Vodafone UFB, Ubiquiti USG, PoE switch and UAC APs

Forums › LAN (ethernet/Wifi/routers/Bluetooth) › Vodafone UFB, Ubiquiti USG, PoE switch and UAC APs

Riaaninnz

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#214144 29-Apr-2017 16:55

For years I had many issues with the ISP supplied modems and routers and finally decided to take the plunge and upgrade to a more robust solution with separate components. I've been with Vodafone on the 100/20 UFB plan for a few years now and I can't say enough how much I dislike the VF supplied Huawei HG659. My plan included a home phone line (VoIP) which sort of limited me to upgrade to other vendors' routers like Asus, Linksys, etc. Mostly the lack of structured cabling also limited me to upgrade to a hard wired solution. Our household consist of heavy internet users; mostly media streaming, YouTube, Google Play Music, social media (kids), etc. I kid you not when I say we easily use 500+GB data a month.

The big pain!! There hasn't been a week in the past 3 years where someone in the house didn't complain about "WIFI is not not working Dad"..."Internet is slow"..."reboot the router - weekly occurrence"

I HAD ENOUGH!!

I recently moved house and to my elation the new place had structured ethernet cabling and my world opened up to new possibilities. I phoned VF up immediately and cancelled my home phone because we live in a world where we can use cellphones

Reading through the forums and doing my own research, and asking for recommendations, I finally decided to go with Ubiquiti gear and placed an order with gowifi.co.nz for the following:

1x Ubiquiti USG (UniFi Security Gateway)

1x Ubiquiti PoE 8 port swictch (UniFi Switch 8 PoE 150W)

2x Ubiquiti UniFi AP AC LR

1x Ubiquiti UniFi AP AC Pro

The gear arrived with overnight courier and I didn't wait to get started.

First I downloaded the UniFi controller software and installed it on a Windows 10 pc running 24/7.

Next I connected the USG WAN port to the Chorus ONT supplied feed (uplink)

It wasn't smooth sailing to begin with as I struggled with the USG for a few hours to get it to connect to the VF UFB WAN and also talking to the controller software on the LAN. Nothing in particular but I followed a few booting sequences with one of the last ones to include the Chorus ONT as well and finally the USG had a WAN IP assigned. After that I had to update the firmware on the USG manually using cli. One other thing I also struggled with was that the controller would show the USG offline even though I had internet access. In the end I found the problem to be java. Make sure you install the 64-bit java version if you are using a 64-bit browser. Simple thing but it took some time to pin the problem.

If you're on Vodafone UFB then you need to set the USG to DHCP and using vlan 10

The rest was pretty easy to install and setup.

PoE works great as I have one AP AC LR using 24v passive and the AP AC Pro using POE+. No issues with powering them and fewer cables :).

A picture of my current setup:

Any questions please feel free to ask.

PS!! I haven't had a single complaint from anyone in the house since UniFi in the Sky!!

darylblake

1162 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1772551 29-Apr-2017 18:58

Im glad you enjoy it.

I have a similar setup coming to my place. Its great gear for SMB offices and home. Better than the Modem/Router/Switch/ConsumerWifi/Firewall all in one units they try to get down to a ridiculous price point. No wonder it sucks.

michaelmurfy

meow
13269 posts

Uber Geek

Moderator

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1772560 29-Apr-2017 19:56

Excellent post! Got any photos of your installation?

It is worth spending a little on a decent network - we are now at a time of age where internet access is one of the most important aspects of a household and yet people refuse to spend money on it often complaining about their crappy router, dodgy cabiling etc. Some time ago I installed some decent access points (Xclaim) at my parents house and it is still going strong today, never once had a complaint.

Michael Murphy | https://murfy.nz
Referral Links: Quic Broadband (use R122101E7CV7Q for free setup)

Are you happy with what you get from Geekzone? Please consider supporting us by subscribing.
Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

richms

28199 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1772561 29-Apr-2017 20:10

michaelmurfy:

Excellent post! Got any photos of your installation?

It is worth spending a little on a decent network - we are now at a time of age where internet access is one of the most important aspects of a household and yet people refuse to spend money on it often complaining about their crappy router, dodgy cabiling etc. Some time ago I installed some decent access points (Xclaim) at my parents house and it is still going strong today, never once had a complaint.

Or they go on social media complaining that the gig is a rip off and making a right fool of themselves in the process.

Richard rich.ms

RossT

9 posts

Wannabe Geek

#1772748 30-Apr-2017 10:29

In years to come the concept of the ISP supplied all-in-one wonder box will be looked on with the same degree of mirth and amazement as the concept of throwing babies and virgins into a volcano to appease the gods and make crops grow.

Riaaninnz

7 posts

Wannabe Geek

#1772795 30-Apr-2017 11:42

michaelmurfy:

Excellent post! Got any photos of your installation?

It is worth spending a little on a decent network - we are now at a time of age where internet access is one of the most important aspects of a household and yet people refuse to spend money on it often complaining about their crappy router, dodgy cabiling etc. Some time ago I installed some decent access points (Xclaim) at my parents house and it is still going strong today, never once had a complaint.

I also have to mention that the APs are not mounted against the ceiling as we live in a rental and are not allowed to make any holes. One is set on a desk, one on the carpet in the corner behind a couch, and the other one on the bottom shelf of a little coffee table, and it still blanket the house with good signal.

timbosan

2160 posts

Uber Geek

#1772801 30-Apr-2017 12:00

Riaaninnz:

michaelmurfy:

Excellent post! Got any photos of your installation?

It is worth spending a little on a decent network - we are now at a time of age where internet access is one of the most important aspects of a household and yet people refuse to spend money on it often complaining about their crappy router, dodgy cabiling etc. Some time ago I installed some decent access points (Xclaim) at my parents house and it is still going strong today, never once had a complaint.

I also have to mention that the APs are not mounted against the ceiling as we live in a rental and are not allowed to make any holes. One is set on a desk, one on the carpet in the corner behind a couch, and the other one on the bottom shelf of a little coffee table, and it still blanket the house with good signal.

Just on this specific note (from a Ubiquti user as well) - the AP's install in a similar way to smoke alarms, it might be worth asking if you can install it and make good on the repairs when you leave. I am in the same boat (renting) and have an Ethernet cable running up the wall the ceiling mounted AP. Could look nicer with the cable hidden (plastic conduit or similar, which doesn't require nailing or anything), but it does the job, and performs great.

timbosan

2160 posts

Uber Geek

#1772803 30-Apr-2017 12:04

michaelmurfy:

Excellent post! Got any photos of your installation?

It is worth spending a little on a decent network - we are now at a time of age where internet access is one of the most important aspects of a household and yet people refuse to spend money on it often complaining about their crappy router, dodgy cabiling etc. Some time ago I installed some decent access points (Xclaim) at my parents house and it is still going strong today, never once had a complaint.

Couldn't agree with this more - since moving to 'proper' hardware over the all-on-in sucky devices (I run Untangle on a PC as a router direct to the ONT, and Unifi AP's, along with a 3Com managed switch and Ethernet to static devices like the PS4), I have had over 300 days of uptime (which is around the time I moved house). And no-one complains about performance, or Wifi not working.