Re:OpenBSD: PF queues break the 4 Gbps barrier
by Melatonic on Thursday March 19, 2026 @01:47PM
(#47443165)
Isnt OpenBSD mainly used for security testing or do I have it wrong? Would be surprised if it was used in production datacenter networking hardware at all. Seems like most people would use one of the proprietary implementations (which likely would include specific written drivers for that hardware) or something like FreeBSD
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Re:OpenBSD: PF queues break the 4 Gbps barrier
by SoftTalker on Thursday March 19, 2026 @02:00PM
(#47443336)
It's widely used as a router, that's one of its primary uses. But not sure to what scale, likely at small orgs not at major ISPs.
But, OpenBSD is a project by and for its developers. They use it and develop it to do what they want; they don't really care what anyone else does or doesn't do with it.
Re:OpenBSD: PF queues break the 4 Gbps barrier
by Melatonic on Thursday March 19, 2026 @05:12PM
(#47446189)
Do people actually use OpenBSD over FreeBSD for use as a router ?
Yes, lots of large providers really want defense in depth at the router/firewall/important services level.
They want separate OS's in case a giant CVE or bug comes out for platform X but isn't on platform Y. So multi-platform core services is a key component of systems that need to stay up and alive long-term. Things like Routers, Firewalls, DNS, BGP, etc. Use different software and hardware stacks.
We use FreeBSD and Debian @ work, though we are playing around with Nix and Guix now to maybe replace the Debian someday.
Re:OpenBSD: PF queues break the 4 Gbps barrier
by lstodd on Thursday March 19, 2026 @02:06PM
(#47443422)
You don't need 4gbps pf queues or even fiber on every single machine in a datacenter. So be surprised, it is used widely for its simplicity and reliability not to mention security compared to those proprietary implementations you speak of, may they rot in hell.