Adding Device Support TP-Link WR941HP

I would be very happy if my version 1 was inserted in the compatibility table. This compilation I made has the possibility to open support for the TL-WR841HP version but I don't have that router to do it.

Hello. I have no experience in the subject, but I am an electronics technician, and I am not afraid of this, although I do not work on this, and I should make the time.

I should buy the programmer tool. I don't know if I'll ever use it again. Does this tool work for computer chipsets and all routers? or just some? I saw that there are 150mm, 200mm, 8, 16, I don't know which one would do. I also did not understand anything about point 4, but could I encourage myself to do it, or could I pass the file to you and you can edit it?

If you guide me, I may make the decision to do so. This is a page in my country where I could buy the tool. Could you tell me which one would work? I understand that those who have thought prevent me from desoldering the chip, correct?

https://listado.mercadolibre.com.ar/ch341#D[A:ch341]

These are the same as the ones I have:

Programador Ch341 Usb Y Pinza Soic8 Eeprom 24/25 Zif Bios | Mercado Libre

Zocalo Adaptador Smd Soic8 A Dip8 200mil Eeprom Ch341 | Mercado Libre

To desolder and solder I use it:
Estacion De Soldado Soldador Lapiz Cautin Aire Caliente Smd | Mercado Libre

I can help you with whatever you need.
You can use the tool to perform procedures on most routers, computer BIOS and any other equipment that needs to rewrite the SPI.
If you send the image I will mount it. Reset the router before starting.
Point 4 has many more substeps. I have to get organized enough to explain.
You said you're an electronics technician, so I assume you already know how to solder the chip, right?

The necessary programs are:
AsProgrammer_1.4.zip - Google Drive
HxD - Freeware Hex Editor and Disk Editor (mh-nexus.de)

I need to clarify. If I buy this kit, do I avoid desoldering and soldering?
https://articulo.mercadolibre.com.ar/MLA-873134440-programador-ch341-usb-y-pinza-soic8-eeprom-2425-zif-bios-_JM#position=4&type=item&tracking_id=912f9de6-b4b7-4bcb- 9eb0-b04affa4a8eb

But if I buy this, I should buy the soldier station, too, right?
https://articulo.mercadolibre.com.ar/MLA-856065383-zocalo-adaptador-smd-soic8-a-dip8-200mil-eeprom-ch341-_JM#position=1&type=item&tracking_id=912f9de6-b4b7-4bcb-9eb0- b04affa4a8eb

The point is that the soldier station is too much money for a use that is not likely to repeat itself. But if it's just the first, I might as well decide to do it.

you can try with "Pinza Soic8". But you may have bad contact problems and be unable to resolve them. And I also think that the circuit board can prevent you from reading or writing the flash for some reason that I will not be able to explain. I have been successful with this cable a few times, but not always.

and yes, you would avoid soldering and unsoldering.

I could assemble a kit with cheaper materials to make this weld. but it will also require skill to make the weld. if you go that route, I recommend that you train on other boards first.

And I didn't mention that you also have to buy the solder and the materials to clean the board.

Interestingly, you can expand the storage memory by placing an SPI chip with more memory and compiling your own image in the "image builder". But only if it is able to solder and unsolder.

And just to remind you as soon as you start the procedure, make a backup and keep a copy of your router's firmware.

soic-8 clamps are very useful, but unless you know very well what you're doing, you still need to desolder the flash chip for the external flashing.

There are basically two reasons why this is necessary:

  • in order to flash, the external programmer needs to supply the spi-nor flash chip with power - however (unless you desolder) also leaks into the rest of the PCB and powers up other components of your router, more than your external flasher can provide (over-current, bringing the voltage supply to its knees).
  • as soon as there is power on the PCB (supplied by your spi-nor flasher), the system SOC starts booting - and reading/ writing to the flash, messing up your attempts to flash the chip.

The easy approach would be to just desolder the Vcc pin of your flash, but this comes with a rather high risk of breaking off this pin/ leg - desoldering the whole chip is actually easier and less risky. The advanced approach would be to keep the system SOC in reset, which requires intimate familiarity with the SOC pinout (datasheet) and then tracing the reset line on the PCB - if you know what you're doing and have to do this on many similar devices, this can save time, at the expense of requiring deep knowledge of electronics and the SOC/ router PCB in particular.

Just to state the obvious, before flashing anything, you should backup whatever you can - multiple times, to rule out read-errors. Wi-Fi calibration data is usually irretrievable (and the bootloader environment/ often containing MAC addresses is also of interest, even if this usually can be recovered with some effort), so your main focus should be on recovering this/ keeping it safe before attempting any flash approaches.

For now, I did not get a desoldering station, but I have borrowed a heat gun like this, but 2000w. Could serve?

https://articulo.mercadolibre.com.ar/MLA-906406260-pistola-calor-gadnic-reparacion-celulares-regulable-1800w-_JM

What does the Wi-Fi calibration data mean?

That would probably melt everything away.

You should consider that you can bend the board due to excessive temperature or remove components unnecessarily that will be difficult to replace. However, you can do this. You should warm up the board a little bit linearly before focusing on the chip. Remove it with tweezers while heating, do it as fast as you can without straining, then stop heating and let it cool by itself.

Do you already know how to clean the card and resold the chip? If you still don't know or have not acquired material for this, you should not try.

In the firmware you are going to extract, there are partitions. And the partition called "art" contains unique and necessary information for the operation of the wireless network.

Look at this example:

Hi, I'm new to the forum, my name is Jose, successfully I was able to use your firmware for the tl-wr941hp v1 router, but when I want to download and install pptp server, it throws me an architecture incompatibility error, you have any idea how to add the package It is possible that I have to recompile the firmware adding it from the beginning, I thank you for your contribution since I am already using openwrt on my router thanks to you.

Best regards

I added the packages, use:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FabianoTSS/OpenWrt/main/bin/TL-WR941HP/V1/openwrt-ath79-generic-tplink_tl-wr941hp-v1-squashfs-sysupgrade.bin

I added this: pptpd and kmod-nf-nathelper-extra

I don't know why that happened.
You can download the image builder, add the lines of code I posted and build your own custom images.

Download Image Builder: [OpenWrt Wiki] Using the Image Builder

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Hi Fabiano!

Thanks for contributing to V1. Is there any possibility of working in V2? I don't know what else to do with that equipment crashing.

Yes, but if you look at the previous posts you will see that it is very difficult to do and you need to have the necessary tools. If you decide to do this, I will be here to help.

I do not know if it is a problem with this firmware itself, because I do not have another router to test, but I am doing a relay according to this tutorial on the site https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/network/wifi/relay_configuration. That is, I connected my wr941HP wirelessly to my main router and I cable my wr941HP to my note and open a second wireless network on the wr941HP for him to redistribute the signal elsewhere. It happens that, the wireless connection keeps dropping, in Luci I can see that the uptime of the wwan interface is restarting.

Another thing. I connect the cell phone to the wr941HP's wi-fi, it works perfectly... after a while, the wi-fi is still active and I'm going to try to browse and it doesn't work. In this, I look at Luci through the notebook and see that the cell phone is no longer connected to the wr941HP, but the cell continues to inform that it is. This happens when the wwan interface restarts in some way. Information: the network names of the main router and the wr941HP are different, that is, the cell phone did not go to the other router.

Would you know if it is a problem with the firmware?

I tried it now on my router and on another with openwrt 19 and it didn't work. I've tried this before and I was unsuccessful. I have an alternative, however you would have to add the EoIP packets on your openwrt routers and create interfaces over ip and then link them to the wireless interface. I know how to do it, I can help you.

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I would be grateful for your help. The main router is a Tenda AC21, that is, it is not openwrt. So I can’t do anything about it. If your solution is only on the wr941HP router, I want to try and see the result.

Hi, maybe. if you want to try to do it i can provide the information i have. It is a fact that using the bootloader from version 1 in version 2 more some adjustments in the firmware will work.

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Thanks ... I tried to use the firmware available, using the "breed bootloader" as it is much easier to operate for beginners. Of the firmware you made, only the "sysupgrade" worked, but with bugs, such as the absence of the WAN interface, and the extremely weak and unstable wifi (I suspect the router is damaged) ... You could provide a "full" dump "of the V1 router for me to play here .. ?? I can try to record in the flash, the entire dump to see if it works ... I would need the "original" dump and also the openwrt dump already installed ... If you want, I can pass the "full dump" of V2 for you to test there .... Hugs....

The forum language is English, please try to use it.

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I'm sorry, I'll remember to write in English .... thanks for the correction ...

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