Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro review: The ultimate router for enthusiasts

With maximum people running from house for the foreseeable destiny, it will be important to have a router that may ship constant bandwidth to a number of units immediately. We’ve got already rounded up the most efficient Wi-Fi 6 routers and perfect Wi-Fi 6 mesh routers — highlighting the most recent and biggest from ASUS, Netgear, TP-Hyperlink, Google, and others — and in case you mechanically face problems with connectivity, any of those choices will kind out the ones issues.

Wi-Fi routers at the moment have swish designs, fashionable UI with simply comprehensible choices, they usually even replace robotically. However if you are a networking fanatic and wish one thing that is a lot more customizable, you can need to try Ubiquiti’s UniFi Dream Machine Pro (I will simply name it UDM Pro).

Ubiquiti caters essentially to fanatic customers and companies, with their merchandise turning in enterprise-level efficiency whilst nonetheless being out there sufficient that common customers can select them up. That is the premise with the UniFi Dream Machine Pro; this is a rack-mountable model of the UniFi Dream Machine that I reviewed a couple of years in the past, touting thrilling upgrades around the board.

The UDM Pro is to be had in all markets the place Ubiquiti has an legit presence. That incorporates North The usa, Europe, Brazil, Taiwan, Japan, and India. The UDM Pro is bought for $379 within the U.S., €319 in Europe, and ₹41,299 in India.

Shoppers in India will be capable to get ₹2,000 off the price of the UDM Pro through going to Ubiquiti’s website from the hyperlink above or the use of ACINDIA. Ubiquiti tools by no means is going on sale, so this can be a great way to avoid wasting money if you are interested by getting your palms at the UDM Pro.

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro: What you can love

Ubiquiti has simplified get right of entry to to its UniFi ecosystem in recent times; previous, you had to shop for a Safety Gateway for routing, a transfer, a Cloud Key that served because the console, and Wi-Fi get right of entry to issues. Ubiquiti mixed all of those portions right into a unmarried product in 2019 and known as it the UniFi Dream Machine (UDM), and it used to be a turning level for the producer. The UDM used to be similar to shopper routers in that it introduced an all-in-one resolution for routing, switching, and wi-fi get right of entry to, nevertheless it retained the customizability that is at the vanguard of UniFi.

The UDM Pro will provide you with 10GbE networking for beneath $400.

The UDM Pro builds at the feature-set of the UDM. Because the UDM Pro is a rack-mountable gateway, it misses out on wi-fi connectivity; rack servers are not essentially conducive for wi-fi alerts, so it would not have been a good suggestion so as to add an get right of entry to level to the UDM Pro. Whilst you’ll technically use the UDM Pro with no server rack (you’ll simply put it on a desk), you might be at an advantage selecting one up as it could possibly then space the remainder of your networking {hardware}.

I went with a 9U server rack that I discovered on Amazon, however if you are having a look for ideas, the rest from StarTech must be a really perfect have compatibility. Ubiquiti comprises the brackets and screws that you want to mount the UDM Pro inside a rack, and it is simple sufficient to take action — it took me half-hour to fit the UDM Pro and the UniFi transfer into the server.

The UDM Pro options an 8-port Gigabit transfer, two 10GbE SFP+ ports (one for WAN and one for LAN), an built-in safety gateway, and a three.5-inch exhausting force slot. The HDD slot is there for leveraging Ubiquiti’s Offer protection to vary of safety cameras, however extra on that later.

As for the {hardware} itself, the UDM Pro is powered through 4 Cortex A57 cores that move as much as 1.7GHz, and it has 4GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard reminiscence. That is significantly greater than what you can to find on a mean router, and it guarantees that there is greater than sufficient headroom for the long run. There may be additionally a 1.3-inch display that allows you to view the throughput, see the choice of units attached to the UDM Pro, modify the lovers, see machine load, and extra.

Because the UDM Pro comes with an built-in UniFi controller, you’ll simply arrange and configure the tool. It has Bluetooth connectivity, and you’ll obtain the UniFi Community app from the Play Retailer, arrange an Ubiquiti account, and find the tool. The preliminary configuration takes beneath 5 mins, however you’ll want an web connection to pair the UDM Pro together with your telephone.

For the reason that UDM Pro does not have wi-fi connectivity, it is very important select up get right of entry to issues to make use of with the tool. Fortunately, Ubiquiti has two Wi-Fi 6 get right of entry to issues now — UniFi 6 Lite and UniFi 6 LR — and both choice must paintings positive to get issues going (I will be reviewing those in a while).

Ubiquiti’s intrusion prevention machine does a really perfect activity safeguarding your own home community.

As soon as the UDM Pro is ready up, you’ll then log in to the UniFi OS dashboard and get right of entry to all of the options on be offering. The UDM Pro works with all 4 UniFi OS modules: UniFi Community, UniFi Offer protection to, UniFi Get right of entry to, and UniFi Communicate. UniFi Get right of entry to is a door get right of entry to provider that shall we companies organize access for group of workers and guests, and UniFi Communicate is a VoIP package deal geared toward companies. The modules that you can be interested by if you are eyeing the UDM Pro for your own home is UniFi Community and Offer protection to.

Now, the important thing differentiator for the UDM Pro is that it could possibly ship as much as 3.5Gbps bandwidth with Ubiquiti’s intrusion detection (IDS) or intrusion prevention machine (IPS) enabled. With IPS enabled, the UDM Pro will safeguard your own home community towards energetic botnets, malware (together with ones centered at cellular units), and trojans. You’ll additionally disable get right of entry to to P2P or TOR shoppers fully, and with 5 ranges of coverage to choose between, there may be numerous customizability right here.

You’ll arrange IPS to scan web site visitors for vulnerabilities inside ActiveX, DNS or SQL, exploits inside video games, arrange geofencing, and block malicious IP addresses. The provider does a really perfect activity general, and is available in in particular at hand for IoT units.

UniFi Community allows you to arrange and organize your own home safety digital camera machine with out paying a per month price.

With regards to day by day efficiency, the UDM Pro has a transparent edge over the UDM. My house UniFi community features a UDM Pro attached to a UniFi Transfer Pro 24 PoE, with a UniFi 6 LR and UniFi 6 Lite for wi-fi get right of entry to. I used to be the use of an Ubiquiti Alien sooner than switching to the UniFi tools, and the standout characteristic for me is UniFi OS; the control instrument has an intensive set of options for routing, safety, and bandwidth control.

Some other key space the place the UDM Pro sticks out towards the common UDM is community video recorder (NVR). The UDM Pro includes a integrated exhausting force tray and works with Ubiquiti’s Offer protection to collection of safety cameras, so you’ll arrange a strong house safety community this is powered immediately off the router.

One of the crucial benefits in doing so is that the knowledge is saved in the neighborhood — making sure your privateness — and also you do not have to pay a per month price to make use of your personal safety cameras, like Nest and Ring make you do.

As an aspect notice, in case you are having a look to make use of the community video recorder options on be offering, you can want to select up a troublesome force with the UDM Pro (in case you do not have one mendacity round). Ubiquiti has a package deal the place it comprises the UDM Pro and an 8TB HDD for $569. The bundled garage is WD Pink, and also you get to avoid wasting round $50 to $60 through purchasing each in combination.

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro: What wishes paintings

For all that the UDM Pro will get proper, there are a couple of drawbacks, just like the loss of PoE ports. So in case you are having a look to pick out up Ubiquiti’s get right of entry to issues, it is very important purchase a UniFi transfer that gives PoE, or select up PoE injectors as a substitute to energy the get right of entry to issues.

Some other factor is that the 8-port transfer at the UDM Pro is proscribed to a 1GbE backplane, so if you are the use of a NAS and need to arrange Hyperlink Aggregation for quicker document transfers, you’ll preferably have to make use of a devoted UniFi transfer.

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro Festival

The UDM Pro differs from the UDM in that it has a integrated force and works as a community video recorder. Should you do not want this option, the UDM is a better choice as it really works as an all-in-one tool that incorporates an get right of entry to level for Wi-Fi ac connectivity. The UDM additionally has the additional benefit of no longer requiring a rack mount, so if you have not determined on a server set up simply but, this is a first rate selection.

In case you are having a look at a an identical rack-mountable routing resolution, Microtik’s CCR1009-7G-1C-1S+ might simply be the router for you. It has robust {hardware}, one SFP+ port if you are having a look for 10GbE connectivity, seven Gigabit Ethernet ports, and contours Miktorik’s RouterOS that will provide you with in depth routing and bandwidth control choices.

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro: Must you purchase it?

You must purchase this if …

• You wish to have a router with 10GbE networking
• You want complete bandwidth control options
• You want integration with safety cameras
• You might have already invested in UniFi {hardware}

You should not purchase this if…

• You wish to have an all-in-one router with wi-fi connectivity
• You want PoE ports

In the end, the UDM Pro delivers the options you are looking for in a high-end routing resolution. You probably have a Gigabit fiber connection or are having a look for a future-proof networking software with as much as 10GbE connectivity, the UDM Pro is the best choice for you. The integrated community video recording options approach the UDM Pro additionally does a really perfect activity as a gateway for your own home safety cameras, and is a smart choice to the likes of Nest and Ring.

4.5
out of five

Ubiquiti’s tough UniFi OS has all of the options you are looking for in a router control instrument, and the tight integration with the remainder of the UniFi portfolio makes the UDM Pro a standout selection if you are having a look to improve from the USG or an EdgeRouter.