What kind of hardware should I use for running a Untangle firewall/filter?

I'm looking to install an Untangle server as a component in my home network as a simple firewall and internet content filter. I will be running a separate machine on the network for HTTP and media serving, so I really wish to tailor this machine to serve its purpose well with little or no overhead. Since all packets will be traveling through this machine, it needs enough horsepower to keep network operations flowing quickly and smoothly, but at the same time, I'd like it to use as little power as possible. It will be running Untangle and OpenSSH server and little, if anything, else.

For the processor, I'm thinking about getting one from the Intel i3 line (dual-core/low power); small motherboard (I'd really like to be able to rackmount the whole thing in a 2U-3U case); I don't think I'll need anything greater than 2GB of RAM (if that); and a small SSD to keep things power-friendly and fast.

Can anyone recommend a setup best-tailored to the task?

Naftuli Kay

Posted 2011-05-03T07:29:30.297

Reputation: 8 389

Answers

I've used Astaro firewall at home quite some time and I use a very very shallow rig:

CPU: Intel Atom D510

Very small case

2GB RAM

Server Sata Harddrive

and an additional NIC

this might come over as a bit very minimalistic but it works really well cpu is used around 2% the RAM is used to about 50% So I say i3 is a bit too much but an SSD would be a good addition.

And just a side note you might want to check out astaro which is another great firewall product and free with all features for home use :D

DemonWareXT

Posted 2011-05-03T07:29:30.297

Reputation: 146

How about http://bit.ly/ij0ud0 for the processor? Looks like a sweet combo, and is very cheap.

– Naftuli Kay – 2011-05-03T19:35:03.663

looks good enough just make sure to also get a second NIC, a mainboard with dual NICs are expensive but an expansion card is cheap as hell. Oh and as a side note I think you don't need an SSD but get more RAM and just load anything into the RAM, Logfiles and stuff can still be on the HDD they don't kneed power. – DemonWareXT – 2011-05-04T06:37:37.527

FYI this is that I use http://goo.gl/HKByk

– DemonWareXT – 2011-05-04T07:32:25.053

I can't tell you specifically what to get, but I can share what I'm running.

I have Untangle on a rather old Dell Dimension 2400. Runs a 900 Celeron with 1 GB of ram. This has been serving our home network for several years without issue. We have 6+ PCs/laptops, a couple console systems (wii and xbox) and a bunch of phones and entertainment devices running through it and bandwidth benchmarks appear to indicate no slowdowns or issues.

Chris_K

Posted 2011-05-03T07:29:30.297

Reputation: 7 943