MarkProvanP
Occasional Visitor
We got both the WRT320N and the WRT160N that I mentioned a month or two back, but now we want to wire the house with Gigabit ethernet. We have a garage extension running the entire length of one side of the house, and we are going to be ripping up the walls in several places due to renovation work, so we thought it would be a good, future proofed thing to do. We also have a wooden summerhouse kind of thing in which we would like to put a wireless access point so we can have better WiFi range in the garden.
Since we would be using a switch at the centre of the network, where the modem will be, we are going to get a firewall/DHCP server from somewhere to help protect the network. We have two options for this: either get one of these: Rackable Systems 2U Rackmount, which they are selling for a ridiculously low price, and then run m0n0wall, pfSense or some other FOSS firewall software; or we could get a Firebox x700 and then run m0n0wall or pfSense on it as well. The Rackable Systems is a complete server with two Gigabit ethernet connections, but will not be among the most efficient of hardware to run 24/7. The Firebox x700 has only got 10/100 ethernet, but it has six ports so we could connect some of the lower-speed devices to it instead of one of the valuable 8 Gigabit ports on the switch. If you know anything about either option, what would you recommend? I am well aware of the fact that I could use a random SOHO wireless router to act as a firewall, but where is the fun in that?
In the attached PDF, green symbolises Gigabit and blue symbolises 10/100. I haven't included WiFi connections as they will be roaming.
EDIT: Oh, and I am seriously thinking of putting all of the switches, firewalls etc in a LackRack.
Since we would be using a switch at the centre of the network, where the modem will be, we are going to get a firewall/DHCP server from somewhere to help protect the network. We have two options for this: either get one of these: Rackable Systems 2U Rackmount, which they are selling for a ridiculously low price, and then run m0n0wall, pfSense or some other FOSS firewall software; or we could get a Firebox x700 and then run m0n0wall or pfSense on it as well. The Rackable Systems is a complete server with two Gigabit ethernet connections, but will not be among the most efficient of hardware to run 24/7. The Firebox x700 has only got 10/100 ethernet, but it has six ports so we could connect some of the lower-speed devices to it instead of one of the valuable 8 Gigabit ports on the switch. If you know anything about either option, what would you recommend? I am well aware of the fact that I could use a random SOHO wireless router to act as a firewall, but where is the fun in that?
In the attached PDF, green symbolises Gigabit and blue symbolises 10/100. I haven't included WiFi connections as they will be roaming.
EDIT: Oh, and I am seriously thinking of putting all of the switches, firewalls etc in a LackRack.
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