OpenWRT Proxmox Setup on existing infrastucture

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

Hello,
I am totally new to this and ... it seems .... totally lost.
I have a proxmox server where I installed the OpenWRT using the proxmox comunity script.
(https://community-scripts.github.io/ProxmoxVE/scripts?id=openwrt-vm)
This created a VM with OpenWRT with 2 IPs:
-eth0: 192.168.1.1
-eth1: 192.168.0.63
My network is on 192.168.0.x. (Proxmox is 192.168.0.5)

The challenges:
A. I cant access the openwrt web interface at http://192.168.0.63 ... any hints of how to debug/solve this ? I can ping to and from openwrt on 0.63.

B. Assuming I solve this ^^
What will be target in terms of end architecture and the steps to do that without disturbing too much my current setup ? I would like not to change much on my IPS router.

I am thinking:

  1. Change my ISP router to 192.168.1.1 .. my openwrt wlan to 192.168.1.2 and let the internal lan on 192.168.0.x, managed by openrtw dhcp. In this way my current servers and services will not change.
  2. Later create vlans for servers/services (0.x - existing), consumers (10.x) and iot (20.x)

PS:
My goal is to make this in small & safe changes .. so I don't kill the home internet ... and therefore the family harmony :slight_smile:

Thank you!

2

Make a KVM virtual machine instead, container setup relies on proxmox kernel being similar version to OpenWrt kernel, and sooner or later some subtle functionality will break.

3

AFAICT, the script creates a VM, not a container.

192.168.0.63 on eth1 is most likely the WAN interface of the OpenWrt instance while 192.168.1.1 is LAN. By default, OpenWrt requests an IP address via DHCP on WAN, so it probably got this from your network. The WAN side is completely firewalled, that's why you can't access the web interface there.

In order to connect to the web interface, you need to connect to 192.168.1.1 via the eth0 interface.

That said, it is generally discouraged to run OpenWrt on a Proxmox instance in a home environment. Most of the time, it's more reliable and easier to use a plastic router (unless you have some very specific requirements).

4

…or a dedicated low-power x86_64 system running OpenWrt on the bare iron.

1 Like
5

Thank you for the quick answer!
A.
So .. what would be correct steps to adjust to my network ?
Should I change the IPS router to 1.1 and reboot the openwrt to get 1.x a WAN and change my PC ip to static in 0.x, access openwrt web .. setup openWRT LAN to 192.168.0.1 and enable dhcp ...
Or shall I try changing my PC to 1.X and access the openwrt first ?

B
What about my thought of making this step by step for point B ?

PS: The reason for using proxmox is to avoid multiple hardware ... wife-factor.

6

I can use a Pi ... but one more box to manage :frowning:

7

I am not sure I get the point - this is a VM on proxmox.

8

How many physical Ethernet ports does your Proxmox box have?
What does the Proxmox network configuration look like?

--
Normally, you would use the Ethernet connection from your ISP box as WAN on OpenWrt and connect any of the LAN ports to the rest of your network. With Proxmox, you can be more flexible, but if you've only got one Ethernet port, this is a bit more tricky (as in: you need a VLAN-capable switch). But then you haven't really told us what your goal with OpenWrt is - should it become your main router?

9

One more box, but much easier to handle - cable in (wan), cable out (lan), all ready to go.

1 Like
10

It's not a problem of IP addresses, but about logical/physical interfaces. You already stated in your first post that OpenWrt sees/has two Ethernet ports. You need to figure out how they relate to the Ethernet port(s) of your Proxmox box.

The Pi has just one Ethernet port, so you end up with the same situation as before.

11

The RPi is only sensible/ 'easy' if you add a second (USB3) ethernet card, but unless you already have it 'for free', a low-power x86_64 system with everything integrated and 2+ ethernet ports is often cheaper than buying a RPi4/ RPi5 and kitting it out with the essentials. …or a supported plastic router.

1 Like
12

That script is for container. It will not work, knowingly broken by yourself.

13

I just tried it: it definitely creates a VM, not a container!

1 Like
14

Yep. 0.63 is WAN (the one you normally expose to the internet)

You need to add client in LAN/eth0 bridge.

15

Ah .. a bit of info I did not know (2 ports req).

Fair - let me explain the current "architecture" & the main use case:

Box1: ASUS ExpertCenter PN64-BB7014MD with 1 eth port :(.
Here I have a Proxmox with plex, wazuh, paperless, openui & ollama, (ex piHole tbd)

Box 2: Synology NAS DS920 .. this one has 2 eth ports
A few dockers including Home Assistant, Guacamole etc
Wireguard directly running on Synology (punch out to a cloud VM to bypass the ISP NAT)
Plan to move this to Proxmox ... the Synology installation was a temporary solution.

ISP router & wifi box -> utpCable -> MiniServerCabinet [BasicNonManagedRouter -> 2 utpCables ToBox1 & Box2]

Main use case
-Wanted to use my expressvpn on OpenWRT to give my TV and other machines different VPN exits.
-Play around with openwrt ...

16

image

17

The piece I did not realized .. 2 ports ..

18

Looking to the needs and options .. I guess I am better buying a openwrt based router with WIFI and just connect it next to my ISP router ... is not a new machine ... is a extra plastic box I guess :slight_smile: