pfSense Interface Types - PPPoE, GRE, LAGG, QinQ

pfSense supports a broad range of network interface types beyond standard Ethernet adapters. Virtual interfaces are created on top of physical ones and, once assigned in the system, receive the same capabilities: IP address, firewall rules, DHCP server, and routing participation. All virtual interface creation and assignment operations are performed through Interfaces > Assignments.

PPPoE interfaces provide connectivity to ISPs that use Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet for subscriber authentication. GRE and GIF tunnels create unencrypted point-to-point connections between remote sites, with GIF additionally supporting IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling. LAGG combines multiple physical ports into a single logical link for increased throughput or failover. QinQ implements double VLAN tagging per the 802.1ad standard for transporting multiple VLANs over a single link.

pfSense does not impose hard limits on the number of interfaces, but performance degradation and web interface slowdowns may occur as the count approaches 200. In practice, staying below 128 interfaces is recommended. Systems with a large number of physical adapters may require increasing the mbuf count through System > Advanced > System Tunables.

In This Section

• Interface Types - PPPoE, GRE, GIF, LAGG, QinQ configuration, interface groups, and troubleshooting