TPlink RE315 4MB / 64MB wifi repeater. Requesting help to build an image

Hardware Questions and Recommendations
1

I understand 4MB is not supported after reading dozens of threads. But afai understand, its for the latest v22 and above openwrt versions.

Is it possible to build appropriate sized image with lower versions? Because thats absolutely fine and will always be better than what stock tplink provides anyways.

I searched and found like 5+ threads where users (experienced as it seems) have build images themselves for their 4MB devices and mostly were v19. That too with LuCi gui. Thats more than enough for me. My need is to implement a lock to AP feature for the repeater because i need it badly for my home usecase, and waited a year requesting tplink for that feature, but as obvious Tplink is.....TPLink. They dont care about user requests. Also since its just a repeater i think many un-useable packages can be removed to save space under 4MB.

Im a complete newbie in building images. If someone could help in building one that'll be great.

EDIT: I perfectly understand what im losing on from future versions and i dont care about that at all. v19.07 is enough for usecase i think.

2

Was the RE315 ever supported, I can't find any proof of it ?

3

I dont understand what you mean ever supported. Its not supported because of v 4MB restriction for v22+ versions. It should work for lower versions isnt it?

4

Or did you mean driver support for re315s SoC in downloads.openwrt.org ?

5

the >4mb flash happened after Openwrt v19 for most devices, if the device was ever supported, the images for it would exist for v19 or v18, or older.

if it never was (supported), it's not a matter of shrinking the image, but to add the support 1st.

I don't see it happening.

the other devices were already supported, then someone decided to shrink their image foot print.
this is something different.

6

By adding support, what is meant? necessary driver and kernel support ?

7

no, provide the customizing required for the image to flash, and device to work with openwrt.

here's a random example from my browser cache

https://git.openwrt.org/?p=openwrt/openwrt.git;a=commit;h=febc2b831f633d8d6648267952bd43c35689c36f

8

So whats stopping this customizing required for 315 while RE200, 305 has support?
If its 4MB restriction its solvable by using lower versions and removing packages, so its not that.

9

a person willing to do the actual work.

it's because it's a device would have been EOLed after v19, if it ever was supported.

10

Those are 8MB devices, they still end when you try to install any extra package.

1 Like
11

Ah, i thought this could be the reason. A dev should buy it or get hands on it to make build for it. The device is not the limitation.

12

And what if users dont want some packages for their use case? It then becomes fine as evident as i said about those 5+ threads.

13

the device is the limitation, no one will spend time adding a device incapable of running the next openwrt release.

for future support, 16mb flash is a bare minimum, you got 25% of 16.

14

You are countering your own statement. you just said its the matter of spending time. And i dont see anything wrong/unworthy if the older version v19 is better at what tplink provides and so spend time for the device.

15

there's a difference between getting it to run some 5 y.o version, and the next release.

the 1st one is time, the 2nd impossible.

then I wish you luck.

16

RE315 is 2021 release. V19.07 was the latest during 2021. i wonder why nobody made a build for it.

17

because they knew 4mb was dead by v19, just as they knew 2 years ago 8mb flash device would be EOLed with v23.

and does it really matter ?

18

There is no chance, bootable OpenWRT is around 6MB, probably you can trim it to 5.5MB removing all wifi and web function.

19

I could try if anyone helps, but as far i see this forum is not exactly a "community" forum.

20

if you think someone will start digging into 5 y.o code to assist you in adding a dead end device, you're wrong.