Upgrading a messy, outdated home network
Upgrading a messy, outdated home network
R: I need help in revamping a complicated network and not sure if what I'm after can even work like I imagine. I've BOLDED the different main issues if there's something specific you want to weigh in on. WALL OF TEXT INC. It's a relatively new house, being about 6 years old. When it was built, it had security cameras, lights, Tv's and audio in different rooms, all connected on the network. All of these systems however all run different (some of them propriatary) systems. Some of the companies that orginially provided the installation and service, has ofcourse gone away. So the question is, how in the world do you figure out revamping all of this. In my mind, I just want to tear it all down and begin from ground zero. First of all I want to fix the home network . Currently it's running on an Apple airport extreme, with an apple airport AP on each floor, for the wifi connection. There have been numorous issues with the connectivity with these, and so in my mind, these need to go completely. I'm defenitely thinking a full on mesh network is what is needed, with some powerful routers on each floor. I should add, the WHOLE house is concrete. Most rooms are also seprated by structurally critical concrete walls. Second, the lights among other things run on a system called Somfy. This works fine and should be easy to migrate to a new network. Third, in many of the rooms, there are integrated speakers in the ceiling. Each room is hooked up to an individual amplifier (that also cause problems, and in ontop of that, these are currently hooked up to additional apple AP's. These AP's are then setup to work as Apple AirPlay devices. Each room is seperate from the next, and up until this point, you can't stream music to multiple rooms at the same time, you have to pick òne. Ontop of this, they have a tendancy to... Not work. - Connection is lackluster and flickers on and off, even though the WiFi connection to the streaming device might be fine,(seemingly). Obviously because of AirPlay, there's the additional limitation of it only being accessable to apple devices. I've been looking at using SONOS instead as a possible "one stop solution", that not only has the amplifiers, but also has the systems to stream to multiple rooms at once and so on. Third - and a half, TV's are hooked up to the integrated speakers in specific rooms. So these TV's use another propriatary system, that hooks up to the beforementioned amplifiers, only these amplifiers are not using apple AP's, as they're hooked up to this system instead. Question is, if these TV's instead can be hooked up to a SONOS like system, so as to streamline everything that has to do with audio, into one system. Additional to the TV's All TV's are controlled by a 'tv remote' application on mobile. This is also a propriatary system that's hooked up to the network (should be able to migrate it, but defenitely needs some work setup work on a new network). Fourth, Home Security . Specifically survaillance. Originally a range of exterior security cameras were hooked up to a DVR with integrated storage, This was then hooked up through the home network, to a streaming service of some kind, that allowed a mobile application to access live camera views and scrub through footage. However as the DVR encountered issues and the SINGLE consumer HDD died, this whole system was left for dead, and now there're exterior cameras scaring away intruders while not actually recording anything. What, to, do. For this I don't have any sort of experience and have no Idea where to start. I've had a look at existing security / alarm companies that run in the areas, but I do not believe they support stuff like cameras. I've heard of RING ofcourse, but I'm not sure about the limitations and requirements for a system like this, and how to integrate it considering the rest of the issues I've pointed to throughout my post. I'm hoping that someone with experience with some of these 'smart home' systems, will be able to help EDIT: The whole point of this exercise is also that it should ATLEAST be serviceable by me, in the future. So that five more years down the line, I won't have to revamp the whole system again because some small, proprietary systems and companies have gone out of business... I know you can never be sure, but hey - a man can dream.
CrazyMadMan42
09-01-2023, 01:37 PM #1I need some advice on how to approach revamping the home network of a 3 story house. TLR: I need help in revamping a complicated network and not sure if what I'm after can even work like I imagine. I've BOLDED the different main issues if there's something specific you want to weigh in on. WALL OF TEXT INC. It's a relatively new house, being about 6 years old. When it was built, it had security cameras, lights, Tv's and audio in different rooms, all connected on the network. All of these systems however all run different (some of them propriatary) systems. Some of the companies that orginially provided the installation and service, has ofcourse gone away. So the question is, how in the world do you figure out revamping all of this. In my mind, I just want to tear it all down and begin from ground zero. First of all I want to fix the home network . Currently it's running on an Apple airport extreme, with an apple airport AP on each floor, for the wifi connection. There have been numorous issues with the connectivity with these, and so in my mind, these need to go completely. I'm defenitely thinking a full on mesh network is what is needed, with some powerful routers on each floor. I should add, the WHOLE house is concrete. Most rooms are also seprated by structurally critical concrete walls. Second, the lights among other things run on a system called Somfy. This works fine and should be easy to migrate to a new network. Third, in many of the rooms, there are integrated speakers in the ceiling. Each room is hooked up to an individual amplifier (that also cause problems, and in ontop of that, these are currently hooked up to additional apple AP's. These AP's are then setup to work as Apple AirPlay devices. Each room is seperate from the next, and up until this point, you can't stream music to multiple rooms at the same time, you have to pick òne. Ontop of this, they have a tendancy to... Not work. - Connection is lackluster and flickers on and off, even though the WiFi connection to the streaming device might be fine,(seemingly). Obviously because of AirPlay, there's the additional limitation of it only being accessable to apple devices. I've been looking at using SONOS instead as a possible "one stop solution", that not only has the amplifiers, but also has the systems to stream to multiple rooms at once and so on. Third - and a half, TV's are hooked up to the integrated speakers in specific rooms. So these TV's use another propriatary system, that hooks up to the beforementioned amplifiers, only these amplifiers are not using apple AP's, as they're hooked up to this system instead. Question is, if these TV's instead can be hooked up to a SONOS like system, so as to streamline everything that has to do with audio, into one system. Additional to the TV's All TV's are controlled by a 'tv remote' application on mobile. This is also a propriatary system that's hooked up to the network (should be able to migrate it, but defenitely needs some work setup work on a new network). Fourth, Home Security . Specifically survaillance. Originally a range of exterior security cameras were hooked up to a DVR with integrated storage, This was then hooked up through the home network, to a streaming service of some kind, that allowed a mobile application to access live camera views and scrub through footage. However as the DVR encountered issues and the SINGLE consumer HDD died, this whole system was left for dead, and now there're exterior cameras scaring away intruders while not actually recording anything. What, to, do. For this I don't have any sort of experience and have no Idea where to start. I've had a look at existing security / alarm companies that run in the areas, but I do not believe they support stuff like cameras. I've heard of RING ofcourse, but I'm not sure about the limitations and requirements for a system like this, and how to integrate it considering the rest of the issues I've pointed to throughout my post. I'm hoping that someone with experience with some of these 'smart home' systems, will be able to help EDIT: The whole point of this exercise is also that it should ATLEAST be serviceable by me, in the future. So that five more years down the line, I won't have to revamp the whole system again because some small, proprietary systems and companies have gone out of business... I know you can never be sure, but hey - a man can dream.
KiwiKitteh
09-02-2023, 03:24 AM #2Do you have Ethernet cables in your walls? If yes, consider installing a new Wi-Fi system such as UniFi APs. Those would be a better option than the ones you currently have. Are your cameras IP cameras? How are they linked to the DVR?
Ubiquiti's Unifi line seems to match your requirements well. I highly recommend them, though the complaints I've encountered are quite detailed. After some troubleshooting with a few edge cases on a Windows setup, it's now fully stable (internal network included) for over two years. I don't have any experience with the TV or speakers, so I can't comment on their performance.
Ethernet cables cover the entire house. Yet the current APs are concealed behind TVs, which only complicates the Wi-Fi situation further. Still, having a Unifis connection is definitely on my agenda. I've already attempted to set up a Unifi AP on one floor, but some configurations involving TVs failed. This requires attention since I want to grasp the system completely. I'm trying through trial and error. I should investigate how the cameras are linked—possibly via Ethernet to the network, with the DVR also connected. It might operate on a separate network for security, so I'll look into that later when I have the opportunity (this isn't my home).
xanderzone317
09-08-2023, 05:47 PM #5Gather a few units and verify they function together as one network. Review the details. What DVR model are you using? Understanding setup of managed switches and VLANs could be useful, though it requires significant learning before practical use.
I'm planning to establish a Unify network. This seems like the best path forward. The main challenge is dealing with dark-grey walls and Ethernet connections behind TVs and floors. I'll need to run wires to raise the APs for better coverage. I don't remember the exact DVR model, but I'll remember this task for next time. This should help solve the coverage issues and improve overall performance.
TussockMoth123
09-08-2023, 10:53 PM #7Do you have Ethernet ports? You can utilize the in-jack Unifi access points and then connect four additional ports via https://store.ui.com/collections/unifi-n...in-wall-hd. Vlans allow you to establish multiple networks without separate physical connections. This lets you fully isolate security cameras from regular networks while sharing the same cables.
That_Guy6707
09-13-2023, 07:02 AM #8This kind of AP seems promising for visuals, though placement at the floor is something to consider. EDIT: The installation will be interesting. I haven’t done anything like this before, but it might be manageable myself, which would be great. Regarding multiple networks, it looks like I can handle it without much trouble... It definitely makes sense for security, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this isn’t set up this way already.