My ISP has supplied a modem/router (TP-Link VX230V). I have hooked up a router (ASUS EBG19P ExpertWiFi VPN Router) thinking that I would be able to use OpenWRT since the router supports WireGuard VPN.
Ideally I would be able to install OpenWRT on the TP-Link modem/router, or the ASUS router I bought for this purpose. However, if neither option is possible (which from what I have been reading I fear is the case), I would appreciate recommendations on an easy-to-setup wifi-free router (or one that allows wifi to be completely disabled) that can hook into my TP-Link or replace my TP-Link and use OpenWRT. I am in Australia and my budget is under $300. I have recently moved from ADSL speeds of 8mbps to fixed wireless 80mbps, yay!
Bonus if anyone knows how to turn TP-Link VX230V into bridge mode.
Indeed, this is not an option. Both devices are in the same situation: no support for them in the official OpenWrt project. You will need other hardware.
You'll have to refer to the official documentation and/or support channels (the ISP and/or TP-Link; possibly other sites that specifically deal with the VX230V -- this is not supported here).
You may be able to disable the wifi with other methods, but that's not something for which we can provide guidance... look through the settings as well as the above mentioned resources for your device.
You can use any OpenWrt supported device and disable wifi. In fact, wifi is disabled by default on a fresh install of OpenWrt. So if you're looking for a wired-only solution, you can do this quite easily by simply keeping wifi disabled or obviously you can find hardware that doesn't have wifi built-in. If you want wifi (on OpenWrt), obviously select hardware that has wifi radios. But do your research first by looking at the table of hardware and the firmware selector to verify that your candidate devices are well supported (and read carefully to understand any installation and configuration nuances).
80Mbps is trivial with any modern hardware. Most of what you'll find can handle 10x that without problems, too. You shouldn't need to spend anywhere near your max budget (although I cannot speak for the Australian market or the strength of the AU$).
Finally, you don't necessarily need to put your VX230V in bridge mode -- it's preferred, but not a deal breaker to put a router behind another router.
Thank you for such a helpful reply, @psherman! I appreciate the confirmation that I need new hardware and that putting a router behind a router is acceptable. And it is extremely helpful to know that a fresh install of OpenWRT has wireless disabled by default!
I have looked at the dizzying array of hardware options in the hardware table, filtering some out by choosing "router" and "available." Do you think that any of the options that are routers and are currently available are equally good? Or should I be filtering further, and if so do you have recommendations on what I should look for to help me narrow down my choices?
I have filtered the Table of Hardware https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128 by typing "Router" in the Device Type column and "Available 2025" in the Availability column. That gives me 43 entries.
Starting alphabetically, the ASUS ZenWiFi BT8 is $931 + $73.96 AUD shipping from Amazon. So I will keep looking... if anyone, especially in Australia, has recommendations, I would appreciate them!
Thank you for the link listing 225 entries, @brada4 I will have a look to see if I can further narrow it down to something I can find to buy on an Australian website (having AU adapter plug will help!)
Fixed Wireless is where the Australian National Broadband Network puts 4G antennas on roofs instead of rolling out Fibre connections. The good thing is it is a lot faster than ADSL, as well as more reliable, and we don't need a SIM card in the modem/router. The bad thing is, it's not fibre... !
Update with things I've learned so far, plus a question at the end.
GL.iNet GL-MT6000 (Flint 2)
I was able to put OpenWRT on it, however I got an error " Ping: bad address 'openwrt.org" and was not able to use the internet through the router unless I also put the traffic through my VPN after it was through the router. I do not understand this problem, and I'm probably not explaining it well.
But the bigger problem for me was that when I installed OpenWRT, Wifi was not "disabled" as I understand the term to mean. In fact, it was broadcasting on both 2.4 and 5g bands, as I could see via 192.168.1.1 LuCi, but "hidden." I used a heat gun and a screwdriver to remove the 8 little chips connected to the antenna - amazingly this did not break the router. Unfortunately, when I logged into LuCi I saw that removing those little chips did not stop the router from broadcasting Wifi. Next I removed the two bigger 2.4 and 5g chips, at which point the router no longer turned on or functioned at all.
GL.iNet MT2500A (Brume 2) Mini VPN Security Gateway This is what I am going to try next. It appears to have no Wifi at all. The description says, "Runs on the latest OpenWrt 21.02." Does this mean that it is running OpenWrt out of the box and I will not need to make any software modifications?
