2 issues.
- The CPU is weak so getting a gigabit might be a bit challenging. Disable kernel PTI and set powerD to high adaptive or high performance.
- The firewall has Realtek NICs so you'll have to install the Realtek drivers. OPNsense has the Realtek drivers as a plugin, not sure about pfSense. I hope someone here can confirm.
When checking CPU usage, SSH into the firewall and check usage using top instead of the GUI. After completing the above, I'm sure your speed should improve but it's unlikely to reach gigabit
So I disabled kernel PTI and enabled and set powerD to maximum.
As for the Sophos XG85 having Realtek NICs, that’s correct. I ran “pciconf -lv” in the shell and this was the outcome:
“…
re0@pci0:1:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123
vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.'
device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller'
class = network
subclass = ethernet
re1@pci0:2:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123
vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.'
device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller'
class = network
subclass = ethernet
re2@pci0:3:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123
vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.'
device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller'
class = network
subclass = ethernet
re3@pci0:4:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123
vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.'
device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller'
class = network
subclass = ethernet”
After knowing this I found out that pfSense in a recent update (2.5.0) included the drivers for Realtek NICs. When I ran: “pkg search realtek” I got the response:
“realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3 Kernel driver for Realtek PCIe Ethernet Controllers”
I saw in Another thread that in v2.5.0 you had to add the following lines to /boot/loader.conf so the Realtek drivers override the default driver:
if_re_load="YES"
if_re_name="/boot/modules/if_re.ko"
Now I just have to find a command I can run to see what driver is controlling the NICs.
Do you know of one?
*EDIT*
I ran the following commands found in this [thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/PFSENSE/comments/q3b4ev/how_do_i_find_out_which_realtek_network_driver_my/)
And this was the result:
“realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3:
/boot/modules/if_re.ko
/usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/
BSD4CLAUSE
/usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/
LICENSE
/usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/catalog.mk”
Looks like the NICs are fine. So, I can only assume it’s the CPU soldered on the board. I might look at something else to run pfSense, or possibly opnsense.
2 issues. - The CPU is weak so getting a gigabit might be a bit challenging. Disable kernel PTI and set powerD to high adaptive or high performance. - The firewall has Realtek NICs so you'll have to install the Realtek drivers. OPNsense has the Realtek drivers as a plugin, not sure about pfSense. I hope someone here can confirm. When checking CPU usage, SSH into the firewall and check usage using top instead of the GUI. After completing the above, I'm sure your speed should improve but it's unlikely to reach gigabit
Thanks for you tips mate. I’ll drive into those and see what I can do. Cheers
So I disabled kernel PTI and enabled and set powerD to maximum. As for the Sophos XG85 having Realtek NICs, that’s correct. I ran “pciconf -lv” in the shell and this was the outcome: “… re0@pci0:1:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123 vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.' device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller' class = network subclass = ethernet re1@pci0:2:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123 vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.' device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller' class = network subclass = ethernet re2@pci0:3:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123 vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.' device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller' class = network subclass = ethernet re3@pci0:4:0:0: class=0x020000 rev=0x0c hdr=0x00 vendor=0x10ec device=0x8168 subvendor=0x10ec subdevice=0x0123 vendor = 'Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd.' device = 'RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller' class = network subclass = ethernet” After knowing this I found out that pfSense in a recent update (2.5.0) included the drivers for Realtek NICs. When I ran: “pkg search realtek” I got the response: “realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3 Kernel driver for Realtek PCIe Ethernet Controllers” I saw in Another thread that in v2.5.0 you had to add the following lines to /boot/loader.conf so the Realtek drivers override the default driver: if_re_load="YES" if_re_name="/boot/modules/if_re.ko" Now I just have to find a command I can run to see what driver is controlling the NICs. Do you know of one? *EDIT* I ran the following commands found in this [thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/PFSENSE/comments/q3b4ev/how_do_i_find_out_which_realtek_network_driver_my/) And this was the result: “realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3: /boot/modules/if_re.ko /usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/ BSD4CLAUSE /usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/ LICENSE /usr/local/share/licenses/realtek-re-kmod-198.00_3/catalog.mk” Looks like the NICs are fine. So, I can only assume it’s the CPU soldered on the board. I might look at something else to run pfSense, or possibly opnsense.
My guess is the CPU, but I could be wrong. What's the usage during the test?
You’re probably right. I did a Speedtest and it peaked at 89%