> > The 2 LAN GigE ports are enough for a router, one is shared for IPMI. > > Shared IPMI is *never* fine IMHO.
The notion was that 2 ports are enough for a router, though I agree and have the same sentiment on the shared IPMI port. Supermicro did not put a standalone IPMI Ethernet port on the X7SPA-HF / X7SPE-HF chipset ICH9 boards in 2011 when I needed this. For personal use I can't justify an overpriced dual port PCI-e NIC and used the slot for a video card. As an alternative USB NICs exist, I have a couple of axe(4) off Ebay but not used it in live traffic, so can't say anything about its merits. That's one of the reasons (dedicated IPMI port) for recommending newer Atom based Supermicro C2000 series boards, yet the original poster is obviously looking for COTS consumer electronics general purpose inexpensive mini-ITX mainboards for home router project.
