December 19, 2016 at 17:58UniFi Mesh - less compromise
This essay is the next in a series of stories about updating almost the most successful line of Ubiquiti's company - access points of the UniFi family (previously we wrote about the launch of the line and its fruitful development ). Laconic design, ease of setup even for people who are not very familiar with IT, low price - these are the tenets that UniFi has relied on for years. Of course, you have to pay for simplicity with gaps in the functionality of the devices, but with each update of the line the functionality is getting closer and closer to the market leaders, while not losing either the convenience of operation and operation, nor the price. Under the cut - new additions to the old familiar UniFi, making it even tastier (again).
Before you talk about the new products themselves, you need to remember that with the UniFi label you can now plug into your wireless network and in which user cases these points will find application.
It’s already pointless to consider the first generation UniFi based on 802.11n solutions - yes, these points can still be bought, and they are already very cheap, like the aliexpress population, but at the very end of 2016, the bandwidth of 802.11n points is already not at all interesting to the user . 802.11ac continues its expansion in full swing, more and more mobile devices (even in the mid-price range) acquire appropriate adapters, and I don’t want to build a network on already outdated equipment. On the other hand, it is definitely too early to consider 802.11ac “second wave” solutions (the official name, by the way - Wave 2!) In the next few years: the materiel is still expensive, client devices that allow you to use the entire handicap of the increased TD capacity due to MU-MIMO , the cat cried (and will not stop crying for a couple of years even in the camp of the flagships of eminent mobile brands), and laying a budget for what can be useful in five years is very adventurous. Based on all of the above, the most fashionable in the spring-summer 2017 season remains 802.11ac wave1, and the main bet should be made on it.
Since we started with a digression, it’s worth considering another question that we often hear from customers planning to build a new wireless client access network: “Is it worth choosing 802.11ac now? Even understanding that all new gadgets come with 802.11ac, 90% of all potential subscribers still have only 802.11n on board and the situation will not change dramatically in the next 1-2 years? ”
In general, the question certainly makes sense from the point of view of a prudent business executive who does not buy what he does not use. There is also a small catch, which is not so straightforward. Every new wireless chipset gets better - every new generation of wireless adapters does what it’s designed to do better. Even within the same standard (for example, 802.11n), the increase is concentrated not only in higher throughput (which, in general, is clear - what can be higher channel speed in the same standard?), But also in less obvious parameters .
802.11ac is more demanding on the signal-to-noise ratio than its predecessors, which is due to the more complex modulations used, and since this ratio can be improved (naturally, in the same and not the most disgusting radio conditions) primarily by increasing the sensitivity of the receiver, manufacturers have done a lot work in this direction when creating 802.11ac devices. Yes, the maximum achievable 802.11n channel speed remains the same, and the "old" clients will naturally not surpass it, however, under the same radio conditions the "new" access point will provide a larger coverage area in which this maximum channel speed will be available, respectively by increasing the capacity of one AP in the network. You may argue: this is all true for the 5 GHz band, in which (and only in which) 802. 11ac appeared and is gradually replacing 802.11n, but nothing new has appeared in the most densely populated, narrow and problematic 2.4 GHz band and is unlikely to appear. True, however, the percentage of client devices supporting 5 GHz is growing steadily, and even in home networks, users are increasingly installing dual-band home routers - is it worth building a network less flexible than an ordinary user would like to see in their own apartment?
Be that as it may, the current (second) generation of UniFi APs was planned as an inexpensive way to build the most modern network without unnecessary hassle. In the previous articleabout UniFi, we wrote down all UniFi points that support the 802.11ac standard - until recently, these were four access points, of which only one could be considered more or less suitable for outdoor use (and this was officially formulated at the level of “indoor with high humidity, for example, for warehouses - the main thing is that rain does not pour on the point from above ”). In this circumstance, there was a significant obstacle to building client access networks: in fact, for example, how to provide a high-speed Wi-Fi cafe with a summer veranda, if the points are all exclusively “indor”, and the radius in which clients will work without problems at maximum channel speed 802.11ac, much less than the same 802.11n? Well, now this niche is successfully closed by the manufacturer with new models - access pointsUniFi AC Mesh and AC Mesh PRO .
The value of these models can hardly be overestimated - they are already right now, at the moment they are needed to build a single centrally controlled fast wireless network where this network should go outside the building. But not only the moisture-resistant casing of the points is of interest - anyone who tried to build the so-called "radio network" on UniFi equipment already noted the word "Mesh" in the name. Let's go a little deeper into this issue and its retrospective.
The term mesh itself is quite freely interpreted by manufacturers, but in general, this means that it is possible to build a transport point for the access point not by wire, but by "air" - that is, the point is not connected via Ethernet cable, but uses its own radio adapters to communicate with your “colleagues” and transfer client data further. This nuance was a small "pitfall" in previous versions of UniFi. Mesh, unfortunately, is not completely standardized - that is, to declare points supporting Mesh topologies, it is not at all necessary to test them for compatibility with points of other vendors, to provide a certain set of functions and capabilities of wireless connections between points. UniFi APs supported wireless connection between network elements, but in a very limited mode - no more than one “hop” (wireless transition) between points. You can understand why such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after the delays, and for example, for transmitting voice several hopes over radio is destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter, the mesh range will be simplex in any case, which means that any hop divides the maximum bandwidth of the traffic through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple for which such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after delays, and for example, several radio hopes are destructive for voice transmission. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh range, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum bandwidth of the traffic through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple for which such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after delays, and for example, several radio hopes are destructive for voice transmission. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple then jitter grows after delays, and for, for example, voice transmission, several hop-hops on the radio are destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and, no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it's quite simple then jitter grows after delays, and for, for example, voice transmission, several hop-hops on the radio are destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simplesome non-zero.
The new UniFi access points finally support the so-called multi-hop mesh connections - when transport by radio goes not only to the last in the AP chain, but also to the previous ones. Thus, now for remote or extended open areas requiring wireless coverage, it is not necessary to pull the cable to access points: if the requirements for bandwidth and traffic delays are not critical, it is quite possible, for example, on some conventional path to the gazebo in the far corner of the garden to organize full access to the Wi-Fi network "garland" of new AC Mesh or Mesh PRO. Unfortunately, nothing can be said about the algorithm (of itself) for organizing routes through these same mesh-links - the manufacturer remains mysteriously silent.
Briefly, the main characteristics of the new AP are summarized in the tablet:
The possibility of installing any KU antennas and directivity through standard RP-SMA connectors is immediately striking - you can finally make a full-fledged sector for connecting clients in crowded places at high channel speeds! Mesh PRO in this case is not so flexible (according to our estimates, the antenna pattern is about 60-90 degrees), but it provides, firstly, work in two bands at once, and secondly, it has a second Ethernet port for more flexible network planning.
It is still too early to say anything about the actual performance of the new outlets - quite recently, outlets have begun their journey to distributors, and we are looking forward to them on our test table. The multi-hop mesh functionality is much more interesting - will it be available immediately for the entire UniFi line, including existing points (after all, it’s not only “on the street” that you need to jump by transport through a section where it is impossible to lay the cable)? The manufacturer has neither confirmed nor disproved information on this issue. Be that as it may, now the new and most popular Ubiquiti product line has received the necessary extension, which completely fills the whole range of low-cost TD user cases, and building networks on UniFi has become even more convenient and less compromise.
Before you talk about the new products themselves, you need to remember that with the UniFi label you can now plug into your wireless network and in which user cases these points will find application.
It’s already pointless to consider the first generation UniFi based on 802.11n solutions - yes, these points can still be bought, and they are already very cheap, like the aliexpress population, but at the very end of 2016, the bandwidth of 802.11n points is already not at all interesting to the user . 802.11ac continues its expansion in full swing, more and more mobile devices (even in the mid-price range) acquire appropriate adapters, and I don’t want to build a network on already outdated equipment. On the other hand, it is definitely too early to consider 802.11ac “second wave” solutions (the official name, by the way - Wave 2!) In the next few years: the materiel is still expensive, client devices that allow you to use the entire handicap of the increased TD capacity due to MU-MIMO , the cat cried (and will not stop crying for a couple of years even in the camp of the flagships of eminent mobile brands), and laying a budget for what can be useful in five years is very adventurous. Based on all of the above, the most fashionable in the spring-summer 2017 season remains 802.11ac wave1, and the main bet should be made on it.
Since we started with a digression, it’s worth considering another question that we often hear from customers planning to build a new wireless client access network: “Is it worth choosing 802.11ac now? Even understanding that all new gadgets come with 802.11ac, 90% of all potential subscribers still have only 802.11n on board and the situation will not change dramatically in the next 1-2 years? ”
In general, the question certainly makes sense from the point of view of a prudent business executive who does not buy what he does not use. There is also a small catch, which is not so straightforward. Every new wireless chipset gets better - every new generation of wireless adapters does what it’s designed to do better. Even within the same standard (for example, 802.11n), the increase is concentrated not only in higher throughput (which, in general, is clear - what can be higher channel speed in the same standard?), But also in less obvious parameters .
802.11ac is more demanding on the signal-to-noise ratio than its predecessors, which is due to the more complex modulations used, and since this ratio can be improved (naturally, in the same and not the most disgusting radio conditions) primarily by increasing the sensitivity of the receiver, manufacturers have done a lot work in this direction when creating 802.11ac devices. Yes, the maximum achievable 802.11n channel speed remains the same, and the "old" clients will naturally not surpass it, however, under the same radio conditions the "new" access point will provide a larger coverage area in which this maximum channel speed will be available, respectively by increasing the capacity of one AP in the network. You may argue: this is all true for the 5 GHz band, in which (and only in which) 802. 11ac appeared and is gradually replacing 802.11n, but nothing new has appeared in the most densely populated, narrow and problematic 2.4 GHz band and is unlikely to appear. True, however, the percentage of client devices supporting 5 GHz is growing steadily, and even in home networks, users are increasingly installing dual-band home routers - is it worth building a network less flexible than an ordinary user would like to see in their own apartment?
Be that as it may, the current (second) generation of UniFi APs was planned as an inexpensive way to build the most modern network without unnecessary hassle. In the previous articleabout UniFi, we wrote down all UniFi points that support the 802.11ac standard - until recently, these were four access points, of which only one could be considered more or less suitable for outdoor use (and this was officially formulated at the level of “indoor with high humidity, for example, for warehouses - the main thing is that rain does not pour on the point from above ”). In this circumstance, there was a significant obstacle to building client access networks: in fact, for example, how to provide a high-speed Wi-Fi cafe with a summer veranda, if the points are all exclusively “indor”, and the radius in which clients will work without problems at maximum channel speed 802.11ac, much less than the same 802.11n? Well, now this niche is successfully closed by the manufacturer with new models - access pointsUniFi AC Mesh and AC Mesh PRO .
The value of these models can hardly be overestimated - they are already right now, at the moment they are needed to build a single centrally controlled fast wireless network where this network should go outside the building. But not only the moisture-resistant casing of the points is of interest - anyone who tried to build the so-called "radio network" on UniFi equipment already noted the word "Mesh" in the name. Let's go a little deeper into this issue and its retrospective.
What is MESH? When is it useful, and when is it harmful?
The term mesh itself is quite freely interpreted by manufacturers, but in general, this means that it is possible to build a transport point for the access point not by wire, but by "air" - that is, the point is not connected via Ethernet cable, but uses its own radio adapters to communicate with your “colleagues” and transfer client data further. This nuance was a small "pitfall" in previous versions of UniFi. Mesh, unfortunately, is not completely standardized - that is, to declare points supporting Mesh topologies, it is not at all necessary to test them for compatibility with points of other vendors, to provide a certain set of functions and capabilities of wireless connections between points. UniFi APs supported wireless connection between network elements, but in a very limited mode - no more than one “hop” (wireless transition) between points. You can understand why such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after the delays, and for example, for transmitting voice several hopes over radio is destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter, the mesh range will be simplex in any case, which means that any hop divides the maximum bandwidth of the traffic through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple for which such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after delays, and for example, several radio hopes are destructive for voice transmission. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh range, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum bandwidth of the traffic through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple for which such a restriction was partially introduced: each hop increases the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the channel to the client, and since the radio environment is rather capricious and inconsistent, the jitter grows after delays, and for example, several radio hopes are destructive for voice transmission. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simple then jitter grows after delays, and for, for example, voice transmission, several hop-hops on the radio are destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and, no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it's quite simple then jitter grows after delays, and for, for example, voice transmission, several hop-hops on the radio are destructive. Do not forget that on a radio with one transmitter per mesh band, in any case, it will be simplex, which means that any hop divides the maximum traffic bandwidth through the point at least in half. But it’s not always that a wireless network is built for the sake of voice, and no matter how seditious it may sound, exceptional performance is not always required from the network - sometimes it’s quite simplesome non-zero.
The new UniFi access points finally support the so-called multi-hop mesh connections - when transport by radio goes not only to the last in the AP chain, but also to the previous ones. Thus, now for remote or extended open areas requiring wireless coverage, it is not necessary to pull the cable to access points: if the requirements for bandwidth and traffic delays are not critical, it is quite possible, for example, on some conventional path to the gazebo in the far corner of the garden to organize full access to the Wi-Fi network "garland" of new AC Mesh or Mesh PRO. Unfortunately, nothing can be said about the algorithm (of itself) for organizing routes through these same mesh-links - the manufacturer remains mysteriously silent.
Briefly, the main characteristics of the new AP are summarized in the tablet:
UniFi AC Mesh  | Unifi AC Mesh PRO  | |
|---|---|---|
| Work in two ranges | Yes | Yes |
| Antenna Formula | 2x2: 2 | 3x3: 3 |
| Maximum Channel Speed 2.4 GHz | 300 Mb / s | 450 Mbps |
| Maximum channel speed at 5 GHz | 867 Mbps | 1300 Mbps |
| Second Ethernet Port | Not | Yes |
| KU antennas | Complete 3 dBi for 2.4 GHz and 4 dBi for 5 GHz Any compatible antennas can be connected via RP-SMA connectors | Built-in 8 dBi panel for both ranges |
| Price | $ 105 | $ 209 |
The possibility of installing any KU antennas and directivity through standard RP-SMA connectors is immediately striking - you can finally make a full-fledged sector for connecting clients in crowded places at high channel speeds! Mesh PRO in this case is not so flexible (according to our estimates, the antenna pattern is about 60-90 degrees), but it provides, firstly, work in two bands at once, and secondly, it has a second Ethernet port for more flexible network planning.
It is still too early to say anything about the actual performance of the new outlets - quite recently, outlets have begun their journey to distributors, and we are looking forward to them on our test table. The multi-hop mesh functionality is much more interesting - will it be available immediately for the entire UniFi line, including existing points (after all, it’s not only “on the street” that you need to jump by transport through a section where it is impossible to lay the cable)? The manufacturer has neither confirmed nor disproved information on this issue. Be that as it may, now the new and most popular Ubiquiti product line has received the necessary extension, which completely fills the whole range of low-cost TD user cases, and building networks on UniFi has become even more convenient and less compromise.