4 ms·

And OpenWrt users everywhere feel totally superior once again. Seriously though: this is why you don’t let your device run unvetted firmware by vendors who don

And OpenWrt users everywhere feel totally superior once again. Seriously though: this is why you don’t let your device run unvetted firmware by vendors who don’t provide updates. Load it with a Linux-distro you can update yourself to keep it rolling and secure.

muxator 8y ago
Personally, I can no longer even conceive running the standard firmware on a critical piece of my home's infrastructure. Plus: good performance, a lot of flexibility, and a nice web interface (if one wants it). OpenWrt has really been a good experience for me.
OJFord 8y ago
I keep looking into it and keep stopping at 'what should I buy'. I'm willing to / assume I need to buy new hardware. What do I buy that will run it well, and continue to?
- rubatuga 8y ago
  Buy the Archer C7 version 2, and install the optimized version of openwrt: https://github.com/infinitnet/lede-ar71xx-optimized-archer-c7-v2 https://github.com/infinitnet/lede-ar71xx-optimized-archer-c... This build gets ~750 mbps NAT speed as opposed to vanilla openwrt, which is around ~300 mbps.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - josteink 8y ago
    While I think this is a really good OpenWrt-router, with good value for money and easy installation... It is fair mentioning that this model is discontinued from TP-Link and you will probably have to buy it second hand. It also comes in at least 5 revisions, with various levels of support, making life a little bit more difficult for the average, uninformed buyer. As a side note: I have a 350mbps symmetrical FTTH link and I've had no issues maxing this line with regular, official OpenWRT builds. Unless you need significantly higher speeds and can prove that official builds can't do it, I see no reason to go with unofficial, unsupported builds.
    - exhilaration 8y ago
      Do you know well this router runs Wireguard using OpenWRT?
      - josteink 8y ago
        I have no idea or knowledge about wireguard.
      - josteink 8y ago
        Actually looking into Wireguard on OpenWrt[1], I don't see anything router-specific about supporting that. As long as you have enough flash to install the modules, I can't see why this shouldn't work on any router. [1] https://danrl.com/blog/2017/luci-proto-wireguard/ https://danrl.com/blog/2017/luci-proto-wireguard/
  - dcbadacd 8y ago
    How can you make sure you're getting the v2?
    - josteink 8y ago
      It says so on a sticker underneath. You must ask seller to confirm or provide a picture.
  - OJFord 8y ago
    Is that v2 as in >v1, or is there a v3+ that I don't want? That is, can I just buy from Amazon [0] with a fairly safe assumption that a new C7 is OK? [0]: https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-AC1750-Dualband-Zertifiziert-Generalüberholt/dp/B00BUSDVBQ https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-AC1750-Dualband-Zertifizier...
    - josteink 8y ago
      There are 5 versions at least. The specific HW version is easily identified by a sticker underneath the router. Consult the openwrt table of hardware[1] for more details. [1] https://openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/archer-c7-1750 https://openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/archer-c7-1750 Edit: eBay seems a lot better for this task - https://m.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m4084.l1313&_nkw=Archer+c7+v2 https://m.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m4084.l1313&...
    - GordonS 8y ago
      So, 2 or 3 years ago I did just that. And it was flakey as f*ck. It rebooted itself roughly once a day, and would stop routing traffic to my fibre modem and need manually rebooted at least once a day. The Openwrt support forums were... not helpful. All this was such a shame, because the Openwrt feature set is so much capable than the stock firmware - I so wanted it to work, but had such a bad experience I haven't gone near it since and it will likely stay that way.
      - josteink 8y ago
        You have to be specific about the hardware you buy. Throughout my time I've bought around 2 or 2 routers with the naive assumption "oh it will probably work out fine", and that's definitely not how it works. That has certainly left me with disappointment. IME it pays off greatly to upfront research the specific model (and revision) and buy exactly that. Like in this case, the Archer C7 v2 (of which I've recently bought two). It's running OpenWrt flawlessly and I would have zero issues recommending that particular model to anyone.
        GordonS 8y ago
- spudlyo 8y ago
  This will depend on what kind of Internet connection you have, or expect to have in the future. Gigabit internet connections are becoming more common here in the US, and some lower powered devices just can't route packets faster than say 100-200 Mbit/s. I can tell you what I did, which may or may not be helpful to you. I got Linksys WRT AC3200[0]. The "AC3200" bit refers to a type of wifi 802.11ac configuration that has a theoretical bandwidth of 600 Mbit/s using the 2.4Ghz radio (good for distance and passing through interior walls) and 2.6 Gbit/s on the 5Ghz wifi radio. This is not the fastest or fanciest of the 802.11ac configurations, but it's up there. One note about the marketing of this device, the MU-MIMO feature that you may read about is not really a thing yet. I don't have any devices that support it, and it's possible I never will. Disregarding the radios entirely, this device can easily push 1 Gbit/s over the the ethernet ports, and can easily exceed 800 Mbit/s using the up-and-coming Linux kernel based VPN WireGuard. This device is supported by OpenWRT, but if you don't want to compile and build it yourself you need to get it from a helpful guy on the net who maintains community builds for this router[1] and related chipsets. Support is available through a community forum[2]. I'm quite pleased with this device and firmware setup. I like that it can interface with my switch to sort out VLAN tags, I like that I can run cutting edge VPN software like WireGuard on it, I like that it's reliable and I haven't hard to reboot it randomly to "fix" it. [0]: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JOXW3YE https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JOXW3YE [1]: https://davidc502sis.dynamic-dns.net/releases/#3200acm https://davidc502sis.dynamic-dns.net/releases/#3200acm [2]: https://forum.openwrt.org/t/davidc502-wrt1200ac-wrt1900acx-wrt3200acm-wrt32x-builds/15839 https://forum.openwrt.org/t/davidc502-wrt1200ac-wrt1900acx-w...
  - 0xEFF 8y ago
    Do you happen to know the throughput when using PPPoE?
    - spudlyo 8y ago
      I think it's roughly the same. I mean PPPoE framing like adds 8 bytes per packet, but not much you can do about that. My pal has this router and CenturyLink gigabit, which uses PPPoE, and he manages to get around 930 Mbits/s across the WAN.
- creeble 8y ago
  I'll try a recommendation: https://www.flashrouters.com/linksys-wrt1200ac-ddwrt-router https://www.flashrouters.com/linksys-wrt1200ac-ddwrt-router No need to install DD-WRT yourself, just pay a little extra and have it shipped to you pre-installed.

muxator 8y ago

Personally, I can no longer even conceive running the standard firmware on a critical piece of my home's infrastructure. Plus: good performance, a lot of flexibility, and a nice web interface (if one wants it). OpenWrt has really been a good experience for me.

OJFord 8y ago

I keep looking into it and keep stopping at 'what should I buy'. I'm willing to / assume I need to buy new hardware. What do I buy that will run it well, and continue to?

rubatuga 8y ago
Buy the Archer C7 version 2, and install the optimized version of openwrt: https://github.com/infinitnet/lede-ar71xx-optimized-archer-c7-v2 https://github.com/infinitnet/lede-ar71xx-optimized-archer-c... This build gets ~750 mbps NAT speed as opposed to vanilla openwrt, which is around ~300 mbps.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- josteink 8y ago
  While I think this is a really good OpenWrt-router, with good value for money and easy installation... It is fair mentioning that this model is discontinued from TP-Link and you will probably have to buy it second hand. It also comes in at least 5 revisions, with various levels of support, making life a little bit more difficult for the average, uninformed buyer. As a side note: I have a 350mbps symmetrical FTTH link and I've had no issues maxing this line with regular, official OpenWRT builds. Unless you need significantly higher speeds and can prove that official builds can't do it, I see no reason to go with unofficial, unsupported builds.
  - exhilaration 8y ago
    Do you know well this router runs Wireguard using OpenWRT?
    - josteink 8y ago
      I have no idea or knowledge about wireguard.
    - josteink 8y ago
      Actually looking into Wireguard on OpenWrt[1], I don't see anything router-specific about supporting that. As long as you have enough flash to install the modules, I can't see why this shouldn't work on any router. [1] https://danrl.com/blog/2017/luci-proto-wireguard/ https://danrl.com/blog/2017/luci-proto-wireguard/
- dcbadacd 8y ago
  How can you make sure you're getting the v2?
  - josteink 8y ago
    It says so on a sticker underneath. You must ask seller to confirm or provide a picture.
- OJFord 8y ago
  Is that v2 as in >v1, or is there a v3+ that I don't want? That is, can I just buy from Amazon [0] with a fairly safe assumption that a new C7 is OK? [0]: https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-AC1750-Dualband-Zertifiziert-Generalüberholt/dp/B00BUSDVBQ https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-AC1750-Dualband-Zertifizier...
  - josteink 8y ago
    There are 5 versions at least. The specific HW version is easily identified by a sticker underneath the router. Consult the openwrt table of hardware[1] for more details. [1] https://openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/archer-c7-1750 https://openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/archer-c7-1750 Edit: eBay seems a lot better for this task - https://m.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m4084.l1313&_nkw=Archer+c7+v2 https://m.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m4084.l1313&...
  - GordonS 8y ago
    So, 2 or 3 years ago I did just that. And it was flakey as f*ck. It rebooted itself roughly once a day, and would stop routing traffic to my fibre modem and need manually rebooted at least once a day. The Openwrt support forums were... not helpful. All this was such a shame, because the Openwrt feature set is so much capable than the stock firmware - I so wanted it to work, but had such a bad experience I haven't gone near it since and it will likely stay that way.
    - josteink 8y ago
      You have to be specific about the hardware you buy. Throughout my time I've bought around 2 or 2 routers with the naive assumption "oh it will probably work out fine", and that's definitely not how it works. That has certainly left me with disappointment. IME it pays off greatly to upfront research the specific model (and revision) and buy exactly that. Like in this case, the Archer C7 v2 (of which I've recently bought two). It's running OpenWrt flawlessly and I would have zero issues recommending that particular model to anyone.
      - GordonS 8y ago
spudlyo 8y ago
This will depend on what kind of Internet connection you have, or expect to have in the future. Gigabit internet connections are becoming more common here in the US, and some lower powered devices just can't route packets faster than say 100-200 Mbit/s. I can tell you what I did, which may or may not be helpful to you. I got Linksys WRT AC3200[0]. The "AC3200" bit refers to a type of wifi 802.11ac configuration that has a theoretical bandwidth of 600 Mbit/s using the 2.4Ghz radio (good for distance and passing through interior walls) and 2.6 Gbit/s on the 5Ghz wifi radio. This is not the fastest or fanciest of the 802.11ac configurations, but it's up there. One note about the marketing of this device, the MU-MIMO feature that you may read about is not really a thing yet. I don't have any devices that support it, and it's possible I never will. Disregarding the radios entirely, this device can easily push 1 Gbit/s over the the ethernet ports, and can easily exceed 800 Mbit/s using the up-and-coming Linux kernel based VPN WireGuard. This device is supported by OpenWRT, but if you don't want to compile and build it yourself you need to get it from a helpful guy on the net who maintains community builds for this router[1] and related chipsets. Support is available through a community forum[2]. I'm quite pleased with this device and firmware setup. I like that it can interface with my switch to sort out VLAN tags, I like that I can run cutting edge VPN software like WireGuard on it, I like that it's reliable and I haven't hard to reboot it randomly to "fix" it. [0]: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JOXW3YE https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JOXW3YE [1]: https://davidc502sis.dynamic-dns.net/releases/#3200acm https://davidc502sis.dynamic-dns.net/releases/#3200acm [2]: https://forum.openwrt.org/t/davidc502-wrt1200ac-wrt1900acx-wrt3200acm-wrt32x-builds/15839 https://forum.openwrt.org/t/davidc502-wrt1200ac-wrt1900acx-w...
- 0xEFF 8y ago
  Do you happen to know the throughput when using PPPoE?
  - spudlyo 8y ago
    I think it's roughly the same. I mean PPPoE framing like adds 8 bytes per packet, but not much you can do about that. My pal has this router and CenturyLink gigabit, which uses PPPoE, and he manages to get around 930 Mbits/s across the WAN.
creeble 8y ago
I'll try a recommendation: https://www.flashrouters.com/linksys-wrt1200ac-ddwrt-router https://www.flashrouters.com/linksys-wrt1200ac-ddwrt-router No need to install DD-WRT yourself, just pay a little extra and have it shipped to you pre-installed.