[ale] Choke point (or when to bring on router)

[Bob Kruger]

Agreed on all of this.  That being said and done, are there some hard 
numbers out there from folks who are running high capacity Linux routers 
based on Intel platforms who can tell me just what their throughput is?

This is for a project on a government site.  Most folks want to go with 
Cisco.  I am a taxpayer and grouse every time I see overspending because 
someone wants to play it safe, e.g. the old "No one ever got fired for 
buying IBM." routine.  But, I need some numbers to tell what a Linux 
based system can handle as far as throughput.

If any of you know of a site where there are examples or of anyone who 
has done this and can give me some hard numbers that I can use as part 
of a justification, I would be MOST appreciative (and so will you 
taxpayers out there... ;-)).

Bob Kruger

Keith Hopkins wrote:

> Bob Kruger wrote:
>
>> Folks;
>>
>> Got a couple of questions for those who run large throughput capacity 
>> systems as a router and a firewall.
>>
>> At what volume of traffic would you consider replacing a Linux box 
>> that serves as a router and firewall and replacing it with dedicated 
>> hardware like a Cisco?  Does anyone have any tips on tweaking a 
>> system to maximize throughput?
>>
>
>   I have lots of faith in Linus/AC and the other kernel hackers, so I 
> wouldn't replace a Linux box for anything less than a carrier grade or 
> fault-tolerant box.  A Linux box will offer you more flexability, have 
> a fraction of the cost, and usually has more raw power (so, it can do 
> other things to, like Squid/IPTables).
>
>   The only reason I'd go with a commercial router for a smaller than 
> carrier grade system, is to save myself the time of overall system 
> setup, and to let somebody else (Cisco) manage the software (the IOS).
>
>   Tip: 2.2 kernels there is an option to compile as a router or a 
> host, pick router.  2.4 kernels have faster networking bits.  Dedicte 
> the machine to routing...get everything else off of it you can, and 
> everything out of the kernel you can live without.
>   Like Dow said, smart ethernet cards are a plus for taking the load 
> off the CPU, but try to find one with support for such features in linux.
>



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