My Linksys router died this morning - fortunately, I had a spare Netgear one laying around, but manually replacing all DHCP reservations (security cameras, user devices, network devices, specific IoT devices) and port forwarding options was a tedious pain. I needed a quick solution; my job is remote, so I factory reset the Netgear (I wasn’t sure what settings were already on it) and applied the most important settings to get the job done.
I’m looking for recommendations for either a more mature setup, backup solution, or another solution. Currently, my internet is provided from an AT&T ONT, which has almost everything disabled (DHCP included), and was passing through to my Linksys router. This acted as the router and DHCP server, and provided a direct connection to an 8-port switch, which split off into devices, 2 more routers acting as access points (one for the other side of the house, one for the separated garage, DHCP disabled on both).
If going the route of a backup solution, is it feasible to install OpenWRT on all of my devices, with the expectation that I can do some sort of automated backups of all settings and configurations, and restore in case of a router dying?
If going the route of a smarter solution, I’m not sure what to consider, so I’d love to hear some input. I think having so many devices using DHCP reservations might not be the way to go, but it’s the best way I’ve been able to provide organization and structure to my growing collection of network devices.
If going with a more mature setup, I’m not sure what to consider for a fair ballpark budget / group of devices for a home network. I’ve been eyeing the Ubiquiti Cloud Gateway + 3 APs for a while (to replace my current 1 router / 2 routers-in-AP-mode setup), but am wondering if the selfhosted community has any better recommendations.
I’m happy to provide more information - I understand that selfhosting / home network setup is not a one-size-fits-all.
Edit: Forgot to mention! Another minor gripe I have is that my current 1 router / 2 routers-as-AP solution isn’t meshed, so my devices have to be aware of all 3 networks as I walk across my property. It’s a pain that I know can be solved with buying dedicated access points (…right?), but I’d like to know other’s experiences with this, either with OpenWRT, or other network solutions!
Edit 2: Thanks for the suggestions and discussion everybody, I appreciate hearing everybody’s recommendations and different approaches. I think I’m leaning towards the Ubiquiti UCG Ultra and a few Ubiquiti APs, they seem to cover my needs well. If in a few years that bites me in the ass, I think my next choices will be Mikrotik, OPNsense, or OpenWRT.
$150 fanless N100 pc with 4x2.5gbps from aliexpress and install OPNsense on it.
STH measured 23w on theirs, but it can vary based on which one you buy. Tons of compute power with those 4 E cores.
https://www.servethehome.com/fanless-intel-n100-firewall-and-virtualization-appliance-review/4/
I would not recommend unifi for a mature solution. It sure works nice as a glass panel, but it will get limiting if you will have a desire to hack around your network. Their APs are solid, though, it’s just the USG/Dream machine that I wouldn’t recommend.
Mikrotik software is very capable and hackable and you can run it in a vm if you feel like bringing your own hardware.
Another vote for Mikrotik, but only if you’re technical-minded and want to learn how routers work. One of the things I like the most about it is the ability to import/export the router config as plain text. That makes it very easy to do things like bulk-editing (I have a lot of IOT devices I need to configure), storing your config in version control for safe-keeping etc.
Yup, I have a Mikrotik and love it. I haven’t fully explored the possibilities, but so far I have:
- DNS server - traffic to my NAS uses my domain name, but everything stays on my network (so I get TLS, without hitting the internet)
- VLANs - haven’t fully configured yet, but I’m working on segmenting my network based on access needs; I currently have two SSIDs I’m playing with
- Ubiquiti AP - absolutely solid, though running the server is really annoying, especially since the machine it’s on is only connected via WiFi (so I have to drag the AP down every time I need to re-pair it if I break my wifi)
If you want a professional setup but don’t want to pay a ton, Mikrotik w/ Ubiquiti AP is affordable and very capable. All in, I think I spent $70 on the router and $100 on the AP, so $170 for an “enterprise grade” network. I’m planning to upgrade the AP soon, and it’s nice to not have to reconfigure the router, I’ll just add the AP, configure in the software, then remove the old AP.
I run Opnsense on a Proxmox VM (I followed this guide). I’m quite pleased with it. Opnsense is probably going to be more secure than any consumer router firmware, but you’re going to have to make a bigger upfront investment in hardware. I had never used Opnsense prior to using this system, and the fact that I’m running it on Proxmox is a huge benefit. If I’m ever about to do anything I’m unsure of, I can snapshot the VM in Proxmox. If my router config breaks as a result of my tinkering, I can easily restore from the snapshot.
If you’re looking for a more mature networking setup, I would definitely recommend splitting up your router, switch and AP duties into separate devices. It gives you the most flexibility for when you want to tinker or change things.
For a main router setup, I would recommend OpnSense. It’s has a cloud backup feature which allows you to automatically backup the configuration to a Google Drive xml file whenever it is changed.
The XML config file stores all your leases so you don’t have to worry about reassigning DHCP reservations. If you load the config onto a new system, like for an upgrade or if the router hardware fails, usually you just have to change the interface mappings and you’re good to go.
As far as APs/switches, I would recommend Unifi or Mikrotik. Unifi has a fancy dashboard you can use to adopt new equipment and restore/change configs from, but I find Mikrotik easier and simpler to backup and I like that i dont have to host a controller to make config changes.
I’ll have to look into Mikrotik APs. I have a Mikrotik router and a Ubiquiti AP, and the Unifi SW is annoying (I’ve had to set it up twice now). I’ll need to upgrade my AP soon, so if Mikrotik makes a good AP, I might just go that route (and now’s a good time because I’m running cable and am annoyed at my AP being passive PoE).
Yeah, I definitely agree with splitting it up. Until lately, I haven’t been able to justify the cost of replacing my whole setup. But at the rate that my routers/routers-as-APs seem to die (maybe one every 18 months), it’s enough of a nuisance that I’ll just spend some money and do it the “right” way
Unifi gear is super great value-wise. Their support is lacking, but their equipment is pretty easy to deal with.
UCG is great and cheap.
UDM Pro is more flexible / future proof but also more expensive. (you get POE, and access to the rest of their suite, but that access also comes with some hardware lockin)
They don’t do custom DNS, so a couple of PIE holes or a DNS service are prudent.
Agreed. After 4 years on PFSense, and that becoming basically a second job, I pulled the trigger and got a Unifi USG-Ultra, and my life is now all rainbows and unicorns.
That’s seems to be what I keep coming back to over the past few days. The UCG Ultra looks perfect for what I need - I don’t want a router and AP in one device, nor do I need any of the security software that other Unifi devices seem to have - I run those separately. I think the UI and dashboards are what are really pushing me towards Ubiquiti, they look really great for displaying the info I want to see
It is pretty intuitive and just works. I do have an issue where I can’t access my services on ProxMox and UnRaid via URL (only via IP) when I have the work profile enabled in that network from the local network (works via internet from outside or through a VPN though), but it does work is the profile is disabled. Other than that, everything just works and is super easy to setup and configure.
This is what I did after running consumer Linksys and ASUS routers, including with OpenWRT.
I moved to a Unifi setup and haven’t had any issues. I can manage it remotely if I need to, like another household member needs something changed or fixed. I’ve never had to restart it to fix an issue, it just works.
Easy upgrades without having to replace the entire setup and move settings over manually. Especially easy wireless upgrades, almost just plug and play replacing the old access point antenna.
And if you need just a small setup and you run a home server you can run the management software on there instead of something like their dedicated Cloud Key device.
