Spec me a Router

[Marky]

Hey all,

I am with Virgin Media with the Superhub 3. I am looking to put it into Modem Mode and connect it to a Router for more range and features, specifically I want it to run through a VPN server permanently, so all connections to the Router run through a VPN first.

Any recommendations? I've been looking into the ASUS RT-AC66U, any thoughts on that?

Any other advise will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Marky

 

[Marky]

Running everything through a VPN isn't always the best idea. There a few things that'll probably stop working.

How fast is your Virgin connection? How fast do you expect it to be when routed via a VPN?

Virgin connection is 200Mbps, but I usually get around 250Mbps.

Through VPN I usually get around 100-150Mbps, which I'm happy with.

 

[Marky]

You're going to need some much more modern/expensive to see anything near those speeds.

I'd guess that a RT-AC66U would give you under 30Mbps, probably nearer to 20Mbps.

How much are you willing to spend?

Willing to spend up to £200 - Not sure if that will be enough?

Why would the ASUS restrict the speed so much when on VPN?

 

[Marky]

Because the calculations required for the encryption/decryption of the data for the VPN.

The CPUs in most routers just aren't up to it.

That's one of the reasons some people end-up building boxes to run pfSense and the like.

Ahh I see - So the likes of my PC can do it no problem, but a router would have to do it on its own board. Cool, thanks for the heads up!

I thought I had heard people using a Rasp Pi as a VPN bridge? Could that be a possibility?

Otherwise, is £200 too small a budget for what I want to do?

 

[Marky]

Even a RPi3 is going to have the cpu limitations you see with most routers.

I'm not sure whether £200 will get you to where you want to be. Hopefully someone else will chip in with the answer.

Well thank you very much for your help thus far

 

[Marky]

Well now I'm thoroughly confused