FreeBSD for router/firewall/gateway and SMP?

[leech]

How easy or hard is it to set up FreeBSD as a router? Specifically I want to be able to open certain ports for P2P and Yahoo super webcam to work. Also Games that have a tendency to not work through firewalls....

I have an SMP machine that I'll run this on, and I did see over on OSNews.com that SMP under FreeBSD was somewhat broken, how well would it perform on a dual 466 Celeron? I need it for email server and webserver as well as the above.

If FreeBSD is a pain, then I'll probably just order a copy of OpenBSD, which has, from everything I've heard, the best track record of being secure.

The reason I'm trying this out is mainly to learn the BSDs. You know, use what's best for the job

Leech

[MultimediaMan]

BSD's implementation of SMP is plain dreadful. It will run in SMP, but it will not always run some very common multi-threaded apps in SMP-mode: SQL being prime example.

No doubt it IS very secure, and setup isn't too bad. But there isn't much seperating Linux 2.4.22's security from BSD anymore. (Hell, even Mandrake is showing signs of being fairly secure...)

OpenBSD is definitely your best option.

SMP for a Router/Gateway device? Even if used for light Webserving and EMail is Wayyyy overkill.

[Ribbit]

Originally posted by MultimediaMan
OpenBSD is definitely your best option.

Although last I checked, OpenBSD had no support for SMP whatsoever. (Neither did NetBSD, before you ask.) Not that you'll need it.

SMP for a Router/Gateway device? Even if used for light Webserving and EMail is Wayyyy overkill.

Too right, I'm using a Cyrix 486Drx2 (386->486 upgrade chip) machine for this purpose...

[leech]

Well, I also use it for my back up machine in case of emergencies.... Overkill, yes, but I like playing around with it.

Well, I have the first two disks of MDK 9.2 and waiting on the third right now, so I'll update my server to that and see if it works any better. With 9.1 that I have installed right now, something is borked. 'ps -A" just times out if you do it from a console. The only way I can find that works to see my processes is to use gnome-system-monitor.

Does mdk 9.2 use Shorewall still?

Leech

[bsdgeek]

FreeBSD 5.x's SMP is much improved over 4.x's, and some say it even bests Linux's. It's pretty easy to set it up as a router, and it's all in the handbook. (Sorry, it seems like a "polite RTFM" I know, I can help later when I have more time.)

[MultimediaMan]

Mandrake Network Firewall still uses Shorewall, haven't installed MDK9.2 Final on my Little Duallie yet.

[leech]

Originally posted by bsdgeek
FreeBSD 5.x's SMP is much improved over 4.x's, and some say it even bests Linux's. It's pretty easy to set it up as a router, and it's all in the handbook. (Sorry, it seems like a "polite RTFM" I know, I can help later when I have more time.)

Unlike some, I don't have much of a problem of RTFM, but sometimes some of the howto's are so horribly out of date, or just won't work for some reason (which is why I didn't want to go through the hassle again of installing Debian on my server, that and my woody CD is too scratched, so I'd have to download another one through jigdo, and I'm just plain ol' too lazy... ) MDK 9.1 usually 'just works' but I figure I want to try something new, because it's been flaky lately.

Leech