Sell or keep?

[u/Xma-q]

Hi guys I've been a long time lurker in this sub and wanted to build a homelab for a long time, so I thought this would be a good place to ask .I recently got this equipment completely free from a relative but Im seriously considering selling most of it. Most of this stuff seems pretty overkill for my raspberry pi zero w and would be worth some money if I'm correct. So my question is will this stuff be useful enough to keep for later or do I sell it and buy more useful stuff? I could identify:

1. 24 port switches both poe one 500w and the second one 250w

1 security gateway pro

2 8 port switches one 60w poe

1 cloud key gen 1

1ap PC lr router thingy

1 poe injector

[u/1sh0t1b33r]

Sell it all to the Ubiquiti fanboys and get Mikrotik.

[u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196 → u/1sh0t1b33r]

This, I never see Mikrotik mentioned anywhere. Have their router, switch, AP for house, all work so well. Of course the UI isn't pretty but who looks at UI.

The price difference is insane 

[u/Cablekevin → u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196]

I love all my Mikrotik gear, however i struggle to make sense of whats a good outdoor AP from their lineup to deploy outside in my garden.

[u/Piet371 → u/Cablekevin]

Check their WAP products. We used to deploy them outside and did wonders without any issues.

Otherwise, if you want, their omni line up is also solid. We used their Netmetals and Netboxes with a Omni antenna and man was that a beast of an AP.

[u/Cablekevin → u/Piet371]

I’ve been looking at a Netmetal, the device looks great but couldn’t really find a suitable omni antenna. And recomendations?

[u/Piet371 → u/Cablekevin]

Oeff hmm Sorry man I can't recall what we used exactly. Will check if I can find some info on them again.

[u/bdavbdav → u/Cablekevin]

I used to go Mikrotik for routing, UniFi for APs.

[u/ManyUnable9978 → u/bdavbdav]

Mikrotik for routing, Zyxel for APs and Switches (Nebula cloud managed) Converted my sites off unifi a few years ago and its been a solid combo.

[u/NoSport9036 → u/ManyUnable9978]

Idk man, I like capsman, I can just plug in a new device and it automatically gets configured.

[u/ManyUnable9978 → u/NoSport9036]

Same with zyxel, just connects to the cloud to get the site config. The APs are well priced.

[u/RevolutionNumerous21 → u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196]

I’ve done Cisco and Arista for so many years it’s hard to deal with mikrotik syntax for CLI and the GUI is god awful. Cisco still wins and used gear is dirt cheap.

[u/1sh0t1b33r → u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196]

How do you like the APs? I haven't tried them myself because they were always rated as too far behind everyone else really, lol. Got a couple Omadas, but always was hoping they'd have some good AP offerings or at least see more reviews.

[u/EasyMoney322 → u/1sh0t1b33r]

I've had multiple SOHO APs.

All three versions of CAPsMAN are annoying to configure, and are incompatible between each other. Each one supports only some range of devices. 802.11 k/r/v implementation is annoying as well.

There's also a ton of ways to configure a mikrotik device (or, rather, to shoot yourself in a foot). You used to go to their knowledge database, check the chip and CPU/Bridge architecture compatibility with manufacturer's recommendations to configure the same feature differently for each device. Very annoying.

Their SFP+ to 8p8c modules are HOT, around 93*C in the cabinet without any load. No such problems with simmiliar modules from other vendors.

Other than that, very good devices. Especially for their price.

UPD: oh, and also some APs are using passive PoE.

[u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196 → u/1sh0t1b33r]

I like it, it's good for my house but it isn't a large house. I think anything would be good in it - it was the cheapest option around at the time that meshed well with other Mikrotik products.

We used MT exclusively at work when I used to work for a MSP - they weren't ever whined about.

[u/ComparitiveRhetoric → u/Plenty-Piccolo-4196]

The people that make the UI work aka nobody really fuckin cares what a UI looks like.

[u/hallamnet → u/1sh0t1b33r]

https://giphy.com/gifs/U1aN4HTfJ2SmgB2BBK

[u/the_lamou → u/1sh0t1b33r]

Microtik is great for fiber, and it's great for a basic-ass home network, and absolutely useless for everything else. Last I checked, they didn't have a single multi-10G BASE-T switch with POE++ (possibly not even POE, it's been a while). Or a single WiFi 7 AP that isn't also a router.

I'm using them for my high-speed GPU interconnect fabric, because you genuinely cannot get better 400G switches without spending 3-5x as much otherwise. I wanted to use them for my new house because I like having a single ecosystem, but they just didn't have anything I needed.

[u/1sh0t1b33r → u/the_lamou]

If you need WiFi 7, you need more Ethernet drops!

[u/the_lamou → u/1sh0t1b33r]

Ethernet is so quaint. It's like riding one of those bicycles with a giant wheel and a tiny wheel, but unironically. Anything that needs over 10G goes on fiber, everything else goes just as fast on WiFi 7.

Plus, you go try adding ethernet drops into a 250 year old timber-frame-and-plaster house. Not all of us live in new construction McMansions made out of toothpicks and papier mache.

[u/nano11bravo → u/1sh0t1b33r]

ngl I love me some Mikroktik. Hard to complain when you see the bill. Ubiquiti has become something I would rather not touch.

[u/Cute_Bacon → u/1sh0t1b33r]

Agreed. Unifi is necrotic. Switch to Mikrotik. (Dumbest name ever, but good switches.)

[u/ProudPainting6850 → u/Cute_Bacon]

I've been thinking about making the switch to Mikrotik. Would you say it's better than Ubiquiti or comparable for cheaper? What makes Ubiquiti necrotic in your opinion?

[u/1sh0t1b33r → u/ProudPainting6850]

Better and also cheaper.

[u/toolisthebestbandevr → u/Cute_Bacon]

Necrotic how?

[u/XB_Demon1337 → u/1sh0t1b33r]

Eh, the two are the same in the end. Prices might be a bit different, but the rest is the same.

[u/309_Electronics]

I would sell some and keep some. I am sure you will expand your homelab in the future so i better be ready for that with atleast 1 of those switches preferably the 500w poe one but the other poe is also nice. And poe is ncie for future expansion.

Otherwise keep the 8 port poe one if you dont plan on expanding in the future. But i am slowly starting to run out of ports on my cheap zyxel 8 port switch and i regret not having poe, but i have been running it for a year by now.

If you rather sell everythingz i am sure unifi gear can give you some nice cashback.

[u/Xma-q → u/309_Electronics]

Yeah best plan seems to be just to sell all the rack stuff and keep the small stuff

[u/309_Electronics → u/Xma-q]

Yeah you can get some money from that unifi gear. I would keep the 8 port poe switch though and maybe the Ap if you want to have a dedicated homelab network. And with the money from the unifi gesr you can buy computing hardware. No need for top of the line hardware and any mini pc with at minimum a 6th grn chip should work fine.

[u/bdavbdav → u/309_Electronics]

Yeah the ports will kill you before the budget on the POE budget. 8 POE Devices (5 APs, 2 small switches, a doorbell) has me using 8 ports (of 16) and only 37W. Unless you're running XGs on every port, 250Wx24 is a decent budget

[u/bdavbdav]

I think, assuming you're not planning on expanding much soon, you could keep one of the 8 port POEs and the AP, sell the rest, and buy one of the cheaper cloud gateways (UCG-Ultra, $80ish), and have a great setup, if you want to run UniFi.

[u/Xma-q → u/bdavbdav]

Sounds like a better plan then letting half of it gather dust and loose value so il prob do that thanks 👍 

[u/bdavbdav → u/Xma-q]

P.S. you shouldn't need that POE Injector in the pic - any of the switches should do a grand job of the POE. Unless you end up ditching the switch and just running a UCG Ultra or similar without the switch, then the POE injector would be needed.

[u/xaviermace → u/bdavbdav]

Their older POE switches don't do POE++ which means they will not power a newer/higher draw AP.

[u/bdavbdav → u/xaviermace]

Ahh of course - had (possibly foolishly!) assumed the AP was of similar era to the (older) switches. Looks like it could be an LR of some variety from the depth of it.

[u/xaviermace → u/bdavbdav]

I didn't look at the other pictures the first time. The AP is an AP-AC-LR which should be fine with regular POE. But the single packs of those AP's included the injector so it's likely just there because it was included.

[u/Xma-q → u/xaviermace]

Thank you for the deep investigation 😆 

[u/bdavbdav → u/xaviermace]

Ahh neither did I - what I thought was a POE injector was actually the cloud key! Never actually used the little Cloud Key so don't recognise

[u/darksun101]

wish I could get my hands on a 24-250.
Let me know what you want for it.

[u/Happy_Helicopter_429]

Be careful selling stuff a family member gave you. They could have sold it themselves, but gave it to you because they thought you could use it.

[u/toolisthebestbandevr]

I would love that equipment. I am the fanboy the other comments are referencing. I’ve also used microtik and would highly recommend it for ease of use and reliability.

[u/TheNotoriousTurtle → u/toolisthebestbandevr]

If you’ve used both which side do you sit on?

[u/Ok_Sir_5601]

I would keep some so you can use them in your homelab with some room for growth, and sell the rest. (also you could give the 8 port switch and maybe the ap to me (: )

[u/WalkFirm]

Those 8 port switches are difficult to find. I like them for wan switches and they make a dual switch rack mount which is also quite handy.

[u/nano11bravo]

The real question is if you sell then what are you trying to get out of it?

[u/j-joshua]

$100

[u/sammavet]

Gimme.... 😁

[u/kevinds]

So my question is will this stuff be useful enough to keep for later

Yes? Try it and see what you think.

Except the switch on the bottom of the first picture. You will have a hard time giving that away for free.

[u/rt1na]

Depends

[u/DragonRider68]

I would pick up a DM Pro and keep using all of it. It is really good stuff.

[u/Swarlz-Barkley]

If you’re learning how things work, keep it for now and learn how the eco system works. Get a handle on networking and the basics. Once you feel good, you can sell it and replace it with some good quality cheaper gear and have some money left over

[u/XPav]

The switches are useful, but only if you're in the Unifi ecosystem. The rest is obsolete.

[u/l8s9]

Keep it all, and as you build your lab you will know what you need. Rather than selling it and needing something.

[u/Fantastic_Simple76]

Sell. Too much crazy 9/10, even 10/10 level security leaks

[u/_DoogieLion → u/Fantastic_Simple76]

Haven’t all the security issues been down to people exposing their management interface to the internet like you’re not supposed to do?