Replacing Araknis hardware with Ubiquiti

[TundraSonic]

Perspective is important. Cisco costs approx 5-7x what UI does.  And then there are annual support contracts on top of that.  For mission critical systems it's totally worth it. I used Cisco for years and miss how bullet-proof it was, but it's not worth the extra $50k it would cost for our home.

A good example are some stadiums that use Cisco for security and teams but UI (or other affordable alternatives) for patron WiFi, retail systems, press, back office, etc.

 

[ChzBurger]

A few points

• Microcenter is great, but I'd suggest purchasing directly from Ubiquiti. Ubiquiti forces users to go through the retailer for warranty service.
• You most likely want the UDM-SE. The marginal price difference vs. UDM-Pro is not worth worrying about. If nothing else it has 2.5Gb WAN, which should be a minimum spec by now.
• If you are expecting to take advantage of high capacity of newer Wifi 6E and later (most people won't) you'll need an Enterprise switch with 2.5Gb ports.
• Ubiquiti uses 2 chipset manufacturers for their WiFi access points, MicroTek and Qualcomm. Some say mixing the 2 brands can cause issues. Qualcomm chipsets are newer and better supported by the chipset manufacturer. The ceiling APs with Qualcomm chipsets are U6-Pro and U6-Enterprise.
• The company seems to be on a better track with reliability of firmware. It's not hard to get the system working reliably. But it is also not hard to get it to be unstable if you make a configuration mistake.
• McCann Tech has a lot of info on Ubiquiti equipment: https://evanmccann.net

[pinkoos]

3 minutes ago, ChzBurger said:

A few points

• Microcenter is great, but I'd suggest purchasing directly from Ubiquiti. Ubiquiti forces users to go through the retailer for warranty service.
• You most likely want the UDM-SE. The marginal price difference vs. UDM-Pro is not worth worrying about. If nothing else it has 2.5Gb WAN, which should be a minimum spec by now.
• If you are expecting to take advantage of high capacity of newer Wifi 6E and later (most people won't) you'll need an Enterprise switch with 2.5Gb ports.
• Ubiquiti uses 2 chipset manufacturers for their WiFi access points, MicroTek and Qualcomm. Some say mixing the 2 brands can cause issues. Qualcomm chipsets are newer and better supported by the chipset manufacturer. The ceiling APs with Qualcomm chipsets are U6-Pro and U6-Enterprise.
• The company seems to be on a better track with reliability of firmware. It's not hard to get the system working reliably. But it is also not hard to get it to be unstable if you make a configuration mistake.
• McCann Tech has a lot of info on Ubiquiti equipment: https://evanmccann.net

This is great info, thank you very much

[pinkoos]

My dealer is still very hesitant about Ubiquiti and again are recommending Eero, saying that I would still use my same Araknis switches with a new Eero Gateway and Eero POE Access Points

My question - would a lay person like me be able to switch out my Araknis components with Ubiquiti hardware on my own and then use the app / website to setup everything? I could of course use YouTube...looks like there's lots of tutorials on how to do the setup, etc.

I'm just not sure if I'd screw something up along the way, esp any remaining C4 integration I have with my network as well as other Araknis router configurations that my dealer had setup with my different wired and wireless hardware, like setting up static addresses, etc.

[cnicholson]

1 hour ago, pinkoos said:

would a lay person like me be able to switch out my Araknis components with Ubiquiti hardware on my own and then use the app / website to setup everything?

I mean, "yes."  But in the same way that a lay person can change the brake pads on their car.  It's a simple job if you've done it before and generally known what you're doing.  But could be dangerous.  Only you can evaluate this.

C4 is a dealer-supported model.  In general, you should turn over the whole thing to one person / company to avoid finger pointing and wasted hours diagnosing a system glitch.   You want "one throat to choke," even though you pay a premium for that peace of mind.   

I went with UniFi and did do most of the setup myself, but I have "eyes open" that my screw-ups could cause problems and I am on the hook to fix it.  But I also am comfortable changing out my own brake pads in th paddock during track days, and then blasting around at 140MPH 10 mins later on track... YMMV

[Time2Jet]

I think this boils down to support.  What exactly are you looking for in terms of support?  Unless you are setting up vlans, moip, etc., home av networks are quite simple and abide by standard simple rules.  But like others have mentioned, Unifi still requires a general understanding for things like setting up Static IPs, a DHCP Range, DHCP Reservations/Wifi Channels etc.  If you are not comfortable with those tasks, just have your dealer install and support whatever they are comfortable with.  You'll still be able to plug in devices (because of DHCP) and access the wifi SSID's and maybe they can show you how to reserve IP's or set up Static IPs.  

[pinkoos]

Yeah my dealer just seems very hesitant for some reason, though I'm sure they could figure out how to do the things you mentioned above in case I can't

One related question - regardless of what new hardware I get, if I create my wifi network with the exact same SSID as my current network, will that allow all devices in my house to automatically connect to the new network without any configuration?

[Time2Jet]

18 minutes ago, pinkoos said:

Yeah my dealer just seems very hesitant for some reason, though I'm sure they could figure out how to do the things you mentioned above in case I can't

One related question - regardless of what new hardware I get, if I create my wifi network with the exact same SSID as my current network, will that allow all devices in my house to automatically connect to the new network without any configuration?

Yes, they can keep the same SSID's, they will know how to do that, but you'll want to reinforce that to them.  Why do you want the Unifi network?  If your dealer wants to put in a different network, my point is "let them".  They have to support it.  And maybe another dealer can chime in, but I think an Araknis/Eero rooter to tooter network is supported directly by Control4 tech, which gives you an extra layer of comfort knowing they can support you via any Control4 dealer, regardless of what dealer put it in.

In no way is this a knock on Unifi, but for just a home AV network you won't experience any appreciable difference over the others.  If you came here telling us that you love Unifi protect cameras, etc... they I would say 100% Unifi is the way to go.  A ton of dealer/techs (and most of my buddies) use Unifi in their own projects because they like the "at a glance" look at the network and the Unifi camera app is crazy nice over others right now.  But - my buddies are tech guys that understand networking.  If you want a network to run your home automation system and be able to connect your phone and devices to wifi, go with your Dealer's recommendation.  

Best of luck!  You are asking good questions.

[therockhr]

if you are going to keep the Araknis router and switches i would use Ruckus AP's instead of Eero. I would think your dealer would support that.

[pinkoos]

I always thought of Eero as those little white boxes, I hadn't heard of these new products until my dealer mentioned them

[lippavisual]

2 hours ago, pinkoos said:

I always thought of Eero as those little white boxes, I hadn't heard of these new products until my dealer mentioned them

They are.

 

Certainly not the best of looking devices, especially if one wants to ceiling mount them.

[IBZICON]

Interesting conversion/thread as my C4 dealer recommended Eero last year.  I’m surprised with all the negative comments regarding Araknis routers/network switches that C4 dealers post on back channel social media platforms.  Ruckus is interesting, but with the WiFi standards changing from WiFi 6E now to 7, as a Ruckus WAP is over $1,500 and WiFi 7 will be outdated in a few years.  The typical C4 customer has a large house which will require many WAP’s.  The back channel dealers have been recommending UnFi for routers/switches.  

[Cyknight]

On 4/20/2024 at 5:25 PM, IBZICON said:

Interesting conversion/thread as my C4 dealer recommended Eero last year.  I’m surprised with all the negative comments regarding Araknis routers/network switches that C4 dealers post on back channel social media platforms.  Ruckus is interesting, but with the WiFi standards changing from WiFi 6E now to 7, as a Ruckus WAP is over $1,500 and WiFi 7 will be outdated in a few years.  The typical C4 customer has a large house which will require many WAP’s.  The back channel dealers have been recommending UnFi for routers/switches.  

LOL. Troll post.

[msgreenf]

And if you are comparing unifi to ruckus that's like comparing Toyota to an Aston martin...

[Control4Savant]

1 hour ago, msgreenf said:

And if you are comparing unifi to ruckus that's like comparing Toyota to an Aston martin...

No. We can stop there…

[msgreenf]

29 minutes ago, Control4Savant said:

No. We can stop there…

So you think unifi is as good as ruckus?

[msgreenf]

Name one university or corporate environment that choose unifi over ruckus or Cisco 

[LollerAgent]

Oh look -- another week, another thread about Unifi vs everything else.

For what it's worth -- a typical C4 install's networking requirements are _very_ different than enterprise/corporate/campus networks.  Pick the right tool for the job.

[Control4Savant]

1 hour ago, msgreenf said:

Name one university or corporate environment that choose unifi over ruckus or Cisco 

Please share with us your comprehensive list of what all corporations and universes prefer to use, are using and plan to use in the future. 

[Control4Savant]

1 hour ago, msgreenf said:

So you think unifi is as good as ruckus?

Yes. 

[Cyknight]

35 minutes ago, Control4Savant said:

Please share with us your comprehensive list of what all corporations and universes prefer to use, are using and plan to use in the future. 

The list is:

-Not UBQT now nor for the first decade after they announce a proper support channel.

 

I've no particular hard feelings against UBQT but no sane enterprise level IT department, even outsourced, would use something with no pro support line on gear.

 

Of course we're not talking corporate offices or universities here but homes so it really doesn't matter does it.

[LollerAgent]

14 minutes ago, Cyknight said:

The list is:

-Not UBQT now nor for the first decade after they announce a proper support channel.

Well, to be fair, they do have a paid support option now that gives you access to real humans around the clock and covers an entire site.  But yeah, I generally agree with you on this.

[therockhr]

When i look at all the integrators on instagram it seems to me that Unifi is by far the most popular residential/small business networking vendor (small sample I am sure). When i view corporate campuses or universities or hospitals it seems to be mostly Cisco AP's (again probably a small sample).

[Popolou]

1 hour ago, therockhr said:

When i look at all the integrators on instagram it seems to me that Unifi is by far the most popular residential/small business networking vendor (small sample I am sure). When i view corporate campuses or universities or hospitals it seems to be mostly Cisco AP's (again probably a small sample).

In no small part i am sure because Cisco do not release firmware which borks their kit (or at least not in a long while). Unifi have demonstrated a tendency not to fully QA their revisions which causes a lot of issues across the full spectrum of customers and despite it being GA. Their wireless AP lines are pretty solid mind.

[therockhr]

1 minute ago, Popolou said:

In no small part i am sure because Cisco do not release firmware which borks their kit (or at least not in a long while). Unifi have demonstrated a tendency not to fully QA their revisions which causes a lot of issues across the full spectrum of customers and despite it being GA. Their wireless AP lines are pretty solid mind.

That and the "nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" corporate mentality. Cisco is always a safe bet for networking. Even if they had lots of problems no one would get in trouble or question why you would go with Cisco.