Help creating a RPi travel router using GUi setup?

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

Hi

I recently installed openwrt on a Rpi 3b and am blown away. I could have used this with an AP instead of all the outdated routers over the years.

Anyhow, I wish to create a travel router whereby the onboard wifi is the WAN connecting to available wifi and the NIC is Lan. Once I’m confident with this I’ll add my wireguard vpn and if possible a way to connect using either vpn or without vpn if possible and an additional adapter for wifi repeating.

The only guide I’ve found remotely relevant is by Network Chuck on YouTube. He however uses the terminal and at times indicates he’s not sure what he’s doing so I’m not overly confident. I’m confident replicating terminal commands but I’d prefer to familiarise myself with the GUI wherever possible.

Would someone have the time to tell me how to accurately and securely replicate the following from his video via the gui:

Timestamps:

9:40: sets up the interfaces (he makes quite a few changes)
16:00: he makes various changes to wifi settings but has no idea why - any idea what the relevance is?

After booting I logged on via the GUI and lan. The rpi served the dhcp so I didn’t have to create a static ip on my pc (not sure why he did). I located the lan interface and set my own private ip by simply typing my up over the typical gate way ip. I located wireless interface and connected to my local network. I did not change a single other setting. This seems considerably less than the config from the YouTube.

I have not specifically stipulated the wifi and WAN and NIC as LAN - openwrt however still seemed to connect. Is this sone sort of default?

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2

I'm new to OpenWRT, too, and I'm also installing on a RPi-3B+. I have a working and reasonably well optimized system. I read/watched MANY articles and much of the documentation about installations and found the same confusing hodge-podge of GUI + command-line instructions you did. I managed to cobble together something that worked, anyway. At least I think it does.

Yesterday I found the tutorial by "aporetic", here HOWTO: OpenWrt on the Raspberry Pi 4 , to be most helpful, and it may give you the guidance you're looking for. "aporetic" recommends against using the Pi internal WiFi system, but I've found it satisfactory for my purposes (not gaming, just serving several devices; will try video streaming later today).

In particular, my stable, "successful" setup had very sporadic ping response times from the Pi router -- significant std dev in times across 100 pings. "aporetic"'s performance tweaks resolved that. But I also converted to using the "Legacy" setting for the Pi's WiFi system (2.4GHz rather than 5Ghz), and that may have helped.

My setup is that we're moving to a different state, and I needed a temporary router that I can take to our new home when we travel there to get set up. So I plug the Pi into an Ethernet port as the WAN connection, either on my ASUS router in our old home or into a cable modem in our new home, using DHCP to get an address on the WAN side, and I use the WiFi as the LAN side. I've specified the IP on the LAN side to be 10.9.8.x/24, and it offers DHCP service to connecting devices.

I still have some problems with initial connections after a reboot, but after much reading, I think that may be due to impatience on my part. The Pi doesn't have an internal clock, and apparently OpenWRT on the Pi has to be given enough time to sync time on the WAN side before it really functions.

Again, my experience is very limited, and I have a very limited use case, but I'd be happy to brainstorm with you as you work your way through this if it would help just to have someone who's going through the same stuff.

Ah, I tested video streaming over OpenWRT running on Pi-3B+ using the Ethernet connection to an ASUS router for WAN and using the Pi's 2.4GHz WiFi for LAN, and the video streamed quite nicely. So I think this setup will work just fine for my purposes.

David

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I cannot stand that tutorial.

It is full of broken promises and work that is unnecessary.

I'd rather walk you through a complete start-over (and I am willing) than clean up his video.

4

I didn't start from scratch from that tutorial, but I did find it helpful to finish things up and stabilize.

Your posting and its followup replies [Solved] How do i make a router with gateway was one of the first I attempted to follow, and I learned a good deal from it. But in the end, I couldn't get my Pi-3B+ configured for OpenWRT to work as a Ethernet-WAN, WiFi-LAN.

I did at least a dozen from-scratch installs using various tutorials or threads before I got a stable working system. You seem to have a good deal of experience with these. How about writing a tutorial that sets up Ethernet-WAN, WiFi-LAN using just the GUI as one of the simplest use cases, then add branches for various other use cases? If I had more experience, I'd try.

5

You need the ethernet to set everything up. Once your passwords and SSIDs configured, use wifi to get back in the router (pi).

In the GUI, you just need to go to interfaces and add a new interface (name it wan, leave the device undefined) then go to devices and edit br-lan to undefined devices. Pulling eth0 out of the bridge (otherwise this next step will not have the option to add), then add eth0 to the new interface you just named wan. Your br-lan will still have the wifi in it and it will show up in the interfaces but in the devices the br-lan will not appear to be configured. This should leave wi-fi still in the bridge though. If you want you can add another interface, name it lan and add the wi-fi radio0 to it then delete the br-lan. But I did not find it necessary.

I have two radios bridged in br-lan, so I kept the br-lan and looked at the cat /etc/wireless. It was good on the CLI side but in LuCI the br-lan device has nothing assigned.

Does not seem right and I'm sure someone will tell me it is, technically, wrong but it is, practically, right.

:spiral_notepad: But that is NOT how to set up a travel router!!

7

If you have the time I (and many others would be very grateful).

Thank you. I’ll have a look when I get home!

9

The first step is to update the bootloader If you have a Pi4.
Alternatively, you can download a full raspberry pi os for the Pi4 and it will update the bootloader in the firstboot.

For many reasons this should be the first step. I do see you have a 3.

I'll call this the second step but it is just as important: to figure out what usb wifi adapter you have or intend to buy.

I'll write up a how to and then we can work it out through a few days in case something does not work.

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It will do no harm to look but it is not how we are going to set up a travel router.

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did you ever end up putting together a write-up? I have tried to follow this tutorial 3 times now and each time it does not work as described in the video. I should have known when he said "all of this will be below" and it wasn't....

12

I have not. Thank you for reminding me I said I would do it and the forgot about it.

I will get on it tomorrow,

13

OpenWrt just rewrote the hardware page so let me get familiar with it before I suggest outdated information.

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15

You will need another radio; the radio in the Pi will not do double duty.

I suggest a 2.4Ghz radio, because it has a longer range and most hotspots use it. They are also cheaper. (I'll get around to suggestions later.)
So I'm going to work you through it and take notes as I forget things.
But it all starts with the latest bootloader but as I see you have a 3 so that is not as important.

Go to the firmware selector and start typing raspberry Pi and it will list models. Pick your's and click Customize installed packages and/or first boot script

Then request a build. The server may be busy (its a Saturday) so unless it tosses an error it is working on it.

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thank you, I will start with getting open wrt downloaded. I didn't mean to confuse you, I am not the OP or person who asked for help before. I am working on this project and stumbled on this thread hoping to find answers after unsuccessfully trying to follow the YouTube video made on this.

17

I probably did get you confused with someone in the thread.

Bo matter; just means I need to note no all Pis need to update the bootoader.

I'll be here early tomorrow EST and should have a write up soon after and you can see if I left anything out.

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18

In LuCI update lists and look under available for 'travelmate', 'luci-app-travelmate' and 'relayd'. Install all of them

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19

So I have the Pi updated, openwrt is installed and the software you suggested above is also installed. I am able to login via the web and ssh from cmd. I can connect to my wifi and ping google. I also installed the USB adapter and can add radio1 and it will broadcast but I cannot connect a device to the "Openwrt" network

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Show me the wireless page in LuCI.

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wireless
wireless987×450 64.6 KB

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can you surf using radio0?

Oh, I see, hold on.

show me the interface page. scratch out MAC and IPv6

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interface
interface977×312 34.6 KB