Need help with Ubiquiti APs and redoing our network

[Phantom329]

Happy holidays LTT,

I am trying to figure out what to get to fix the internet in my parent's house. I want to see if buying our own modem and router would be better and cheaper in the long term. We currently have an Xfinity modem+router Cisco DPC3941T, Cisco 16 port switch, 3x Unifi UAP-LR access points. We have 300Mbps internet and I think specing for 500Mbps is good enough for future proofing. We only get about 10-15Mbps upload and I would like better speed, is that limited by hardware of the ISP? Right now I have an old desktop running as the Unifi controller for mesh but I would love to remove that. I think its necessary to have that computer in order for the mesh to work but I really don't know and its hard to tell what it effects. Ideally, the new router would work with, and control the Unifi mesh. Can anyone recommend a modem and router that would work for our house? Thanks for the help.

 

TL:DR

Have:

Cisco DPC3941T modem+router from Xfinity

3x Unifi UAP-LR access points

Desktop pc running the mesh software

 

Want:

Modem that can handle 500Mbps

Keep the 3 APs

Router that works with the Unifi mesh

Remove the desktop pc

Better upload speeds if possible

[mtz_federico]

You could get your own modem (I asked my isp to turn off the router features in my fiber modem/router combo, you might be able to do that), a good router (a Unifi Security Gateway is a good option if you want everything in controlled in the unifi panel), a cloudkey and keep using your 3 APs

[Jarsky]

You'll need to keep the Cisco modem, or you could look at like an Arris Surfboard if you want a new one.

You could get a DOCSIS 3.1 modem like the SURFboard SB8200, theyre backwards compatible with DOCSIS 3.0.

 

Id probably look at plugging it into a UDM (Unifi Dream Machine) and using that as your router. It's an upgrade to their USG, and also includes built in nanoHD AP & Cloudkey. Keep using your UAP-LR's for further areas of the house. 

 

It's not necessary to keep the Unifi Controller running all the time other than for collecting stats on usage and performance. It does need to be running to make configuration changes though. But if you get the UDM you can export your Unifi Controller config, shut that controller down and import the config to the CloudKey on the UDM. 

 

https://store.ui.com/products/unifi-dream-machine

[Phantom329]

15 hours ago, Jarsky said:

You'll need to keep the Cisco modem, or you could look at like an Arris Surfboard if you want a new one.

You could get a DOCSIS 3.1 modem like the SURFboard SB8200, theyre backwards compatible with DOCSIS 3.0.

 

Id probably look at plugging it into a UDM (Unifi Dream Machine) and using that as your router. It's an upgrade to their USG, and also includes built in nanoHD AP & Cloudkey. Keep using your UAP-LR's for further areas of the house. 

 

It's not necessary to keep the Unifi Controller running all the time other than for collecting stats on usage and performance. It does need to be running to make configuration changes though. But if you get the UDM you can export your Unifi Controller config, shut that controller down and import the config to the CloudKey on the UDM. 

 

https://store.ui.com/products/unifi-dream-machine

So I could get the Arris SURFboard and the UDM or USG + another AP. What exactly does the cloud key do?

[Jarsky]

6 hours ago, Phantom329 said:

So I could get the Arris SURFboard and the UDM or USG + another AP. What exactly does the cloud key do?

Cloud Key runs the Unifi Controller. So you can get rid of  the Unifi Controller running on that other PC. 

 

The UDM is an All-in-one that includes the USG, 4 Port switch, nanoHD AP and Cloud Key all in a single device. 

 

It's better value to get the UDM for home situations, as it has a faster processor than the original USG so you can enable all the security features and still do 1Gbit. If you get a USG by itself you still need a switch, you might want a nanoHD or AC Lite to get better speed in your central home, and still need a device to put the Unifi Controller on if you want it always running without a dedicated PC. 

 

The UDM is $350, if you get all the other devices seperately you're looking at $350 just for the USG + Switch + CloudKey, no extra AP included.