Advanced Outbound NAT settings in pfSense 2.2.4.
Some multi-WAN configurations require special workarounds because of limitations in pfSense. This article covers those special cases.
Because of the way pfSense distributes traffic over multiple Internet connections using the same gateway IP, you will need to insert a NAT device between all but one of those connections. This is not an elegant solution, but it is a workable one.
pfSense can only accommodate one PPPoE or PPTP WAN connection. Therefore, OPT WAN interfaces cannot use PPPoE or PPTP WAN types. If you need to use PPPoE or PPTP, the best workaround is to use them on your modem or another firewall. Most DSL modems can handle PPPoE and either directly assign your public IP to pfSense or give it a private IP and provide NAT. Public IP passthrough is possible on many modems and is the preferred means of doing this.
pfSense Multi-WAN: NAT Rules
The default NAT rules generated by pfSense will translate any traffic leaving the WAN or an OPT WAN interface to that interface’s IP address. In a default two interface LAN and WAN configuration, pfSense will NAT all traffic leaving the WAN interface to the WAN IP address. The addition of OPT WAN interfaces extends this to NAT any traffic leaving an OPT WAN interface’s IP address. This is the default behavior and is all handled automatically unless Advanced Outbound NAT is enabled. The policy routing rules direct the traffic to the wAN interface used, and the outbound and 1:1 NAT rules specify how the traffic will be translated. If you require Advanced Outbound NAT with multi-WAN, you will need to configure NAT rules for all your WAN interfaces.
When using port forwarding with a multiple WAN setup, keep in mind that each port forward applies to a single WAN interface. A given port can be opened on multiple WAN interfaces by using multiple port forward entries, one per WAN itnerface. The easiest way to accomplish this is to add the port forward on the first WAN connect, then click the plus button to the right of that entry to add another port forward based on that one. Change the interface to the desired WAN interface, and press the Save button.
1:1 NAT entries are specific to a single WAN interface. Internal systems can be configured with a 1:1 NAT entry on each WAN interface, or a 1:1 entry on one or more WAN interfaces and use the default outbound NAT on others. Where 1:1 entries are configured, they always override any other Outbound NAT configuration for the specific interface where the 1:1 entry is configured.
External Links:
Network Load Balancing on Wikipedia
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