[clug] Using a laptop as a firewall

[Nathan O'Sullivan]

Like many of you I currently have a clunky old desktop computer running
Linux that I use as my internet gateway/firewall.

Recently I've been considering obtaining an old laptop off Ebay to use
for the same purpose. It seems to me that a laptop would have a few
advantages:

- Compared to a headless desktop PC in a closet/out of the way location,
it already has a screen and keyboard for when the gateway isnt
responding to network traffic and you dont know why.

- Its much smaller

- Its quieter

- It essentially has a builtin UPS for those who love their uptime


Has anyone had any experience with this? Are there any downsides I'm not
seeing, and does anyone have suggestions on old laptop brands I should
look into that will work well with linux?

Regards
Nathan