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Comment by sashk | Hacker News Reader

I use two devices to handle usual definition of the router:

  1. Mini PC[1] running as a router (pfSense);
  2. eero to handle the wifi.

Why? I've tried many times to use dd-wrt, openwrt and tomato firmwares on my routers, but every time I failed miserably: it's either something stops working, or I need to schedule routers reboots and so. So I gave up. Since that time, mini pc [1] is the third system which routes my traffic, acts as VPN gateway, proxy server and so on on my home network and I've never been happier. With eero I've got even better coverage comparing to the previous Airport Express.

[1]: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Latest-windows-8-mini-pc-min...

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I found https://www.amazon.com/Qotom-Q190G4-Celeron-Processor-Barebo... a fantastic device for the price. There's a non-Atom Celeron, a Broadwell chip and four Intel LAN ports in a <$150 package without moving parts. My home is small so this also handles the wifi for me.

What OS you running on that?

Arch Linux. I don't need a fancy UI, I can configure my networking just fine. I also use it as a media player.

How do you make it do WiFi? USB WiFi adapter?

It has two mini PCIe slots, one for mSATA, one for wifi. It has the usual antenna holes as well. You need an mPCIe card (Intel 7260HMW is popular) and two U.FL to RP-SMA connectors and be done. But yes, you could use USB as well. They sell kits as well but they use inferior cards IMO.

Thanks! I have an ASRock Beebox which has mSATA WiFi card installed by default, but I've never trusted the signal due to its lack of external antennas. I was wondering how well it performs in your setup :)

I also use a MiniPC running pfSense and couldn't be happier. I made the switch 3 years ago, after running a Linksys WRT54G-TM on OpenWRT for 5+ years.

pfSense is simple to get started with, powerful enough for small to medium businesses and "just works."

The initial setup might be a bit more $$$ ($150 for hardware), but it will last you a long time.

Which MiniPC did you use? I'm considering a similar setup, so options to consider would be welcome.

Looks like it was a Gigabyte GB-BXBT-2807[1]

I added a 32gb ssd drive and a USB Ethernet dongle as well (for 2nd interface).

The box has wifi, but no driver support from FreeBSD. My WIFI is supplied via a UniFI AC LITE.

1. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856164...

Thanks. I've looked at the AC Lite and the AC PRO also, but haven't narrowed the search for a small box to run the router.

Seems the box you linked to has only 1 ethernet port. How do you connect to both WAN and AP?

I added a USB <-> ethernet adapter. I didn't love the idea , but I researched a bit and bought a FreeBSD supported one (Linksys).

Have had 0 problems with it so far.

pfSense is really a good choice, I'm successfully using it for two years without any major problems on a dual-wan setup and some 50 clients.

How much coverage and clients does a single Eero manage - by the reviews I read, I think it shines only when multiple ones are used, but that makes them a pricey solution.

I use a mini PC as router too, running Ubuntu though. It works really well for me. I chose linux instead of pfSense because it is a lot more flexible, and I was already quite proficient in managing linux systems.

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