What hardware to buy for pfSense router in 2024

This article was last updated on December 29, 2023

We sell quite a lot of open-source hardware. Most of our customers are fans of pfSense, the most popular open-source operating system for routers. The question we often get is, "What hardware should I get for pfSense?". 

The hardware recommendation will depend on your needs. For example, your hardware needs are lower if you are using pfSense "just" as a router or firewall without more advanced packages. On the other hand, if you need to run your traffic through a VPN tunnel, the CPU needs to be able to handle it. If you need to use IDS (Intrusion Detection) or IPS (Intrusion Prevention), such as Snort or Suricata, you will want to have more memory.

pfSense 2.7.2 hardware requirements

Not everyone is the same, but there are some common requirements that any hardware must fulfil. 

• CPU should support AES-NI
• CPU must be powerful enough to route your internet traffic
• RAM - you must have enough for the packages you want to run. 
• NICs - LAN ports should be coming from Intel. pfSense still doesn't perform great with Realtec Network Interfaces.
• WiFi - pfSense supports a minimal number of WiFi adapters. If you plan on using WiFi, make sure you get the right adapter. 

If you must use older VPN technology, such as OpenVPN or IPSec, you will want a CPU with AES-NI support to improve cryptography performance. 

What is AES-NI?

AES-NI (AES New Instructions) is a new encryption instruction set baked right into the CPU that dramatically speeds up cryptography tasks such as encryption/decryption for VPN or SSL. AES-NI was developed by Intel, but most modern AMD CPUs also support it now. 

While pfSense doesn't require AES-NI to work, you will need it to run VPN at a reasonable speed. 

pfSense firewall appliance recommendations

Cheap pfSense box - APU2E4

APU is a well-known, reliable hardware manufactured by the Swiss company PC Engines. APU2, APU3, and APU4 routers are the most popular hardware firewalls we sell at TekLager. This is the cheapest pfSense router we sell, but don't be deceived; it's a very capable firewall for a home or small office.

Tip: in most applications, this box will perform just as well as the more expensive versions.

TLSense J6412

For those who would like to have a bit better CPU or mote LAN ports, we recommend TLSense J6412, which is one step up from APU. It has 5x intel 2.5Gbps NICs, more storage, a more performant Intel Celeron J6412 CPU and supports 4-16GB of RAM.

​TLSense - the high-end performance

TLSense 10210U is a powerful box. It's great if you plan to use IDS/IPS packages such as Suricata or Snort for Intrusion detection and prevention. It's also a perfect choice for a VPN gateway.

This hardware is popular with customers who have a 1Gbps or 2.5Gbps internet connection and want to utilize the full throughput over OpenVPN or IPSec. This hardware is also suitable for Proxmox or VMware to run multiple Virtual Machines. 

It has a powerful 10th-generation Intel Core 10210U CPU, 16-64GB of RAM, and up to 1TB NVMe SSD. In addition, it comes with 6x 2.5Gbps Intel LAN ports and an HDMI port.

If you are looking for 10Gbit hardware, see the rack router TLSense 1U W-1290.

If you are looking for something else, see other models.

If you are looking for a pfSense WiFi router read this article we wrote about pfSense wireless support. 

Cheers!