Home network as business

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justin_dukkha

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Apr 2, 2014
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I'm planning my home network and I'm looking for advice on what network equipment to purchase to replicate a business environment. I'm looking for more of an explanation on what type of devices to purchase and why. Not necessarily which brand devices to buy. I have a few questions also.
- Should I purchase a separate firewall?
- Is there a reason not to purchase a modem/router combo?
- Is there a benefit to having a non-wifi router and then have a couple wap.

I plan on having 1 or 2) switches, 1 printer, 1 workstation (which will run as a server with vm's on virtual box- media server, file server, and active directly - non-windows ), 4 phones - poe VoIP PBX, home security (I'll install), and a bunch of wifi devices (laptop's, tablets etc).

I'm open for suggestions on other solution/software/devices to replicate business environment.
I'm running cat6 in most rooms also.

My current isp is cox and my theorectical speed is 150Mbps down/10Mbps up.
Thanks!
 
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BuddhaSkoota


A separate firewall is usually not necessary in a home environment, where the router providing NAT is normally sufficient in preventing attacks to inside devices. If you are running your own fully exposed web server, then a firewall of some sort would be necessary.

I like having the modem as a stand alone device. It allows me to add my own router, which is normally more feature-rich than an ISP provided device. I don't need to worry about a double NAT issue when adding my own separate router to a modem-only device. Also, if the modem needs to be...
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leo2kp

leo2kp

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Oct 9, 2006
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I would start with 1: dedicated modem, 2: dedicated router/firewall (I use a virtualized pfSense router on my server), 3: small business-class managed PoE switch, and 4: a couple of wireless APs (inexpensive wifi routers in AP mode might work best here). Routers that support DD-WRT might also help for advanced options.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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Mar 16, 2013
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What you seem to be proposing is little different than my home network.

1. "Should I purchase a separate firewall? " - Not necessarily
2. "Is there a reason not to purchase a modem/router combo? " - For the modem, go with what it on the Cox recommended list. This may or may not be a modem+router.
3. "Is there a benefit to having a non-wifi router and then have a couple wap. " This depends completely on your house coverage.
If a single WiFi router can give sufficient coverage, then no other WiFi sources are needed.

Additionally:
1. Do NOT have the main WiFi source in the basement/media room/mancave. A cement lined basement is the worst place to propagate the WiFi signal from.
Have that WiFi source central in the house.
2. Whatever can be wired, do that. WiFi only for those devices that cannot be wired. Phones, tablets, etc.

I have about 20 devices, multiple switches, etc, etc.
Currently, all running off the Verizon FiOS router thing. I'm in the process of building a whole house firewall box., but that is just from spare PC parts, and is mostly just a hobby thing.
 
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BuddhaSkoota

BuddhaSkoota

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Aug 16, 2014
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A separate firewall is usually not necessary in a home environment, where the router providing NAT is normally sufficient in preventing attacks to inside devices. If you are running your own fully exposed web server, then a firewall of some sort would be necessary.

I like having the modem as a stand alone device. It allows me to add my own router, which is normally more feature-rich than an ISP provided device. I don't need to worry about a double NAT issue when adding my own separate router to a modem-only device. Also, if the modem needs to be replaced, I don't need to worry about reconfiguring router settings (e.g. wifi, port forwarding, etc).

You probably won't find too many consumer routers that don't also feature wifi, so you will have fewer choices in products. If you don't want to use the included wifi of a router, it can be easily disabled. I don't really see any benefit of a non-wifi router.
 
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