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Old 30th March 2016
jjstorm jjstorm is offline
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Default OpenBSD compact wireless router

Is it possible to build a router that can fit into a compact chassis with external antennas, that runs on OpenBSD? If so, can you provide me with details about the build. I would love to build one.
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Old 30th March 2016
shep shep is offline
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OpenBSD Router Tutorial.
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Old 30th March 2016
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Heh. I am sitting next to a pair of Alix boxes -- these are "WRAP" boards, so-called Wireless Router Application Platforms. I don't happen to have Wifi NICs directly connected, though the vendor, PC Engines, does sell WiFi hardware, including antennae, and cases to fit 'em.

I'm actually engaged in building 5.9-stable at the moment, in order to upgrade them.
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Old 30th March 2016
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I run OpenBSD on both Alix & APU system from PC Engines -- commonly used by many.
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Old 31st March 2016
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I am under the impression that a router built with either an Alix or APU motherboard can be set up / configured through a laptop correct?
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Old 31st March 2016
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shep View Post
Nice tutorial, thanks a lot.
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Old 31st March 2016
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jjstorm View Post
I am under the impression that a router built with either an Alix or APU motherboard can be set up / configured through a laptop correct?
There are two considerations for the Alix.

It has a serial console. You will need a null modem cable and a computer with a serial port or a USB-to-serial dongle to communicate via the console.

It boots either from Compact Flash drive or via PXE network boot. There are USB ports, but the BIOS does not support booting from USB mass storage. Alix customers either install onto a Compact Flash drive on another system and transfer it to the Alix, or they use PXE to boot and install onto Compact Flash.

I use the console on an Alix for initial install, upgrades, and disaster recovery. Otherwise, the null modem cable and USB dongle are kept in storage. I used PXE booting only for initial installation and (once, due to a drive failure) disaster recovery.

Last edited by jggimi; 31st March 2016 at 01:41 AM. Reason: clarity
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Old 31st March 2016
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jjstorm View Post
I am under the impression that a router built with either an Alix or APU motherboard can be set up / configured through a laptop correct?
To boot an Alix or APU system will require some understanding of PXE booting & implementing it. One of the first places you should read is Section 6.7 of the FAQ.
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Old 2nd April 2016
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Looking through pc-engines website, I can't find an 802.11ac wireless adapter that will work with OpenBSD. in fact, I thought the iwm driver supported 80211ac, but it does not appear to be supported, acording to the iwm driver man page.

Last edited by jjstorm; 3rd April 2016 at 02:59 PM.
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Old 2nd April 2016
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Code:
Stated Requirement:    IEEE 802.11ac
Form Factor:           MiniPCI
PC Engines offierings: 1 (one): wle600vx

---

OpenBSD Wireless Drivers: 29 (twenty nine)
802.11ac supported cards: 0 (zero)
802.11ac is a new standard. 802.11n is only now available with OpenBSD, for the two Intel drivers iwn(4) and iwm(4).

If you need 802.11ac today, you need a different OS -- or, you need an external 802.11/802.3 bridge device.

Last edited by jggimi; 2nd April 2016 at 03:27 PM. Reason: added WiFi to wired Ethernet bridge comment.
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Old 2nd April 2016
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jggimi View Post

If you need 802.11ac today, you need a different OS.
I actually don't need it today, considering that the highest available internet speed I can get where I am is 50 mbps down. I wanted to be ready for the future. 802.11n running at 5 ghz will be more than enough. Hopefully an upgrade card will be available in the future when OpenBSD supports 802.11ac.
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Old 2nd April 2016
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I revised my post above. Instead of an integrated WiFi NIC, consider the use of an external WiFi bridge.
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