Network upgrades.

[don256us]

I think that we need a Hardware section just for networking.

I have a Ubiquiti USG v4, Cloud key gen 2, 2x Ubiquiti WAP, 24 port non-managed GB switch and a 24 port Cisco fast ethernet PoE switch currently.

The USG has to go. My internet is at 1.2 GB with my modem abel to kick out at 2.5 GB. If I enable all of the firewall stuff on it, throughput drops to like 250 MB. No way buddy.
My Son bought me a bare bones pfsense router with 2.5 GB in/out. That will replace the USG when it arrives. I'll start by moving the IP of the USB in my Unifi settings.
From there, I bought a 5 port 2.5 GB switch. I'll put one leg to my media server and one to my machine. Both will be able to talk at 2.5 GB as I convert my DVD/BluRays.

One leg of the 2.5 GB will go to my new 16 port 150w Ubiquiti PoE Gen 1 switch. From there, I'll run one of my Ubiquiti WAPs, move my Cloud key over to this switch and generally fill it up.
I'll take the un-managed switch and move it to where the old Cisco PoE switch is and keep my folding farm and VR machine on it and use a PoE injector to power my final Ubiquiti WAP.

I have a 1500 VaH UPS running the modem, pfsense (when it arrives), Magic Jack, and the Ubiquiti switch which will power one WAP and the Cloud Key. In the event of a power outage, I should be able to run all that for 2.5 - 3 hours? I have a 500 VaH UPS in the back running the "Green" GB switch and the other WAP via PoE injector. No idea how lonog that lasts. The power thing is just until I hook up my generator in the even of long term outage. Usually I'm out of power for a blip and nothing more. The UPS plus my laptop means that I can report the outage and go back to sleep or whatever.

I wanted to stay Ubiquiti but shortages are at my end. The Dream Machine Pro is what I'd be looking at IF I could get one and IF it had 2.5 GB. If I'm gonna spend $300-500, I want to future proof as best I can. Also, Ubiquiti cameras are just not that strong in the market place. Too costly and too little in performance.

So now I will build a frankinhack network and see how that goes.

 

[EarthDog]

I think that we need a Hardware section just for networking.

Moved thread to the Networking section from General Hardware.

...though, this is software...


Sub'd for more!

Also...



EDIT: Im just going to put it back, lol

 

[don256us]

Well, my first run through went amazingly..... bad.

I have a used US-16-150W Ubiquiti gen 1 switch. No ears. I thought that I would use ears from another switch that I will dispose of. No fitment threshold match-up. (Not a standard size and don't fit.) Also, hooking up my 2.5 GB switch directly to the modem was about as dumb as I could be without having my pfsense machine available.

The used switch is still controlled by another controller. I did a factory reset and started to adopt it but then I... F'd it up by not being patient. Not a big deal but I've not been able to replicate the environment in which it will let me adopt the switch. I got tired and mad at it all so I just quit for the night.

Looking for Ubiquiti ears is not easy. I think that I found generic ones that will work but I'm taking the word of a random reddit'er for it. At $7.50, it's worth the try.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06X9CC838/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I will post back to confirm if they work or not. I've got some other items to clean up too. I keep thinking that I will take pictures but my wire management is so bad that I keep finding reasons NOT to take pictures. I'll have to get over that.

 

[don256us]

HA. Double post!!!!!

Not my pictures but these are pictures of the hardware I'm installing. Fleabay purchases.


Above is the 2.5 GB switch that I bought to extend my 2.5 capabilities as far into my network as I can afford. My modem will send 2.5 to the pfsense to this switch to my machine and my media server. It will also send data to my main switch(s).


This is the used Ubiquiti switch that I bought. It will run most of my household gear. It will also power one of my WAPs and my CloudKey. Most of my traffic will be through this switch.

Again, not my pictures but these are pictures of the actual gear that I bought.

 

[WhitehawkEQ]

Here is my 16 port gigabit switch

 

[don256us]

Amazon.com: 19" Rack Mount Kit Compatible With Cisco 2811 Series Routers ACS-2811RM-19= : Electronics

Amazon.com: 19" Rack Mount Kit Compatible With Cisco 2811 Series Routers ACS-2811RM-19= : Electronics

www.amazon.com

Turns out that this fits perfectly. Can't get one from Ubiquiti? Don't want to spend $30-$70 for a used genuine set? I think that I paid less than $8 for these.

Installed.

See the difference in bolt patterns? I know they're screws not bolts but screw pattern just doesn't sound right to me.

Test run of the New (to me) switch. Adopting, etc.

Here's a look at the system sans cables.

Old switch out new one in.



Unfortunately, the new switch has a problem. It will not stay connected. Its up then it goes down. Then up and then down again. About once a minute or two. I couldn't do anything on the wireless network. Caused all kinds of problems. I'm looking to see if maybe I'm doing something wrong. Otherwise, The seller does not want to do the return but eBay may help.

 

[unsafesteagle]

Id look for Link/Port Auto Negotiation problems causing the interface to flap. confirm that the port flow control options match. Under Spanning Tree Protocol make sure settings have BPDU disabled.
Bridge Protocol Data Units are for Multi Bridge Multi Spanning Tree Protocol to automatically reconfigure the default master bridge.

 

[don256us]

I didn't find any settings for BPDU. Perhaps I just don't know where to look.

What I've done is to connect the switch from my dumb switch to port 1 on the Ubiquiti switch. I was able to adopt it again and it looks like it stayed online all night. I'll have to double check the logs but it looked good. Tonight I'll plug in one PoE WAP and see how that goes.

I don't see any settings to tell the port that I'm connecting from another switch. Do I need to? Is my Ubiquiti switch doing an auto negotiate for it?

 

[unsafesteagle]

I dont have experience with switches directly wired together. SFP+ adapters, at least the ones im using, I have to manually set the NIC Link speed disabling Auto-Negotiation! Also, flow control remains disabled.
The switch/bridge priority process is rather extensive. Theres many different ways the topology can delegate and route traffic.

The configuration method that i use is to manually setup the ports/nics and then amanually setup the Spanning Tree.

 

[don256us]

Cool that. I also noticed that my Ubiquiti switch is only connected at ethernet speeds. Like not even fast ethernet. Like 10 mbps. I have two SFPs (Not +) in my Cisco switch that I'm getting rid of. I'll pull one of those and use it to connect to my USG and see what I get.

I think htat's what I'll do tonight. Pull an SFP and put into my new switch and plug in my PoE WAP to the new switch and see what happens.

Edit: Looking at the quick guide for my switch, it seems that I must install the USG to one of the 16 ports but perhaps I should be connecting my down stream switch to the SFP. I can also turn off PoE to all ports then turn on what I need.

 

[JrClocker]

If you want to connect your UniFi devices via SFP, these work great:

SFP to Copper Adapter

You need one for each connection, and then just run a regular network cable between them.

If you are connecting at 10 Mbps, try a different cable.

You can connect your USG directly via SFP to the switch...I ran mine that way for a long time.

Also, instead of a 2.5 Gbps switch, you should consider one that does 1.0/2.5/5.0/10 Gbps. I have a 10 Gbps switch as my "backbone" on my network stack...with my main PC and 2 NAS devices connected at 10 Gbps. I have actually moved a large chunk of my Steam games over to one of my NAS devices, and setup an ISCSI connection...works pretty good, and I keep my PCIE 4.0 SSD space for the games that need the speed.

 

[don256us]

Note: 10 Mbps not Gpbs.

I have a couple of Cisco SFPs for 1000 Mbps. I'll try one of those first.

I don't think that I'm ready to pay for a 1.0/2.5/5.0/10 Gbps switch. I got this 2.5 on the cheaper side. My Steam games are on a seperate NVMe on my main rig. I don't "collect" games like my much younger co-workers do. I have what I play and that's about it.

I'll definately go from the USG to SFP on the switch. I'll be replacing the USG with a pfsense soon though.

Thanks for the input.

 

[WhitehawkEQ]

Ummmm...... Unless your connecting to the company network with a VPN or tunneling, do you really need managed switches for home use?

 

[don256us]

The word "need" has no business here. "Want". I want this PoE switch from Ubiquiti to go with my other Ubiquiti gear.

 

[don256us]

So testing and playing last night netted me the following results.

The switch stayed online all day and night as far as I can tell. I put my WAP onto a PoE port and it stayed up all night as far as I can tell. I'm still only connecting at 10 Mbps. (The slowest and original Ethernet.) I tried a GB SFP that I stole from my Cisco switch. I connected it from my Ubiquiti switch to my dumb switch. I couldn't connect to the Ubiquiti. I put the cable back into a PoE port and it works. Works poorly but it works.

My current line of efforts need to be focused on the bandwidth. 10 Mbps is not going to cut it when I should be at GB. Tonight I will play with the SFP from the USG instead of the dumb switch and see what happens.

Any other ideas?

 

[JrClocker]

I know that not all SFP adapters are the same...the ones I linked work with UniFi equipment...if you need SFP+, let me know and I can share another link.

 

[don256us]

I wish I could use SFP+. I think that the US-16-150W only takes SFP? I think that's right. If my experiments tonight don't work, I'll order a pair of what you linked.

 

[Woomack]

Note: 10 Mbps not Gpbs.

I have a couple of Cisco SFPs for 1000 Mbps. I'll try one of those first.

I don't think that I'm ready to pay for a 1.0/2.5/5.0/10 Gbps switch. I got this 2.5 on the cheaper side. My Steam games are on a seperate NVMe on my main rig. I don't "collect" games like my much younger co-workers do. I have what I play and that's about it.

I'll definately go from the USG to SFP on the switch. I'll be replacing the USG with a pfsense soon though.

Thanks for the input.

When I saw that 2.5Gbps switch photo then I started to wonder as I haven't seen them in stores ... and I noticed it's a new model but they also have new 10Gbps 5/8 port switches. However, 5-port 10Gbps costs ~$400 what is weirdly expensive, especially for TP-Link. I have Netgear XS505M at home which cost me $300 (inc. tax) over a year ago. Now I see them also for about $400 On XS505M I would use SFP+.
Personally I hate USG (every version that I was installing). I had various problems with them from low bandwidth to random disconnections or incompatibility with routers/ISP services.

I see that US-16-150W has 2x 1Gbps SFP ports. There are no SFP+. Higher switches have SFP+. Copper SFP is described here - click.

 

[don256us]

That's what I was thinking too with the SFP. Ubiquiti only has a quick start guide and spec sheet. No manual that I was able to find. However, knowing that SFP+ is for more than GBe, I was confident that SFP was all I could do. I'm fine with that.

I bought the 2.5 GBe switch used for less than $150. I've been toying with waiting until Ubiquiti offered something that I could afford. I've since acquiesced on that. I have two 2.5 PCIe cards one of which is currently running in my media server. GB has been fast enough for viewing so I'm just looking.... well... while I will get faster transfer from the machine that I'm ripping my DVD/BlueRay to my server, I'm really just doing it to do it.

Some day I may do GB fiber from switch to switch because its cheap and I'd have bragging rights. My friends will think I'm some sort of tech god or something.

All that going forward, I need to at least get GB to/from my switch so that's the focus.

Edit: Another issue that I have is with cable management. I hand made the current patch cables from the switch to the patch panel. They are... ok. They are solid core and stiff as hell. I think that I'll get an assortment of short patch cables and see if I can do better.

 

[don256us]

No update to speak of. I finally ordered a pair of the SFP adapters that JrClocker linked. I'll also order an asortment of premade cables from monoprice or someone. I don't plan to rework my network until the cold fall or dark winter months. I'll have to wait for my wife to be out of town for a day or two.

I plan to pull my entire network down and rebuild it from scratch using all of the gear I have on hand. The first step will be to configure my pfsense. Once that's done, I can pull the USG, reorganize the switches and start reinstalling.

So nothing for now but much to come later.

Been working on outdoor projects like my utility trailer, string timmer, lawn tractors, etc.