[GTALUG] Raspberry Pi 4 Starter Kit - Ubiquiti Unifi controller software

[James Knott]

On 2021-05-10 9:01 a.m., Stewart C. Russell via talk wrote:
> On 2021-05-09 10:51 a.m., James Knott via talk wrote:
>> I've been considering (because I have way too much time on my hands
>> these days) getting a Raspberry Pi to run my Unifi access point
>> controller software on.  I would be doing this with Ubuntu or Raspian
>> Linux.  I currently run the controller on my desktop system (openSUSE).
>> I assume a kit like this would be suitable.
>>
>> https://www.canakit.com/raspberry-pi-4-starter-kit.html
> Short answer: yes, maybe. You probably want a 4 GB system, as at least
> it can act as a lightweight desktop(-ish) system if the controller
> project doesn't work out. Also, read the bit about Imager below, as it
> makes setting up a Raspberry Pi trivial.

I'd probably go for 8 GB, as the price difference isn't that great. I 
learned a long time ago that going cheap with memory is a bad idea.

>
> ---------
>
> Longer answer: It should do. Check availability, though; Elmwood seems
> to be short of Raspberry Pi 4 kits, so they may be back-ordered from
> Canakit too. Buyapi (in Nepean) and Canakit are Canadian official
> resellers, so are supposed to get priority on stock. Practically,
> they'll run out like everyone else from time to time.

This isn't a high priority, so I can live with that.
>
> Choice of OS could be critical: Raspberry Pi OS (the OS formerly known
> as Raspbian) is a 32-bit Debian-derived distro. Ubuntu is 64-bit.
> Raspberry Pi OS has devices and drivers tweaked to work with the
> Raspberry Pi's hardware, as well as support from the Raspberry Pi
> Foundation. Ubuntu may not have all the best and brightest drivers, and
> Raspberry Pi-specific support may be lacking.
>
> For installation, you'll probably want to replace whatever comes on the
> supplied SD card with a known latest release. Many Raspberry Pi SD cards
> still come installed with a slightly annoying (but super quick for
> vendors to install) distro wrapper called NOOBS. Raspberry Pi Imager is
> probably the quickest way to install an OS on the card:
>
> https://www.raspberrypi.org/software/
>
> You might want to install Raspberry Pi OS Lite, which doesn't run a desktop.

The software runs as a service, so no desktop needed.

> Imager has a 'secret' setup screen (Ctrl + Shift + X) that allows you to
> pre-configure bits of your system, such as user password, ssh keys and
> wifi access (if you need it). Details:
> https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/raspberry-pi-imager-update-to-v1-6/
>
> Regarding running the Unifi controller, it looks like it's a bit of a
> hack to get it running. Both tutorials I found recommend adding
> Ubiquiti's Debian repo to the system. On a Raspberry Pi, this can result
> in anything from "zero problems" to "everything stops working, forever".
> It all depends what the repo pulls in and assumes about the system.

I have the software running on openSUSE and it was a simple matter of 
installing the RPM and ensuring the service was enabled.  Also, the 
official software from Ubiquiti is Debian based, whereas the openSUSE 
one was created by someone in the openSUSE community. However, I have no 
experience with Raspberries and little with DEB systems.

> Both tutorials aren't perfect, but are a start:
>
> 1) https://pimylifeup.com/rasberry-pi-unifi/
>
> 2)
> https://lazyadmin.nl/home-network/installing-unifi-controller-on-a-raspberry-pi-in-5-min/
>
> In particular, both recommend unnecessary messing with the system
> entropy source. If you install rng-tools (sudo apt install rng-tools)
> without messing with the config file, it will automatically pull in the
> hardware entropy source. It looks like both of these followed old
> advice. 'Old', in the Raspberry Pi world, is anything older than 18
> months or so. So much changes with the Raspberry Pi hardware and
> software that old advice can sometimes be detrimental.

Yeah, there's often "old" advice in the Linux community.

As for using the Pi as a desktop system, I doubt I'll be doing that.  It 
will be for this one task alone.  Likewise, my firewall/router is 
pfsense, running on a Qotom mini PC with i5 CPU and 4 Ethernet ports.  
It certainly could be used as a desktop, but I don't see myself doing 
that.  It even came with the hardware for mounting on the back of a 
monitor. ;-)

tnx jk