I got 99 problems but my WiFi ain't one

Speeds for NAS are low on wireless compared to wired. That's just the nature of wireless today. It will still be faster than the wireless in the Superhub router.

If you're using a NAS, and copying large files to and from the NAS (rather than say, watching a video from the NAS) then connecting a cable will be faster for the foreseeable future.

You mean using the NAS wirelessly?

Speed will be lower than wired, will probably be OK if you're just planning to use it for a bit of listening/watching stuff. May get annoying if multiple people are trying to use it or you're transferring big files.

It won't be any slower than the Virgin superhub wi-fi and should hopefully be faster but the best option would obviously be to plug it in.

I am about to take the plunge and splurge the £200 odd quid on all things ubiquiti, and was going to come and get @Velocio to confirm that nothing has changed model wise since I copied and pasted his selction.
Current thinking is to get:
Edgerouter X, https://linitx.com/product/ubiquiti-edgemax-edgerouter-x-uk-psu/14588
plug
toughswitch https://linitx.com/product/ubiquiti-toughswitch-5-port-switch-with-24v-passive-poe-ts5/13648
into it, and then plug many ethernet things into the toughswitch so network streamer/nas/fire stick/ps4, so it's all on the same network,
and then use the AP Lite
https://linitx.com/product/ubiquiti-unifi-uap-ac-lite-aphotspot/14521
to send the wifi signal around the flat. though I might have to take another look at the toughswitch and get the 8 rather than 5 if the ac lite needs to be plugged into the toughswitch rather than the router.

I need to ring BT and see if they can do a deal on my current broadband package otherwise it's off to Zen Internet...

It's all still relevant.

The only thing changing amongst others I see buying stuff is that some people are opting for the UniFi Security Gateway https://www.ubnt.com/unifi-routing/usg/ instead of the EdgeMax.

The difference there is that the USG is designed to be 100% controlled by a Ubiquiti Controller, whereas the EdgeMax is really designed for "config via the intranet web portal or the command line". If you got a USG, you'd need to get a Unifi Cloud Key to be the Controller.

I still have exactly the stuff you mention, and I do not run a Controller.

@Velocio
What advantages does the toughswitch have over a bog-standard switch for 5 times or so the price? Just management features (and which features that you can't do through the Edgerouter?) or something else?

I thought switches were fairly transparent in a small network setup but it's not something I know much about. (Although I guess I'm up to 20 0r 30 devices on my network so not quite that small.)

Sorry I'm going to plug my NAS in but connect to it over wireless.

One thing I'm confused about, SuperHub has modem only mode and full modem and router mode, so is the AP Lite just a wireless extender? Or does it connect via cable and make a separate wireless network?

The same caveats apply then. Will be fast enough for video, small files, etc but if you're dealing with very large files it may get annoying.

The AP Lite is just an extender. If you're not buying a separate router the best method would generally be to leave the superhub in full modem and router mode but turn off the wi-fi on the superhub and use the AP Lite for all wi-fi instead.

I've been looking at Ubiqiti gear too, best prices I've found are at NetXL.com or Senetic.co.uk

Not sure it'll save you a whole bunch, but worth a look.

What advantages does the toughswitch have over a bog-standard switch for 5 times or so the price?

• Management capabilities (not just a UI for a switch, but also VLAN support)
  
• Power over Ethernet
  
• They are tougher (can handle more heat)
  
  

A bog standard switch works perfectly well, but I melted my last one in the Summer months when the little space in which it occupied (well ventilated but a small space) got too hot. I started looking around for a switch that didn't cease to work when the switch temperature exceed 45'c (room temp was 34'c)... and the Tough Switch is rated to 55'c operating temperature whereas most consumer switches I found were rated lower. Larger corp switches are rated far higher, but also massive and heavy and tend to come with noisy small fans where the ToughSwitch is passively cooled.

Sorry I'm going to plug my NAS in but connect to it over wireless.

One thing I'm confused about, SuperHub has modem only mode and full modem and router mode, so is the AP Lite just a wireless extender? Or does it connect via cable and make a separate wireless network?

Are you sure? Mine only has two modes.

• Modem mode = the Superhub terminates the cable signal and does nothing else, it then sends that via ethernet to the router of your choice (EdgeMax) and the only port that works is the one that sends the signal to your router (the other ethernet is disabled, the WiFi is disabled)
  
• Router mode = the Superhub terminates the cable signal, and then provides DHCP and DNS service whilst enabling the ethernet ports and WiFi
  
  

If you have an EdgeMax or router of your own... put your Superhub into modem mode.

The Superhub excels at the cable stuff, but sucks at the ethernet and WiFi stuff... this is what these other boxes are for.

In your setup, you would need:

• Superhub in modem mode
  
• EdgeMax as the router, with DHCP, and Superhub (eth0) as WAN, NAS (eth1) as LAN, and AP (eth2) as WiFi over PoE... configure eth1 and eth2 to be on a software bridge so that they see each other
  
• Unifi AP as your WiFi
  

Thanks for the very specific reply!

It's a wonder how you don't lose your shit having to repeat yourself all the time.

It's a wonder how you don't lose your shit having to repeat yourself all the time

I have a short memory.

I don't repeat myself. I just figure it out again each time.

Cheers, I haven't managed to melt a switch yet (it seems mine are rated to 50 C), although the main one is in a box with a load of power supplies so I wouldn't be surprised if it did happen.

I think I'll hold off upgrading for the moment, if I really need a separate LAN there's always the other port on the router.

it seems mine are rated to 50 C

So was mine.

Think it was a Netgear blue box switch thing, an 8-port gigabit. Still melted it.

The ToughSwitch seems to be doing better, but then again... I've constructed a kind of shelving stack now so that the boxes aren't on each other so that hot air isn't feeding directly from one to another. The Ubiquiti boxes are all small, so it's 4 wide ceramic tiles as shelves, and 6 metal Smint boxes as shelf spacers. Now the heat cannot go from one box to another.

4 wide ceramic tiles as shelves, and 6 metal Smint boxes as shelf spacers

That's neat, I may steal some of that for in my cupboard of network doom.

To expand on the comment above about Edgemax and USG. If you go the USG route and need a controller to configure it you can do one if the following very easily:

A) Install the controller on your Windows or Linux (not sure about Apple) box and just spin it up when you need to make config changes.

B) install and permanently run the controller on a Raspberry PI.

The latter is quite nice in conjunction with using the android (not sure about iOS) app so you can check and configure stuff with your phone. Not that you really need to do that very often.

Big fella as you're in the neighbourhood may get you over to hold my hand during the installation. Also will pick your brains about configuration soon.

No worries. Totally up for that.

A bit late, and it sounds like you might have a broken router, but I have a TP-Link set up as my Sky router fine. It should connect fine over wifi with the address you've linked, but I often found it easier to do stuff with a direct ethernet connection. There should be a factory reset button somewhere on the router which should get rid of the custom firmware.

Amusingly, whilst sky will refuse to give out router log-in details, you can get around it pretty easily because they were super lazy when they brought o2's internet service, and didn't bother to assign people new logins, and just set a default.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4905908

I'm pretty sure that's what I used, but not at home right now to check. It was part of a six month fight to get Sky to recognize that there was a fault outside of our house, which led to everything inside the house getting replaced first. There is also an option to use wireshark to get the connection details when your official sky router does its handshake (?) and use that for the TP Link

4 wide ceramic tiles as shelves, and 6 metal Smint boxes as shelf spacers

What does everyone else use?

I'm using mesh letter trays at the moment, but would like something a little more permanent / less jury rigged at some point - possibly to go inside a cupboard which I'll stick fans in for ventilation. Also considering adding a UPS to the setup...

How much computing stuff do you have and why do you need shelving for it? I'm hoping tough switch will sit behind my tv and hifi, on the side board!

Are we all going to die because of wifi?

I’m asking as I’m about to move house and my wife has voiced concerns over wifi when I mentioned that I’d be taking our existing wifi/network stuff with us to the new house.
Any links to articles proving it’s all perfectly safe would be appreciated as we both work from home and I think good wifi is essential.

Just doing a bit of googling, so you pay £100 odd quid for the USG and then another £70 odd quid for the Unifi Cloud Key dongle to control it. My question is why would they split it? Shouldn't bee USG come with the software to control it? Seems like a lot of money just so to get a nice UI to control your wireless network...
Am I missing something?

You can install the Controller software on your own PCs if you want to manage that separately... and then not bother buying the Cloud Key.

You can also control multiple networks, i.e. home + office, or 2 different office locations, using the one controller. So to bundle it makes no sense, it would increase the cost of the USG.

The Cloud Key is entirely optional. You don't need it if you want to manage the software separately.

Then again, you don't need the USG either. If you don't wish to use remote management and will only need to manage this stuff on-site, at home... then just buy an EdgeMax... same featureset pretty much, but with a local network website to manage it.

Got £32 back off Virgin for the week in December none of my stuff worked after they decided to install a noise filter on a line for some other bastard here. They also gave us the new hub which was kind of pointless since it wasn't a hub issue and I use my own wifi router.