Ubiquiti UCG Fiber with 3 x ASUS XT9 access points

[2301]

Would like to switch to Ubiquiti, is the combination mentioned above OK as starting point?

 

[Tech9]

Only if you are happy with flat network design and some management and tuning inconveniences. XT9 doesn't have VLAN support, you can't have network segmentation or guest networks. All wireless related options in Network application will be unavailable. Your Gateway will see all the clients as wired, won't show signal levels to clients, on Tx power change your routers will reboot, InnerSpace application for network planning won't work, etc. Good option to save money and keep you going, but not in a long run. Look at UCG-Max as Gateway alternative. It can do 2.5GbE WAN/LAN, it's a smaller size device, cheaper, may be good enough for your needs.

 

[tgl]

Really not enough information here to offer good advice. What are you hoping to get from switching to UniFi? Easier configuration/management? Better monitoring? Better wifi performance? Depending on your goals, it might make more sense to replace the wifi end of things first and keep your existing router/firewall arrangements for awhile. But either way will not give you the single point of management that is one of UniFi's main selling points: you'll be managing the UniFi and not-UniFi parts of the network separately.

I will say that the UCG-Fiber is a poor choice if your ISP connection is not 5GbE or faster. You're paying for expensive high-speed ports that will be pretty useless without that. As @Tech9 said, the UCG-Max is more sensible for most people. (I don't recommend dropping down to the UCG-Ultra, though; it has a reputation of being underpowered.)

 

[Tech9]

UCG-Ultra... it has a reputation of being underpowered

It's my favourite Gateway and I have 4x units in service. Very similar hardware to UCG-Max, but with 1x 2.5GbE, 4x GbE ports and no storage tray. It runs cooler, more power efficient, the Network UI is as smooth as UCG-Max and can manage the same number of UniFi devices and clients. For folks with under Gigabit ISP lines and no needs of Access and Protect features - UCG-Ultra is the needs matching Gateway for only $129. For faster internal network - 2.5GbE switch. USW-Flex-2.5G-5 is $49. PoE switches are more expensive, but for home network with few APs PoE Adapters are available starting from $8. As I usually advice - don't overpay for hardware.

 

[2301]

Really not enough information here to offer good advice. What are you hoping to get from switching to UniFi? Easier configuration/management? Better monitoring? Better wifi performance? Depending on your goals, it might make more sense to replace the wifi end of things first and keep your existing router/firewall arrangements for awhile. But either way will not give you the single point of management that is one of UniFi's main selling points: you'll be managing the UniFi and not-UniFi parts of the network separately.

I will say that the UCG-Fiber is a poor choice if your ISP connection is not 5GbE or faster. You're paying for expensive high-speed ports that will be pretty useless without that. As @Tech9 said, the UCG-Max is more sensible for most people. (I don't recommend dropping down to the UCG-Ultra, though; it has a reputation of being underpowered.)

There are complaints that UCG Max is going hot, too hot.

 

[Tech9]

Any complaints about UCG-Max burning out?

 

[tgl]

Ubiquiti has a reputation for building products that run hotter than people expect: that's a common theme across many of their products. They do not have a reputation for building products that fail, so apparently their thermal engineers know what they are doing.

Personally I'd avoid putting a UCG-Max or other toasty-running product in a poorly-ventilated place, but as long as you can allow decent airflow there is little reason to worry.

 

[Tech9]

UCG-Max runs hotter when SSD drive is used, but many people don't have one. And 70-80C CPU is considered normal for desktop ARM devices. Most consumer AIO routers run in this range. Built-in 2.5GbE switch in UCG-Max also generates more heat. My Gigabit UCG-Ultra gateways have around 50-60C CPU in ~24C environment.