I have a gen I Google Wi-Fi mesh network at home. It's not reliable and I want to transition to wired access points.

1 gig fiber coming into home
- fiber plugs into a AdTran 401 converter that outputs Ethernet to google Wi-Fi router
- I have a network closet and conduit to attic

Can someone help point me in the right direction? Brands? Needed equipment etc?

Ubiquiti is probably the first brand that is going to pop up when talking about wired access points. But that is a cost and time investment into their management (time point of view) and usually other infrastructure costs. Are you looking to have more of an all in one router/wired AP mesh system that you set and forget? Netgear Orbi systems do both wifi mesh and ethernet backhaul for hardwired mesh that will get you covered as a set and forget and only check in to update the firmware every once in a while.

There are some other ones on both sides, but understanding physical footprint and how much you plan to manage it will probably be critical on recommendations

IrishAg said:

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Ubiquiti is probably the first brand that is going to pop up when talking about wired access points. But that is a cost and time investment into their management (time point of view) and usually other infrastructure costs. Are you looking to have more of an all in one router/wired AP mesh system that you set and forget? Netgear Orbi systems do both wifi mesh and ethernet backhaul for hardwired mesh that will get you covered as a set and forget and only check in to update the firmware every once in a while.

There are some other ones on both sides, but understanding physical footprint and how much you plan to manage it will probably be critical on recommendations

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Roughly 5000 sq/ft of structure and potential to add a shop. Since I have the ability to hardwire, I want to hardwire. Seems inherently more efficient than wireless mesh. I essentially want something that looks like mesh system, but wired. Ive done some research, but get bogged down in equipment needs (switches, POE's etc).

Yeah, no doubt. Most of the bigger network deployments require some knowledge and upkeep. I have a combo deployment of a ATT fiber -> pfsense (firewall/router) -> Ubiquiti Unifi for managed switches, wireless APs, and security cameras. Most of my media devices are hard wired so I went with the lower end U6 lite access points since my wifi needs across my house and backyard can be in the 300 to 400 Mbps range, and I wanted to go up to 4 access points for my 4000 sq ft, since I have some walls that mess up the signals pretty bad and I have more than a few wifi devices. So, before you really get started I would set down a plan on, where do you need coverage, what kind of speed/latency do you need for wifi, how many devices do you think will be deployed, how much management do you want to do which will come in handy for thinking about potential network additions.

I'm in the technical field and enjoy working on my network and homelab as a hobby, so that's why I always like to stress to people what their planned level of involvement is when deploying a system is.

For residential, I would definitely recommend Ubiquiti. Easy to use and manage. You can get POE switches and 802.11ax WAPs from Ubiquiti and manage them from the same portal. If you're doing that, then I recommend also using a Ubiquiti router/firewall so you can manage your entire network from a single pane of glass.

When you say: "Help you out", what exactly are you looking for? How to configure this network? How many WAP's you would need? Exact model numbers?

Wifi is RF. RF is impossible to guarantee without seeing a floorplan and knowing what each wall is made of and what else is going through the air than can interfere with RF. I usually tell my customers on the commercial side that, without having someone with the correct software to create a heatmap for wifi, there's a 10% rule. Whether you are looking for coverage or saturation of signal, plan the minimum and expect to only cover about 90%. From there, you can always adjust locations of WAP's and add more.

When running cable for WAP's, always include a 20ft service loop if your distance allows. That gives you some room to move it around if needed.

Running cable through houses/residential sucks, unless you can do everything form the attic. Cross beams can block a lot if you need to go through multiple floors or down walls.

Fiber converter to dream machine - to switch with ap's plugged into switch?

If AT&T is providing the Adtran to convert to ethernet, then you don't need a fiber Gbic. You should just go straight into your router with ethernet.

DallasTeleAg said:

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If AT&T is providing the Adtran to convert to ethernet, then you don't need a fiber Gbic. You should just go straight into your router with ethernet.

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Will the dream machine act as a router or can I go from adtran to switch?

The Dream machine would be your router. As far as I'm aware, the Adtran is just the modem and does not handle any routing. Granted, i'm used to the commercial side.

DallasTeleAg said:

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The Dream machine would be your router. As far as I'm aware, the Adtran is just the modem and does not handle any routing. Granted, i'm used to the commercial side.

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Appreciate the help

Ubiquiti would offer the most customization and likely performance, but may be overboard & overwhelming based upon your networking knowledge. Less of a factor with Dream Machine.

That being said, I've been happy with my eeros. I'm using my house's existing cat5e wiring to connect the router/access points to each other. I haven't priced Ubiquiti recently, but I'm guessing the eeros are cheaper and still offer good performance.

I love my Unifi Access Points as long as you don't mind running ethernet to them so you get the best speed possible.
My personal setup right now is:
Firewalla as Router/Firewall (Super easy to use with lots of great home control firewall features.
Unifi APs (AC-Pro & AC Lite)
& the Firewalla plug into a small switch I have. I run the unifi controller on a Synology NAS, but you don't have to update the APs often so the Unifi controller could be run from a laptop or desktop PC.

If I were buying in your shoes:
Firewall/Router: Firewalla Gold SE
Firewall/Router Second Choice: Unifi Dream Router (when you can find them in stock)
APs if you have or don't mind running ethernet: Unifi U7 Pro or U6 Pro (likely need at least 3)
Mesh APs if you don't want to run ethernet: UAP-AC-M, or U6 Mesh (likely need 3)

When you get a shop Unifi has great Point to Point antennas to connect your house internet to the building.

I highly recommend Ubiquiti Dream routeri installed this in my house and parents house. Can manage it from anywhere with a simple app. I used to have Google WiFi gen 1 and Ubiquiti is so much better.

Also have it installed at my office with the key pass and works great too just more expensive.

Just make sure that you turn off the mesh function on the unifi stuff if you're hard wiring all the APs. I don't know about your current setup, but that would be something to check if they're all hardwired now.

I struggled with routers and access points forever. Got Unifi devices and have been blown away at how much better everything is. You can use their design center to put your floor plan/wall materials in and get an idea how many access points and where they should go. That was pretty helpful for me to determine placement before I bought everything.