So how deep down the rabbit hole do you want to go? For most people, not going to lie, get a high end “gaming router” for smaller place, or a big brand “mesh network” and you’ll be set. Blasphemy for the networking crowd, I know, I know. But at the end of the day, if you’re not planning to spend time setting things up and tinker, there’s not a lot to be gained going further.
However, if you’re willing to put in the time to learn and tinker, Ubiquiti is a good prosumer entry point. Their product line up has gotten quite confusing in the last little bit but the general idea is the same: You’d need 4 parts to form an actual network:
- A controller/manager — this is the “S” in SDN, Software Defined Networking; where you can manage your network settings
- A router/gateway — this does the routing on your network and provides entry/exit from your network
- One or more switches — this allows you to plug more hardwired devices into your network
- One or more wireless access points — this gives your network wireless capabilities
Some Ubiquiti devices covers more than one of those areas; for example the UDM mentioned actually covers all 4 areas, whereas, confusing as it may sound, the UDM Pro only covers 3 (no built in access point). This is because if you’re planning to cover a larger site, you may not want your wireless access point to be situated where your gateway is, and you’d rather the option to have hard disk trays to help keep more recordings from your security cameras.
Figuring out what your needs are, picking out the components, and figuring out where to place them is going to be part of the process. If this doesn’t sound appealing, that’s perfectly fine, but it may help you figure out the path you’d want to take forward.