Looking for some advice / recommendations / considerations on running OPNsense on bare metal vs virtualized, and if virtualized how best to do so.

I currently have OPNsense running bare metal on a Protectli FW6E Vault, with the following specs:

  • Intel i7-8550U CPU @ 1.80GHz
  • 120GB mSATA (1% utilization)
  • 16GB RAM (6.5% utilization)
  • 6 Gigabit Ethernet NIC ports

The Vault running OPNsense is the primary firewall and router, any wireless devices connect through a dumb AP running OpenWRT. Connected over Ethernet I have a RPi running HomeAssistant OS (would probably also move to virtual if that’s the chosen direction) as well as a TrueNAS setup.

How much of a performance hit would be expected running in some sort of container vs the current bare metal setup? Are there any other concerns with running the main firewall / router virtually vs bare metal to take into account?

    • percent@infosec.pubEnglish
      1·
      5 hours ago

      Sure! It’s completely solid-state; no fans or other moving parts. The case is designed to dissipate the heat. The CPU is some low-power Intel Pentium. I don’t remember exactly which model.

      I ordered a pre-built one from Protectli because I needed it fast, but you can save quite a bit if you prefer to build one. These little motherboards and cases can be found pretty easily online.