My current internet setup is like this (which is common for most people).
fiber line from ISP <-> ISP fiber modem <-> Personal wifi router <-> switch
This is working fine with no issues. But I need to power two devices. I want to reduce this to a single device.
fiber line from ISP <-> Modem+Firewall PC <-> Switch <-> AP1,AP2...
From my initial research, what I need is an SFP module which can be attached to a PC which supports SFP. OPNsense should be able to handle most SFP modules.
What is the community’s take on this? Is this worth the effort? Can I find a mini-PC which supports SFP? Will it be cost effective?
Those two devices are likely very low power arm devices. I wouldn’t be surprised if a mini pc consumes more power than those two devices. If power is your concern you should probably measure how much they’re actually pulling.
I dunno, my newest cable modem chews up a boatload of power for no good reason - really pisses me off.
It uses more power (50w) than my 2019 SFF desktop I run as a server, with an 8TB drive (20w).
I know because they both sit on their own smart switches.
50w… holy shit!
My server with 1 SSD, 3 HDDs running multiple docker containers doesn’t usually pull more than 35-40w.
My router tops out at 8w and my wireless access point at 5w IIRC.
My consumer broadband router (which acts as a WAP, modem, and router) looks like it’s rated for a 36W power supply. Putting a Kill-A-Watt wattmeter on it shows it currently using about 14W.
I would definitely complain. That sounds defective.
Its spec’d for that
Holy moly, what modem is that??
Maybe correct? Though my cable modem gobbles down some 15W… Without even doing the Wifi… So, I bet this isn’t a universal truth, as a Mini-PC will comsume less and provide all kinds of extra services, networking, NAS…
Wow, that’s a power hungry modem… But, look into the power usage of those sfp modules. They can be ~10w on their own.
Yeah, they often get quite warm. Some day I’ll be in the same situation as OP. And I can’t wait to throw out that supid modem. No clue, though what kind of SFP the fiber provider requires. I mean there’s quite a selection available…
This is something I completely forgot to account for. I heard that some SFP modules (10G) can consume a lot of power. I think the devices are pretty low powered. I’ll have to get a smartmeter and rethink the setup. Thanks a lot!
Older 10G SFP+ models were definitely power hungry. I think they’ve gotten better since then, but I haven’t really looked into how much better.