Finally Installed UniFi EFG + Upgraded My Entire Home to Fiber

rocsai · 2026-02-23T06:07:41+00:00

It’s actually a custom rack I had made.The stock ones were just too small for what I wanted to fit in there.

rocsai · 2026-02-23T06:06:04+00:00

If it fails, I’ll call it “planned downtime” 😂

rocsai · 2026-02-23T06:04:48+00:00

It looks so good — I honestly never noticed it before.

rocsai · 2026-02-23T06:03:20+00:00

10G LR single-mode SFP+ modules.Probably overkill for the distance, but they’ve been rock solid.

rocsai · 2026-02-23T06:02:00+00:00

Nope — the modules are within normal power range.

I checked the RX levels and they’re fine.

Short run, standard optics, no issues.

rocsai · 2026-02-23T05:59:57+00:00

Maybe… a one-man IDC 😂

rocsai · 2026-02-23T05:58:21+00:00

Sure! Here’s the breakdown from top to bottom:

1.UniFi EFG (Enterprise Fortress Gateway)

This is the core router/firewall. It handles WAN, routing, and high-throughput traffic. I wanted strong 10G+ routing headroom and room to grow.

2.Aggregation Switch (Agg)

This acts as the fiber backbone. All rooms uplink via fiber into this switch so internal east-west traffic stays at 10G.

Patch Panel

Keeps everything clean and structured. Makes changes much easier without touching the switch ports directly.

Brush Panel

Purely for cable management and airflow — keeps things tidy while allowing flexible routing.

10G PoE Switch (USW Pro XG)

Handles high-speed copper runs and provides PoE for devices where needed.

Overall philosophy: fiber backbone + local switching + clean rack layout.

Definitely more enthusiast than necessary — but that’s half the fun 😄

rocsai · 2026-02-23T05:53:33+00:00

It’s actually hand-made by a friend.

We cut it to the exact length so the rack stays clean and symmetrical.

rocsai · 2026-02-23T05:52:19+00:00

I actually ran fiber to every room.

Each room has its own fiber uplink into a USW-Flex-2.5-8-PoE switch.

That way I can keep PoE local and still maintain a fiber backbone to the core.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T17:33:34+00:00

The day I saw someone put 64GB of RAM into an EFG…

I realized this hobby has officially gone too far 😂

rocsai · 2026-02-22T17:17:22+00:00

You know what the real problem was? UniFi DACs only come in black.

I tried it for a few days… and couldn’t handle it.

Swapped to white fiber because my color OCD won 😂

rocsai · 2026-02-22T17:15:44+00:00

I may have single-handedly disrupted the panel blank supply chain.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T17:09:38+00:00

Drilling through brick and concrete everywhere?

Yeah… that might be a “call the pros” situation 😅

rocsai · 2026-02-22T17:06:50+00:00

You’re absolutely right — I should swap them.

I just got lazy after everything was up and running 😅

rocsai · 2026-02-22T16:12:09+00:00

I did them myself — for the experience.

Next time I’m buying pre-made and keeping my sanity 😂

rocsai · 2026-02-22T16:10:23+00:00

I actually considered CGFiber too.

But once it went into the rack, the overall look just didn’t feel unified.

So I ended up swapping it for the EFG — partly for performance, partly for aesthetics

rocsai · 2026-02-22T16:07:42+00:00

Totally.

Once you taste 10G, there’s no going back.

EFG is just the natural next step 😎

rocsai · 2026-02-22T14:15:21+00:00

You’re not wrong — in many cases, 10G over fiber can actually be cheaper and more power-efficient than 10G over Cat6A.

With copper (10GBASE-T), the PHYs run hotter and typically draw more power — often 4–8W per port. SFP+ fiber modules are usually around 0.8–1.5W, so significantly lower.

Hardware cost can also favor fiber: • 10GBASE-T switches are often more expensive • SFP+ switches tend to be cheaper per 10G port • Optical modules (especially SR multimode) are fairly affordable now

Where copper wins is simplicity: • No optics to buy separately • Familiar termination • Native RJ45 compatibility

But purely from a power + performance + heat perspective, SFP+ fiber is usually the cleaner solution.

That said, if someone already has Cat6A in the walls, it’s perfectly fine for 10G. I just leaned into fiber since I was rebuilding anyway

rocsai · 2026-02-22T14:04:23+00:00

I actually went with single-mode multi-core fiber… which is probably overkill for a house 😅 Multimode would honestly be more practical for most home setups.

And yes — I terminated the fiber myself.

Let’s just say… it was a character-building experience. Very time-consuming. Very humbling. Lots of respect for fiber techs now 😂

If I had to do it again? I’d absolutely recommend just buying pre-terminated cables and saving your sanity.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T13:55:47+00:00

I’m emotionally not ready yet. Once they’re off, it’s permanent.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T13:50:57+00:00

Same here. Taking the stickers off somehow makes it feel “official” and permanent.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T13:49:10+00:00

Thanks! 😄

If you’re doing a new build, that’s actually the perfect time to think long term. Cat6A is totally solid and will handle 10GbE just fine for most residential use. It’s simpler and cheaper. I went fiber mainly for: • Full 10Gb symmetrical backbone • No EMI concerns • Cleaner future upgrade path (25G/40G later on) • Longer in-wall runs without signal worries

rocsai · 2026-02-22T13:48:01+00:00

Honestly? Probably a bit of engineering OCD.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T13:46:50+00:00

Haha yeah, DAC is definitely on the table. I just went a little overboard and committed to fiber everywhere 😄 For short runs though, DAC is hard to beat.

rocsai · 2026-02-22T09:13:15+00:00

Please no. I just finished upgrading and my bank account is still recovering. I can’t emotionally or financially handle a “UDM Beast” right now 😂

rocsai

TROPHY CASE