Replacing router with OpenWRT on Proxmox
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S [email protected] shared this topic
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It would be fun as an experiment, but keep in mind using wifi adapters as an AP generally doesn't work that well. Most of us are running an external AP such as Unifi hardware.
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Well currently I have a nest wifi pro router that doesn't allow a lot of customization. (I used to be a Google fan). And since I had a beelink I figured I would try it. I was also wanting to be able to run a VPN on my router and the nest doesn't allow clients.
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GL.Inet for an OpenERT hardware set. I recommend them all the time.
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I would make sure the adapter you're using (internal or USB) supports AP mode. Most intel ones don't: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000030429/wireless.html
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Any specific ones to look into?
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Models? The Flint 2 is pretty damn great. Really nice hardware selections, and a form factor most people expect. Out of the box capable of being a gateway for a large network without flinching. Wireguard performance is fantastic.
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Better hardware is not a VM in Proxmox. You want quality gear with each component doing one job.
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You want a dedicated Firewall and at least on access point. Your USB adapter is not designed to support lots of devices. It almost certainly has one channel.
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I will definitely check this out. Sounds really promising from the quick glimpse and most importantly, adorable.
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Adorable?
How is that? -
Back in the day I ran a pfsense VM on ESXi before broadcom bought them. I found it easier to just purchase a cheap Unifi AP and spin up a VM for the Unifi controller app (I'm assuming you can still run that on your own hardware, its been a few years). I think I got a UAP 6 lite or something like that. If I recall it was about $130 CAD with the PoE injector.
Techincally its not ideal to run your firewall on the same device as other things, but I never had any issues.
Also, does the mini PC have multiple NICs? You will have a bad time if it does not.
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If you're going to dive in to openwrt from google wifi you should probably start with ready made hardware.
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/best-newcomer-routers-2024/189050
Please keep in mind that to duplicate mesh functionality it's going to take a significant effort and you need to make sure the hardware you buy is compatible with 802.11s. Open WRT forums have hardware compatibility rundowns of known working routers so it's not too difficult to find them.
This is a much bigger uphill battle rolling your own hardware unless you just plan to buy a separate access point or two for hardware and skip the mesh functionality.
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It can be used as a VPN router, any VM that needs a VPN can be connected to a network bridge that is forward through the VPN. This could also be done on the primary router and a VLAN.
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For just an AP, I've used a number of the GL-AR300 and they've been fine as AP and repeaters, but only 2.4 GHz. I have no interference issues where I am so that's fine for me, but if you're somewhere populated, YMMV.
They also have the full firewall/router set on them, but I generally don't use them for that.
