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pfSense guides, tools & playbooks

Everything we wish we'd had when we started. Real configs, working code, UI screens — no marketing fluff.

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Migration · Must-Read NEW

pfSense CE → Plus Upgrade Guide

Why CE is effectively end-of-life, what Plus does better, and the exact USB-install + config-restore path that preserves every rule, VPN tunnel and certificate.

Hardware · Free Check NEW

Hardware Compatibility Guide

Will pfSense Plus run on your box? Full HCL — supported NIC chipsets, CPU tiers, throughput sizing. Includes a free specs review: send yours, we reply within 4 hours.

Guide · 10 steps

Day-1 pfSense Hardening Playbook

The 10 essential security configurations every admin must do on a fresh install — with real pfSense UI screens and exact menu paths.

Interactive Tool

Domain Block Generator

Type any domain → get live IPs, pfSense alias, firewall rule, DNS override, pfBlockerNG feed and pfctl CLI commands. Copy-paste ready.

6 Templates

Block Page & Captive Portal Templates

Six ready-made HTML templates with live previews — corporate / friendly / security block pages, plus hotel / cafe / corporate captive portals. Copy and deploy.

Integration · OTP / SMTP / OAuth

Captive Portal Auth Integration

Mobile OTP via MSG91 / Twilio / TextLocal, email via SendGrid / Mailgun / SES, OAuth via Google Workspace / Microsoft 365. Real PHP code snippets.

Full Stack · 8 sections NEW

Self-Hosting Full Stack Guide

Host multiple websites from your office. ISP → bridge mode → pfSense → HAProxy → Docker → hardening. 8 steps, real configs, Indian ISP specifics.

Layer-7 · DPI NEW

Application-Level Blocking

Block apps not IPs. Zenarmor, Suricata DPI, schedule-based rules, DoH/VPN bypass prevention. Block WhatsApp, Netflix, P2P at Layer 7.

Interactive Tool

Netgate Import Cost Calculator

Live USD → INR conversion + customs duty + freight + GST — get the landed price of any Netgate appliance.

Content Roadmap

25 deep-dive articles in the pipeline

Topics that currently have no proper article anywhere — only scattered forum posts and dated blog fragments. We're building these one by one. ● published · ● in progress · ● planned. Reply to our newsletter email to vote for which we write next.

Automation & scripting

Bulk user / cert / group import via pfSsh.phpPlanned
/etc/phpshellsessions/ playbooks for fleet configPlanned
SCP into pfSense with restricted tcsh + non-admin keyPlanned
Parsing config.xml in Python (no FauxAPI)Planned
XMLRPC API method reference with real examplesPlanned

Suricata / IDS

Modern SNI rules for pfSense Plus 24.x / 25.xIn progress
Suricata EVE → Discord / Slack / Teams webhook pipelinePlanned
Inline IPS + VLAN workaround patternsPlanned
Suricata tuning on low-RAM ARM (2100 / 1100)Planned
classification.config + reference.config authoringPlanned

Networking edge cases

State killing on failback for VoIP scenariosPlanned
CARP + multi-WAN gateway-group gotchasPlanned
DHCP failover + XMLRPC sync pitfallsPlanned
Captive portal HA voucher sync (backward sync)Planned
Layer-7 traffic shaper replacement approachesPlanned

Development

Building a pfSense package from zero (FreeBSD ports)Planned
Dashboard widget development walkthroughPlanned
ARM-specific package compilation for 2100 / 3100Planned
System Patches package — authoring upgrade-safe patchesPlanned

Integration & Ops

pfSense → Prometheus / Grafana (node_exporter on FreeBSD)Planned
ACME multi-SAN + DNS-01 across multiple DNS providersPlanned
Terraform / Ansible against pfSense — tutorial gapPlanned
OpenVPN → WireGuard migration (preserve users / IPs)Planned

Pick which 3 to write first

These are rabbit-hole topics — each takes real lab time to verify. Email us your top 3 and we prioritise those next.

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