No, disconnecting a WAP from a PoE switch won't necessarily kill the device.
No, disconnecting a WAP from a PoE switch won't necessarily kill the device.
In the office we use a UniFi Dream Machine connected to a TP-Link PoE switch that splits into five UniFi U6-Lite WAPs. One unit had very weak WiFi, so I tried restarting it. Knowing it relied on PoE, I unplugged it from the patch panel, gave it power again, and it didn’t come back online. I checked the DM interface and the switch itself, confirming everything appeared normal—PoE was enabled and both the front panel LED and browser dashboard worked. I removed the WAP from the roof and plugged it directly into the switch’s PoE port, with no devices in between. Still, it didn’t respond. I searched online but couldn’t find any advice suggesting this would cause permanent damage. Is this the expected behavior? They’d likely be out of warranty by now, though I’m not sure.
It shouldn't destroy a healthy PoE device. It seems the AP was already offline, and removing the power removed its ability to continue functioning. Since it's from Ubiquiti, just bring it back for the deposit and replace it.
It turned out the switch caused a major issue and needed a restart. For my part, I wasn’t trying to disrupt two offices’ internet during the morning. My intention was to save it for the end of the day.