Purchased in the hopes of reducing bufferbloat/latency for online gaming. My household has anywhere from 20-40 internet connected devices at a time between ip cameras, phones, tablets, computers, TVs, thermostats, etc. At times, when multiple Hulu or Netflix streams were on, we would get latency spikes due to bufferbloat that would make online gaming unenjoyable. New Linksys router (EA9300) was choking on the traffic and number of connections. The Edgerouter 4, however, has no problems with lag even when multiple devices are streaming and people are making ip calls. With qos enabled, we get 415+/27 mbps at the Wan (on an overprovisioned 400/25 connection) and no buferbloat. Setup was easy, up and running in 15 to 20 minutes.
A couple of things if you're not familiar with this type of router: 1. you'll need a gigabit switch if you're planning on connecting multiple devices to this via ethernet. I am using a 16 port gigabit switch to connect an XBox, internet enabled TV, VoIP Vonage box, surround sound receiver, media center computer, Wifi AP, Powerline adapter, and multiple IP cameras; and 2. you'll need a wireless access point if you need wifi. I repurposed the EA9300 in bridge mode as the Wifi access point. EA9300 is overkill, but it was past the return period and works fine as an access point.
I purchased this unit to replace my ofSense box since my hardware is not going to be supported after v2.5. The unit itself is small and runs fairly cool. Feature wise I have found the unit to be extremely fast with hardware offloading enabled. The web based interface is practical for most home users, but all advanced features must be accessed via CLI which is also accessable via the web based interface of through programs like puTTy. The CLI commands take some getting used to. I have not found EdgeOS' command structure to be as intuitive as pfSense. I have also found that pfSense appears to be considerably more feature rich, but again for most home and small office use the Edgerouter 4 is absolutely phenomenal for the price. Also if you are using any Ubiquiti hardware such as their access points or PoE switches, there is the added bonus of Ubiquiti's UNMS management software that allows ythe management of all of their devices via one centralized interface and management interface which also includes a mobile app.
Overall the one thing I am most impressed with is the units overall performance with hardware offloading enabled. My original pfSense box had a dual core 3 GHz processor with 8 GB of RAM, a 256 GB SSD and an Intel 815v quad port NIC and my average ping times were around 20 MS. With the EdgeRouter 4 my ping times have dropped to 9 MS.
I have ordered some new hardware in order to do a comparison with pfSense 2.5 down the road, but Ubiquiti has really out together an outstanding product with the EdgeRouter 4.
If you are considering the EdgeRouter Lite or X you should skip them and get an EdgeRouter 4 as it offers considerably more power with it's new processor and 1 GB or 2 times the RAM of the Lite and 4 times the RAM of the X series. Also keep in mind that this unit does not have a switch chip and therefore you will need to purchase a separate network switch if you have more than a couple devices and if you are planning on using both bridging and hardware offloading you should look at the Edgerouter 6 or 8 series.
You know, the ironic thing about CenturyLink is they actually have a great product in their gigabit fiber. The problem is the routers they provide are just... well... not great. Let's just leave it at that.
The EdgeRouter 4 is a superb replacement for the CenturyLink models (usually Zyxels). Duplex gigabit, tons of advanced options - hardware offloading while keeping Traffic Monitoring intact etc. I upgraded to this from the Ubiquiti ERX, which did a fine job, but lacked duplex gigabit over WAN, and Traffic Monitoring doesn't work at all with hardware offloading, which was annoying.
Just like the ERX, the ER-4 is easy to set up for CenturyLink, too. You'll need to call them and get your PPPoE username/password, and that's all you need from them over the phone.
When setting up the router, you'll use the setup wizard to pick your Internet over PPPoE, where you'll enter that username/password, and in the VLAN section you'll simply type "201." That's it. You're done.
And the speeds? Great, as you can see in the attached image.
YES, this is a more advanced router than the norm, and yes you'll need to spend a little more time setting things up (there are lots of guides on YouTube), but it's worth it. I currently use this, an unmanaged 16-port Netgear switch, + the Orbi RBK50 WiFi access points for... WiFi, and I'm thrilled. This is one fast setup!
Overall, an easy 5 stars out of 5.
I suppose I should get used to hardware manufactures making utterly lousy software, but this is a classic example. The web UI borders on unusable. The "wizards" don't reflect current configuration, and they all have the same UI (and silently ignore things they don't want to pay attention to, so you'll think you've set things up when you, in fact, haven't). Also, the wizards do only very minimal setup---you have to drop down into the utterly non-intuitive CLI to do anything useful. The router is lightning fast, though. Has no problem handling GBit fiber.
Note that, out of the box, this is really a 2-port router. You have to choose between either one of the copper ports OR the SPF port as your input. Two more copper ports are each dedicated to single networks (though you can bridge them---the software has lots of warnings about performance degradation if you do that, but the thing is so fast that any degradation will be minimal). I'm using an external switch. If you drop down to the CLI, you can program the ports to do anything you want, but don't expect any help in the GUI for that.
The Ubiquiti EdgeRouter4 (ER4) falls somewhere in between a consumer grade SOHO router (NetGear, Linksys, etc.) and enterprise class (Cisco, Juniper). It supplies many of the features of enterprise grade hardware, such as a robust CLI, and is packaged in a durable, fanless metal box that is easily wall mounted. The SFP port is a nice plus when you need it.
I purchased this product for two reasons: to better segment my home network and because it can handle Cox Gigablast's 1Gb downstream connectivity. I no longer have the time to build and maintain my own Linux or *BSD based router and this is the next best thing. The TL;DR version of below is: if you need 1 Gb symmetric (TX & RX) performance, the ER4 has you covered. If your upstream connectivity is limited to hundreds of Mb or less, you should consider the Unifi Security Gateway (USG) instead.
The pros: great web GUI that doesn't hide technical complexity from the user; it does not force coddle you or obfuscate capability behind a boring interface. While wizards are available to walk you through common setup scenarios, they are optional, and you have the ability to make changes after the fact. Pretty, interactive, and live graphs on the dashboard and DPI for client IPs are nicely, albeit mostly cosmetic, features. Performance is great and you can setup almost everything from VLANs to firewalls to various services (VPN, DHCP) in the GUI. If you are a native Linux user and are already familiar with how most networking concepts (including iptables firewalls) are implemented, you will find setup intuitive and clean. If you are coming from other enterprise grade hardware companies, such as Cisco, you're going to have a slight learning curve while you translate concepts and technology implementations. The device also integrates with Ubiquiti's network management system, UNMS, a godsend if you are trying to manage multiple networks/sites/etc., less useful if you're just a home user.
The cons: Apparently, Ubiquiti for some reason maintains two separate management systems, UNMS and Unifi, both with overlapping features, but nearly independent ecosystems. You cannot manage Edge devices in Unifi and vice versa. it escapes me why this makes sense, rather than have a "step up" market strategy where you hook small businesses into your equipment and offer them an upgrade path as they grow. Apparently, the benefit of the Edge series is you don't require it to be centrally managed (UNMS), while the Unifi hardware requires a unifi controller to do so. I can see the value in some situations of stand alone management interfaces, but why the central management system can't manage both types of devices makes no sense to me.
So why the ER4? I couldn't find good documentation on performance for the various Edge class (UNMS) and USG (Unifi) hardware, although I heard many reports that the USG could not switch gigabit Ethernet at full duplex (meaning symmetric) on its WAN interface, while the ER4 could. This was a show stopper for me. The ER4 is fully capable of switching 1 Gb of symmetric traffic.
Feature Product
- (3) 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet ports, (1) RJ45 Serial and (1) SFP port
- Max power consumption: 13 Watts
- Desk, wall and rack mount options
- Internal PSU, fanless
Description
Ubiquiti Networks introduces the EdgeRouter 4, the next generation of router for the EdgeMax platform. EdgeRouters combine carrier class reliability with enterprise level features in a compact and affordable unit. The EdgeRouter 4 offers Gigabit Ethernet ports and a SFP port for a fiber link. The EdgeRouter 4 is capable of routing up to 3.4 million packets per second and has a line rate of 4Gbps.
I have a few UBNT devices and decided to upgrade a work customer network. Moved to full UBNT router, switch and APs.
Has shown to be very fast, easy to configure and low cost compared to many alternates.
The router has the full set of features found in many of the high-end routers offered these days.
Well worth the purchase. Have picked up another model to try out at home, working just as well as this. Not a great first time devices if you never did any network configuration, but if you are patient, you can do it.
I've had a dedicated Windows Server box acting as my router for years. I got a call from my ISP recently that someone was using a reflective LDAP attack using my IP. With Active Directory enabled, it is hard to close the port, so I decided to spring for a dedicated router. I had recently upgraded my wireless with a Ubiquiti Unifi access point, and was very happy with the results. So after some research, I found this beauty.
Is it overkill for a home network ... Probably. But for the price, you get a near commercial grade router.
Now this is a real router, not one of the hybrids that most home users are used to. There is no integrated wireless. There is no integrated switch (we'll, not technically).
While there is more than one port, the basic idea is one port is for the internet, one is for the local network (can be more complicated than this).
Setup is relatively easy, as long as you understand the basic concepts. For a simple setup, you should be able to have it setup in your network in about 10 minutes.
So far, throughput has not been an issue. Speed tests have been very positive. I don't think I've even taxed it to more than 10% of it's CPU.
This is an awesome little router. It has everything you need, from the most basic residential setup, to a medium sized dual-wan VPN business setup, to the extremely-advanced carrier-level configs using BGP and OSPF. There really isn't much this little router can't do. This is not your daddy's old Linksys WRT router. No on-board wireless means you need an external wireless AP for wifi. Pair this with a nice POE switch and run all the wireless access points you want. Anybody that says this router doesn't meet their needs either isn't experienced enough to maximize its potential, or they just didn't really know what they were ordering.
The only Cons I can think of are: 1) The GUI needs a bit of improvement. The GUI and the CLI don't have all the same capabilities, but I think this will likely be fixed in future software updates (I hope.) 2) I wish the mounting bracket that lets you mount in a standard 19" rack came with it. You have to order it separately and currently is not available on Amazon.
Note: This router does not have a built-in switch, so you must use an external switch to get max speed between devices on your network (plus its unlikely three copper ports will be enough for you anyway.) If you only have a few devices on your network, the EdgeRouter-6 might be a better choice. It has a built-in switch and 24V POE.
I wanted something more "Enterprise Grade" to replace my Asus AC86U router. (I have been using Asus flagship model routers for many years along with Merlin Firmware) But, Asus seems to have...hickups...with their firmware from time to time with bugs that take a long time to get fixed. I would hope that Ubquiti firmware is far more robust and tested.
The EdgeRouter products is certainly for those who know how to setup network from scratch, knows CLI commands and terms and have worked with routers/switches such as Cisco etc. It is NOT a plug and play device. If you want more easy to setup and manage with a good GUI and wizards, go with the UniFi products. ( the upcoming UniFi Dream Machine is an all in one router, switch, AC AP, and controller, certainly will rival and beat out the top end Asus/Netgear etc stuff)
Getting this guy all setup, I only need basic things, DHCP with Static Reservations, DDNS, Upnp....I don't need VLAN or VPN,Qos,Smart Ques...or any of the fancy stuff. I went to college for Networking back in 2012, have not done much with that knowledge in some time. It was nice to recall some of those things needed to setup this router. And, have the advanced abilities there in case I ever do wish to mess around with them.
The GUI u can use...typical Enterprise...ugly, outdated looking, un-intuitive, and to me, not that logical. I still don't see why, just because its "Enterprise" that they can't make the GUI look nice and sleek and actually be enjoyable to use, like consumer products. Many other such "Enterprise/Corporate/Business" devices are like this, not just Ubquiti. But, really, no one cares cause u basically just do the initial config, then never touch it again....
I actually found that using the CLI for several of the things I needed to do was far easier, faster, and straight forward than digging around in the terrible GUI to find the setting I wanted to set or change.
I like how the ER-4 has no direct port LEDs. But has them in the case else where. The Power/Status LED is a bit bright. (My networking equipment is in my bedroom, so LEDs are annoying and get covered in black tape).
I have 1Gig Fiber connection. I have Eth0 as WAN. Eth1 is LAN connected to a Asus XG-U2008 unmanaged switch where all the other wired devices are connected to. ( I do not have that many devices, 9 wired, 7 wifi)
My Asus RT-AC86U is now just a AC WiFi AP. (running Merlin Firmware)
Since moving over to this EdgeRouter as my main router, Internet does feel zippyier, Smoother, more consistent.
The ER-4 DPI (Deep Packet Inspection) Traffic Analyzer IS enabled and it is very cool to see all the stats.
I do get my FULL 1Gig symmetrical and simultaneous WAN bandwidth with the ER-4, once you enable all the options for Hardware Offload AND do not use QOS or Smart Ques.
Overall, it seems to be working well.
So much better than the ER-Lite. Replaced it and I'm getting nearly twice the the packet transfer for a medium office. Plus the upgraded CPU and memory are much better suited for L2TP VPN setups.
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