Crosstalk Solutions blog

Networking and VoIP, from the field

Guides, reviews and opinions from Chris Sherwood and the Crosstalk Solutions team, based on the networks and phone systems we design and support every day.

Latest posts

Security

How To: Password Pusher Complete Setup with Docker

How to self-host Password Pusher with Docker on a Vultr server, with Caddy for HTTPS, a ufw firewall and containers that restart on reboot.

UniFi U7-Pro access point with its blue LED ring beside 'Wi-Fi 7 Comes to UniFi' text
UniFi

UniFi U7-Pro: Speed Testing and First Impressions

UniFi U7 Pro speed tests against the U6 Pro with a Wi-Fi 7 Pixel 8 and an iPhone 13, plus specs, power draw and whether the upgrade is worth it.

GL.iNet Beryl AX travel router beside 'Beryl AX Complete Setup' title text
Networking

The Best Travel Router (GL.iNet Beryl AX): Complete Setup Guide

GL.iNet Beryl AX travel router setup guide: hotel Wi-Fi repeater and captive portals, custom SSIDs, AdGuard Home and a VPN on the toggle switch.

Visual Network Management: Ubiquiti's New Pro Max Switches
UniFi

Visual Network Management: Ubiquiti's New Pro Max Switches

What Etherlighting does on Ubiquiti's UniFi Pro Max switches, plus their 10G SFP+ and 2.5G ports, PoE++ and the Etherlighting patch cables.

Product cards for the Anker 655 USB-C hub and the GL.iNet GL-MT3000 Beryl AX travel router
WiFi

My Ultimate Travel Network Setup: A Tech Enthusiast's Dream

My travel network setup: the GL.iNet Beryl AX travel router, Anker 655 USB-C hub, a portable monitor and a USB-C laptop for work on the road.

WiFi

Don't Fall for Wi-Fi 7 Marketing! How to Build Your Own…

Is a Wi-Fi 7 router worth it? Why the TP-Link BE19000 hype misses the point, plus a $600 and a $1,500 UniFi Wi-Fi 6 network build.

UniFi

UniFi Express: Is This the Best New Ubiquiti Device??

UniFi Express (UX) overview: Ubiquiti's compact gateway with built-in Wi-Fi 6, wired and mesh setups, ports, client limit and heat.

UniFi

UniFi UXG-Lite: First Impressions of the Gateway Lite

First impressions of the UniFi UXG-Lite (Gateway Lite): specs, setup with a CloudKey, performance, and what a basic UniFi setup with it costs.

UniFi

UniFi Network 8.0.7: What's New?

What's new in UniFi Network 8.0.7: the Radios view, port management and insights, the VLAN viewer and the WireGuard VPN client.

Security

UniFi VPN Proxy Service configuration

Set up a VPN proxy service like Private Internet Access as a UniFi VPN Client, then route a device, specific domains or a whole VLAN through it.

Networking

LTX 2023 Whale LAN: Inside a 200 Gbps LAN Party Network

The LTX 2023 Whale LAN network diagram, explained: OPNsense, a MikroTik CCR2216 core, a 200 Gbps Lancache server and UniFi switching to every table.

Chris Sherwood with the Home Assistant logo and a Raspberry Pi 4 under the words Automate Your Home!
Self-Hosting

Home Assistant: The Ultimate Setup Guide, a Step-by-Step Tutorial

Step-by-step Home Assistant setup guide: install it on a Raspberry Pi, Synology VM or Docker, run the setup wizard and build your first automations.

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