I'm currently running OpenWrt on my Linksys MR8300 but want to update to a recent version. I noted at least three methods to flash the firmware but, unfortunately, didn't mark which one I eventually used, and after a few months, I've forgotten how I did it.
I already changed a bootloader variable to 'kernsize 500000'
The router is an MR8300v1. Luci shows that I have OpenWrt 22.03.5 on the first partition and the Linksys firmware on the second.
Linksys MR8300 Partitions:
Partition
Status
Firmware
01
Current
OpenWrt 22.03.5 (Linux 5.10.176)
02
Alternative
Linksys (Linux 3.14.77)
I would like to keep this setup as it is and only update partition one to either 23.05.5 or 22.03.07. I have a 330/50 PPPoE internet connection.
The reason I installed 22.03.5 in February 2024 instead of the latest version was that the newest OpenWrt was reducing the speed. On 22.03.5, I can get 290Mbps, but the 23.5.2 version at the time was reducing the download speed by half.
I found discussions on the OpenWrt forum (which I can't find now) that suggested the newer versions of OpenWrt use only one core, and full traffic is too much for it. The MR8300 has four cores but they're slowly clocked. I'm not sure if this issue has been fixed in 23.05.5, but I see that I could update to 22.03.07 if not.
Any advice, suggestions, or help on how to proceed would be highly appreciated.
22.03.5 and above supports flashing back to OEM firmware, no need to keep OEM firmware on inactive partition. But recently, I cannot find any OEM firmware on the Linksys website.
FW_MR8300_1.1.10.210186 is the latest that I have saved, dated June 2022.
23.05.x changes the default CPU governor to PERFORMANCE
With 22.03.x, you can change to PERFORMANCE from ONDEMAND
Edit "/etc/rc.local" and add the following line:
echo performance > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpufreq/policy0/scaling_governor
Check and set your bootloader size BEFORE flashing 23.05.x
I currently use 3 MR8300 as access points (23.05.5). I have irqbalance enabled.
On my main router (WRT1900acs or RPi4, 1000/20 connection), I am running a snapshot (kernel 6.6.x) with irqbalance and packet steering (all CPUs) enabled. The newer packet steering feature seems to spread the load across the CPUs better.
DSA is known to reduce the routing speeds of the Linksys WRT series. But the newer packet steering increases the speed.
Thanks. I was just about to ping you as I found your older post about DSA:
I hope there is a solution for MR8300. I will try to test myself shortly with 22.03.07 and 23.05.5 when I figure out how did I install the OpenWrt the first time as I ended up with the OpenWrt as a current partition 1 and stock FW as alternative partition 2
Thus far I gathered that most probably I need to use luci-app-advanced-reboot to reboot to stock and flash factory.bin from https://192.168.1.1/fwupdate.html to keep the order I have already.
I first planned to use sysupgrade as I am already on OpenWrt, but this seems to overwrite the stock which I do not want atm.
Correct me guys before I will break something.
Thanks.
Before upgrading to 23.05.05 read https://openwrt.org/toh/linksys/mr8300 some changes must be made via ssh before upgrading or you'll brick the device!!! (fw_setenv kernsize 500000)
Your current config can't be ported to 23.05.05 because of DSA changes, you'll need a clean config indeed.
Hi.
Much has been already said be others users in previous messages. I have no experience in PPPoE so I can't tell you which version is the better choice. Try to find infos about PPPoE with DSA, as 23.05 is running with DSA.
It is safe to install OpenWrt on both partitions. Mine is running this way for a couple of years. Luci-app-advanced-reboot easily allows to change the booting partition. You can install both latest 22.03 and 23.05 and compare behaviors. Once you have decided wich one to keep, just flash again the same version and you'll have both partitions running the same system.
You can always flash any OpenWrt version, and even Linksys afterwards.
During cable management I powered off the router a couple of times, I encountered an issue where the router showed a red LED, and the Ethernet connection stopped working. I couldn't access LuCI anymore and discovered that the original Linksys firmware had booted itself (I believe I unintentionally triggered the reset procedure).
Since this happened, I decided to upgrade from OpenWrt 22.03.5 to OpenWrt 23.05.5 (Linux 5.15.167).
Here’s what I’ve done so far:
Edited the WAN settings with my PPPoE internet connection details.
Installed
luci-app-advanced-reboot
luci-app-sqm
irqbalance
However, I’m struggling with the settings. On default settings, the bufferbloat is terrible, and my speed test results have dropped significantly. Previously, I was getting an A+ grade with a 290 Mbps download speed.
I could not find luci-app-irqbalance in fresh install but irqbalance was there. I've read the manual and found that it has to be enabled by option enabled '1' in /etc/config/irqbalance.
