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PF: Performance


"How much bandwidth can PF handle?"
"How much computer do I need to handle my Internet connection?"

There are no easy answers to those questions. For some applications, a 486/66 with a pair of good ISA NICs could filter and NAT close to 5Mbps, but for other applications a much faster machine with much more efficient PCI NICs might end up being insufficient. The real question is not the number of bits per second but rather the number of packets per second and the complexity of the ruleset.

PF performance is determined by several variables:

People often ask for PF benchmarks. The only benchmark that counts is your system performance in your environment. A benchmark that doesn't replicate your environment will not properly help you plan your firewall system. The best course of action is to benchmark PF for yourself under the same, or as close as possible to, network conditions that the actual firewall would experience running on the same hardware the firewall would use.

PF is used in some very large, high-traffic applications, and the developers are "power users" of PF. Odds are, it will do very well for you.

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