Overkill?!? I do not understand that word.
Oh, oh, oh.
What exactly did you end up ordering?
And pleaaaaaase keep us posted. Iâm looking at doing something similar in a couple of monthsâ time with Ubiquiti, so Iâm very curious.
Apparently itâs already ready for collection, so should have some pics this afternoon
Right, collected.
Here it is:
Dream Machine, USE-24-POE switch, 4 U6-Lite APs, 1 In-wall AP
Also 2 boxes of Cat6, RJ45s, boots, etc.
Will probably only install it this weekend, want to do it right first time if possible.
Wow now that is some eye candy âŚ
Unpacked a few things (you know, just to look at )
The U6-lites are much smaller than I originally expected (about 15cm across)
Switch is pretty:
Man oh man thatâs some networking porn, well done!
I see no reason why the Dream Machine canât be taken for a test, but thatâs just meâŚ
It can, but Iâm planning on doing a âlift and shiftâ initially, which means all the settings on my current router need to go onto the DM.
Such as:
- Forwarded ports (just one, for HA)
- Static IPs (a few, for cameras, Sonoffs, etc)
Plus, unfortunately you have to plug the DM WAN port in to set it up (canât do an offline setup), so it would require taking down my current network.
So, nothing insurmountable, just trying to have as little downtime as possible.
Seriously jealous! Especially since you got a bunch of Wifi 6 stuff too
Which kid are you taking out of university? Ubiquiti is well priced compared with others, but still must have cost a pretty pennyâŚ
It wasnât cheap, but given that I now work from home, Iâm sick and tired of having sub-standard network connectivity.
I hear you. I must say, 2 years ago spending any significant money on my home network would have confounded my wife, my family, her family etc.
Nowadays I find it is much easier to explain to family that they will need to spend a couple of thousand R to get âbetter Wifiâ, and they usually go ahead and do it too. Still not typically Ubiquiti stuff, but much better than the free Wifi router that the ISP providesâŚ
Kids huh?
Kids, wife, mother-in-law, Home-assistant automations relying on static IPsâŚ
Right, long day, but upgrade done.
Overall, very happy with results so far.
Some (/lots of) pics:
Adopting the switch and APs last night in preparation:
Mounting the In-Wall AP in my office (will double as a switch for my 2 computers there)
Starting installing the switch (itâs on top of a bookshelf in our guest room, no rack/cupboards/etc available unfortunately
Dream Machine installed in the lounge (also wall-mounted the TV while I was at it )
APs in:
(this one needs some conduit, couldnât get to the back of it, despite 3 hours of tryingâŚ)
Switch cables (mostly) neatened up, conduit covers a multitude of sinsâŚ
Pretty dashboards:
Network layout view:
And, of course, the pretty switch touch-screen
Install went fairly well, apart from the 3 fruitless hours spent fighting with fish-tape to try get a cable to the back of one AP.
Crimped a lot of cables, sore fingers now.
Oh, also, pleasantly surprised by the low power draw.
That 1st switch screen display is total PoE usage, with 6 Reolink RLC410s, 4 U6-Lite APs, and 1 In-wall AP (47.5W). Going by the datasheet of each of those (which obviously give generous maximums), they should have been drawing about about 115W, which wouldnât have worked with my 95W switch. Will see how it goes, but I think Iâll easily be able to add a few more cameras without issue.
Unifi interface is nice, though given that theyâre currently transitioning between 2 styles, it can feel a bit disjointed at times (some screens are ânewâ and some are âclassicâ).
Setting up the necessary port forwards and static IPs was super quick, so there was minimal disruption to the network.
In terms of wifi setup, I went with a single SSID, shared by 2.4 & 5GHz, with all APs set to prefer 5GHz for applicable clients. I also enabled fast roaming, to ensure devices transition quickly as you move through the house (eg walking inside from the office when on a call).
Family are pleased too, so all in all Iâm going to call this a win. Time for a drink
Post script, the dogshow of equipment this install replaced:
Nunc est Bibendum!
Very nice! Iâve been putting my network install off for months. Want to come and give me a hand?