AgCMT said:

---

Russ your clueless

---

Dear "Smarter than me" : You're


Second, feel free to back up what you just said besides some stupid high school level retort.

And no, Ubiquiti isn't known for it's failures, and is USA owned and operated and will survive the future restrictions.

Ubiquiti currently holds a 36% market share for a reason.

I'm pretty freaking sure I have more managed routers & networks deployed and active that my company (that I founded and run) manages than you do.

The DM's, despite your claim, DO have DPI even if it's not large enterprise top-level class (yet). But it's there. And besides, this thread is about home use, which is below small & medium business level that the Ubiquiti excels at.

What, you expect people in this thread to buy 10k routers with managed support contracts? Really? Nobody that wants 'router' or 'wifi' advice on TexAgs needs that. Nobody.

Sincerely, Clueless

Put this in layman's terms, please. We have a Google mesh system that's quite old but has continued to take good care of us. I occasionally think about replacing it with something newer and this will probably push me over the edge to do that. Our house isn't that big but it's an odd shape in that's it's very long and skinny. In total it's about 2900 SF not counting the garage which has two openers on the WiFi and the master bath at the complete opposite end. At its deepest point it's about 45 feet deep. The Google system has three access points with the primary at one end where the signal comes in, another in the middle and the last one being at the entrance to the master bedroom at the opposite end. We get good coverage including to the other side of the pool in the yard and the outdoor kitchen. Not a big lot by any means, a hair more than 1/3 acre so no need to hit things way far away from the house.

Looking at Ubiquiti on Amazon right now but want to know more about what I'm looking at before I start making changes. Like everyone else I've got eleventy billion things connected to the current system so I'm not looking forward to the change over.

Thanks!

That's funny. Our new house is the same. 2900 sq st and long and skinny if you will. Central corridor runs north south from front door to back door with rooms on either side of the corridor.

eric76 said:

---

YouBet said:

---

I forgot about the router ban. Ironically, I think the Starlink router is one of the few that might avoid this since it's mostly made here. I guess I'll take my existing Orbi with me now which I was going to replace because it's old.

---

It might not be a bad idea to plan ahead and buy new routers now for future use.

---

Yeah, but even then they plan to not allow updates in a year. I can understand the actions here considering TP Link but I also don't see how this can practically hold up with almost zero production here in the US for this sector.

So everyone is just going to be vulnerable to new security threats after March 2027?

Won't derail the thread any longer, but you are not correct. I'm a Solution Engineer for a cybersecurity manufacturer - just a quick search and Ubiquiti is at 2% of the SMB market.

Cisco Meraki
Fortinet
SonicWall
Checkpoint
Watchguard
and about 200 others were above it...

but carry on...

AgCMT said:

---

Won't derail the thread any longer, but you are not correct. I'm a Solution Engineer for a cybersecurity manufacturer - just a quick search and Ubiquiti is at 2% of the SMB market.

Cisco Meraki
Fortinet
SonicWall
Checkpoint
Watchguard
and about 200 others were above it...

but carry on...

---

Those are dedicated firewall and intrusion detection products/companies. Not the general class (re: market) this thread and what Ubiquiti resides in.

The Cisco Meraki is a cloud-managed security Appliance/Firewall. Has not a ******* thing to what people in this thread are talking about. They're not after a security appliance.

Does SonicWall, Fortinet, Checkpoint and Watchguard make "Wifi Access Points" and Extenders and other devices? No, they don't. They're specified security companies that need advanced services like Cybersecurity.

And if ANY of these people in this thread wanted to go the extra extensive step - they could simply deploy a PFSense firewall solution and not have to pay large commercial prices and subscriptions for those companies listed above.

This thread is basically about people driving civilian vehicles doing civilian stuff and you're in here talking about Industrial tractors and large commercial rigs. It's apples to oranges.

You're a "solution engineer" yet you walked into this thread and went 100% off-topic about next-level security appliances because you can't read a room?

"but carry on" - what an ass.

LOYAL AG said:

---

Put this in layman's terms, please. We have a Google mesh system that's quite old but has continued to take good care of us. I occasionally think about replacing it with something newer and this will probably push me over the edge to do that. Our house isn't that big but it's an odd shape in that's it's very long and skinny. In total it's about 2900 SF not counting the garage which has two openers on the WiFi and the master bath at the complete opposite end. At its deepest point it's about 45 feet deep. The Google system has three access points with the primary at one end where the signal comes in, another in the middle and the last one being at the entrance to the master bedroom at the opposite end. We get good coverage including to the other side of the pool in the yard and the outdoor kitchen. Not a big lot by any means, a hair more than 1/3 acre so no need to hit things way far away from the house.

Looking at Ubiquiti on Amazon right now but want to know more about what I'm looking at before I start making changes. Like everyone else I've got eleventy billion things connected to the current system so I'm not looking forward to the change over.

Thanks!

---

Don't use amazon - look at UI.com first, and quite frankly it's cheaper directly from there (and easier on warranty should that ever happen and you don't have to worry about getting used)

Secondly, you'll be looking at these items :

Dream Machine
AP (access point)
Extender (spread it around, or if you have ethernet spread internally in your walls, another AP or two for blanket coverage).

Mesh - it's a 'mode', that allows multiple AP's to talk together, giving you wider and smoother coverage like a blanket or spider web spread out.

As far as you "eleventy billion" things - that's easy...

1. Configure the unifi gear with your existing SSID (wifi name(s)) and password. Your current stuff will all auto-connect to it drama-free.

2. If you use static IP's for things around the house - again, no big deal... configure the unifi Dream Machine (router) to use whatever network you're using now (192.168.x.x, 10.0.x.x, etc).

The Ubiquiti (aka 'Unifi') gear is super cool for consumers in that once you put in the router, and you plug in your AP, Extenders or any other Unifi device in your house, the Dream Machine router auto-detects it and prompts you to "adopt" it meaning it auto configures it. The old school days where you have to manually configure devices to add them to your home is over with Ubiquiti.

It's the easiest cutover you'll ever do.

Note - the Dream Machine Pro (which is rackmount sized, not that you NEED a rack) includes more features like a built in DVR... so you stick a hard drive in it, buy Ubiquiti cameras and boom, instant done.

P.S. To anyone reading this - Ubiquiti is a USA based and manufactured company, so the 'router ban' won't apply.

AgCMT said:

---

gumby579 said:

---

satexas said:

---

If you want top-of-line quality gear, and aren't on a super-tight budget, Ubiquiti (UNIFI / ui.com) is tops.

---

Ubiquiti is the only answer these days.

---

There firewalls are useless. No packet inspection or NAT. AP's are good for the price point and their switches are pretty. Great for home use but if you put them in your business you will be replacing them soon.

---

WTF are you talking about? The UniFi gateways absolutely have IDS/IPS and NAT. How would they be 'great for home use' if they didn't have NAT? They would be useless for home use without NAT. How can you be a solutions architect and not know what NAT does?

TAMU-93 said:

---

AgCMT said:

---

gumby579 said:

---

satexas said:

---

If you want top-of-line quality gear, and aren't on a super-tight budget, Ubiquiti (UNIFI / ui.com) is tops.

---

Ubiquiti is the only answer these days.

---

There firewalls are useless. No packet inspection or NAT. AP's are good for the price point and their switches are pretty. Great for home use but if you put them in your business you will be replacing them soon.

---

WTF are you talking about? The UniFi gateways absolutely have IDS/IPS and NAT. How would they be 'great for home use' if they didn't have NAT? They would be useless for home use without NAT. How can you be a solutions architect and not know what NAT does?

---

Exactly. He's flat out in the wrong thread and totally lost. He's quoting firewalls appliances to home user solutions, I assume trying to show us how smart he is.

UI snapshot of a default interface showing he's talking out of his ass. Sure, the Ubiquiti isn't a high level network security appliance (because it's not even in that category of appliances), but to say it has nothing is just beyond ignorant.

Might have missed earlier in thread, but what model UI router would you recommend for larger home use?

Dream Router 5G Max?

bkag9824 said:

---

Might have missed earlier in thread, but what model UI router would you recommend for larger home use?

Dream Router 5G Max?

---

I always recommend the Dream Machine Pro series - because they're the most robust, can do the most things, and include the DVR. It's rackmount formfactor, but "who cares" if you plan on sitting it on a shelf, laying down or up on it's end... thinking of it as "switch sized".

The Dream Router 5G Max is more expensive. It boasts of mobile service - but see my comment below (and it doesn't support verizion, tmobile, etc now - it will e-sim at a later date)... it's kicker is that it has basically an access point built in (an all-in-one unit), which has it's benefits for the general public... but not necessary for those with basic skills to connect one device to another.

The Dream Machine Pro's are not as expensive at $379, but more powerful overall - but don't have the wifi "built in". The Dream Router 5G is more of a "all in one" device.

(And if you need upper level cyber security, you can get the $99/year Proofpoint security package with it, but it's 100% not needed for this thread).

Link : https://store.ui.com/us/en/category/cloud-gateways-large-scale/products/udm-pro

Few factoid links :

1. Choose router... then whatever 'devices' you want, such as access points, extenders for those (if you need), and other 'toys'.

2. Router does support Multi-WAN (multi-internet) on pure failover - so if you were to call tmobile and buy their service for $50 (they'll give you their equipment) and plug it into to one of the SPF ports, you'll always have internet even if your main cable/starlink/whatever, goes down.

This is how gazillions of restaurants and other places that use a cloud-based POS (point of sale) system survive when they can't do sales because the "internet is down".

3. One thing that makes me a HUGE fan of Ubiquiti is how much they take care of their products updating them, advancing them and improving their software/capabilities. You literally could have purchased a Dream Machine Pro about 5-7 years ago, and it would have all the capabilities of those of today. They don't have "versions" of these routers - they're living/breathing evolving units. There's no "version 1", "version 2", etc. The only thing they've done is add a couple models (The Pro Max and Special Edition) where are basically POE additions... (hardware addon)

This has been helpful. I think I'm likely going with Unifi at new house (is Ubiquiti an old name? I don't see that on their website.)

It looks like I can get free installation of Starlink done by an authorized installer so I'm absolutely doing that! Just now realized that.

You mentioned the Special Edition - I have the UDM-SE and it's been great.

...it's also the only one I've had, so I can't really compare it to the others, but it's nice.

YouBet said:

---

eric76 said:

---

YouBet said:

---

I forgot about the router ban. Ironically, I think the Starlink router is one of the few that might avoid this since it's mostly made here. I guess I'll take my existing Orbi with me now which I was going to replace because it's old.

---

It might not be a bad idea to plan ahead and buy new routers now for future use.

---

Yeah, but even then they plan to not allow updates in a year. I can understand the actions here considering TP Link but I also don't see how this can practically hold up with almost zero production here in the US for this sector.

So everyone is just going to be vulnerable to new security threats after March 2027?

---

One possibility is that some favored companies could be given exceptions. Of course, with more limited choices, there would be higher prices for what is available.

YouBet said:

---

This has been helpful. I think I'm likely going with Unifi at new house (is Ubiquiti an old name? I don't see that on their website.)

It looks like I can get free installation of Starlink done by an authorized installer so I'm absolutely doing that! Just now realized that.

---

"Ubiquiti" is their formal name. Their products use the "Unifi" name... more of a 'product line' name. Their URL is UI.com.

Badass on the Starlink install deal... good stuff.

Naveronski said:

---

You mentioned the Special Edition - I have the UDM-SE and it's been great.

...it's also the only one I've had, so I can't really compare it to the others, but it's nice.

---

Glad to hear. I've got them all across my family (the UDM) and even one of my local offices. As far as customers go, I've almost deployed 300 of the things in the last 3-5 years. Very, very, very rare do we see one die. I think we've had a total of 2 get RMA'd lifetime... and one for sure was a lightning strike at a restaurant.... and it didn't totally die - it just factor reset and then kept factory resetting randomally after that.

(For those that don't know, Ubiquiti will allow you to locally save your settings (export) or save them in their cloud... so if you do ever have to swap-out, you don't have to start over....)

The local office utilizes it's access control capabilities and manages our doors... I just walk up and can use my cell phone or an RFID badge and the doors auto-open and say "Hello Russ". It's pretty cool the way they've designed their routers to be so much more than just simple routers, but full solutions to their product line all-in-one. Great stuff for homes, small biz, medium biz. We even hooked up a temperate probe or three to it to monitor the office temp, and of course added internal cameras everywhere (it handles up to 16 cameras natively I believe).

Now, at my datacenters where the big enterprise racks sit - no, I need more on handle all of our packeting, security, etc - so I use bigger solutions like Cisco for the main, and some security appliances for higher level filtering and security layers. But none of that stuff is needed in this thread or at your home unless you just wanna be a blackhat or are doing really, really advanced stuff there.

As a new entrant into this world, I figured I'd share my home setup. I dropped Ethernet to the access points, and unfortunately don't have wall outlet drops where I'd like to add one more in-wall AP. One note, I didn't realize when I make my initial order the POE switch needs a power supply as well, so I had to order that separately. I've been really pleased with the ease of setup and use.

There's a lot of good YT videos on different devices and configuration/setup. The Unifi Express 7 also seems like a decent solution for a smaller house without ethernet run, I believe it works kind of like most consumer mesh systems.

I've been Grokking this. This will likely be my setup because I won't have ability to run ethernet to AP's at first:



Our house runs north / south along a central corridor so these will run in almost a straight line down the middle of the house.

Forgot to add, I used this tool along with a free floor plan app (magicplan I think), but if you have a paper or pdf floor plan you can upload and draw walls over it, it can help with placing AP's and estimating signal, you can switch AP types etc to see what will work best.

https://design.ui.com/wizard

satexas said:

---

YouBet said:

---

For more clarity, this is a flat roof on an adobe style house in New Mexico. Don't have shingles. The roof is TPO (thermoplastic olefin). So I'm guessing I'll have to go in through a wall unless there is somehow existing access points on the roof for cabling. I have no idea. Whole new world for me with house like this so I'm learning as I go.

---

Yes, if you have a flat roof, it sounds like you're gonna have to do a side penetration, and probably even mount the dish on the side like an old school satellite dish mount. Nothing wrong with that, and you don't have a roof pitch to block you from the northern sky…. So a side mount isn't as scary. Wall mounts are typically uglier as they're easier to see, but in your case, it is what it is.

There are a million different Starlink mounts out there… you'll have no trouble finding one that fits your situation.

---

If you do a wall mount, get the actual Starlink wall mount. The third party ones on Amazon are garbage.

Fatvis said:

---

Forgot to add, I used this tool along with a free floor plan app (magicplan I think), but if you have a paper or pdf floor plan you can upload and draw walls over it, it can help with placing AP's and estimating signal, you can switch AP types etc to see what will work best.

https://design.ui.com/wizard

---

Neat tool.

I have several UniFi devices in my house but most are overkill for my needs. If I had to start over, I would go this route and make adjustments where needed: