https://docs.opnsense.org/manual/hardware.html
I got this XCY Firewall Pfsense PC intel Celeron J1800 N2830 Router PC 4 Ethernet Ports Windows 10 Pro HTPC VGA Fanless Linux Mini PC PS|Mini PC| - AliExpress with 8G RAM 64G ssd.
I have three consumer grade routers. Can those be used as APs?
This PC recently became a spare. Would it be suitable for OPNsense?
Processing: Asus E7988_P8H77-I Manual.pdf…
If OPNsense can run headless, I could pull the PCI Express X16 video card to make room for a suitable 4 port nic.
Hi Kerry,
Yes, that board will be fine and a CPU with two, or better four cores or threads, will run it easily. I had 8G of RAM so left it in. My mobo is an Asrock QC5000 with a four core AMD CPU. Once installed (I used a USB thumb drive for the install), it only runs headlessly unless you want to use the command line. A Celeron or i3 will be plenty.
The web UI is easy to use so why bother?
The three routers can be, usually, be used as APs. It depends on the manufacturer but most can. DNS and DHCP should be disabled or, possibly,point to the OPNsense box.
Frank
Since I was running out of time before Holiday madness takes over, I decided to try an alternate approach with low cost, ease of installation and claimed ability to support up to 100 devices. What I found was the TP-Link Deco S4. For $110 on Amazon this package took one day to arrive. The setup was dead easy and within a couple hours all me device IP address were transferred except for Home Assistant. With some helpful suggestions I just changed the LAN IP address from 192.168.68.1 back to what I had before (192.168.0.1). and everything is on track. So far, great performance with 30 devices and expecting to add another 15 soon.
So far, I am very happy with this low cost solution. Now I have three conventional wifi routers unused. Would it be practical to use these and set up another local private network with no internet access just to install more devices that do not need internet access but can interface with HA ?