Device for 10 gigabit per second internet connection
Device for 10 gigabit per second internet connection
I’m not aiming for a 10 gbit/s link at home, but I can reach up to 1 gbit/s. However, I have speeds of 500/500mbit/s. I’m interested in what hardware can handle a 10 gbit/s connection. I’m considering setting up a system with pfSense or iFire. What processor, how much RAM, and which network cards are best suited? Right now I’m using an old Dell Optiplex 745 as a router. It has an Intel Core2Duo E6300 at 1.86 GHz, 4GB DDR2 (two 2GB sticks), and an 80GB HDD. I’m thinking about building a new router, focusing on power efficiency. I chose the Dell machine because I received it for free from a friend and didn’t have funds for a new one. It performed surprisingly well, so I haven’t regretted the choice. I also own a used 24-port HP Procurve 1810G-24 from an auction. My current router supports 500 Mbps with Wi-Fi, thanks to its RAM or CPU. I’ve turned off DHCP and assigned a static IP, running it as a single access point.
Consider checking Netgate's appliance components for reference. For 10Gbps hardware, they employ Intel Atom CPUs (4- and 8-core variants) and progress to 8-core Xeons. Memory capacity ranges from 8 to 16GB. Their official expansion cards are available, though pfSense generally offers strong Intel NIC compatibility. If you're open to beta releases, paying for the premium edition, or switching to OPNSense, you may encounter limitations with newer Intel cards. Always investigate the NIC documentation first to confirm support availability.
May also depend if your ISP uses PPP which is single-threaded on FreeBSD. There's some discussion of PPPoE speeds on reddit. As for Netgate appliances, for some reason they don't seem to mention PPP speeds which is odd, given even if PPP itself might not be common in corporate networks then surely in some cases L2TP might be used which is basically the same technology.
You're right, the power consumption is quite high. I wouldn't expect a 10Gbps connection. Most everyday users wouldn't find one useful. For most people, a 1Gbps or possibly 2.5Gbps setup would be sufficient for now. Over time, you'll likely see prices drop, especially for premium equipment. At this stage, I'd consider used servers. Even less efficient routers can perform adequately. Devices like the Ubiquiti ER-X are fine if you don't require Quality of Service, as newer DOCSIS standards offer decent performance without strict QoS needs.
This topic isn't something I specialize in, but it seems the modem could handle different data streams. It wouldn't distinguish based on device type, though features like CAKE or FQ_CODEL don't always do that either. These are the improved QoS options found on more capable routers. If a single stream—like downloading Linux ISOs—consumes 99% of your bandwidth, it will be pushed down for smaller ones. Trying to prioritize devices this way is generally ineffective and often leads to poor results. This is what ChatGPT mentioned. I haven't confirmed its correctness. I learned about networking around six years ago and have since stopped focusing on it.
I understand the idea that "in theory" works well, but I wouldn't rely on them to implement it properly. Cable modems tend to struggle with buffer issues historically, so improvement would be welcome. Generally, they seem to use this approach when built-in VoIP is present, ensuring the Internet remains best-effort and VoIP calls stay real-time.
Crazy question. When did you learn this? Best practices DO change with time. DOCSIS 3.1 has tech that DOCSIS 3 didn't mandate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOCSIS You mentioned device-targeted QOS as something "good" and that's generally viewed as something that makes things worse within enthusiast/networking communities for at least 5+ years. DOCSIS 3.1 has PIE and if you're at 1Gbps you have bandwidth for days. --- This is mostly in the context of avoiding spending $$$$ on a router that can do SQM based QOS on a multi-gig connection. There's often not a huge need for that. Even if you have an asymetric connection and only use the router for QoS on uploads, something inexpensive like an ERX can handle ~150MBps for uploads if that's all you need.