Cybersecurity threats are ever-evolving day-by-day and it is crucial to have a reliable firewall solution to safeguard your network. A robust firewall is crucial for network security and OPNSense is an excellent choice.
This tutorial will walk you through installing OPNSense on Proxmox VE 8.x, ensuring you can leverage the strengths of both platforms to enhance your network infrastructure.
Also Read: Configuring No Subscription Repository in Proxmoxm VE 8.x
OPNSense is a firewall distribution based on FreeBSD, which has gained significant traction in the cybersecurity community. It was forked from the pfSense project and has been designed to offer advanced features and enhanced security capabilities, making it a great choice for both home and enterprise-level network environments.
Some of the key advantages of OPNSense include forward caching proxy, traffic shaping, intrusion detection, and a user-friendly OpenVPN client setup process. These features, combined with its open-source nature, make OPNSense a highly customizable and powerful firewall solution.
Proxmox VE is an open-source enterprise virtualization platform built on Debian Linux, providing a robust and flexible environment for hosting virtual machines (VMs) and containers.
Proxmox VE’s support for KVM-based VMs makes it an excellent choice for hosting OPNSense, allowing you to seamlessly integrate the firewall into your virtualized environment. Additionally, Proxmox VE’s software-defined networking (SDN) capabilities enable you to create and manage virtual networks, further enhancing the flexibility and control of your OPNSense deployment.
When combined OPNSense Firewall with Proxmox VE, you can achieve a highly secure and efficient network setup.
Before you begin the installation process, ensure you have the following prerequisites:
Having these prerequisites in place will ensure a smooth installation process as you proceed with setting up OPNSense on Proxmox VE.
To begin, you need to download the OPNSense ISO file. Visit the official OPNSense download page. Select the appropriate version and download the ISO file to your local machine.
Next, upload the OPNSense ISO file to your Proxmox VE environment:
Now, create a new virtual machine in Proxmox VE:
Configure the virtual machine’s hardware settings to meet OPNSense requirements:
Boot the VM using the OPNSense ISO to start the installation process:
Complete the initial setup of OPNSense after the installation:
After installing OPNSense, you need to perform some basic configurations to ensure it operates correctly within your network.
In the OPNSense dashboard, you can further refine your firewall settings, create firewall rules, and manage additional features such as VPNs, traffic shaping, and more. This user-friendly interface provides powerful tools to control and monitor your network traffic, ensuring enhanced security and performance.
Also Read: Proxmox vs VMware ESXi: Which One Should You Choose?
We have successfully installed and configured OPNSense on the Proxmox VE 8.x environment. This setup not only boosts your network’s security but also provides a flexible and scalable firewall solution.
Explore OPNSense’s extensive features to customize and optimize your network infrastructure further.
OPNSense is an open-source firewall and routing platform known for its robust security features and user-friendly interface. It offers advanced security options, traffic shaping, VPN support, and more, making it an excellent choice for managing and securing networks.
While OPNSense can be installed on various virtualization platforms, this guide focuses on installing it on Proxmox VE 8.x.
The resource allocation depends on your network’s size and traffic. A typical setup might require at least 2 CPUs, 2 GB of RAM, and 20 GB of disk space. Adjust these settings based on your specific needs and network load.
After the initial setup, you can access the OPNSense web interface using the LAN IP address configured during setup. Open a web browser and enter the LAN IP address to log in with the admin credentials.
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View Comments
Great tutorial! The step-by-step instructions were very clear, and I especially appreciated the tips on networking configuration. Just successfully set up OPNSense on my Proxmox VE 8.x—it’s running smoothly. Thanks for sharing!