Adding OpenWrt support for QNAP QHora-301W

For Developers
607

Ok took the leap, I have 3 of these devices now all flashed each eth 10g-1 port connected to the next device eth 10G-2 port. As you can see below each negotiated to to 10g - which is great! when i do a speed test between devices - the best i get to is 2g :frowning: any idea why ?

Settings for 10g-2:
        Supported ports: [ ]
        Supported link modes:   100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                1000baseT/Full
                                10000baseT/Full
                                1000baseKX/Full
                                10000baseKX4/Full
                                10000baseKR/Full
                                2500baseT/Full
                                5000baseT/Full
        Supported pause frame use: Symmetric Receive-only
        Supports auto-negotiation: Yes
        Supported FEC modes: Not reported
        Advertised link modes:  100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                1000baseT/Full
                                10000baseT/Full
                                1000baseKX/Full
                                10000baseKX4/Full
                                10000baseKR/Full
        Advertised pause frame use: Symmetric Receive-only
        Advertised auto-negotiation: Yes
        Advertised FEC modes: Not reported
        Link partner advertised link modes:  100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
                                             1000baseT/Full
                                             10000baseT/Full
        Link partner advertised pause frame use: Symmetric Receive-only
        Link partner advertised auto-negotiation: Yes
        Link partner advertised FEC modes: Not reported
        Speed: 10000Mb/s
        Duplex: Full
        Port: Twisted Pair
        PHYAD: 0
        Transceiver: external
        Auto-negotiation: on
        MDI-X: Unknown
        Link detected: yes
608

it will be worth to compare with the stock firmware ... previous comments note the absence of NSS offload as the reason not to being able to push up to 10g. If you have a chance to revert back to stock and do the same test it will help ... thank you

609

I’ve read topic about dl-wrx36 which is using same cpu and guys manage to enable flow offloading should it work the same for QHora-301W? (Xiaomi AX9000 use also the same cpu)

610

yes the same ... note though this is SW not HW .. for having HW one has to use the QCA/NSS which is not openwrt supported ... check the community builds for IPQ807 NSS Build

611

Update - After Extensive testing, re-flashing back to Stock testing and flashing again to OpenWrt and reconnecting and swapping devices etc. i now have 3 x QNAP-301W running openwrt, 10g-1 to WAN, and the 10g-2 as LAN to next router to 10g-1 so i can connect all 3 as a 10g backbone, throughput is solid and 850-900mbps and more Internet 600-800 but that is my ISP.

Some stuff i still need to solve and an IOS thing i stumbled into - hope this helps others !
Issues:
WIN11 Surface devices NIC cabled and wireless - seem to be throttled at 200 - 250 mbps same over WIFI i get to WIFI 200 - 300Mpbs.
NIC 1G RJ45 any port (CAT5e, 6, 6e & 7) i tested every port on every device!

IOS (Kids IPad) seems IOS bug and cant seem to use WPKA3 /WPKA 2 in mixed mode on the router, i had to step back to pure WPKA 2 to get it to connect.

All Other clients are great, Linux running on NUC 1g RJ45 over CAT5e, 6, 6e & 7 and wireless all connect at 1g flawless, download speeds only hampered by my ISP

612

thank you for sharing. Do you get 10g on the lan ?

613

since you have 3 of them, could you do bandwith test with 10Gbit speed?

614

not with OpenWRT i get to 2g. ports connect at 10g but throughput is 2g

iperf3 -c 10.147.1.1 - bidir

Connecting to host 10.147.1.1, port 5201
[ 5] local 10.147.1.10 port 46226 connected to 10.147.1.1 port 5201
[ ID] Interval Transfer Bitrate Retr Cwnd
[ 5] 0.00-1.00 sec 233 MBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec 0 1000 KBytes
[ 5] 1.00-2.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 1000 KBytes
[ 5] 2.00-3.00 sec 235 MBytes 1.97 Gbits/sec 6 508 KBytes
[ 5] 3.00-4.00 sec 236 MBytes 1.98 Gbits/sec 0 556 KBytes
[ 5] 4.00-5.00 sec 235 MBytes 1.97 Gbits/sec 0 559 KBytes
[ 5] 5.00-6.00 sec 235 MBytes 1.98 Gbits/sec 0 559 KBytes
[ 5] 6.00-7.00 sec 235 MBytes 1.97 Gbits/sec 0 597 KBytes
[ 5] 7.00-8.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 597 KBytes
[ 5] 8.00-9.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 597 KBytes
[ 5] 9.00-10.01 sec 235 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 600 KBytes

[ ID] Interval Transfer Bitrate Retr
[ 5] 0.00-10.01 sec 2.29 GBytes 1.97 Gbits/sec 6 sender
[ 5] 0.00-10.01 sec 2.29 GBytes 1.97 Gbits/sec receiver

[ 5] local 10.147.1.11 port 45702 connected to 10.147.1.1 port 5201
[ ID] Interval Transfer Bitrate Retr Cwnd
[ 5] 0.00-1.00 sec 229 MBytes 1.92 Gbits/sec 3 643 KBytes
[ 5] 1.00-2.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 643 KBytes
[ 5] 2.00-3.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 735 KBytes
[ 5] 3.00-4.00 sec 231 MBytes 1.94 Gbits/sec 0 735 KBytes
[ 5] 4.00-5.00 sec 232 MBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec 0 766 KBytes
[ 5] 5.00-6.00 sec 232 MBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec 0 766 KBytes
[ 5] 6.00-7.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 766 KBytes
[ 5] 7.00-8.00 sec 234 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 1 585 KBytes
[ 5] 8.00-9.01 sec 234 MBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec 0 607 KBytes
[ 5] 9.01-10.00 sec 232 MBytes 1.96 Gbits/sec 0 646 KBytes

[ ID] Interval Transfer Bitrate Retr
[ 5] 0.00-10.00 sec 2.27 GBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec 4 sender
[ 5] 0.00-10.00 sec 2.27 GBytes 1.95 Gbits/sec receiver

1 Like
615

So I've read this thread over again.

  1. Does anyone have 10g-1 AND OR 10g-2 ? WORKING AT 2.5G, 5G OR 10G?
  2. i saw a post that referenced a Chinese build, did anyone test ?
  3. i trying to figure out if i have a prob as i cant push past 2g or if i need to roll back to stock to solve this as that would suck!
616

Hows the radios + amplifiers on these?

What kind of wireless coverage are you folks getting with these?

617

It’s okay. My Redmi AX6000’s range is far superior though.

618

thanks for the reply.

mine should be here today. i ordered it mainly because of the 4x4 on the 2.4ghz band. i would have liked the ax6000 much more but its just not available locally anywhere here. looks like aliexpress is the only way... not that i have anything against aliexpress but i didnt want to wait 2+ weeks.

we'll see how it works out, i ordered from amazon so worst case it goes back.

if it works out ill be replacing my primary gateway (wan in) with one as well.

619

So I just finished installing it.

For my use case, it does the trick. 4x4 2.4ghz works great. I am getting about 600mbits each way using iperf3.

Are there better options for less? Sure.

Did I want to wait 2 weeks for aliexpress to deliver? Nope.

For roughly the same price I could have gone with an AX9000 but the form factor is out of the question.

Thanks for all the work it took to bring this model into the OpenWRT world!

620

I believe this was already explained this to you previously:

It's also all over in this forum, explained a dozen times..

Everyone sees the 10G ports and openwrt support and is disappointed about it.

10G will never get anywhere near 10Gb/s without NSS offloading. You can try to enable packet steering and software offloading but they didn't do much for me.
It can achieve ~8Gb/s for normal scenarios with offloading on stock firmware.

Some of the developers looked at the qnap patches for this previously and said it was a real sh*t$#0w and wouldn't workout without rewriting it completely in a way that would mesh with openwrt / linux kernel code.

The radical alternative is building the qnap kernel with the desired modules and normal openwrt system around it (Frankenstein build). Unfortunately this may require just as much effort or more.

You will have to revert or dual boot to stock firmware to get [offloading].
There is no other fix unless someone puts a ton of time/effort into rewriting the NSS offloading support.

621

Hello,
now that everything is up and running and I am actually very happy I have the following problem with the WiFi.
Always after about 2-3 days WiFi 5GHz is no longer available only the 2,4GHz. In my WiFi APP I can not see the 5GHz WiFi. In OpenWrt it seems everything is ok but now device ist connected with 5GHz radio 0. I then have to restart "radio 0".
After a while, the 5GHz is available in the APP and the devices reconnect to the 5GHz.

Has anyone observed this as well? What can I do, is it a hardware defect? My version is SNAPSHOT - r22191-f6a7ce2501

622

appreciate the feedback and a lot of this is very new realm to me (so learning in the process).

I had hopes the NSS was being addressed in this thread that @rmandrad started and while it was for the AX was being ported for thr QNAP - maybe I'm very wrong

IPQ807X NSS Build - Community Builds, Projects & Packages - OpenWrt Forum

623

Edit : I was wrong. It turns out for whatever reason the 10g adapters do not like one of my cable runs, one going all the way up stairs. Its either caused by the adapter on the other end or the cabling itself but regardless of what adapter I plug the cable into (10g-1 or 10g-2) it retransmits quite a bit when doing a iperf3 session. I am ordering a usb3 to 2.5g adapter to try out on the other end to rule out an issue with the nic. I'll add that when connecting with the 4 QCA based ports on the 301w I don't experience this behavior.

I am getting a bit of ethernet port funk :confused:

I cant investigate too deep until everyone goes to sleep here but:

When I put devices on both 10g-1 and 10g-2, one of them when running iperf3 will show loads of retries.

When there is just one of the 10g ports occupied, iperf3 doesn't show any retries.

Both are 1gbit devices for the time being... The plan was to move the 2 devices to 2.5gbit... They are my access points on each of our floors...

Anyways I am butchering the wording here, what I mean is:

a) Plug 2, 1gbit access points to both 10g-1 and 10g-2.
b) From 301w run iperf3 -c to AP on 10g-1... Works fine.
c) From 301w run iperf3 -c to AP on 10g-2... Loads of retries.

I may have gotten 10g-1 / 10g-2 mixed up (eg: which one is reporting the retries)... But one of them for sure.

This is a known issue or something on my end?

Thanks!

624

I don't believe they are actively working on it or planning to maintain an openwrt branch, but you would have to talk to them about it.

The state I last saw: you would have to build it yourself and will likely be left with many issues.

If you're very savvy with openwrt development: this may be for you and I'm sure everyone with a 301w will be very happy if you would maintain it.

The only alternative solution is the vendors firmware or hoping that the openwrt developers will change their mind about adding support.

625

In the current state, the whole NSS mess will never get merged, its just a hack job on top of a hack job.

@anom3 Are you trying to use 2.5G?

626

Hi @robimarko. First and foremost thanks for all the work... I have recently been doing an upgrade of some of the hardware at my home here... Landed on the AX3600s and a the QNAP 301W. Both of which are OpenWRT compatible in large part thanks to you.

Thank you.

EDIT :

My 2 usb 3.0 to 2.5gbe just came in. Same behavior.

FROM QNAP 301W TO UPSTAIRS

[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec   203 MBytes  1.69 Gbits/sec    7    218 KBytes
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec   205 MBytes  1.73 Gbits/sec    0    246 KBytes
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec   203 MBytes  1.70 Gbits/sec    0    288 KBytes
[  5]   3.00-4.01   sec   202 MBytes  1.69 Gbits/sec    0    288 KBytes
[  5]   4.01-5.00   sec   199 MBytes  1.68 Gbits/sec    0    298 KBytes
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec   199 MBytes  1.67 Gbits/sec    0    298 KBytes
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec   199 MBytes  1.67 Gbits/sec    0    298 KBytes
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec   200 MBytes  1.68 Gbits/sec    7    216 KBytes
[  5]   8.00-9.01   sec   200 MBytes  1.67 Gbits/sec    0    262 KBytes
[  5]   9.01-10.00  sec   199 MBytes  1.67 Gbits/sec    0    274 KBytes

Ignore the not so 2.5gb rate... This is apparently normal with this 8152B adapter.

FROM UPSTAIRS TO QNAP 301W

[  4]   0.00-1.00   sec   281 MBytes  2.36 Gbits/sec  126    378 KBytes
[  4]   1.00-2.00   sec   277 MBytes  2.32 Gbits/sec  217    375 KBytes
[  4]   2.00-3.00   sec   274 MBytes  2.30 Gbits/sec  125    372 KBytes
[  4]   3.00-4.00   sec   276 MBytes  2.31 Gbits/sec  122    363 KBytes
[  4]   4.00-5.00   sec   278 MBytes  2.33 Gbits/sec  116    416 KBytes
[  4]   5.00-6.00   sec   278 MBytes  2.33 Gbits/sec  146    363 KBytes
[  4]   6.00-7.00   sec   276 MBytes  2.32 Gbits/sec  163    269 KBytes
[  4]   7.00-8.00   sec   276 MBytes  2.32 Gbits/sec  173    375 KBytes
[  4]   8.00-9.00   sec   276 MBytes  2.31 Gbits/sec  214    262 KBytes
[  4]   9.00-10.00  sec   276 MBytes  2.31 Gbits/sec  226    264 KBytes

So, as you can see, even at 2.5gb loads of retries... Is this normal?

No, when I did the tests it was all at 1gbit.

I have amazon delivering a bunch of 2.5gbe bits tomorrow. So I will give it another shot at 2.5gbit instead of 1gbit tomorrow.

Just so we are clear:

a) QNAP 301w 10g-1/2 <---> AX3600 = No problem, next to zero retrans when running iperf3.

b) QNAP 301w 10g-1/2 <---> Intel i211 = This is the run that has issues. Mind you its to my highest floor (3 floor home). That being said 301w QCA 1gbit port <---> Intel i211 = No problem, no retrasmits.

I'll post my results here tomorrow.

I have 2 x USB 3 RTL8156B coming in tomorrow. I have read they tend to be a bit flaky so I just put in another order for RTL8156BG (BG vs B) ones which will be here Tuesday if the ones from tomorrow give me any trouble. sigh Yes, it has to be USB to 2.5gbe. My top floor primary iot handler is a hystou h5 mini pc... Powerful little unit, zero pcie slots.