Ubiquiti wireless routers anygood?

[silicon]

I see this brand of routers while searching for a new wireless router....can anyone say anything about these either good or bad? Also The models advertised for sale on amazon DO NOT appear on the company website...this looks like a red flag to me.

 

[razel]

They are recommend since there's plenty of settings for the budding home network admin to mess without having to find a router to install DD-wrt on. They are also pretty good with security patches.

As for general home use, I wouldn't recommend it to friends/family that just want WiFi without it becoming a hobby. Lots of good choices in the MESH market these days.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I use the ER-X and a UAP-AC-LR. it's a great combo.

I also agree with razel, unless you are a network/computer person, or want to learn, just stick with something geared towards consumers

 

[bbhaag]

I see this brand of routers while searching for a new wireless router....can anyone say anything about these either good or bad? Also The models advertised for sale on amazon DO NOT appear on the company website...this looks like a red flag to me.

Could you maybe link to which ones you are interested in? FWIW I don't use a Ubiquiti all in one wireless router. Like ch33zw1z I also use an ER-X router coupled with an UAP-AC-LR access point. It has been a great setup since I put in place a little over a year ago. The setup of the router was a little tricky but nothing to complicated. I am by no means a networking person and I managed to get it running in a couple hours with a little help from around the web.
I do not tinker with anything beyond the gui though and my needs are pretty straight forward. I have read that if you need to delve into the cli that is can get exponentially more complicated. Anyway, I'm pretty happy with the combo I bought and would recommend it to anyone with some basic networking knowledge.

 

[ch33zw1z]

the CLI is prett user friendly overall, if you updating software its the way to go IMO

 

[bbhaag]

To be honest I have never used the cli. About the only thing I've done since the initial setup was update the firmware for the router and that was easy enough through the system dashboard. I do sometimes wonder why some of my ports at the top are orange and some are green but my configuration works well so why mess with it.haha

Maybe you could tell me why? Here's a pic so you can see what I'm talking about.

 

[ch33zw1z]

probably running at 10 or 100mbps, green is gigabit

so whatever is at the other end of those ports is probably 100mbit NIC's, like a printer, or xbox 360, roku, etc...

It also can happen when a pc or device is shutdown, but something like Wake on Lan is enabled and keeps the port in a listening mode.

if not, and those ports should be operating at gigabit while devices are up, then inspect your cabling, config on client side, config of those ports in the dashboard.

I will admit I haven't configed a single thing in the CLI. I use it to check on stuff, and to upgrade the software.

When i first got the ER-X almost two years ago, I used the GUI to upgrade the software and it didn't go so well. the CLI has just been solid everytime.

 

[silicon]

Could you maybe link to which ones you are interested in? FWIW I don't use a Ubiquiti all in one wireless router. Like ch33zw1z I also use an ER-X router coupled with an UAP-AC-LR access point. It has been a great setup since I put in place a little over a year ago. The setup of the router was a little tricky but nothing to complicated. I am by no means a networking person and I managed to get it running in a couple hours with a little help from around the web.
I do not tinker with anything beyond the gui though and my needs are pretty straight forward. I have read that if you need to delve into the cli that is can get exponentially more complicated. Anyway, I'm pretty happy with the combo I bought and would recommend it to anyone with some basic networking knowledge.

That would be a setup that may work for me...a gigabit router and a place for the wi-fi antenna.

 

[JackMDS]

Any thing can be Good or Bad depending on One's needs and the enviroment!

https://www.sonicwall.com/en-us/support/knowledge-base/170502327348947

 

[bbhaag]

That would be a setup that may work for me...a gigabit router and a place for the wi-fi antenna.

Well if you think it will work for then I say go for it. Both ch33zw1z and I run the same setup and it has worked very well for us. One thing to consider is the number of ports on the Edgerouter-X. It only has five and two of those will be used by your modem and your AP. Not a huge deal for me but just thought I would throw it out there because some people do not realize that before they buy.

 

[mv2devnull]

One thing to consider is the number of ports on the Edgerouter-X. It only has five and two of those will be used by your modem and your AP.

Most consumer routers have five ports, so ER-X is no worse. (It is actually a bit better; it has 5 separate, configurable ports. Consumer "routers" tend to have a WAN-port and a four-port switch. ER-X is thus more flexible.)

Network switches are for "creating" more ports. The number of ports in the router is an issue only if one has no space and power for a switch device. Unmanaged 8-port 1Gbps switches are really cheap.

 

[ch33zw1z]

yup, i have a couple switches in the house. i like to keep things wired that can be. printers, consoles, etc...

good 8 port gigabit switches.can be had for 20-30 bucks

 

[rchunter]

That edgerouter looks interesting. I've been wanting to get a rack mountable router for awhile now...

 

[Engineer]

I use the ER-X and a UAP-AC-LR. it's a great combo.

I also agree with razel, unless you are a network/computer person, or want to learn, just stick with something geared towards consumers

Or maybe you want something that is solid and just works (unlike many of the simple consumer stuff).

 

[bbhaag]

Most consumer routers have five ports, so ER-X is no worse. (It is actually a bit better; it has 5 separate, configurable ports. Consumer "routers" tend to have a WAN-port and a four-port switch. ER-X is thus more flexible.)

Network switches are for "creating" more ports. The number of ports in the router is an issue only if one has no space and power for a switch device. Unmanaged 8-port 1Gbps switches are really cheap.

Yes I understand that and am fully aware of the port configurability of the ER-X. You are correct. Most consumer grade routers only have five ports just like the ER-X. What I was referring to was the fact that most consumer grade routers have the wireless built in so therefore four of the five ports are still open.
With the ER-X an additional port is taken by the wireless AP leaving only three ports open. Some people especially those not well versed in networking may not realize that. That is all I was trying to point out.

And yes before someone else jumps down my throat I am also well aware of switches and how they work and how to use them.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Or maybe you want something that is solid and just works (unlike many of the simple consumer stuff).

No doubt. With a little bit of learning, the ER-X + WAP is a great solution.

 

[kevnich2]

Going with ubiquiti for your wireless + firewall setup will likely be your best choice as in 6-12 months, you'll have forgotten about it, because they generally just work that well. It's all what I would consider pro-sumer and enterprise quality gear. I use the ER-Lite coupled with the UAP-AC-LR and Pro units in businesses all the time. Once they're installed, just have to update the firmware every now and then and that's it.

The GUI is easy enough to use for basic things but I usually do my entire configuration from the CLI but I prefer CLI over the gui. I usually get them configured in 1/3 of the time vs messing with the GUI. But, the GUI is always there as well. Another option is to go with the unifi security gateway, an 8 port unifi switch and 1-2 of the AP's and manage it all in the unifi dashboard..

 

[silicon]

Thats the problem for me my knowledge of the ubiquiti products is limited. But in reading some responses it seems i need a UAP-AC-LR and something called a ER-Lite to reproduce what a consumer router can do.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Thats the problem for me my knowledge of the ubiquiti products is limited. But in reading some responses it seems i need a UAP-AC-LR and something called a ER-Lite to reproduce what a consumer router can do.

The ER-X is the entry level, the ER-Lite is "entry" but more robust than the ER-X

https://help.ubnt.com/hc/en-us/articles/219652227--EdgeRouter-Which-EdgeRouter-Should-I-Use-

The UAP-AC-LR is a solid WAP, but the Long Range may not be necessary for your environment, and "lite" could be fine, or a PRO

https://www.ubnt.com/products/#unifi


IF you want to go a little deeper, a Ubiquiti Security Gateway can be used instead of a EdgeRouter (ER). I will likely get a USG for my next upgrade, I want to play with the Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) stuff

https://www.ubnt.com/unifi-routing/usg/


Keep at it, you'll get the hang of it.

 

[mv2devnull]

With the ER-X an additional port is taken by the wireless AP leaving only three ports open. Some people especially those not well versed in networking may not realize that. That is all I was trying to point out.

Sorry, I missed the point. (I tend to ignore wireless as much as possible.)

The ER-X is the entry level, the ER-Lite is "entry" but more robust than the ER-X

ER-Lite is older.
ER-X was the next logical step: "Hey, lets make something cheaper."
ER-4 seems very new ("more cores", and there might be "ER-6" coming too).

 

[ch33zw1z]

ER-Lite3 may be older, but has more throughput than the ER-X

I use an ER-X with a Comcast 100/10 connection. Streaming video daily, download all sorts of stuff, never hiccups.

I also like the ER-X because I can use the PoE injector that came with the UAP-AC-LR to power the ER-X on eth0, and then pass the PoE to the WAP off eth4, free's up a spot on the ole UPS

 

[Chaotic42]

I'll put in another vote for the ER-X plus Wireless AP. My friend has one of those wireless meters on his phone and said I was blowing away everyone in the building with mine.

 

[silicon]

It seems that I can use a DSL modem and plug it into the ER-x router?

 

[JackMDS]

It seems that I can use a DSL modem and plug it into the ER-x router?

If the DSL Modem is a Modem only you can.

If it is a Modem/Router combo you have to disable the Router part (if possible) and use it as Modem only

 

[silicon]

Yes it a modem only.