finally upgraded the home network.
10gbe backbone. no more bottlenecks.
the problem #
running 4 Dell servers, 3 workstations, NAS, and market data feeds.
old setup: 1gbe switch, consumer router.
bottleneck was obvious. timescaledb replication lagging. market data feeds competing for bandwidth.
the new setup #
core switch: Ubiquiti USW-Pro-24-POE
- 24 ports gigabit with POE
- 2x 10gbe SFP+ uplinks
- layer 3 switching
aggregation: Ubiquiti USW-Aggregation
- 8x 10gbe SFP+ ports
- connects all servers at 10gbe
router: Ubiquiti UDM-Pro
- 10gbe WAN/LAN
- built-in controller
- IDS/IPS capability
total cost: $2,400
worth every penny.
the installation #
[ISP 1gbe]
|
[UDM-Pro]
|
[USW-Aggregation]
/ | | \
Dell1 Dell2 Dell3 NAS
10gbe 10gbe 10gbe 10gbe
|
[USW-Pro-24-POE]
/ | \
WS1 WS2 WS3
1gbe 1gbe 1gbe
servers on 10gbe backbone. workstations on gigabit.
performance gains #
timescaledb replication:
- before: 45ms average, 200ms spikes
- after: 8ms average, 15ms spikes
market data ingestion:
- before: occasional packet loss during high volatility
- after: zero packet loss
NAS backup:
- before: 112 MB/s
- after: 950 MB/s
inter-server latency:
- before: 0.4ms
- after: 0.08ms
configuration details #
VLANs for network segmentation:
VLAN 10: Trading (servers, data feeds)
VLAN 20: Management (controller, monitoring)
VLAN 30: Guest (wifi, IoT)
VLAN 40: Personal (workstations, media)
trading VLAN gets priority. QoS rules ensure market data never competes with backups or media streaming.
monitoring #
unifi controller gives decent visibility.
added custom grafana dashboard for:
- per-port bandwidth utilization
- packet loss metrics
- latency between VLANs
- switch CPU/memory
lessons learned #
- 10gbe cables matter - use CAT6A or DAC cables. CAT5e won’t cut it
- SFP+ modules are finicky - stick with Ubiquiti branded for compatibility
- VLAN planning first - redesigning VLANs after deployment sucks
- document everything - port assignments, cable runs, IP schemes
ROI #
$2,400 upfront.
but: faster replication = less slippage. zero packet loss = no missed signals.
one avoided bad fill pays for the upgrade.
plus the NAS backups are 8x faster which means I actually run them daily instead of weekly.
2:18am friday. network infrastructure overhaul complete. 10gbe backbone with ubiquiti gear ($2,400 total). timescaledb replication: 45ms → 8ms. packet loss: eliminated. NAS speed: 112 MB/s → 950 MB/s. worth it for zero packet loss during high volatility.
-AK