I'm attempting to set up an OpenWRT One router as a dumb/bridged AP on a router running OPNSense, so the OPNSense router can handle all of the routing, firewall, VLAN, and DHCP functions. The One router is running the latest stable build 25.12.5.
I've attempted the DHCP method and the static IP method in this guide
but I cannot get my OPNSense box to assign the One router an IP address or recognize it's static IP address once I get to the point in either of these lists of steps when I turn the One's DHCP server off. After that point, it becomes inaccessible and I have to reset it to reattempt the configuration.
The only way I can get the OPNSense box to recognize the One router is when I plug it in after it's fresh on a factory reset configuration. My OPNSense box's default IP/gateway is 10.17.xx.x, while the default config of the One router is 192.168.1.1. When I plug in the One router, the OPNSense box's DHCP server sees it and gives it an IP of 192.168.1.111 (pic attached from the OPNSense dashboard widget). If I point my web browser at that address, it goes back to the OPNSense dashboard login page, but I can still access the One's configuration portal at 192.168.1.1. As soon as I get to the point where I turn off the DHCP server on the One router, it becomes inaccessible and my OPNSense box won't see it anymore. Also, I'm assuming since there are two DHCP servers fighting each other in this configuration, my ability to resolve DNS doesn't work so I can only talk to the two devices' portal pages at this point.
Are there updates that need to be made to above guide for the current OpenWRT firmware? There has to be some step (or two) I'm missing, but I cannot figure out what it is.
Setting a static IP (that doesn't conflict with the upstream router and the DHCP pool) is often recommended instead of DHCP assignment.
However, if you want to set the One to get its address via DHCP, simply change the protocol to DHCP client and hit "Apply unchecked" (it's a dropdown from the "Save & apply" button). Alternatively, you can directly edit the config file and then just restart the network service. These two methods will prevent the system from reverting in the event that you don't re-establish a connection to it within the timeout period.
I attempted the static IP address method again. This time I turned on the wireless radios and configured an SSID before plugging the One into my OPNSense box. The wireless connections to the One are working. The only issue now is that I can't access LuCI via its newly defined 10.17.xx.50 IP when it's connected in the router. The DHCP pool starts at xx.60.
Edit: I tried to set an alias ip adress in the DHCP server in OPNSense for the One router, which was the same as I defined for it previously. Now wireless connectivity seems to be broken aafter removing the setting.
One thing that I wasn’t doing that was listed in the guide was connecting to the One router via wireless after initially changing the IP configuration before turning off the DHCP server. So I went through the steps again via static IP and DHCP still with no luck.
I’m starting to wonder if this could be a hardware conflict, as the device I’m using with OPNsense has two different types of Ethernet ports. The first two are familiar intel i226-v ports and the rest are just labeled as “Copper.” I also don’t have any firewall rules in OPNSense, to my knowledge, that would prevent devices connecting to each other over the LAN.
I’m going to attempt a totally different configuration with a managed switch (flashed with OpenWRT), connected to a mini pc running OPNSense (with intel Ethernet ports), to see if the problem persists. Maybe two different OpenWRT devices talking to each other might be more agreeable for this configuration.
What is the address of your main router? What is the scope of the DHCP range as defined in your current DHCP server (not the OpenWrt DHCP server, of course, since that will be disabled)?
Connect to the router (192.168.1.1) via ether ssh or a web browser.
Change the lan IP to your new address (10.17.27.50)
If using the web interface, apply the settings and reconnect quickly to ensure it doesn't revert or use the apply unchecked option; if using ssh, simply reboot. Don't forget that you'll need to renew your DHCP lease on the computer to get an address on the new subnet.
Enable wifi (set country code, SSID, encryption type and passphrase)
Disable the DHCP server on the OpenWrt device
Reboot the device and connect the lan port to your main network (pro-tip: make sure that the upstream port you plan to use is working properly by connecting your computer to it first).
As you mentioned earlier, I tested the other ethernet ports, and noticed that the One finally started handing out proper connections over wireless and local network when it was plugged into the default LAN port that my desktop was using.
I found out that network appliances that have multiple ethernet ports don’t behave like a standard switch. Simply enabling the DHCP server on each port does not work, likely without some other configuration that I’m not aware of. To mimic the behavior of a switch with OPNSense, an ethernet bridge must be configured. Now that I’ve configured the bridge, everything is working as normal.
When working with individually routed ports, OpenWrt also has similar approaches with the bridge device construct. This is also true when there are embedded switches, but depending on the target, it will be addressed via swconfig or DSA.
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Thanks!
