PACKETPERF

Primary Device

Ubiquiti UniFi Cloud Gateway Max (UCG-Max)
Ubiquiti UniFi Cloud Gateway Max (UCG-Max)
★ 4.9 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti in the sources reviewed
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: 2.3 Gbps IDS/IPS per Ubiquiti spec page (older listings show 1.5 Gbps)
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti; third-party reviews report about 800-1,000 Mbps for WireGuard and 300-400 Mbps for OpenVPN
  • Max Sessions: Not published in the sources reviewed
  • New Sessions/sec: Not published in the sources reviewed
  • Interfaces: 1x 2.5GbE RJ45 WAN, 4x GbE RJ45 LAN (one LAN port can be reconfigured as a second WAN for multi-WAN)
  • Form Factor: Compact desktop; UCG-Max-NS variant includes 512GB NVMe storage

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Low entry price at $199 MSRP; Compact desktop form factor; Five-port layout with multi-WAN support via a reconfigurable LAN port; Runs UniFi OS with integrated IDS/IPS, site-to-site and remote VPN options (IPsec, WireGuard, OpenVPN, L2TP); Manages 30+ UniFi devices and 300+ clients per Ubiquiti listing
  • ✘ Cons: Routing and IPS throughput (2.3 Gbps) is modest for multi-gigabit WANs with inspection enabled; Published throughput figures conflict across sources (1.5 vs 2.3 Gbps IPS, varying VPN numbers); Only one 2.5GbE port, with the remaining ports at 1GbE; Vendor does not publish IPsec tunnel, session, or new-connection limits; Some resellers list prices well above MSRP (one US listing at $394.79)
  • Est. Price: $199 - $279

Compare Against

Aruba (HPE) Aruba 9106 Gateway
Aruba (HPE) Aruba 9106 Gateway
★ 4.3 Value Score

Technical Specifications

  • Firewall Throughput: 10 Gbps (HPE QuickSpecs, via reseller-cited sources; 9114 is rated 20 Gbps)
  • Threat Prevention Throughput: Not published in sources found
  • IPsec VPN Throughput: 10 Gbps encrypted throughput (AES-CBC, AES-GCM, GRE); one reseller lists 5 Gbps
  • Max Sessions: 2,000,000 datapath/firewall sessions
  • New Sessions/sec: Not published in sources found
  • Interfaces: Desktop SKU (S0B85A): 6 ports incl. 2x 10GbE SFP+ and 2x 1GbE RJ-45/SFP combo, plus console. Rack SKU (S5H01A, RW): 2x 10GbE SFP+, 2x 1GbE combo (SFP/RJ-45), 2x GbE PoE
  • Form Factor: 1U rack-mount (RW/S5H01A) or desktop (S0B85A); cloud-managed hybrid gateway
  • IPsec Tunnels: Up to 8K concurrent IPsec sessions per QuickSpecs; one datasheet excerpt lists 16K concurrent / 20K total; one reseller lists 1K (outlier)
  • PoE Budget: 2x 60W 802.3bt-class PoE ports on RW SKU; no system-wide budget found
  • Max Clients/Devices: Up to 2,000 APs per gateway; up to 8,000 client MACs (reseller listings)
  • Product Status: Listed as end of life by at least one reseller; verify availability before purchase

Curation Review

  • ✔ Pros: Carrier-class 10GbE uplinks (SFP+) for branch and campus WAN or core aggregation; Integrated SD-WAN and cloud management via Aruba Central; 2 million firewall sessions suits busy branch or campus edge; Built-in PoE ports on RW model can power APs or cameras without a separate injector; Works as both branch gateway and Aruba Mobility controller in one 1U box; Strong IPsec and GRE support for site-to-site VPN
  • ✘ Cons: Firewall throughput of 10 Gbps is well below 9114 (20 Gbps); Threat prevention throughput is not published, so IPS/URL-filter performance is hard to size; Conflicting IPsec tunnel and VPN throughput figures across sources; Sessions-per-second rate not published; Listed as end of life by some resellers, which raises support and roadmap risk; Price is high relative to competing branch firewalls with similar throughput; SKU variants (desktop vs rack, RW vs US) differ in ports and price, which complicates comparisons
  • Est. Price: $5,720 - $8,095

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