Want to replace my network, ending up with a nice clean setup.

Forums › LAN (ethernet/Wifi/routers/Bluetooth) › Want to replace my network, ending up with a nice clean setup.

dwilson

162 posts

Master Geek

#217903 18-Jul-2017 07:11

Hi,

Looking to improve my network here at home. Excuse my awful ms paint skills.

Currently:

Green - ONT
RED - HG659b router from Spark, plugged into ONT.
BLUE - R7000 in AP mode, connected to HG659b via wired cable.

The red and blue circles are rough representations of coverage. I guess I just want to get across that the house is covered nicely, but I have issues in the sleep out.

PINK - Was an old access point plugged into ethernet over power unit. It worked very poorly, I don't want to re-visit EOP at all. So I removed this entirely and just connect to the blue wifi and have had virtually no issues on my high specc'd laptop. It works, for me. But the wifes cheap laptop doesn't stay connected well in the sleep out.

So, what I want is:

Replace the HG659b and R7000 with a single clean solution, rather than having several disparate devices.
Get reliable internet in the sleep out.
Ability to expand the network with additional hardware in the future.

I've seen the Umbiqiti Amplifi package recommended across several threads on this site and it looks almost ideal. Except, my BLUE dot has wired ethernet access (gb) back to the RED dot.

Therefore the Umbiqiti Amplifi package of 1x router and 2x mesh AP doesn't quite work. What I really need is 1x router, 1x wired ap, 1x mesh ap.

I need something like:

RED - Router
BLUE - Wired AP
PINK - Mesh AP

Not, what the package offers:

RED - Router
BLUE - Mesh AP
PINK - Mesh AP

So some questions:

Is there a combination of Ubiquiti products that can give me what I want?
Will the Umbiqiti Amplifi router handle Gigabit Fibre well? Does anyone using one that is on gb fibre that could do a couple of speed tests or something?
Do I just drop my requirement for a wired AP in the blue spot and use the mesh AP and call it a day?
Is there a better way for me to get what I want? How would you do it?

Thank you.

DarkShadow

1647 posts

Uber Geek

#1824134 18-Jul-2017 07:44

The Ubiquiti mesh AP provides a ethernet backhaul mode as well.

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dwilson

162 posts

Master Geek

#1824176 18-Jul-2017 08:56

DarkShadow: The Ubiquiti mesh AP provides a ethernet backhaul mode as well.

So I can plug the mesh AP into an Ethernet port at the blue dot?

I checked here: https://store.amplifi.com/products/amplifi-hd-meshpoint

I don't see any mention in the specs?

darylblake

1157 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1824228 18-Jul-2017 10:09

If the sleepout is not very far away from the main house. Why don't you just put another access point, in the corner of that house and have it connected via Ethernet running through the roof or under the floor (if possible).

AiO units seem to kinda be pretty average in my opinion. The HG659 is ok But the wifi on it is pretty rubbish. I have moved away from using an all in one units, as they seem to do a pretty average job of Routing/Wifi/Switching.

dwilson

162 posts

Master Geek

#1824257 18-Jul-2017 11:02

darylblake:

If the sleepout is not very far away from the main house. Why don't you just put another access point, in the corner of that house and have it connected via Ethernet running through the roof or under the floor (if possible).

AiO units seem to kinda be pretty average in my opinion. The HG659 is ok But the wifi on it is pretty rubbish. I have moved away from using an all in one units, as they seem to do a pretty average job of Routing/Wifi/Switching.

Unfortunately Ethernet to the sleep out has long been crossed off the list of possibilities. Aerial would be possible but the house design and other factors make a simple wiring job into a expensive nightmare.

Wifi is the answer, I just need a slightly better solution than I have now.

Spyware

3728 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1824261 18-Jul-2017 11:06

dwilson:

So I can plug the mesh AP into an Ethernet port at the blue dot?

I checked here: https://store.amplifi.com/products/amplifi-hd-meshpoint

I don't see any mention in the specs?

Unifi wireless

Spark Max Fibre using Mikrotik CCR1009-8G-1S-1S+, CRS125-24G-1S, Unifi UAP, U6-Pro, UAP-AC-M-Pro, Apple TV 4K (2022), Apple TV 4K (2017), iPad Air 1st gen, iPad Air 4th gen, iPhone 13, SkyNZ3151 (the white box). If it doesn't move then it's data cabled.

dwilson

162 posts

Master Geek

#1824262 18-Jul-2017 11:08

Spyware:

dwilson:

So I can plug the mesh AP into an Ethernet port at the blue dot?

I checked here: https://store.amplifi.com/products/amplifi-hd-meshpoint

I don't see any mention in the specs?

Unifi wireless

Oh wow, ok - there is much more than I was looking at. Ok I think this is the answer.

Cheers.

DarkShadow

1647 posts

Uber Geek

#1824291 18-Jul-2017 11:40

dwilson:

DarkShadow: The Ubiquiti mesh AP provides a ethernet backhaul mode as well.

So I can plug the mesh AP into an Ethernet port at the blue dot?

I checked here: https://store.amplifi.com/products/amplifi-hd-meshpoint

I don't see any mention in the specs?

https://help.amplifi.com/hc/en-us

Getting Started > Ethernet Wired Backhaul: How To

bignose

142 posts

Master Geek

#1824491 18-Jul-2017 15:43

dwilson:

DarkShadow: The Ubiquiti mesh AP provides a ethernet backhaul mode as well.

So I can plug the mesh AP into an Ethernet port at the blue dot?

I checked here: https://store.amplifi.com/products/amplifi-hd-meshpoint

I don't see any mention in the specs?

that's because the wireless backhaul is for using multiple Afi-Rs (the router cube), not the mesh nodes (which like you said don't even have an ethernet port)

it's a touch odd/confusing - but apparently works : https://help.amplifi.com/hc/en-us/articles/115006826048-Ethernet-Wired-Backhaul-How-To

so in your case you wouldn't need ANY mesh nodes, just a pair of the Afi-Rs (which sell individually as well as in kits).

you're not really using any of the 'mesh' (really repeater) stuff, but you will get all the seamless band/node handoff stuff Amplifi does, which is probably what you're after (single ssid and get connected seamlessly)

Only warning - if you're on a gigabit plan the Afi-R seems to be unable to keep up whilst also doing pppoe/vlan/nat - suspect that will get fixed as the firmware matures (presuming of course the soc in the afi-r supports offload for nat/ppoe/vlan), right now I'm running the afi-r in 'bridge' mode (AP) and letting the hg659 do all the other stuff (ppoe/vlan/nat/dhcp)

michaelmurfy

meow
13215 posts

Uber Geek

Moderator

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Lifetime subscriber

#1824506 18-Jul-2017 15:58

I run a UniFi controller for people to use too if you do go the UniFi route. Would recommend grabbing a few UniFi AP's (an AC-LR for the house and an AC-Lite for the sleepout should suffice).

Michael Murphy | https://murfy.nz
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richms

28039 posts

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Lifetime subscriber

#1824524 18-Jul-2017 16:14

The little 2 antenna mesh outdoor one is also a good option. Doesnt have to be outside.

Richard rich.ms

hio77

'That VDSL Cat'
12999 posts

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Lizard Networks

Subscriber

#1824609 18-Jul-2017 17:10

Others have already pretty well covered options for WiFi.

I'd too be looking at some sort of mesh implantation or another AP for coverage.

you can likely drop using the HG659b and terminate your connection on the R7000 there.

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KiwiSurfer

1406 posts

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#1824700 18-Jul-2017 18:52

dwilson:

darylblake:

If the sleepout is not very far away from the main house. Why don't you just put another access point, in the corner of that house and have it connected via Ethernet running through the roof or under the floor (if possible).

Unfortunately Ethernet to the sleep out has long been crossed off the list of possibilities. Aerial would be possible but the house design and other factors make a simple wiring job into a expensive nightmare.

I think you misunderstand. darylblake meant putting an AP at the corner of the main house closest to the sleepout so you can simply run ethernet within the house to the far corner and have wireless radiate from there.

I'm in a similar situation myself living in a sleepout with my partner, behind my partner's parents' house. Currently running a Ubiquiti Unifi LR AP unit in the main house which gives good coverage (highly variable speed of around 20mbits to the sleepout). I have strategically placed the AP so that you can sort of see it from the sleepout. We have a Netgear extender (which my partner bought before I moved in so wasn't my idea) in our sleepout which improves the speed quite a bit to around ~40mbits (but still very variable). Again, strategic placement of the extender to near LOS of the main Unifi AP has helped keep the speed at a reasonable level and somewhat stable. The downside is that that roaming doesn't work at all so we have to keep an eye on which network our devices connect to. Often I will notice that things aren't as quick as it should be and realise I'm on the wrong network.

Eventually I intend to replace the extender with another Unifi so devices can more easily switch between the APs. Depending on how well the Unifi's wireless backhaul works I may also set up a pair of directional APs (such as Ubuquiti's LiteBeam) to improve the backhaul speed.