Wavlink AC600 - AP to Bridge

Installing and Using OpenWrt Network and Wireless Configuration
1

I have done this before but I can't seem to figure it out now.

I have a phone that can share internet through a USB-C ethernet dongle. I cannot configure the IP address of the phone at all, so client devices through ethernet will not get a static ip, nor will the phone's ethernet adapter have a static ip.

I have 2 x Wavlink AC600s to send a WiFi signal to another building.
I need it setup like so

Router----ethernet----Wavlink (Client)----wifi----Wavlink (AP)----ethernet----Phone

Because of the Phone not being able to change IP address and can and does use anything from 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255, I need to set all other IPs in the 169.254.X.X range.

I am currently struggling with getting the Access Point to get a DHCP address from ethernet, run a DHCP server on the WLAN AP, and use a different IP range for the WLAN AP.

Can someone please help with this, thanks!

2

configure the port as a DHCP client, not static IP, then move it to the wan firewall zone, and you should be good to go.

when you've done this, you won't be able to communicate with the device over ethernet anymore, make sure your wireless works 1st.

to change the lan subnet, run (using ssh)

uci set network.lan.ipaddr='169.254.X.X'
uci commit network
/etc/init.d/network restart
3

I got the 2 routers to work, however, OpenWRT does not support the 5ghz radio by default. I don't know if I need drivers but the kmod for the chipset was already installed. I cannot do anything with radio1.

If I create a wireless AP on radio1, it says Wireless not associated, radio1 says Device not active, and there's no signal. Neither device would do anything with the 5ghz radio. I wouldve liked to have the AP one to advertise 5ghz and the 2.4ghz be hidden only for use by the bridge device, but that doesnt seem possible.

4

What firmware did you install?
I'm asking, since I can't find the ac600 in the ToH.

Or is the device also known under some other name?

1 Like
5

I forgot it's under many names

WN570HA1 is the actual model
And I installed the latest

The MT7610E is the 5ghz chip that doesnt work at all
The other chip works, but my Linux PC cant connect, I keep getting hostapd errors about not receiving acknowledgement of authnetication on the router. All security is down like KRACK, idk what is going on.

I just tried to get logs for wlan1 (5ghz) by making new wifi ap and PC can see it but cant connect, and wifi keeps disappearing and reappearing. It's just too buggy to get a consistent pattern to nail down where the problem is. Most it doesnt broadcast at all. That may be because it is defaulted to 80mhz but I just set it to 40. Logs arent showing any problems at all, its not even showing the acknowledgement errors I get with the 2.4ghz, even though nothing can actually associate with it.

6

Have you read most of these search results, your in a couple returned:

https://forum.openwrt.org/search?q=WL-WN570HA1

7

Well I got the router working, and theres only 1 ethernet and the only fix I see in those results is flashing someones dumped image, and I dont want to risk that. Nor do I want to learn the entire openwrt manual to set everything up through cli, it was troublesome enough to learn the nonstandard naming scheme it uses.

I was hoping there was an incorrect driver installed or something, but from i can tell, the kmod mt76x0e driver is bugged for this chip and theres nothing I can do about it.

I'm not too worried about it. I've been through 2 different TP link Archer routers a couple of months ago with this exact same problem, probably even same chipset. Development seems to have ceased for these MT AC chips, those tp links were the most popular, and these wavlinks are the cheapest outdoor routers.

I tested the default software and it workeed perfect for what I needed, I just didnt want these routers phoning home to China so I put openwrt on it. Ive had success building from source on x86 platforms in the past, but I just really dont have the time anymore to be doing that. I just need a router that works.

I really wish the documentation reflected that the tp links and this wavlink didnt work with the 5ghz, I wouldnt have wasted my time messing with it.

8

Don't know where you are, but on US eBay, you can often get a Comfast/Joowin CF-EW72 for ~15$.
There's a v2 now, I don't think it's supported yet.

As APs they don't need and gw or dns IPs assigned, which makes it hard to phone home.