POE switch

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valve1138

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Hey all,

I'm going to be installing three Ubiquiti AP's in my house pretty soon,rather than have the three POE injectors on my backboard i'd like to get a POE switch to handle it. 5 ports really should be fine for now and in the future. Are the Ubiquiti switches the ones to get?

Two AP-AC Lites, and one AP-AC-Outdoor is what I'm going with.
 
Zyxel are solid, make sure the follow 802.3af or 802.3at and not using UBNT own proprietary crap...
 
Since the AP lites don't use standard Poe power but ubnts passive 24v Poe you are probably best to use a ubiquity switch if you don't want to use any injectors
 
As everyone has said, the cheap(er) UniFi products use passive POE and will require a Ubiquiti switch that has passive POE.

That being said their UAP-AC-PRO (the round one) is both indoor/outdoor and is 802.3at (POE+) compatible. I however am not a fan of UniFi at all, especially the AP-AC-Outdoor you speak of. Terrible 5Ghz range on the entire lineup. I've seen it where the 5Ghz band won't even make it through a drywall wall +10ft.

Check out the TP-Link TL-SG1008PE for a decent and well priced POE+ gigabit switch. For AP's check out the Open-Mesh OM5P-AC. Great controller that is cloud based and free and they have lots of mounting options (both indoor and outdoor via enclosures). The OM5P-AC supports both active and passive POE making it really versatile.

I also prefer Open-Mesh because they form a mesh network (over Ethernet or wifi, Ethernet is preferred obviously) and seamless roaming works, unlike UniFi. This opens up some options to get wifi to an outbuilding. 1 wired AP outside the main building, 1 on the side of the outbuilding and 1 inside the outbuilding (Ethernet to the "bridge") and now you have an instant wireless bridge and excellent wifi both inside and outside the outbuilding.
 
bds1904 said:
As everyone has said, the cheap(er) UniFi products use passive POE and will require a Ubiquiti switch that has passive POE.

That being said their UAP-AC-PRO (the round one) is both indoor/outdoor and is 802.3at (POE+) compatible. I however am not a fan of UniFi at all, especially the AP-AC-Outdoor you speak of. Terrible 5Ghz range on the entire lineup. I've seen it where the 5Ghz band won't even make it through a drywall wall +10ft.

Check out the TP-Link TL-SG1008PE for a decent and well priced POE+ gigabit switch. For AP's check out the Open-Mesh OM5P-AC. Great controller that is cloud based and free and they have lots of mounting options (both indoor and outdoor via enclosures). The OM5P-AC supports both active and passive POE making it really versatile.

I also prefer Open-Mesh because they form a mesh network (over Ethernet or wifi, Ethernet is preferred obviously) and seamless roaming works, unlike UniFi. This opens up some options to get wifi to an outbuilding. 1 wired AP outside the main building, 1 on the side of the outbuilding and 1 inside the outbuilding (Ethernet to the "bridge") and now you have an instant wireless bridge and excellent wifi both inside and outside the outbuilding.
Click to expand...

What kind of losses do you experience with Open-Mesh as you hop further away from your wired entry point?
 
Raekwon said:
What kind of losses do you experience with Open-Mesh as you hop further away from your wired entry point?
Click to expand...
The only time you would do that is if you were using them as a repeater or a bridge/repeater combo.

As a repeater a properly placed access point (not excessively far from the wired AP) will see about 80mbit. If you are plugged into the ethernet port on the "repeater node" (aka using as a bridge) you will see about 130-160mbit with the current AC model.

On a normal install you would wire as many AP's with Ethernet as you can. Ethernet to every AP still gives you all the benefits of a mesh network without any of the drawbacks. Using one AP as a repeater is meant to fix a signal issue not provide the best possible speed. Example, I have 4 AP's at home and all of them are connected via Ethernet to the same switch. The AP's handle seamless roaming and packet forwarding when changing AP's on their own. That's what makes the system work so well.

Hands down favorite thing about open-mesh? You can face-time will roaming from AP to AP without a drop or hiccup because of seamless roaming. The current generation of UniFi does not support seamless roaming.
 
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What other benefits does a wireless mesh network provide, besides seamless handoff? also maybe my understanding of wireless mesh is wrong. From your post, is a mesh network really like a controller-less but smart deployment?

I'm used to configuring a popular provider for wireless in a controller-based environment with very dense AP placement. I'm being tasked to provide something for cheaper. I'm of the impression that it you want it done right and it to work well, you have to pay for it (wired APs, proper site survey, decent equipment). Any thoughts?
 
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boss6021 said:
Another option would be the Ubiquiti ToughSwitch line. The 5 port switch is 24V only, and the Pro is 8 port and can operate both 24 and 48V independently.

https://www.amazon.com/Ubiquiti-TS-...44367&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=unifi+toughswitch

Amazon.com: Ubiquiti TS-8-PRO ToughSwitch 8 Port Advanced Power Ethernet Controllers: Computers & Accessories

I personally use the Pro version at customer sites, and they have been rock solid, and cheap.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I think I'm going to get the 8 port toughswitch. That way it'll work great with any Ubiquiti gear I will have.
 
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Sounds great! Let us know if you have any questions, or that it's working well.
 
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