Hey, I’m planning a setup where I route all my traffic from Russia through my home network in Belgium using something like Xray (VLESS + Reality).
The home node will be always-on and needs to be stable, since I’ll rely on it for work (including corporate VPN on top).
I’m trying to decide what hardware to use for the home side:
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Something like a GL.iNet Flint 2
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Or a mini PC router (N100 / N5105 / i3 class running OPNsense/OpenWrt)
Requirements:
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Strong performance for encrypted traffic (Xray / VPN)
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Reliable 24/7 operation
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Low power consumption (ideally fanless)
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Good NICs (preferably Intel)
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Room for future expansion (multiple tunnels, routing rules, maybe IDS/IPS later)
From what I’ve seen, N100 boxes seem popular, but I’m unsure if they’re enough long-term or if it’s better to go higher-end.
What would you recommend in terms of hardware? Is a Flint 2 enough or worth going straight to a mini PC?
Any specific models or setups people are happy with?