build a cheapo opnsense box - refurb hp and add some nic - if you goto 2g you can get a 2.5g switch for less than 50 - do some content on the migration process, also consider doing 56(40gbe) dual port to a couple nas boxes - if you have 6-8 hd arrays you can utilize the speed - no fancy switch needed - dual port 56 connectx cards are like 40 bucks - you may want to get a bigger 10g switch and then use 20g bonded links on some connections - that may be the easiest, consider dac cables. lots of good info here - good content! I disagree with other comments about old gear - you save a ton and it will run forever with minimal pm
hey Jeremiah, the issue with the PC that it’s not meant to work 24/7 but those boxes are. so after some time especially it’s an old hardware you will face problems.
Maybe. I've got plenty of 10+ year old boxes that I've repurposed for one thing or another. Slap in an SSD, keep 'em relatively cool and they'll run forever. Regardless, I'll probably replace my firewall sooner than later. But it was on-hand, free, and it's working great. So I'm not in any rush.
