Mastodawn

wiggles Jul 17, 2023

OPNsense virtualization

OPNsense virtualization - programming.dev

I’m working on setting up my first homelab. I have an older dell optiplex with a duel PCIe NIC in it. I was wondering if I could setup OPNsense as a docker container or virtual machine so that I could also use the extra resources of the box for other things besides just being a router. Is this a good idea?

Show thread

Solar Bear Jul 17, 2023

Yeah, this is perfectly doable. I ran a very similar setup for a while. I’d recommend passing one of the NICs directly through to the VM and using one for the host to keep it simple, but you can also virtualize the networking if you need something more complex. If you do pass through a single NIC, you’ll need a switch capable of handling VLANs and a bit of knowledge on how to set up what’s called a “router on a stick” with everything trunked over one connection and only separated by VLANs.

Keep in mind, while this is a great way to save resources, it also means these systems are sharing resources. If you need to reboot, you’re taking everything down. If you have other users, that might be annoying for everyone involved.

Show thread

wiggles Jul 17, 2023

I have a managed switch. I’m a little confused how everything would be hooked up if I’m using a vm for pfsense and another vm for some Linux distro. I want the router and that distro to be isolated from my other vlans. Could I use the onboard nic hooked up to the switch to put the distro on its own vlan?

Show thread

Solar Bear

You can absolutely attach each VM and even the host to separate NICs which each connect back to the switch and has its own VLAN. You can also attach everything to one NIC and just use a virtual bridge(s) on the host to connect everything. Or any combination therein. You have complete freedom on how you want to do it to suit your needs. How this is done depends on what you’re using on the host for a hypervisor though, so I can’t give you exact directions.