Upgrade home network using Unifi

· 3 min read

My home network currently comprises of my ISP’s modem/router/access point, which I purely run as a modem and a Google Wifi (Gen 1) mesh network. I currently use three Google WiFi nodes.

Why am I doing this?

Nearly two years ago I moved house. The house I am now living in is an 1970’s concrete prefab bungalow. Over the years it has been remodeled and extended. This has left the bungalow with quite a few WiFi issues:

This has left the house with a bunch of WiFi dead-spots. Also, due to Google WiFi using a wireless mesh backhaul (although can be wired) it leaves the WiFi connections running really slowly.

This left me with a need to replace the Google WiFi setup with a better system for my particular home.

What am I installing?

I decided that I wanted to have more control over the network in the home, especially now that I am working from home full-time. I also wanted a system which I can run a mini-home lab with so that I can learn more about networking. This led me to rule out most consumer grade networking products and look more towards the commercial offerings.

A lot of commercial equipment is prohibitively priced for what I can run at home. I was directed to Ubiquiti’s Unifi system as a prosumer/commercial system.

The switching and wireless access points seem to have very positive reviews and also fit the bill of what I need for experimenting with networking.

It becomes more complicated when deciding what router to use. It came down to PFSense or Unifi. PFSense is definitely more powerful than Unifi’s offering, but it comes with complexity. I have decided to go with Unifi’s USG for now, with a goal of possibly replacing it with a PFSense box in the future. This allows me to get the system up and running relatively simply and quickly without the steeper learning curve of PFSense.

Hardware

So what hardware am I installing?

USG - Router

Sitting behind my ISP modem.

Cloud Key Gen 2 - Networking Controller

Unifi requires a controller to be hosted to run the network. I could run this as software on one of my servers, but for ease of getting started I chose to buy Unifi’s product.

USW-24-POE - 24 Port PoE Switch

I chose the 24 port switch to allow for expansion in the future. The PoE allows quite a few of the devices to be powered without using more power sockets.

2x UAP-AC-Lite - Wireless Access Points

Used internally in the house, chosen because there is no need to get more powerful opt

2x UAP-AC-M - Wireless Access Points

Used externally in the gardens, chosen because they are weather proof.

USW-Flex-Mini - 5 Port Switch

This will be installed in the family room entertainment station to allow the various streaming/gaming platforms to be hardwired in.

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