Install TP-Link Omada SDN Controller on Ubuntu 20.04

Install TP-Link Omada SDN Controller on Ubuntu 20.04

In this tutorial I will show you how to Install the latest TP-Link Omada SDN Controller on Ubuntu 20.04. Tp-Link Omada is very similar to the Unifi Controller so the transition between the two wouldn’t be that difficult.

The current version of TP-Link Omada SDN Controller that we will be installing is 4.2.11. Of course new packages will be released and they can be found on there Omada Software Download Page. You can copy the new URL and append the commands with the new installation package URL.

Lets Get Started

Prerequisites

A physical server / computer or VM with Ubuntu 20.04 Installed.
Access to the internet.

Make sure to have Install Ubuntu 20.04 on your physical server or VM.
Once the server is available, log into your Ubuntu 20.04 server using SSH.
To SSH into the server we will be using Putty. Download and install Putty.
Open up putty and type in the IPv4 address of your server and click open.
Log into your Ubuntu server with the user name and pw you provided. (Would be best if you used the root user.) How To Enable Root Login And SSH For Ubuntu 20.04
Now lets get started with making sure we have the latest updates installed.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt upgrade
sudo reboot

7. One your server is back up and your logged in again lets install Mongo DB using the following command.

sudo apt-get install mongodb

8. Install Java Application with the following command.

sudo apt-get install jsvc

9. Now lets install JDK v8. This is important because TP-Link Omada currently only works with JDK v8.

sudo apt-get install openjdk-8-jdk

10. In this step we will change the version of JDK we want Ubuntu 20.04 to use as default.

sudo update-alternatives --config java

11. You should see mode 0, 1 and 2. Type in the selection 2.

12. Lets install gdebi which is better at executing .deb installations.

sudo apt install gdebi-core

13. Lets have some fun and get started with downloading TP-Link Omada 4.2.11 with the following command.

cd
sudo wget https://static.tp-link.com/2021/202102/20210209/Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb

14. Now we want to install the TP-Link Omada SDN Controller package by using the following command.

cd
sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb

Yes! We are complete! You should now be able to access your controller using https://<Local IP Address>:8043 and adopt your devices.

I hope this article was helpful, if you have any questions please feel free to contact me. If you would like to be notified of when I create a new post you can subscribe to my blog alert.

Tutorials

May 7, 2021 Patrick Domingues

42 Comments

Raymond says:

September 19, 2021 at 7:30 am

I want to upgrade from 4.3 to cloud controller. Do you have a line of code for that?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  September 21, 2021 at 8:35 am
  
  Start in step 13, replace current URL with new controller software url. Continue onto step 14. Make sure you have a backup. Thank you for stopping by.
  
  Reply
Jonathan Kitchen says:

September 24, 2021 at 12:48 pm

Where does Mogo DB and the Java apps come from? I’m installing on a raspberry pi 4. Should those two be on the microSD?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  September 27, 2021 at 8:18 am
  
  You would install it using step 7 and step 8 which would guide you. Yes, I believe it would be installed onto the MicroSD. Lets keep in mind however this tutorial is not for raspberry pi.
  
  Reply
alen says:

October 7, 2021 at 8:36 am

Hi Patrick,
sudo -i gdebi does not work with Ubuntu LTS 20.
I used sudo -H gdebi instead.

Reply
fred says:

November 1, 2021 at 4:28 pm

thanks it helped too

Reply
Radek says:

November 10, 2021 at 2:43 pm

Just sucesfully installed the Omada controller on the raspberry pi 3
Thank you so much Patrick for this tutorial
It was very helpful for me

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  November 11, 2021 at 8:34 am
  
  I’m glad it worked out for you! Let me know if you need any other type of tutorials.
  
  Reply
Fer says:

November 30, 2021 at 10:59 am

Hi,

After installation on a Ubuntu VPS, I get the following error:

“136.xxx.xxx” uses an unsupported protocol.
ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH

any idea how to fix this?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  November 30, 2021 at 4:14 pm
  
  Is this when visiting the site? Try to run in incognito mode.
  
  Reply
Fer says:

December 1, 2021 at 4:22 am

Yes… Same in incognito, PC or Phone, and different browsers..

Found this post: https://community.tp-link.com/en/business/forum/topic/219222
But not sure how do I apply this to Ubuntu server

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  December 11, 2021 at 4:03 pm
  
  https://www.tp-link.com/ae/support/faq/866/
  
  Reply
Mac says:

December 17, 2021 at 2:10 am

mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ sudo wget https://static.tp-link.com/2021/202102/20210209/Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
–2021-12-17 00:02:26– https://static.tp-link.com/2021/202102/20210209/Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
Resolving static.tp-link.com (static.tp-link.com)… 13.225.50.15, 13.225.50.74, 13.225.50.73, …
Connecting to static.tp-link.com (static.tp-link.com)|13.225.50.15|:443… connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response… 200 OK
Length: 59831776 (57M) [application/octet-stream]
Saving to: ‘Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb’

Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x 100%[====================================================================>] 57.06M 53.6MB/s in 1.1s

2021-12-17 00:02:27 (53.6 MB/s) – ‘Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb’ saved [59831776/59831776]

mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ cd
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ cd
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ ls
Desktop Documents Downloads Music Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb Pictures Public Templates Videos
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.debgdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.debgdebi
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$ sudo -H gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.debgdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.debgdebi
mpiercy@drunkenfrenchman:~$

?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  December 17, 2021 at 8:20 am
  
  Hey Mac thanks for the visit. By the looks of it your logging in with a user besides root. Truthfully all this should be done with root and you may want to switch over to that.
  
  So with the current user you downloaded the package into your home folder.
  you may need to use CD /home to access home folder and then run the command to install.
  This should also work sudo -i gdebi /home/Omada_SDN_Controller_v4.2.11_linux_x64.deb
  
  Reply
Enrico says:

January 14, 2022 at 3:21 pm

Hi! Would like to upgrade from 4.4.4 to the new v5 of the software controller. How would I be able to do that?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  January 14, 2022 at 7:25 pm
  
  Hello Enrico, thanks for the visit!
  
  1. Log into your controller and create a backup just in case.
  2. SSH into your controller.
  3. Use: sudo wget https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2022/202201/20220107/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.0.29_Linux_x64.deb
  4. Now: sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.0.29_Linux_x64.deb
  5. Accept The Install
  5. Done.
  
  Reply
Steven says:

January 28, 2022 at 3:25 pm

Hello

thanks for the first guide it worked perfectly.

errors when I upgrade though

sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.0.30_Linux_x64.deb (command not found even it worked when I install it for the first time)

sudo -h gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.0.30_Linux_x64.deb (file not found, even though is there)

what do you think?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  January 28, 2022 at 8:23 pm
  
  Hey Steven,
  Hard to tell without being logged in and checking it or having a log. Throw a reboot after install gbedi, just in case.
  Now are you logging in as root or a different user? If you’re using a different user use the follow CD /home to access home folder then type in ls if you see the package you downloaded in there use the following /home/ before the package name.
  
  Reply
Steven says:

January 29, 2022 at 5:21 am

Hello

Thanks for your response Yeah I can see the package when using ls, stillthe same issue.
I had to do it differently
Right cick on omamda.deb and install with another application and select Gdebi package.

worked like a charm.

Reply
Matthew says:

February 10, 2022 at 11:32 am

The last command line refuses to run on my Linux Ubuntu 20 server. I have run all the other commands successfully. And ideas?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  February 10, 2022 at 7:57 pm
  
  Hey Matthew, thank you for the visit. There are a few comments that may explain what you are going through if you have not used the root account.
  
  Reply
agyeilu says:

March 2, 2022 at 4:47 am

Hello Patrick,

Everything has being work with my controller ever since I used your article. Today I changed the port from 8043 to 443 and since then I have not being able to access the web GUI. Is there any way I can revert to the old port?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  March 2, 2022 at 10:32 pm
  
  ssh into your controller as root and try sudo ufw allow 443/tcp
  if that does not work it may be using iptables sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 443 -j ACCEPT
  
  Reply
jack says:

March 4, 2022 at 8:37 pm

I installed the omada controller with unifi controller on ubuntu 20.04. The unifi controller is working but the omada is not working. Please help. see details below. Big thanks!!

#tpeap status
Omada Controller is not running.

#tpeap start
check omada
Starting Omada Controller. Please wait…………………………………… …………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………………………………………….. …………………
Start failed.

#sudo update-alternatives –config java
Selection Path Priority Status
————————————————————
0 /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64/bin/java 1711 auto mode
1 /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64/bin/java 1711 manual mode
* 2 /usr/lib/jvm/java-8-openjdk-amd64/jre/bin/java 1081 manual mode

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  March 6, 2022 at 4:10 pm
  
  Hello Jack,
  
  Sorry, wish I could be more help but this is not recommended as you will run into a few problems as your experiencing. I believe both controllers my use the same java 8 directory.
  
  Reply
Eduardo Ventura says:

July 26, 2022 at 10:23 pm

Suggestions on upgrading from 4.4.6 to the latest version?

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  July 27, 2022 at 5:31 am
  
  Hello Eduardo thank you for the visit! Create a controller backup. Afterwards I suggest starting on step 13
  sudo wget https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2022/202205/20220507/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb
  sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb
  Follow the messages for installation.
  
  Reply
  1. Eduardo Ventura says:
    
    July 27, 2022 at 7:31 pm
    
    $ sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb
    gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb
    
    This is what I am getting after the download.
    
    Suggestions?
    
    Reply
  2. Eduardo Ventura says:
    
    July 28, 2022 at 12:47 pm
    
    Man, I went around the gdebi thing by.doing it thru dpkg.
    
    This is the result:
    
    ubuntu@ip-X-X-X-X:~$ sudo dpkg -i Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb
    (Reading database … 164152 files and directories currently installed.)
    Preparing to unpack Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.3.1_Linux_x64.deb …
    A previous controller version has been detected.
    Unpacking omadac (5.3.1) over (5.3.1) …
    Setting up omadac (5.3.1) …
    Install Omada Controller succeeded!
    ==========================
    data dir is not empty.
    current data is not empty
    Omada Controller will start up with system boot. You can also control it by [/usr/bin/tpeap].
    check omada
    Starting Omada Controller. Please wait………………………………….
    Start failed.
    ========================
    Processing triggers for systemd (245.4-4ubuntu3.15) …
    [email protected]:~$
    
    Maybe you have an idea there!
    
    Thanks a lot for all your help!
    
    Reply
    1. Patrick Domingues says:
      
      July 28, 2022 at 3:01 pm
      
      Hello Eduardo, That installer is saying that the latest 5.3.1 is already installed and you are attempting to install over 5.3.1.
      
      reboot the server and check sudo systemctl start tpeap also make sure your running all these commands with root user.
      
      Reply
      1. Eduardo Ventura says:
        
        July 28, 2022 at 6:09 pm
        
        ubuntu@ip-172-31-11-35:~$ sudo systemctl start tpeap
        Job for tpeap.service failed because a timeout was exceeded.
        See “systemctl status tpeap.service” and “journalctl -xe” for details.
        ubuntu@ip-172-31-11-35:~$
        
        It doesnt look good…
Marcelo says:

September 8, 2022 at 2:26 pm

Hi there
Great article. Just getting started with OMADA and was thinking of installing the controller in a vm. I am assuming all the data in stored in Mongo db. If something goes wrong after I configure the whole network and i lose the installation, what would happen to the whole configuration.
Am I better off getting an OC200 instead and just keep everything in hardware?

Thanks
Elo

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  September 8, 2022 at 7:41 pm
  
  Hello Marcelo,
  
  The same rule will apply to the hardware oc200 something can go wrong and you can lose the entire config after all it is using linux and mongodb as well. But with the VM option, you can create snapshot backups of the entire VM and will be able to recover from any issue.
  
  You can use Veeam Community Edition for backups https://www.veeam.com/virtual-machine-backup-solution-free.html
  
  Thank you,
  Patrick Domingues
  
  Reply
  1. Marcelo says:
    
    September 8, 2022 at 7:53 pm
    
    Thank you very much Patrick.
    
    Reply
Nidhin James says:

November 3, 2022 at 12:49 pm

Hello Patrick. Is there any way to change the logo of omado controller software installed in in the ubuntu 20 OS?

Reply
Bas says:

December 1, 2022 at 7:56 am

i get a 403 forbidden when i use https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2022/202211/20221121/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.7.4_Linux_x64.deb

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  December 2, 2022 at 5:09 am
  
  TPLINK changed URL path, you can copy the version you want from the Omada Controller Page: https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2022/202211/20221121/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.7.4_Linux_x64.deb
  
  Reply
Pete says:

January 28, 2023 at 10:54 am

Hi. I have followed this guide to the letter on Vultr VM. I have ubiquiti on another instance and that works perfectly. All the way to the bottom of the guide and the SSH says starting omada etc. I even get “you can now access your server on …….. but when I try to goto the IP
http://(IP):8043 i get nothing.

Have tried https://
both variations with 8088 as the port but it just doesn’t work. Happy to supply any logs but not sure how.

Any advice?

Thanks in advance

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  February 2, 2023 at 5:03 am
  
  Hello Pete,
  
  If you have Vultr firewall services enabled you will need to add the ports you want to open there. Double check the ubuntu UFW firewall for rules.
  
  Reply
Brad says:

June 29, 2023 at 6:04 pm

Once I get to the last step I am continuously getting an error on my output.

sudo -i gdebi Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.7.4_Linux_x64.deb.2

Output: gdebi error, file not found: Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.7.4_Linux_x64.deb.2

This is after: wget https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2022/202211/20221121/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.7.4_Linux_x64.deb

Which is successful.

Reply
1. Patrick Domingues says:
  
  June 30, 2023 at 4:44 am
  
  sudo -i gdebi is attempting to execute and looking for the file. Are you logged in as root?
  If you type in ls do you see the file you downloaded?
  If you logged in as admin or any other user you may need to add the absolute path from where ever it downloaded to sudo -i gdebi /example/Omada_sdn_example.deb
  It may be within cd /home/ type ls to see if you find the file there. or it may be within the user folder you are logged in with.
  
  additionally this is the latest release: wget https://static.tp-link.com/upload/software/2023/202302/20230227/Omada_SDN_Controller_v5.9.9_Linux_x64.deb
  
  Reply
Pavloviandog says:

October 24, 2023 at 11:04 pm

First I want to thank you, this is a great piece.
Then I would like to ask how to remedy the error below and still keep my controller settings so I can
‘E:The package omadac needs to be reinstalled, but I can’t find an archive for it.’

I have forcibly removed it >sudo dpkg –remove –force-remove-reinstreq omadac
and reinstalled > sudo apt-get clean
> sudo apt-get update

To no avail.

Reply

Patrick Domingues