Cisco Linksys E3000 Issue: Unknown BRCM_TEST_SSID Wifi enabled, appearing from nowhere

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

Hello.

After some time, i brought back to life an old Cisco Linksys E3000 from a bricked state and i want to replace other router with OpenWRT i have (an Huawei EchoLife HG556a) with this one for a simple task of creating a private WiFi connected to other WiFi with internet via a dongle USB connected to the router.

With the router itself i had some issues. First, i know the E3000 with it's chipset (Broadcom BCM4718 [b,g,n] and Broadcom BCM4322 [a,n]) with the default driver b43 i don't have N capability (and also, i can brick again the router if i try to config the BCM4322 which is what happened when i began to test this router) so i tried the propietary broadcom-wl driver but i only have B/G capability in both antennas. Then i tried the brcmsmac driver (what seems reported to work with BCM4178) and the BCM4178 began to show the N capability and left the other one unused because for what i want is fine.

I don't have other issues with the setup itself, with the HG556a works fine, and i tried to replicate the settings with the E3000: the dongle works (using RT2800USB), the interfaces configuration was the same and at first the E3000 worked like the other one without issues, i have the local WiFi connected to internet via the other WiFi wih the dongle USB.

Then i switch off and on the E3000 and something changed. The router now is broadcasting an open WiFi with name BRCM_TEST_SSID which do nothing when i connect to it, and if i look the settings via ethernet, my configured WiFi is there but it doesn't goCisco Linksys E3000 up. If i tried to delete and config again the WiFi i want, doesn't matter, because the it keeps down and the router is always casting the BRCM_TEST_SSID signal.

What can i do?

Some info: The router is a Cisco Linksys E3000 with OpenWrt 19.07.4 r11208-ce6496d796. I installed kmod-brcmsmac for the built-in WiFi (and removed the pre-installed kmod-b43 driver) and the kmod-rt2800usb and kmod-ath9k for use with WiFi USB dongles.

/etc/config/network

config interface 'loopback'
        option ifname 'lo'
        option proto 'static'
        option ipaddr '127.0.0.1'
        option netmask '255.0.0.0'

config globals 'globals'
        option ula_prefix 'fd67:443b:0624::/48'

config interface 'lan'
        option type 'bridge'
        option proto 'static'
        option netmask '255.255.255.0'
        option ip6assign '60'
        option ifname 'eth0.1'
        option ipaddr '192.168.101.1'
        list dns '127.0.0.1'
        list dns '192.168.99.1'
        list dns '208.67.222.222'
        list dns '208.67.220.220'

config switch
        option name 'switch0'
        option reset '1'
        option enable_vlan '1'

config switch_vlanhttps://pastebin.com/PZKkGwgE
        option device 'switch0'
        option vlan '1'
        option ports '0 1 2 3 4 8t'

config interface 'wwan'
        option proto 'dhcp'

/etc/config/wireless (changed WiFi SSID and Passwords for privacy)

config wifi-device 'radio0'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option hwmode '11g'
        option path 'bcma0:1'
        option htmode 'HT20'
        option country 'ES'
        option channel 'auto'

config wifi-device 'radio1'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option channel '36'
        option hwmode '11a'
        option path 'pci0000:00/0000:00:01.0/ssb0:0'
        option disabled '1'

config wifi-device 'radio2'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option channel '11'
        option hwmode '11g'
        option path 'bcma0:4/ehci-platform.0/usb1/1-1/1-1:1.0'
        option htmode 'HT20'

config wifi-iface 'wifinet2'
        option ssid 'OutToInternetWifi'
        option device 'radio2'
        option mode 'sta'
        option network 'wwan'
        option encryption 'psk2'
        option key '*****'

config wifi-iface 'wifinet1'
        option encryption 'psk2'
        option device 'radio0'
        option mode 'ap'
        option network 'lan'
        option key '*****'
        option ssid 'LinksysLANWifi'

System Log: https://pastebin.com/PZKkGwgE

Kernel Log: https://pastebin.com/LdT4DgUd

Thanks!

2

Explain how you "removed" the pre-installed driver. You may need to use a custom-built image.

3

I uninstalled kmod-b43 via LuCi package manager.

If i have kmod-b43, the router shows the two antennas, 2,4Ghz and 5Ghz, as B/G and A respectively. With this driver installed, the other drivers doesn't matter if they are installed or not, because those parameters don't change.

With broadcom-wl (and wl and wlc packages) and kmod-b43 uninstalled, both antennas shows as B/G.

With kmod-brcmsmac and and kmod-b43 uninstalled, first antenna shows a B/G/N, and the second one as B/G.

4

I'm still trying to do things with this. Today i have some time and i tried again.

First, i used pciutils to identify the hardware more specifically:

root@OpenWrt:/etc/config# lspci -nn
00:00.0 Host bridge [0600]: Broadcom Inc. and subsidiaries BCM47xx Sentry5 USB Host Controller [14e4:4716] (rev 01)
00:00.1 Host bridge [0600]: Broadcom Inc. and subsidiaries Device [14e4:0000] (rev 01)
00:01.0 Network controller [0280]: Broadcom Inc. and subsidiaries BCM4322 802.11bgn Wireless Network Controller [14e4:4322] (rev 01)

However, today i have different results, at least at the moment.

I switched on the router again, and it was broadcasting the BRCM_TEST_SSID Wifi, it didn't matter what i did, when is configured as AP, only appeared a BRCM_TEST_SSID. As a client Wifi worked normally and there isn't BRCM_TEST_SSID broadcasting.

With that info, i found this here https://openwrt.org/docs/techref/hardware/soc/soc.broadcom.bcm47xx#brcm80211:

brcmsmac

brcmsmac supports some recent soft mac ieee802.11n Broadcom WiFi cores found on PCIe cards and in SoCs, for details see the website. This driver is developed and supported by Broadcom. The current version only supports station mode, but there are patches in current OpenWrt trunk which add support for AP and Ad Hoc mode. brcmsmac is capable of operating devices with ieee80211n rates and running in the 5GHz band, but AP mode currently does not work in the 5GHz band.

This can be the issue, however, i had it working at some point, and it was when in rebooted the router when it began to do this. I don't know when was wrote that and what is the actual status of the driver, so i tried to make it work again from scratch and see when the wifi is not working anymore.

Since i reset to defaults, i detected the BRCM_TEST_SSID signal appears always when is booting, althought it appears at the same time of the configured Wifi and dissapears seconds later. I installed brcmsmac and uninstall b43, i did every config step doing a "hard reboot" after seeing everything is working (directly powering off the router, that's what i did when it began to do the issue last time). The only two differences now is the dongle USB uses the rt73 driver, and it connects to other wifi to be provided from internet connection, everything else it's like the last time. But now it keeps working and there is no issue with the BRCM_TEST_SSID wifi.

root@OpenWrt:/etc/config# cat wireless

config wifi-device 'radio0'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option channel '11'
        option hwmode '11g'
        option path 'bcma0:1'
        option htmode 'HT20'
        option country 'ES'

config wifi-device 'radio1'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option channel '36'
        option hwmode '11a'
        option path 'pci0000:00/0000:00:01.0/ssb0:0'
        option disabled '1'

config wifi-iface 'wifinet0'
        option ssid 'LinksysE3000_Wifi'
        option encryption 'psk2'
        option device 'radio0'
        option mode 'ap'
        option network 'lan'
        option key 'MYPASSWORD'

config wifi-iface 'wifinet1'
        option ssid 'InternetWifi'
        option device 'radio0'
        option mode 'sta'
        option key 'PASSWORD'
        option network 'wwan'
        option encryption 'psk2'
        option disabled '1'

config wifi-device 'radio2'
        option type 'mac80211'
        option channel '11'
        option hwmode '11g'
        option path 'bcma0:4/ehci-platform.0/usb1/1-1/1-1:1.0'

config wifi-iface 'wifinet3'
        option ssid 'InternetWifi'
        option device 'radio2'
        option mode 'sta'
        option key 'PASSWORD'
        option network 'wwan'
        option encryption 'psk2'

I will testing the router a few times, and later i will using it in the place i have the issue, until i see something. If not, well, at least i tried to put some info here if someone have a similar issue or someone knows whats happening here.

Thanks!