Openwrt Router Firmware

[hwzlite]

root@XXX:~# iw list | grep 'Wiphy\|TXQS\|AIRTIME_FAIRNESS\|AQL'
Wiphy phy1
* [ TXQS ]: FQ-CoDel-enabled intermediate TXQs
* [ AQL ]: Airtime Queue Limits (AQL)
Wiphy phy0
* [ TXQS ]: FQ-CoDel-enabled intermediate TXQs
* [ AQL ]: Airtime Queue Limits (AQL)

Throughput is noticeability lower with AQL. On defaults didn't tweak anything.

Aya....we speak too soon

"Reverted the mac80211 based AQL patch for ath11k. Given many of the problems in the thread, I've pulled that feature for the time being. There were request for changes from the author, and to list added benefits back in May 2023, but no reply"

 

[xiaofan]

My guess on official OpenWRT support of WiFi 7 (not yet there).

No hope for Broadcom chipsets.

I do not have high hope for Qualcomm chipsets either, no matter the high end IPQ975x and IPQ957x or the lower end IPQ5322/5312. Among them, IPQ975x may get the support eventually but probably not anytime soon.

I tend to think MediaTek Filogic 880 chipset may be the first one to get official OpenWRT support but I am not so sure about Filogic 860 chipset.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/wifi-7-routers.6905228/page-38#post-153016829
As for OpenWRT support for WiFi 7, I do not know how soon it will come.

The following is just my personal opionion.
1. Most of the mid-range BE6500 and BE7200 rated Chinese WiFI 7 routers are based on Qualcomm IPQ5322 and MediaTek Filogic 860 and I think they will NOT have OpenWRT support any time soon.

2. And those BE3600/BE5000 rated router based on AN7563PT CPU will most likely NEVER have OpenWRT support.

3. ZTE and Huawei modles with their own CPU will also NEVER have OpenWRT support.

4. My reasoning:
1) Qualcomm IPQ5000 and Qualcomm IPQ6000 -- no official OpenWRT support until now.
--> Qualcomm IPQ5322 will likely not get official OpenWRT support

2) Qualcomm IPQ807x has not very good official OpenWRT support (eg: XIaomi AX3600/AX9000)-- IPQ9570/9574 (Xiaomi BE10000) may have OpenWRT support in the future but not any time soon and the support may not be so good.

3) MediaTek Filogic 820/830 have good OpenWRT support -- but not so sure about Filogic 860. I tend to think it will not have the support any time soon.

4) MediaTek Filogic 880 platform may be the first platform to have OpenWRT support for WIFi 7 -- but none of the current Chinese WiFi routers are based on this platform.

 

[xiaofan]

4) MediaTek Filogic 880 platform may be the first platform to have OpenWRT support for WIFi 7 -- but none of the current Chinese WiFi routers are based on this platform.

Let's see how it goes with the BPI-R4-NIC-BE14 WiFi 7 module (MT7995AV+MT7976CN+MT7977IAN) OpenWRT support.
https://wiki.banana-pi.org/Getting_Started_with_BPI-R4#4.29_Wi-Fi7_NIC
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/bpi-be14-wifi7-nic-module-with-bpi-r4/201377

 

[xiaofan]

5Gbps/10Gbps setup using Mini PCs

1) Cheaper one -- Miniroute R1 N305. I am getting this one myself (but the cheaper N100 version)

https://miniroute.com/products/mini...le-soft-route-computer?variant=41377328070730

2) Gowin R86S N305 -- dual 10G version and dual 25G version



3) Expensive but powerful one -- Minisforum MS-01


4) More options like Atom C3758R based Mini PC.
One example from Qotom.

 

[xiaofan]

This is just FYI about Xiaomi BE10000 -- SSH guide (should be useful) and alternative OpenWRT build (not public).

 

[morimorimori]

There must be a competition to see who can make the ugliest router.

 

[xiaofan]

There must be a competition to see who can make the ugliest router.

Unfortunately powerful WiFi 7 routers with external antenna are in general ugly.

1. For Xiaomi I think they more or less reuse the design of Xiaomi AX9000 in Xiaomi BE10000 to reduce development cost.

I do not like the design of Xiaomi BE7000 (same as Xiaomi AX3600 and Xiaomi AX6000) at all. To me the design is super ugly. I feel Xiaomi BE1000 is a bit better.
https://www.mi.com/xiaomi-routers/be-7000

I actually think the lower end Xiaomi BE3600 and BE5000 is not too bad, even with external antenna.
https://www.mi.com/xiaomi-routers/be-3600
https://www.mi.com/xiaomi-routers/be-5000

2. I would not say Asus ROG GT-BE98 is beautiful though. But it is probably slightly better.
https://rog.asus.com/sg/networking/rog-rapture-gt-be98-model/

3. Those with internal antenna may be a bit better.
TP-Link Archer BE800
Netgear Nighthawk RS700S (not that pretty but not too bad either)
TP-Link Deco BE85
Asus ZenWiFi BQ16
Xiaomi BE6500 Pro

 

[grynove]

when wed is enable, higher latency is evident even when cpu is at zero load. i tested on a mt6000. ironic that for the wireless, the best performance for me is without hardware flow offload and without WED running. meaning using raw cpu.
that being said, will probably sell or give away mt6000 current ipq807x still giving me better performance. i think i got mt6000 on tb at about 120sgd shipped. great value with plenty of development momentum (or any filogic 830 for that amtter)

Is the BPI r4 runs hot? Im an edgerouter user as well. planning to upgrade into bpi r4

 

[WaterDrinker]

Will the xiaomi ax3000t be a good wifi 6 router with openwrt?

 

[xiaofan]

Will the xiaomi ax3000t be a good wifi 6 router with openwrt?

I would not say so because of 256MB RAM.

Better to go with those with 512MB RAM or more, like Asus TUF-AX6000 or GL.iNet MT-6000 (one of the two more popular ones in OpenWRT forum).
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/whats-your-favorite-enthusiast-lede-openwrt-device/4477/632

If you do not mind no 2.5G port, Redmi AX6000 is another option.

All three are based on MediaTek Filogic 830 chipset.
https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128_ax-wifi

 

[WaterDrinker]

I would not say so because of 256MB RAM.

Better to go with those with 512MB RAM or more, like Asus TUF-AX6000 or GL.iNet MT-6000 (one of the two more popular ones in OpenWRT forum).
https://forum.openwrt.org/t/whats-your-favorite-enthusiast-lede-openwrt-device/4477/632

If you do not mind no 2.5G port, Redmi AX6000 is another option.

All three are based on MediaTek Filogic 830 chipset.
https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128_ax-wifi

Thanks, any openwrt routers that fit my $50 budget?

 

[xiaofan]

Thanks, any openwrt routers that fit my $50 budget?

Sorry I cannot recommend anything within that budget.

Within that budget, Xiaomi AX3000T is probably the one to go. I would not use it as a router myself (probably as an AP). But you may well be okay if you have only a few devices.

Still I will strongly recommend you to up the budget by a bit and get Redmi AX6000 (about RMB 350 or less from Taobao).

 

[xiaofan]

1. Some users have asked about the guide to install OpenWRT under Proxmox PVE. There are quite some references on the web.

Personally I use the following guide.
https://i12bretro.github.io/tutorials/0405.html

Minor changes to the above guide -->
1) when you buy a mini PC to use Proxmox and OpenWRT, it will usualy have 8GB RAM or more. So it is better to allocate 1GB (I use 2GB RAM) for OpenWRT.
2) SSD size is also big (usually 128GB or more), so I will suggest to increase the disk size to at least 1GB for OpenWRT (I use 4GB).

2. Things to do after the installation --> to extend the root file system size.
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/advanced/expand_root

3. Using DoH: I tend to use Cloudflare Family DNS and Quad9.
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/dns/doh_dnsmasq_https-dns-proxy

4. Ad blocking --> I use adblock-fast now. But you can also use Adguard-Home or Pi-hole using LxC container under Proxmox PVE.
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/ad-blocking

5. DDNS (not possible if you use CGNAT)
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/ddns/client

6. Wireguard VPN server automatic installation (need DDNS first)
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/vpn/wireguard/automated

7. Tailscale installation if you are under CGNAT
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/vpn/tailscale/start

8. ZeroTier is an alternative to Tailscale
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/services/vpn/zerotier

9. IPv6 setup (M1/Starhub/SIMBA -- native dual stack IPv6; Singtel -- native or 6rd)
https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/network/ipv6/configuration

 

[xiaofan]

There is a report that the user cannot get Asus China TX-AX6000 （华硕天选路由器) to use OpenWRT. That is a bit strange.

good afternoon, may you share how to flash TX-AX6000 with OpenWRT? I try a long time but not successful from the instruction in openwrt.org with tuf-ax6000

Hmm, by right it should be the same. If not, then I do not know the reason.

Anyway, the Asus FW is also very good, no need to use OpenWRT for now. In fact, Asus FW may have better wireless performance than OpenWRT.

 

[xiaofan]

@HaileG

Are you using the unofficial TRX images method mentioned in OpenWRT? The TFTP method may be more stable but need to have access to serial console.
https://openwrt.org/toh/asus/tuf-ax6000

As per the report from Chinese forums, the method should work. But you may need to use the right trx file.
https://www.right.com.cn/forum/thread-8325939-1-1.html

Basically TX-AX6000 and TUF-AX6000 are the same in terms of HW, but the hard-coded country code is different. Then the FW may have minor differences in themes. It is also said that Instant Guard cannot be used with TX-AX6000.
https://www.right.com.cn/forum/thread-8340748-1-1.html

 

[xiaofan]

Take note Asus China TUF-AX4200Q (小旋风 Pro, dual 2.5G ports) is different from Asus TUF-AX4200 (single 2.5G port).

So the method to flash Asus global version TUF-AX4200 with OpenWRT may not work with Asus China TUF-AX4200Q. YMMV.

Reference from Chinese forum: after flashing OpenWRT using the method of TUF-AX4200, the 2.5G LAN port of TUF-AX4200Q does not work any more.
https://www.right.com.cn/forum/thread-8325939-4-1.html

 

[xiaofan]

OpenWRT One has been released.


News:
https://sfconservancy.org/news/2024/nov/29/openwrt-one-wireless-router-now-ships-black-friday/

More about the spec:
https://openwrt.org/toh/openwrt/one

Priced at US$89 for a complete OpenWrt One with case (or US$68.42 for a caseless One's logic board), it's ready for a wide variety of use cases. Manufactured in collaboration with Banana Pi, the OpenWrt One uses the MediaTek MT7981B SoC, with MT7976C wifi, 1 GiB DDR4 RAM, 128 MiB SPI NAND + 4 MiB SPI NOR flash, two Ethernet ports (2.5 GbE and 1 GbE), a USB host port, M.2 2042 for NVMe SSD or similar devices, and mikroBUS expansion header. The OpenWrt offers both PoE (Power over Ethernet) via the 2.5 GbE port , or direct power via the USB-C power port with 12V USB-PD. A convenient USB serial interface is built into the other USB-C port: expert users won't miss any boot messages! This hacker-friendly device is unbrickable, providing a switch to separately flash the NOR and NAND portions of the flash memory.

 

[BBCWatcher]

…128 MiB SPI NAND + 4 MiB SPI NOR flash…

It looks like they bumped the included flash storage to a more future proof 256+16.

 

[dgeralds]

any new comers reading this :

in terms of difficulty [ define by me as, time taken to update, setup, wireless and with Adguard home ]

- Gl-iNet routers, especially the travel axt1800, any problems, a quick 15sec button hold does the trick,




setting up, is not hard , especially compared to [ firewalla/ asusmerlin/ Ubiquity ]

its the easiest and most fun i had, from start to finish to daily driving


the HK company really hit home run in terms of functionality and support, unlike Firewalla, with snobs all the time [ im better at coding, therefore this newbie ask stupid question SHOOT ! ]

- next one, is ironically, the Firewalla, purple, to be specific , as fairly difficult, to setup and run out of the box
because it has its own IPS/IDS with adblocking [ though limited] , its a mini-pro-sumer style sorts of all-in-one travel security

however, once dockers are in, and you start trying out and customizing, Firewalla's terminal [ im a macOS user ] , goes through the roof, if you're not use to [ Dockers ] , its even harder and takes LONGER setup, than having [ with mutiple experiences setup with pals, asusmerlin with custom adguard ]


- last, in terms of time and overall difficulty would be asus merlin,

though its rather straight forward,
the [ messy setup ] from the interwebs, made me , create the all in one thread here, which is still used as reference [ even for myself, when i have to update my buddies' home router ]

the difficulty lies in , pre-work configuration [ knowing which routers are supported and how well ]
getting used to cmd / terminal, ssh remote in, and to setup on the asus router's GUI page first ]

this with the need to run through script by script, asusmerlin customs, are really the uniquely difficult [ starter all in one router ]

as with @TanKianW mentioned in his thread, [ Gl-iNet + OpenWRT , specifically LuCI ] makes it a breeze to " rebound back if a mistake is occured"

Asus merlin, isnt as forgiving, as the router needs to be manually factory reset, and the re-setting of wireless is chewing up 20mins, total, to optimize, + AMTM from the terminal / ssh of merlin, needs time , and total of 1hr plus mostly



again, users who are new, asus routers with support and supportedby merlin, are still great choices, if you're coming from wifi 4/.5

but one has a cheap china, xiaomi- wifi 6 as AP, the GL-slate x or their quad-core line of products would pretty much blow asus out of the water due to functionality with flexibility , including ease of setup






Was looking at Qnap until the price-tag clothesline-and-pedigree my face into the floor mentally [ i short its pricy a.f for wifi6 with specific use case ]


i would avoid using non quad-core CPU, should flexibility comes , 02x slate axt-1800, [ one for home router, one for travel ] is still cheaper and more powerful than standalone setup

[ that was my original intend , for Firewalla purple, with its inbuilt IDS/IPS , but became obsolete due to pricing and the dockers not really that harmonious when setting up






lol

yea la , because i was so entrenched into the initial

[ Ubiquity is prosumer, therefore is great ! ]
to

[ Asus merlin with rog / high end routers are GREAT with adguard ! ]

to

[ Firewalla purple, all in one IDS/ IPS with docker and act as travel router, soon to be end all ]

to now, Openwrt and Gl-iNet,

learned really tons from you and Xiaofan [ thats whom, i got inspiration to built that asusmerlin guide ]


so far, from my previous post,

i can be quite confident and honest,

02 x Slate-axt1800 , can be future proof [ up to wifi 7, as 6e is gonna be looking at cheap AP (xiaomi ) ]

+ existing ISP given wifi routers,

given how much time ive spend, and burned, on dockers and asusmerlin router resets,

OpenWRT' LuCI IS a lazymen's god sent

Can GL-inet axt 1800 be used in cruise ship?

 

[xiaofan]

Wireguard VPN server performance: low power x86_64 mini PC vs wireless router with decent CPU
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/wifi-7-routers-with-high-vpn-server-speed.7087782/