So Long, Thanks For All The Help

[tgl]

Otherwise all APs support wireless mesh.

Yeah ... one of the cool things about UniFi is that they manage to support largely the same feature set across their whole range of devices. Wireless backhaul -- check (modulo having to share the radio). Multiple SSIDs -- check. VLANs -- check. And so on. Performance varies, and of course there are differences like "does it have a 6GHz radio". But the software features are pretty uniform.

 

[Tech9]

Just got a notification for UniFi Network Application update 8.6.9:

This is what UniFi changelog looks like in case someone is interested.

 

[GHammer]

Just keep in mind U7 APs have a cooling fan inside and not exactly dead silent. May be an issue for some. There is a fan control in software.

On my U7 Wall APs, there is no fan nor fan control.

 

[Tech9]

On my U7 Wall APs, there is no fan nor fan control.

Must be there. Perhaps it never turns on in your environment?

https://www.reddit.com/r/UNIFI/comments/1f9oh7m/note_for_all_u7_pro_wall_is_sexy_but_fan_noise

Or maybe you have a newer revision of U7 Pro Wall APs, also a possibility.

 

[ATLga]

On my U7 Wall APs, there is no fan nor fan control.

I looked through all the specs and couldn’t find mention of fans either.

 

[ATLga]

Just got a notification for UniFi Network Application update 8.6.9:

View attachment 62324

View attachment 62325

This is what UniFi changelog looks like in case someone is interested.

How often do they get updates?

 

[tgl]

I looked through all the specs and couldn’t find mention of fans either.

UI's spec sheets often omit things you'd like to know. I don't think any of them talk about fans.

If you want to be sure, I'd ask on the community.ui.com forums and get an answer from somebody who owns one of what you are interested in. Plenty of helpful people over there.

 

[Tech9]

I looked through all the specs and couldn’t find mention of fans either.

Not in the specs, but present inside. They don't turn all the time.

U7 Pro Max:

How often do they get updates?

First time getting one after about 2 weeks uptime. You can check update history in forums. There are separate updates for Network Application, Apps like InnerSpace, APs and switches firmware. I'm assuming they don't come all at the same time. Too frequent updates was one of the reasons I removed one UniFi system years ago, let's see how it goes this time around with the new hardware and software.

 

[tgl]

How often do they get updates?

New "official" releases typically every month or two, IME. More details here.

Another thing to know that's much different from Asus practice is that anybody can sign up to get access to "Early Access" (ie, beta, or sometimes it's more like alpha) testing releases. I've had good luck running EA releases on my own APs, but people frequently hit bugs with it.

 

[ATLga]

Appreciate all the replies with fantastic info. Gonna bow out for the night and probably order in the morning. Thanks again and I’ll be back if I have more questions!

 

[Tech9]

Gonna bow out for the night and probably order in the morning.

It's quite boring. Once setup it just works and there is nothing to tune and adjust. You'll learn the UI in 2 days, will perhaps play with the options for about a week after. You'll have what you need quickly and may need to find a new hobby. Keep your Asus router...

 

[ATLga]

Did think of one more question for the evening; are there any issues plugging the AP's into a switch that is plugged into the Cloud Gateway Max. It would be unmanaged netgear switch.

 

[Tech9]

No, all the devices plugged into this switch including the AP will be seen as plugged into the gateway on the uplink to the switch port. UniFi will try to identify the devices by make/model and display a picture of what is connected. You can change it after along with the device name if you want.

 

[tgl]

Did think of one more question for the evening; are there any issues plugging the AP's into a switch that is plugged into the Cloud Gateway Max. It would be unmanaged netgear switch.

You can definitely use non-UniFi switches -- I do -- but unmanaged switches won't reliably carry VLANs, which means you can't make a VLAN-isolated guest SSID or IoT-only SSID. So you might wanna upgrade that switch later, but it's not something you have to have on day one.

 

[tgl]

In case anybody is curious, some info about my own UniFi setup:

I decided to buy into UniFi just about a year ago, after downsizing from a house into a condo in a high-rise and realizing that the wifi gear I had was unsuited for the new environment. The 2.4GHz band is just about saturated here, and the 5GHz band is getting bad. I figured I needed to move my high-performance clients into 6GHz, which would have less competition for years yet, and also only very close neighbors could interfere at all. I'd been using Zyxel APs, but they didn't do 6GHz and Zyxel wasn't offering any attractive 6E solutions yet. I sprung for UniFi U6 Enterprise APs, which are pricy and really overkill for the number of wifi clients I have, but they were all that UniFi had at the time in 6E gear. I haven't regretted it --- they are solid, well-performing APs. I have three of 'em; I initially tried to cover my space with two, but had a dead spot in the middle and not a lot of flexibility to reposition the initial two. But with three I can run them at fairly low Tx power which is how this gear is meant to be used. I get very smooth roaming between them. All are wired, though I had to settle for a MoCA not ethernet link to one.

I've recently finished replacing all our high-performance clients (phones and laptops) with 6E-capable gear. I don't foresee replacing these devices for several years, by which time I'll probably want wifi 7 APs and clients -- and they'll be way cheaper and less temperamental than today. But for now, I'm happy as can be. I still can't see anyone else's 6GHz SSID in my scanner app, so I'm ahead of my nearest neighbors at least. All my low-performance clients behave well too, though I don't have a lot of junky IoT-grade gear that might cause trouble.

I'm using a cloud key for controller, because at the time the DIY-hosted app had a really bad reputation for dependency problems (it's apparently gotten better since then) and I figured I'd rather spend a few more bucks than tear my hair over sysadmin hoop-jumping. I do not have any other UniFi gear: I'm happy with my pfSense router and Cisco-and-Zyxel switches.

 

[ATLga]

The ubiquiti forums have very little info on the U7's, maybe they delete the negative comments or questions like some other forums do?
The reddit ubiquiti forum has tons of info. As you both said (@tgl & @Tech9 ), the U7's do look like there are a lot of issues which seems to be the cheap 2.4 iot devices and their chipsets. Regardless though, the same cheap devices work fine on the older U devices so something seems amiss with the U7 line. Looking at the U6 Mesh, I see a lot of comments on how hot it runs. Abnormally hot! This is probably why the U7 line has the internal fans. The u6 mesh's seem to last about 3 years and self destruct. @Tech9 how long have you had your u6 mesh and does it run hot?

 

[Tech9]

The u6 mesh's seem to last about 3 years and self destruct.

How come they self destruct in 3 years when the product was first available in Q1 2022? I have total of 6x U6 Mesh APs now and they run >50C. As per Ubiquiti normal for IPX5 device with no air vents. I have no concerns. In 3 years I’ll have something else most likely anyway.

 

[Tech9]

@Tech9 how long have you had your u6 mesh

Both new systems with 2024 equipment, first installed in mid September, second in mid October. U6 Pro APs run cooler, the same hardware and specs, need PoE injector, not included.

 

[ATLga]

Both new systems with 2024 equipment, first installed in mid September, second in mid October. U6 Pro APs run cooler, the same hardware and specs, need PoE injector, not included.

Yeah, noticed that as well but don't want to do the ceiling mount thing. The mesh looks better to me and you're right, that is a normal temp as far as electronics go. Was just reading through the reddit's and that popped up several times. You know how forums are wink wink

 

[Justinh]

You want Cloud Gateway Ultra or Max. They have Gateway, Controller and Switch 3-in-1. You only need to add Access Point.

Your RT-AX86U in Ubiquiti gear:
- Cloud Gateway Ultra - $129
- U6 Mesh with PoE injector included - $179

Thanks for boiling this down! The product matrix and eco system is super-confusing to me. And it sounds like the store/website is not helpful in figuring it out.