pinkoos

Thanks for the discussion

As I'll primarily be using the SecuritySpy app for having a certain camera feed on the display, I'm tied to iOS/iPadOS

I actually won't be running the Control4 app on it, if everything goes as planned

What kind of mounts are you all using?

Okay, that's good to know, good to hear real world experiences

Which model iPad do you have mounted? Just trying to get a gauge on how old your battery is

This is the POE adapter I'm using:

Amazon.com: DSLRKIT Active PoE Splitter 48V to 5V 5.2V 2.4A USB Type A Female 802.3af for Tablet : Electronics

Interestingly, while researching this issue, I came across this link from Apple:

About iPad and iPhone Charge Management Feature - Apple Support

So, I'm wondering if powering off is necessary at all or, even if it may not be, it may still be a good idea to go ahead and power off nightly

Incidentally, they are not in bedrooms, but thanks for the heads up about the tone - I hadn't even thought of that

Reference thread:

Hi, in reference to this thread:

I finally decided on my mounting and power options

Tested out running the C4 app on my wife's iPad mini 4, setting the C4 app to dedicated mode and setting the iPad to never turn off the screen

Pulled up a camera feed through the C4 app and just let it stay on the screen

Noticed that the feed froze maybe about 4 hours later (could tell b/c the seconds on the timestamp on the feed were frozen)

I'm going to try and see what happens pulling up the feed via the SecuritySpy app rather than C4, but just wanted to see if anyone has any thoughts why the camera feed would freeze?

Thanks

I'm considering trying out one of these new Eeros

However, my dealer is a bit hesitant that what little Control4 integration I still have left in my house may get broken or, at the least, have to be reconfigured entirely since Eero is not on C4's "approved" list - does anyone have any experience with this?

Also, from my reading, Eero prefers unmanaged switches, though using managed switches (I have a managed Araknis 24 port and 16 port POE switch) will work with Eero, but some settings need to be disabled - again, anyone have any experience with this too?

And a new 6+ system

https://eero.com/shop/eero-6-plus

$139, $239, $299 for 1, 2 or 3 units, respectively

Eero is out with the Pro6E today

https://www.theverge.com/2022/3/23/22991784/eero-pro6e-mesh-wifi-system-price-availability-specs

$300, $500, $700 for 1, 2 or 3 pack, respectively

My thoughts are nodes with ethernet backhauls provide the wired connection back to the 'router' node (or whatever the lingo is)

Then, the nodes provide the wireless connection to the local devices from there

Since the nodes are hardwired, there's no need to place them in range of the router node and no need to place the other downstream nodes in range of the closest upstream node

Some of these nodes even have multiple ethernet jacks, so not only can they be hardwired back to the router node, but an unmanaged switch can be plugged into them to provide a wired connection to the local devices

Anyway, hope I'm explaining this clearly and not confusingly

I realize that APs provide the similar functionality but, like I mentioned, I'm wondering that since the nodes are preconfigured to work with the router node, there may be less chance of the issues I've been having

Thinking out loud....

The other reason I was looking at a mesh system is that it seems, at least from my reading, the nodes (ie, "APs") don't need much (any?) configuration, I'm not sure

I was looking at systems that have ethernet backhauls so that I can use the wired ethernet connections in the nodes to optimize connectivity and speed

But even doing that won't tell me if there's an issue with one of the switches, one of the WAPs, etc.

My dealer is also running out of troubleshooting options (and time)

The other option is for me to just buy an off the shelf router from somewhere like Best Buy or Costco and swap it with the Araknis myself and see what happens

Thanks, I'm just trying to finally get a reliable, stable system setup

It's been a year and a half that we have been dealing with these frustrating issues

Since we went with Araknis hardware and a true network the first time around, I am thinking maybe a mesh system could potentially solve our problems

We've done all kind of troubleshooting on and off, had Comcast out multiple times and just can't figure out what the issue is and why it's happening

I definitely don't want to try Pakedge but also don't want to really mix and match components, so looking to replace all hardware with a single brand that will hopefully simplify things (at least that is a nice part of having all Araknis gear)

My dealer is supposed to come out after spring break to swap out the Araknis router with something he has laying around his store (he mentioned Pakedge or Netgear earlier) just to test and see what happens

Anyway, to answer your question, yes, we have ethernet runs in the study (where the rack is and where the cable line comes in), every bedroom, the family room, the kids' gameroom, the kitchen and even inside one closet kind of in the middle of the house

It's a single story, L-shaped house, a little under 5000 sq ft

Continuing to research mesh systems and came up with a question:

Would I be able to connect my Araknis 24 port switch to one of the mesh router's LAN ports? Would any issues arise?

Does it matter that it's a managed switch vs an unmanaged switch?

This seems like it could be a potential issue switching to a mesh system, but I'm not sure

In my rack, I've got the Araknis router, Araknis 24 port switch, Araknis 16 port POE switch

Then I've got 4 Araknis WAPs spread throughout the house

Not sure if a mesh system would replace only parts of these components (ie, mix and match) or if I would somehow need to go all in and remove all the Araknis components and replace with something else (what would you replace switches with to work with the mesh system?)

Thanks

6 hours ago, booch said:

FWIW, I ripped out brand new Pakedge/Araknis gear to get to an all-Ubiquiti network and am very happy with the decision. Being able to manage everything through the UniFi platform is really nice for someone like me whos a 'prosumer' and tinkers/wants to be hands on. And I wasn't cool with the recent change to make the Snap stuff cloud-based, dealer-only upgradable given potential threats and the speed at which standards change. Lastly, they offer a ton of options for the hardware which I really appreciate, e.g., the USW-Flex, which is great for adding PoE hardware where homerun wiring is impractical.

Could you let us know what models of the hardware you went with? That would be helpful in case I decide to switch to Ubiquiti

Thanks

10 hours ago, Control4Savant said:

https://www.netgear.com/business/wifi/mesh/sxk80

I can hit max wifi gig speeds expected equally across the wireless network so we’re not talking about 300 or 400mb capped Eero. Full L3 system with remote management. Hardwire local devices or L2 or AVB/POE/10g AVoIP switches. Better RF pattern and placement versus ceiling mount APs. This is becoming standard for any of my residential projects, small or large most of them full of catx I ran myself. 

 

Wow that’s pretty impressive 

One satellite can cover 6000 sq ft?

Now this is EXTREMELY helpful information, thank you so much Andrew!

Pings to router when network down not going through 

Pings to google when network down going through but not sure why it’s also showing pings to the router when I entered 8.8.8.8

Thoroughly confused now LOL

I've been reading up a little bit on the mesh devices and it seems, as far as my understanding goes, that these are good for homes that don't have a good wired ethernet infrastructure in place

Is that your alls understanding as well?

I have wired ethernet running to every bedroom as well as common areas including the family room, game room, study, etc.

Then, I have WAPs in 4 areas to spread wifi throughout the house

So, I'm not sure if I would be the target market for a mesh system after all - I don't know

If mesh systems somehow work better in terms of the issues I've been having (ie, potential unidentified DHCP conflict or something along those lines), then I would be all for converting

Otherwise, I'm not so sure

So this is showing that pinging the router directly shows it’s unreachable but pinging google still works so I’m confused as to what this is telling me

On 2/4/2022 at 4:53 PM, Andrew luecke said:

I think you're potentially taking the wrong approach here. 

 

1. Network visibility is everything. Ensure every device is connected to the switch directly (do not daisy chain devices off other switches unless they are managed), and turn on STP, and DHCP Guarding (I can't remember if Araknis supports this). Turn off wireless on the router.  STP prevents loops, DHCP guards protect against any devices which may be acting as Rogue DHCP servers.  

2. Watch if there is a correlation between when the problems happen.. If the problems happen mainly on hot days or wet days, it's likely ISP. No, they probably won't find anything lol 

3. You need to determine if the connection is dropping out at the router, or past the router. You can do a ping routerIP, and ping 8.8.8.8 (Google). If the router IP drops, router is busted.. if Google drops, it's internet.   

4. You MAY have a IP Conflict as others have said. If you use ARP and the MAC address flips back and forth for an IP, it's definitely a conflict. Use DHCP reservations

Honestly, if only some devices lose access to Internet, this sounds like a rogue DHCP server messing things up..

See attached screenshots 

Can any conclusions be drawn from this info?

How do POE switches, switches, other LAN devices get incorporated into mesh systems?

I've seen some systems where the 'router' only has one LAN port

6 hours ago, Control4Savant said:

Yeah… I run high end and large HA systems on 100% mesh systems often. Easier to work around environment issues. Full wireless bandwidth capabilities. A lot of these 4x4 networks have dedicated back channels. Current Wifi tech makes this easier than ever before. Good mesh tech is absolutely not a gimmick and can outperform a foiled prewired design. 

What brands/models do you like?

What are considered some of the better mesh systems these days? I never really paid much attention to mesh except when they first came out (Linksys Velop, Eero)

I'm not concerned about whether the systems work with Control4 or not, so that should open the door to more brands

I ask b/c if I do decide to go ahead and revamp my network gear, even my dealer mentioned that a mesh system may work

Thanks