TP-Link Omada ER8411 V1.6 Multi-Gig VPN Router Introduction, Unboxing, Teardown, and Simple Test

TP-Link sent over the ER8411 router per my request so I could check it out and see if it was worthy to make a forever spot in the homelab. This is will be the router we use when I convert from Unifi to Omada for my homelab!
🛍️ Get yours today!
► ER8411 - amzn.to/41cbELf
► WiiTek SFP+ Modules Ubiquiti/Unifi Version- amzn.to/3mgq0vl
More Omada gear I use
OC200 - amzn.to/3ZTbyab
EAP615 In Wall - amzn.to/3KH8ARV
EAP653- amzn.to/3GsDwTi
TL-SG3210XHP-M2- amzn.to/43uLtBB
TL-SX3206HPP - amzn.to/3sXf2dF
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‪@TPLINKUS‬ #homelab #networking #omada
Chapters
Intro 0:00
Unboxing 0:24
Ports and Specs 1:42
Teardown 3:22
How Loud 7:40
Idle Power Consumption 10:15
Multi-Gig and SFP+ Modules 11:49
Trouble in Paradise 13:05
Other Thoughts 14:01

[@samblankenhagen7146]

I have this router and ATT multigig. I went through nearly a dozen SFP+ modules and a 10g media converter to get my upload to match. I emailed with TP Link support for a few months over this. They finally sent me a patched 1.0.2 firmware that had flow control enabled in the omada controller and this fixed it. If you take it out of the omada management and run it stand alone, you can enable flow control and get both speeds to match your ISP with the 5310 SFP's. It was a nightmare at first, but has been running smoothly under Omada for a few months with the patched firmware.

[@samblankenhagen7146]

I ended up using Microtik SFP's and setting my BGW320 to 5gbps instead of auto negotiate.

[@SPXLabs]

I haven’t used it in Omada yet. I’m have a the same issue with my Ubiquiti stuff right now. I may have other issues. But I’ll keep this in mind in the futurw

[@ShinyTechThings]

I *LOVE* the smell of fresh electronics!

[@lasagnan]

Love the content on the Omada hardware! I have been waiting for a review on the 8411 since it was announced and was hoping you’d be able to put out a review! Definitely hoping to add this to my home lab

[@SPXLabs]

There will be more to come also as I get a full deployment going

[@robmorgan8392]

right around xmas i got mine.. i did a full network upgrade and built off of the 10g network.. got the 10g switch then 2.5g switch oc300 and my 3 aps.. i first used the 1g for the modem but ended up switching to a 10g port and i know my modem is only1g but tell you what i never had this fast net before even with using that 1g port.. i gotta redo few things in the settings but with all thats on my network right now the fans from the cabinet are louder than this router.. its been solid and upgrading the firmware helps greatly.. even my wifi is faster even with peak use of the net no lags nothing. ive had no problems with it. i paid some money for my network but im glad i did and im now only running cat 7 cables..

[@SPXLabs]

That's awesome. It's been pretty rock solid for me so far. glad to hear that you aren't having issues, sets me up for what to expect.

[@robmorgan8392]

Updating the firmware helped me greatly. When I first got it I should’ve just did a firmware update before I tried to setup everything up my first mistake. After I updated it unplugged it and slowly set it up in my cabinet had no issues setting up the controller. I got Comcast for net and not too sure what speeds but got basic think 120mbps think 10mbps it’s every basic speeds. Speed tests solid 140mbps down and 13mbps up.

[@laurentiucatalin5271]

@SPXLabs , just bought one to actually take advantage of my 10g internet connection ( Bucharest, RO ) . I kept searching for a serious router ( rack mountable ) with 10GE support, and the only things found were some mikrotik CCR , different variations , untill i found this . I also bought 2 x SFP+ TL-SM5310-T ( for the 10G to RJ45 support). Your videos really gave me a good overview of the equipment and helped me make the right decision , and I really wish to thank you for that . 👍👍👍👍 keep up the good work .

[@SPXLabs]

Hell yeah! Very happy with mine so far. Some road bumps but happy overall. I'll definitely try.

[@G8detail]

How are the WAN SFP ports connected to the modem? Are they connected to another SFP transceiver or straight RJ45? Thanks!

[@est3ban129]

With this router can balance 3 WAN fibers 1gb, 3gb in total. ? i read have many problems doing this...

[@dronfnord]

Glad i saw this video, the teardown was helpful. My fans are LOUD but I haven't felt like taking the network down to open it up and see if the fan can be replaced. Just ordered a pair of noctuas to put in it. Also thinking of switching my 10Gbe modules to DACs since the power usage is so much lower.

[@SPXLabs]

Hopefully it all works out like you plan. DACs are nice. I’m running that today between switches

[@KARANTbI]

This is the most useful video on this equipment I could find on the internet. Thank you very much for this video.

[@SPXLabs]

Thank you

[@TheRickJames]

You have it backwards. SFP+ is standardized interface. It wont negotiate at 2.5 because the Module doesn't support this transmission mode not because of the routers interface. Any SFP+ Module will work including Short and Long Range Fiber.

[@SPXLabs]

ohhhh awesome. Thanks for the clarification!

[@pbrigham]

If they had put it a couple 2.5GB Lan with poe they will have a killer product, but again some one has to buy those 2.5GB switches. Not a bad price at all, looking forward to see how it performs. Hurry up with the videos there is NONE on the internet at the moment, so you have a window of opportunity here :).

[@SPXLabs]

But if they did that then you wouldn't buy their other products lol.

[@ptessier73]

Excellent build quality! Interesting that the fans were not that loud; I wonder how it would really do under load. I wish TP-LINK would make more 2.5gb products; they would really have an opportunity here at good price offering 2.5gb switches / firewalls / routers, etc. So if you are reading this TP-LINK get to it, get us some 2.5gb switches already and not just 5 or 8 ports but 16 and 24 ports.

[@SPXLabs]

I will definitely follow up on the loudness once I get it racked and integrated into a network. They have the 2.5GbE switch TL-SG3210XHP-M2 but as you said, it's only 8 ports lol.

[@jasonpapelera7013]

Its coming. It's on the roadmap for Q4 2023 - Q1 2024

[@ptessier73]

@@jasonpapelera7013 Do you have a link to share, I would love to see what is coming exactly :)

[@jasonpapelera7013]

@@ptessier73 file:///C:/Users/jason.papelera/OneDrive%20-%20TP-LINK%20USA%20Corporation/Documents/MARKETING%20MATERIAL/8392501168_2023_Omada%20SDN%20Solution%20Catalog_English_2209_Online.pdf

[@bober1019]

but this is not a switch, just look at the number of ports and their type. if you need multi gig/10gig, get a multi gig/10gig switch. this device with its 1x wan dedicated 10gb sfp+ port can do multi gig via fiber of sfp±-t module on that aspect and the 2nd combo sfp+ port can be used for your multigig needs on the lan side. either plug in directly your sfp+ fiber or sfp+-t module directly to your device or connect its down link to your core multi gig/10gig switch. you make no sense, also 2.5gig in 2023 is stupid and makes no sense. devices that only do 1/2.5gig are not going to come out, if there is nothing now then dont expect dedicated 1/2.5gig devices in the future.... who the fuk are these people

[@Building-IT]

I think this will be going in my house. I was looking at Unifi. But I have their AP's and they work great.

[@logistick126]

Has ER8411 embedded software Omada controller as ER7212PC?

[@NamNguyen-ju1er]

Bro, thank you for this video, I'm not an expert in wifi but I'm finding this Omada router, however, I still not understand that if there are just 2 x 10gig ports, so if my input is 20Gbps and I used 2 multi gig wan, so how can I have the output 20Gbps to my Omada EAP783 (wifi 7) bro?

[@allenlaliberte4223]

I don’t understand this either. The third SFP should at least be SFP+.

[@Mrperson0]

Just ordered this when Amazon got these back in stock on Friday! Will be the first step of overhauling my local network so I can have 10GB transfers.

[@SPXLabs]

I’ll be doing a lot of that here in the future

[@professorquack]

This is very loud, fine as it’s rack gear but I’m going to replace fan. It normally cycles fan but with 2sfp+ rj45 it stays on. Epic router though with Omada.

[@bober1019]

you stayed that the 3 sfp+/sfp ports are for wan, this is not true, only the 1st is bound to wan only. the other 2 are combo

[@IonSen06]

It's been in my amazon cart for a month now.....I can't wait to afford it!

[@SPXLabs]

I’m pretty excited to have one myself. Can’t wait to have it fully deployed

[@LearnerCB246]

Did you go to the setup page and login to the router setup page? Which is standard on ALL TP-Link routers and switches.

[@SPXLabs]

No I used the Omada software controller.

[@mogwix]

I picked up one of these when they first went on sale. The GUI isn't very feature-rich and Omada isn't really my kinda thing. I was getting good 10G performance on upload and download across the WAN link but for some reason my wireless clients would get stuck at ~ 150Mb/s. I was using a TP-Link EAP670 at the time with the OC200 hardware controller. I tried it in standalone mode but had the same issue. I had a couple other minor issues as well, but aside from the wifi issue I wasn't impressed with the lack of customization for security and routing features. I see now there's a hardware version V1.60, I'm assuming mine was a V1.0 which it seems is the version customers are still getting on Amazon. I returned mine and went back to using pfsense in my lab.

[@SPXLabs]

Can’t beat PFSense

Did you got that fixed?

[@mogwix]

@ No, I returned the router.

@@mogwix To bad there are only a few of this size/feature set :/

[@reddyuda]

Does TP Link offer any sort of option to run 2 firewalls in HA for redundancy?? This is a feature I use on PFSense all the time, and I would absolutely consider trying one of these out if it supported it.

[@SPXLabs]

Not that I’m aware of but honestly PFSense is a better firewall and you’d probably want to stick with that instead.

[@thisduderockz]

does anyone know of a good channel that has a complete walk through tutorial of command line interface setup of a network from the ground up with routers and switches? with every video ive seen either everyone's using a unamanaged device or they do it in GUI, or packet tracer (or something similar) or skip the setup all together. i'd like to see someone with a rack setup from a blank state that shows the configuration steps with ip addressing, routes, vlans, port security etc etc...

[@SPXLabs]

I’ll be doing that soonish but only with the Omada GUI :/ sorry my guy

[@thisduderockz]

@@SPXLabs i know a video doing command line would be boring AF for most people so it probably wouldnt make good content; thats probably why you cant really find any good thorough videos on it. I guess i'll just imagine what the commands would be as you click.

[@SPXLabs]

lol that and the vast majority of folks aren't looking for command line. Every time I touch command line people are like "im lost" "too hard" or something like that. I don't know what command line would be like on the TP-Link stuff. I've never done it before. Maybe I can whip something up but I wouldn't hold your breath...

[@thisduderockz]

@@SPXLabs yeah i guess the run through and then explanation of each command would really bog down a video. but sadly, videos out there don't exist (in its full capacity). most videos are just plug this in to that and viola heres my home network lab setup running redundant nas and proxmox enabled virtual server on esxi routed and redundant via vrrp to two different isp's! you can do it too!

[@SPXLabs]

lol yeah. All of my stuff is like that. Most of the videos build on one another and unless you followed along from the start, it’s probably like a mind maze now.

[@ShinyTechThings]

I would have liked to see solid capacitors though.

[@SPXLabs]

Good point!

[@jfkastner]

@@SPXLabs good quality caps can last 10 yrs, you won't keep the unit for that long ... by that time the 10 gig speeds are obsolete anyways

[@SPXLabs]

I’ll be obsolete by that time

[@jfkastner]

@@SPXLabs lol gpt and skynet will take over ... ask your tplink handler how long they will support this thing with firmware etc - for a firewall that's my decision point, no more updates = useless & unsecure

[@LaOguldon]

Is that version 1.0 or 1.60. they have changed something since the release, I wonder what.. maybe the SFP+ ports to fix incompatibility.....

[@SPXLabs]

V1.6 not sure what if anything has changed.

[@jfkastner]

I use iperf for Firewall & VPN load testing, too, connect a 'client' PC on the LAN port, the 'server' on the WAN port. You might need to experiment with the port #s

[@SPXLabs]

I could do that I guess. eventually lol

[@JasonsLabVideos]

Nice work man !! Thats awesome !! SFP+ for the win !!!

[@SPXLabs]

Wish I could go from ONT directly into the router. It would be perfect that way.

[@JasonsLabVideos]

@@SPXLabs Contact your provider and ask them if they have the SFP module. Then you could bypass the ONT. In canada Sometimes Telus allows this.. ( sometimes)

[@SPXLabs]

ATT has a Certificate Authorization service that runs on the Gateway that prevents you from bypassing it. There are ways to do it but it's not worth the trouble.

[@JasonsLabVideos]

@@SPXLabs ahh ok. Bummer.

[@SPXLabs]

America #1 baby!

[@ThiagoGuedesC]

I'm using TPLink's 5310 transceivers connected to an XB7 2.5g ISP Modem and getting slow speeds. Strangely enough, if I switch to Gig lan Port it works fine. The only variable is the SFP+ port as running iperf in the module shows it negotiates the right speed. Flow control is enabled, FW 1.1.0. This is driving me crazy!

[@SPXLabs]

What is slow speeds? That is interesting.

[@ThiagoGuedesC]

@@SPXLabs Seems to be half the expected speed. I can get around 300 through the wifi APs, 500 wired, when using any SFP+ adapter in Wan port 1 connected to a multi gig 2.5 port on the other side. If I just change it to Wan port 4, which is standard gigabit, I can get gigabit speeds over the network. I've created a support ticket with TPlink, there are other people with the same problem.

[@SPXLabs]

@@ThiagoGuedesC I'm going to take a look at this in the coming weeks. I'm a bit busy at the moment. I have TP-Link SFP+ modules. 10GbE ones. Can you email relevant software things I should play with to ensure 10G connections? info at spxlabs.com

[@ThiagoGuedesC]

Hey @@SPXLabs . Just to let you guys know. Yesterday I had a remote sessions with someone from TPLink. And... news aren't that good. Apparently, according to the support guy I spoke to, this is not compatible. I couldn't really understand the reason, it made no sense to me, but it seems that because the router can understand only 1 or 10g at the optical side, whatever different speed you negotiate at the other side will drop packets. But again, that's what I got from the chat, I could be wrong. I've explained that the use case is exactly the reason why these modules were designed for - to connect SFP+ ports to RJ45 in other speeds but no dice. He promised to take this back to R&D to check, but I honestly don't know what to say at this point. I'd suggest everyone with the same issue opens a ticket so hopefully they can see reason. It made no sense to me why this won't work. It's almost like saying the SFP+ ports are only to be used optical to optical. Then, why would the sell transceivers?

[@SPXLabs]

I just started making a video investigating this. I can confirm i can hit 5Gbps. But I can’t remember make and model of my modules at the moment. I plan on showing my entire config which really isn’t anything. And versions. Stay tuned!

[@Elemino]

Which one of these WiiTek transceivers is TP Link compatible? There are 4 on the page you linked.

[@SPXLabs]

Weird. Should have linked to the right one. Sorry about that. The one's that I am using are the Unifi / Ubiquiti version. I pulled it from my UDM Pro and stuck it into my ER8411 and it worked like you would expect.

[@charlesbuzz]

So they merge the controller, the router and a switch , no need to buy them separately (if you start from scratch)

[@SPXLabs]

Not yet. That’s coming in the future though.

[@kevinexit12]

What product is your screw driver? I need one

[@SPXLabs]

LTT Screwdriver

[@boyscout-p3u]

is the failover seamless? like when youre playing online game will u disconnect when failover is activated?

[@SPXLabs]

I don’t know. I don’t have that setup as I only have 1 ISP

[@MesoCarib]

Why are you trying to use every brand of SFP+ to RJ45 adapter *except* TP-Link's adapter? TP-Link TL-SM5310-T

[@SPXLabs]

Because I already had them. TP Link sent me their modules and I use them now.

[@vkasshu]

What is the purpose of two power cables?

[@SPXLabs]

If one power supply fails, the other will activate and keep the unit running.

[@vkasshu]

@@SPXLabs Great! That is useful in many ways.

[@PWingert1966]

Next to review is the TP-Link Omada Cloud Controller. I'm waiting for this next!

[@SPXLabs]

Unfortunately I won’t be making a dedicated video about the cloud controller because there really isn’t anything to talk about beyond the software. I have made a video about the different kinds of controllers but not one specifically. All of the “speed” is handled by the router for VPNs. The controller just has software limitations like, the number of users with accounts. So not really review worthy IMO

[@PWingert1966]

@@SPXLabs Thank you for the clarification. I was hoping iot did more like give you a unified view of multiple locations and devices and enterprise-wide capabilities. but your information kon this is stiull useful to me. I am looking at a multi-site deployment with centralized control from a master NoC.

[@curon_licentia]

But how noisy is it when its running with a few clients and been on for a while, would be nice to know :>

[@SPXLabs]

Well with a switch, a controller, and two modem’s connected to it, it’s been the same. Best I can do

[@curon_licentia]

@@SPXLabs I see. On the TP link forum people are complaining about the noise, so I was wondering if that was edge cases, so for you its same as in the video, very silent for about a year on active network?

[@SPXLabs]

Not sure. Mine is in a closet across the house with other servers and network stuff. So I don’t exactly have an ear on it everyday. If you are worried about noise don’t buy it

[@kipngetichcornelius]

I could smell inside too, just from watching😀😀😀

[@SPXLabs]

Heyooo

[@orestesdd]

Forgive me for my stupidity, but what does this VPN do in this router? Will it allow me to watch other countries videos in their websites like other VPN services? Thank you.

[@SPXLabs]

It depends on how you set it up. If it’s a server where you connect to it than no. If it’s a client to an external vpn server or service than potentially yes.

[@orestesdd]

@@SPXLabs Thank you for your prompt answer, but it did not provide me with an understanding of the VPN in a router. I guess I would still need a VPN service to access other countries websites, for instance, Spain since I live in the US.

[@benkimberley]

has it got a backdoor? - i dont wanna look like im ducking the NSA, ya know what i mean?

[@SPXLabs]

Totally! But unfortunately due to an NDA and a big payout from the country who has 5TH generation fighters. I can’t disclose this information at this time.

[@benkimberley]

@@SPXLabs HA HA ! nice

[@garettgreekas7084]

Has anyone been able to get VPN Client to work on this ER8411? I am trying to do whole home VPN through PIA!

[@eric-seastrand]

So wait, does it actually route at 10gig? Can it NAT at 10gig? Pass traffic between VLANs at 10gig? You could test both with iperf. Would love to see a follow up as to how you’re liking the router.

[@Jonathan_O]

Why didn’t he show the interface or config?

[@SPXLabs]

Using the Omada Software Controller which has been extensively shown. I'd highly recommend always using the Omada Software Controller with the Omada hardware line up.

[@jfkastner]

First! Never sleep!

[@SPXLabs]

😴

[@Thomas45069]

Is anybody successfully using the 2nd SFP+ port to connect to a 10G switch like the TL-SX3008F? It "should" be an easy plug & play, but it is the most horrific crap that I experienced in a very, very long time.

[@SPXLabs]

I have mine plugged into the SG3210XHP-M2 and it was plug and play. Haven’t experienced any issues so far

[@TechySpeaking]

First

[@ShinyTechThings]

Yeah, nobody uses the installation guides🤓😎

[@SPXLabs]

lol right! there is no CRTL+F feature

[@chrisdover8014]

That's not a bad price for it.

[@SPXLabs]

Cheaper than an hour with you, that’s for sure.

[@visghost]

it was possible to install Pfsense, then it was cool

[@SPXLabs]

Nothing stopping you from building a custom pfsense router that runs the Omada Controller Software as a container

[@aaro_n]

That thing needs a clear top

[@SPXLabs]

But it if it did it wouldn't be as electrifying for people. The shock value would be diminished for sure.

[@soualidjerbi]

I won't buy TP-Link anymore. they have a terrible customer service. for years now I've been asking for a webUi on a mesh router of the brand. although the post is very trendy, they've been deaf to the requests. as a customer their behavour is very aggravating.

[@haxxorsheep]

Why does everyone say apple design or quality? Apple is shit IMO if they let us repair stuff and allow people to recover data. SO i guess this product is shit.

[@SPXLabs]

Nobody is saying it’s perfect just really saying it’s pretty and laid out well. It’s fun to hate on Apple all day but there is no doubting how they generally lead the rest of the tech world in design styling and pushing standards. Sucks it’s got to be that way but it is. I think this product was designed to be as cost effective as possible, so in reality it’s as cheaply made as possible yes.

[@FailedSquare]

This was not a teardown. You took the lid off.

[@14768]

Hope you don't want to run a VPN because it flat out does NOT work on the 8411.

[@SPXLabs]

🤔 I’ll give it a whirl soon. Pretty sure it does work.

[@camixxx]

Misleading thumbnail... Barely a 10Gb capable switch.

[@SPXLabs]

It says router in the thumbnail because it’s a router….

@Frank_NY I wonder what's the use for it then besides having a server that has multiple clients with a 1Gt card or connecting a 10GT switch using SPD+.

@Frank_NY Personally I would like a router that I can pair with a 10GT switch. So even the amount of 10GT ports aren't an issue for me directly. I think the 1G ports are just "wasted" if the main purpose if this device is mostly routing.