Last time I'm going to reply...no one owes you anything.
Stop your whining.
You accepted the risks when you installed 3rd party firmware.
It was your responsibility to understand those risks, and prepare for them.
You bricked the device...it's up to you to fix it.
Or, buy a new device and stay with the stock firmware.
I have asked many time for another idea to open it
I wish I had never done this now
I am not happy that you have said it up to me to fix it when It clearly says you can recover from a bad flash and does not meantion serial at all in that sentance
and also buy I new device, when it took two years to get that one
if you knew the problems I have had with tp-link, now I am having problem with you
at the start of this port I was told reflashing to stock would work, what I was failed to be told is something had to be done to the stock image for it to work and was never told I would need serial to fix it
tp-link replaced the re200 with a re305 and let me keep the re200 but now that did not fix my problem they may want it back, then I have nothing, only a re200 that dosn't boot
if the re200 did not have issues with 5GHz WIFI which I failed to find out until flashing it, I would have never going back to stock
the re200 page on the openwrt website does not say there are issues with the SOC for 5GHz
openwrt was not useable on the re200
I am annoyed that you are not helping at all here, you could at least give me an idea how to open it
Stop your whining.
this is not whining the is me mad now
I understood the risks but thinking I could easily recover
IF YOU DO NOT HELP NOW, I WILL GET THIS PROJECT OR WHATEVER IT IS SHUTDOWN
you should clearly state the risks on the website and that there is a problem with 5GHz on the re200
Sorry this is long but I am really mad and stressed
I would like you to tell me what adaptor I need
Also is the plastic stronger than the welds because I have made a hole in the bottom by screwdriver, could I use that to pull the case off without snaping it
lol, how would you achieve this ?
I did go a little too far yesterday.
But Please tell me further details on what I will need to connect serial and if I can pull the case off with long nose pliers as I havemade a small hole in the bottom above the PCB
get something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TXVRQ7V/ / https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07TXVRQ7V/
there are cheaper models, if you want to save some $$$.
connect it to the PCB, as in the photos in the wiki.
remember RX goes to TX, and vice versa. connect GND as well, but not Vcc.
fire up Putty using com port assigned to the device by Windows, and hope there's serial output coming from the RE200.
I give up ---
so if I went back to this
is the re200 3.3v so I can find a chaper adapter
I am not familiar with that device, but most routers use 3.3V on UART, so it's very likely to work.
its not a router though
Maybe it should have been phrased as "most consumer network equipment" use 3.3V.
If you want to be certain, and without explicit documentation, you will have to measure the UART voltage level yourself.
--
Rule of thumb, unless stated otherwise, it's likely to be 3.3V, but better be safe than sorry.
Anyone got any oyher way of opening it
You've asked this multiple times, everyone can read it.
At this point, I'd suggest to you a hammer - since you refuse to buy a vice to fix your equipment as noted in the Wiki!
It's not magical to crack open some plastic/sheet metal.
Please be advised, 1.) this is a volunteer community and 2.) we didn't manufacture your device - so continually asking us how to open it - while most of us likely don't own it also seems redundant and futile.
Also, I read that you didn't heed a stock firmware version warning...so I'm lost on your being upset with OpenWrt.
Another thing, you assumed an issue with U-boot, actually connecting by serial will show you its true status.
Lastly, since you're looking at the device, own it and are in possession of it, you're in a better situation to tell us how to open it without a vice - than us telling you.
The wiki-page says the case has been welded shut, so there simply is no magical, easy way of opening it up. You will have to use a vice or similar to squeeze it until the welds break, or use something like a dremel to cut it open.
For future reference for people reading this thread,
Unless the person opening it is certified to handle mains voltage (electrician etc), do not not open this device. This device contains no user serviceable parts on the inside (according to OEM documentation). It is sealed closed by the manufacturer for safety. Opening it up will expose the user to lethal mains voltages (110-230V) from the unenclosed power supply. Do not open the device.
In my country the device is currently €30.00 new and less 2nd hand. Buying parts to fix the device will cost more and still won't be guaranteed to fix it. If you just want to return to an OEM experience, that is the best course of action.
Do you not understand I am open needing to use the serial connections, then the case is going back on
The fact that they are no serviceable parts is irrelevant
They were talking about the stuff you need to buy to fix the device, not about there being serviceable parts inside. You need an adapter to use the serial (ie. UART) connection, a soldering iron to solder pins to the device and superglue to glue the case back together, at the minimum.
Unless the person opening it is certified to handle mains voltage (electrician etc), do not not open this device. This device contains no user serviceable parts on the inside (according to OEM documentation). It is sealed closed by the manufacturer for safety. Opening it up will expose the user to lethal mains voltages (110-230V) from the unenclosed power supply. Do not open the device.
From reading the thread above, it's important to understand and re-emphasize that this is 3rd party firmware not supported by the OEM. Opening the device will void your warranty. Any and all actions you undertake with the device and the resulting consequences (voiding warranty, destruction, injuries etc) are ultimately your own legal responsibility. There is nothing to accept/reject about this, its just reality.
If you want to continue, understand everyone is a a regular person from the internet just like you, volunteering their free time and advice. Finding the right answer could take days of reading or weeks of waiting for a reply.
It sounds like you used the "Force" option when doing an OpenWrt sysupgrade, which as it says always carries a risk of bricking a device as using force bypasses firmware checks allowing any old junk to be written over the firmware (e.g. mistakenly sysupgrading the wrong file).
To recover the flash using serial console requires a lot of work, patience, reading through the forums. You need to understand the UART pinout, get a proper FTDI 3.3v cable. If you incorrectly use u-boot serial console TFTP recovery you can overwrite and corrupt your boot loader and be unable to use the serial console. My suggestion is to not try any uboot commands from other unrelated threads, just ones recommended by other RE200 users (e.g. check the original RE200 support thread). Even then it might still not work and wreck your bootloader due to accidents, and the only way to recover it would be reflashing it with an SPI programmer.
Just an FYI to be very cautious.