever annoyed. ;-)