Hi, I am pretty new to OpenWRT, but quite experienced in enterprise networking. I want to build a wifi network with enterprise-grade security (WPA2-Enterprise), but I want to avoid expensive top vendor devices. In the final configuration, each AP should handle 3 VLANs, dual-band and two simultaneously broadcasted SSIDs on each band. One SSID will be statically mapped to one VLAN, and the second SSID will be dynamically mapped to the remaining two VLANs based on instructions from RADIUS.
And now to the question. If I´ve searched correctly through the information on this web site, TP-LINK Archer C6 should handle this. One caveat is that it has only 8MB of flash. I´ve read a notice that it can, and probably will be an issue, in the future. But still, is this device powerful enough to fulfill my needs also in the short term future? There will be no more requirements toward the device than what I´ve described. On the network there is another powerfull router and al the other service. Just AP and preferably GUI interface.
If this device is not appropriate for this task, could you please recommend me something else preferably in the same budget category and available in the central European region?
The 5 GHz wifi in that model is an Atheros chip from the ath10k series. Although that is generally a good highly recommended chip, the open driver lacks support for multiple VLANs on one SSID. So this model is not suitable for your application. Look for a MT7615 instead.
Hi, I have to disagree with you. By coincidence, I´ve got a used Archer C6 for a few bucks, so I´ve tried it myself. I´ve deployed the latest stable release (19.07.5) and it is possible to use dynamic VLAN on both radios as described here https://openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/network/wifi/wireless.security.8021x#x_dynamic_vlans_on_an_openwrt_router . One thing that is confusing to me is that the 2.4 GHz radio is shown as generic, but it behaves correctly and the speed is the same as with the other AP I am using. So not a big deal.
Maybe this feature was added to the driver recently, I don´t know. But I can confirm it is working.
As for the flash memory size, there is 1.6 MB free with all needed addons installed. It is not much, but I am getting used to the CLI, so in the future, I can give up LuCI to accommodate new versions.
For now, it seems that this device is perfectly fulfilling my needs.