I’m building a house. Floor plan attached if it helps.
I’ve spent the last 3-4 days knee deep reading archived posts, watching youtube, and digesting as much information as possible. Over that time I’ve convinced myself I need a different set up roughly 12 times. Need some direction.
Budget: Not really a consideration. But less is obviously cool.
Background: I’m an enterprise software salesman buy trade, but not a network engineer. And even though I’m willing to roll my sleeves up and do a bit of learning, I really don’t want a massive – and especially not a continuous – project on my hands. I never plan to move again. The house won’t get great cell reception and I’ll be reliant on wifi calling in many cases.
Anticipated Gear List:
- 8-10 POE security cameras/NVR (hardwired)- whole home Sonos kit (16 speakers, 5 amps) (hardwired)- Multiple TVs (hardwired)- a host of IoT devices - hubs, doorbell, thermostat, other automation stuff (hub(s) hardwired)- 2 offices (computers and 1 printer hardwired)- Mesh/access points (hardwired) – this is the million dollar question
My (probably obvious) plan:
- pull all ethernet drops to a centralized location- ISP coax --> modem --> router --> POE switch- terminate all the ethernet cables to logical ports (save the POE ports for the cameras and anything else that needs power)
My Conflict(s):
I’m confident I could get it all installed properly. I’m not confident whatsoever that I could figure out how to deploy it once it was all powered up.
And, as a result, I don’t know what the hell to buy.
It seems Unifi is the default suggestion for most, and while I’m not sure is ISN’T what I’ll end up with, I do think it’s overkill for my specific needs. In our current home I have been running a google mesh and its…fine. It works, it’s not perfect, but it’s simple and essentially never has issues. Maybe I’m lucky or maybe I have very low expectations. I’m convinced I’ll have trouble troubleshooting or fixing things when they inevitably break with unifi - but I could just be psyching myself out.
I’d love to be able to set everything up once – and if I have to mess with it once or twice a year so be it – similar to my current set up.
Could I get away with this?
ISP coax --> ISP’s modem --> (need a router recommendation) --> random POE switch with enough ports to support all my gear? I might also add a UPS and surge protector.
Practically speaking, how would I initially configure/set up everything if I piece meal it together with various OEM gear? Let’s say ISP modem (should I get my own?), TPlink router, Netgear POE switch? Sorry if that’s a dumb question.
Similarly, how much more difficult/easy would a similar Unifi solution be?
Also, sorry for the rant. Struggling with info overload. I dumped so much time into this and have found myself with more questions than I started with.
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Look at UniFi consoles and the UniFi line.
Read r/Ubiquiti subreddit.
Hire someone/a company who is skilled at low voltage wiring.
I could theoretically have done all of it myself, terminating the cables really isn’t that difficult. I got the equipment and set the equipment up. But I did not run the actual wires, and watching them do it. I know my strengths, they saved me days worth of work. And I wouldn’t have done as good or clean of a job. They should be able to help you with AP placement as well.
A good rule of thumb is, everything that can be hardwired is hard wired. If you think you will need more ports, add them now. If you need. 2 ports at a location, make it 4 or 5. Now is the time to do it. Run fiber to the locations that will require the opening of walls should you need to run more lines. If you are setting up an out door AP or location, run fiber to the exterior wall, connect it to a switch, then use the switch to connect it the device to the network.
I would go with a full unifi stack for the hardware, I think it’s the best bang for the buck hardware for this purpose. If you hire an A/V company, they may want to use Araknis, because of your home automation and Sonos, but I have no experience with it.
Make sure the network closet has adequate ventilation.
All your runs come to a patch panel. You want cat 6 or Cat6A depending on home size. pure Bare copper. If anyone recommends CCA, ignore them and find another contractor. A good UPS is a must.
What are your main goals here? Is it largely to have a very stable high speed WiFi network, and hardwired security cameras?
Could I get away with this?
ISP coax --> ISP’s modem --> (need a router recommendation) --> random POE switch with enough ports to support all my gear? I might also add a UPS and surge protector.
Yes. Specific router recommendations will depend largely on your ISP speed. Your existing Google mesh router is likely sufficient. (not sure which unit you have exactly)
Practically speaking, how would I initially configure/set up everything if I piece meal it together with various OEM gear? Let’s say ISP modem (should I get my own?), TPlink router, Netgear POE switch? Sorry if that’s a dumb question.
ISP modem is fine. Buying your own will likely save you money in less than a year, but you lose some of the “it is the ISP’s problem to fix” if things go wrong. That being said, it is rarely the modem that goes wrong. Really, any modem compatible with your ISP’s service would be fine here.
TPLink router. These, or really any consumer router would likely be fine. Again, it depends on how fast your ISP service is which model you’d need specifically. Also again, your existing Google mesh equipment is likely sufficient. Consumer level stuff will basically configure itself. It sounds like you’ve already configured your mesh system. It won’t be much different here.
Netgear POE switch. Totally fine. This shouldn’t need any configuration at all. You can get a managed switch and configure all sorts of things, but there’s likely little benefit to you to doing so and you’d need to get a router that supports VLANs and such to go with that.
Similarly, how much more difficult/easy would a similar Unifi solution be?
I can’t comment on this. I’ve never messed with Unifi gear.
Overall, don’t overthink it. Modem plugs into router WAN port. Switch plugs into router LAN port. Everything else plugs into the other switch ports. Make sure you plug each of your mesh APs into the switch as well and configure them as hardwired units instead of using wireless backhaul.
You can do this.
Edit: formatting
My guy. Thanks.
I’m definitely overthinking it - you’re right there. But your answers alone served as the sanity check I was looking for.
I know you said you’ve never used any unifi equipment, but as far as I can tell, you can either configure everything through a rack mounted controller (for those doing all the things I said I wouldn’t) OR simply download an app to your phone or PC and do it there. If that’s the case, and I can get some anecdotes from people who have done that successfully, I’d feel more confident about Unifi in general.
Again, appreciate the response!
When you say “I’m building a house” what does that actually mean?
If you are using one of the large builders you have some obstacles that will likely preclude you from achieving your goals.
If you have a builder constructing your home on the property you own, speak with your builder. He likely has experience with a low voltage company that can set you up with what you need and will know how to work with the builder wo conflict.
