OpenWrt Forum Archive

Topic: Update on Linksys WRT1900AC support

The content of this topic has been archived between 16 Sep 2014 and 7 May 2018. Unfortunately there are posts – most likely complete pages – missing.

Post #6851
fecaleagle
9 Aug 2015, 16:21

@gotallofthem,

Anyway, there is not a final release of OpenWrt that supports the WRT1200AC yet, but we're getting very close.  An OpenWrt Chaos Calmer release is fast approaching, and the last release candidate (RC3) is the recommended firmware to install if you don't know what you're doing.

There is a wifi bug in that version that you can fix by manually updating the mwlwifi driver, but by most accounts, it makes for a fairly stable experience.  I picked up a WRT1200AC last month and ended up here for the same reason you have.

OpenWrt is amazing, but you should know what you're getting into.  You can do most of the standard configuration from the web interface (Luci), but you should have some familiarity with Linux and be comfortable accessing the router via an SSH client if you have problems or need to utilize more advanced configurations.  Basically, what I am saying is that OpenWrt is a completely different ballgame from DD-WRT.  That said, I'll never go back.

(Last edited by fecaleagle on 9 Aug 2015, 16:24)

Post #6852
fecaleagle
9 Aug 2015, 16:32
alirz wrote:

I recently noticed that too. My wifi speeds ,at least on the 5GHZ are around half of what i used to get like four months ago.
Im already on higher channels 153, 80MHZ, using AES encrption... Currently on trunk r46407 with the latest mlwifi driver in place

Can anyone confirm whether this is a software issue?  Had anyone done a comparison between the v1 and v2 on the stock firmware?  I was very excited to hear that the v2 employs radiative cooling (no fan), and have been thinking of adding one to the arsenal, but these early reports about the dip in wifi performance are disheartening.  Hoping it's something addressable and not a hardware issue.

Post #6853
davidc502
9 Aug 2015, 17:43
fecaleagle wrote:
alirz wrote:

I recently noticed that too. My wifi speeds ,at least on the 5GHZ are around half of what i used to get like four months ago.
Im already on higher channels 153, 80MHZ, using AES encrption... Currently on trunk r46407 with the latest mlwifi driver in place

Can anyone confirm whether this is a software issue?  Had anyone done a comparison between the v1 and v2 on the stock firmware?  I was very excited to hear that the v2 employs radiative cooling (no fan), and have been thinking of adding one to the arsenal, but these early reports about the dip in wifi performance are disheartening.  Hoping it's something addressable and not a hardware issue.

I've always liked the fan, as it reminds me of every PC I've own has had a fan for its processor. Having a processor (V2) that runs cooler under load (probably because consumes less volts), is really an advantage for Linksys, because they can save installing a fan in every router. They probably save 50¢ per sale, and if they sell 1 million, would save 500,000 dollars (Example Math). That's really the way they look at things as they aren't doing it because they are looking out for the customer. They are looking out for themselves and to stay profitable.

I only have 1 ac device, and it runs much better with OpenWrt wifi drivers than stock.  I just ran a speed test with the laptop capable of AC speeds..

This is what Luci says is connected >  -62 dBm    -90 dBm    780.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz    702.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz

Actual throughput during a speed test > 251.77mbps

That's the speed with no tweaking, and I'm completely happy with that though, I'd understand why some would feel underwhelmed smile

(Last edited by davidc502 on 9 Aug 2015, 17:44)

Post #6854
jmschu02
9 Aug 2015, 17:58
davidc502 wrote:

I've always liked the fan, as it reminds me of every PC I've own has had a fan for its processor. Having a processor (V2) that runs cooler under load (probably because consumes less volts), is really an advantage for Linksys, because they can save installing a fan in every router. They probably save 50¢ per sale, and if they sell 1 million, would save 500,000 dollars (Example Math). That's really the way they look at things as they aren't doing it because they are looking out for the customer. They are looking out for themselves and to stay profitable.

I only have 1 ac device, and it runs much better with OpenWrt wifi drivers than stock.  I just ran a speed test with the laptop capable of AC speeds..

This is what Luci says is connected >  -62 dBm    -90 dBm    780.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz    702.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz

Actual throughput during a speed test > 251.77mbps

That's the speed with no tweaking, and I'm completely happy with that though, I'd understand why some would feel underwhelmed smile

So just flashed the OEM firmware AC is at 878Mb/s and N is at 217Mb/s....So i'm going to stick with that for a while...especially since the WiFi is super packet lossy right now with OpenWRT on Cobra

Post #6855
davidc502
9 Aug 2015, 18:05
jmschu02 wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

I've always liked the fan, as it reminds me of every PC I've own has had a fan for its processor. Having a processor (V2) that runs cooler under load (probably because consumes less volts), is really an advantage for Linksys, because they can save installing a fan in every router. They probably save 50¢ per sale, and if they sell 1 million, would save 500,000 dollars (Example Math). That's really the way they look at things as they aren't doing it because they are looking out for the customer. They are looking out for themselves and to stay profitable.

I only have 1 ac device, and it runs much better with OpenWrt wifi drivers than stock.  I just ran a speed test with the laptop capable of AC speeds..

This is what Luci says is connected >  -62 dBm    -90 dBm    780.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz    702.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz

Actual throughput during a speed test > 251.77mbps

That's the speed with no tweaking, and I'm completely happy with that though, I'd understand why some would feel underwhelmed smile

So just flashed the OEM firmware AC is at 878Mb/s and N is at 217Mb/s....So i'm going to stick with that for a while...especially since the WiFi is super packet lossy right now with OpenWRT on Cobra

I haven't played around with wifi drivers or tweaking because it's my daughters Lenovo laptop, but since she's out right now, I've decided to update the drivers and do a little tweaking.

Downloading new Wifi AC drivers... Let's see what happens after they install. The old drivers were about a year old.

Post #6856
KLit75
9 Aug 2015, 18:33

Anyone run mysql on the wrt1900ac? I only use mysql as a database for personal media to my devices but think it'd be much more efficient to not have a computer running 24/7 just for mysql.

Post #6857
jmschu02
9 Aug 2015, 18:38
KLit75 wrote:

Anyone run mysql on the wrt1900ac? I only use mysql as a database for personal media to my devices but think it'd be much more efficient to not have a computer running 24/7 just for mysql.

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2251 … sql-server

points to -> http://downloads.openwrt.org/attitude_a … ar71xx.ipk
but that's for AA and we are running CC and a different architecture...but if you download the source you should be able to compile using your favorite Linux Distro

Post #6858
KLit75
9 Aug 2015, 19:08
jmschu02 wrote:
KLit75 wrote:

Anyone run mysql on the wrt1900ac? I only use mysql as a database for personal media to my devices but think it'd be much more efficient to not have a computer running 24/7 just for mysql.

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2251 … sql-server

points to -> http://downloads.openwrt.org/attitude_a … ar71xx.ipk
but that's for AA and we are running CC and a different architecture...but if you download the source you should be able to compile using your favorite Linux Distro

Thanks!

Post #6859
gufus
9 Aug 2015, 21:16
jmschu02 wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

I've always liked the fan, as it reminds me of every PC I've own has had a fan for its processor. Having a processor (V2) that runs cooler under load (probably because consumes less volts), is really an advantage for Linksys, because they can save installing a fan in every router. They probably save 50¢ per sale, and if they sell 1 million, would save 500,000 dollars (Example Math). That's really the way they look at things as they aren't doing it because they are looking out for the customer. They are looking out for themselves and to stay profitable.

I only have 1 ac device, and it runs much better with OpenWrt wifi drivers than stock.  I just ran a speed test with the laptop capable of AC speeds..

This is what Luci says is connected >  -62 dBm    -90 dBm    780.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz    702.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz

Actual throughput during a speed test > 251.77mbps

That's the speed with no tweaking, and I'm completely happy with that though, I'd understand why some would feel underwhelmed smile

So just flashed the OEM firmware AC is at 878Mb/s and N is at 217Mb/s....So i'm going to stick with that for a while...especially since the WiFi is super packet lossy right now with OpenWRT on Cobra

Wonder why..

Cobra uses the same wifi chip (88W8864) and wifi driver as Mamba.

Don't know Actual throughput on mamba but link speed here on AC is 702.0 Mbit/s.

(Last edited by gufus on 9 Aug 2015, 21:37)

Post #6860
gufus
9 Aug 2015, 21:47

RC3

Using username "root".
Authenticating with public key "rsa-key-20120810"


BusyBox v1.23.2 (2015-06-18 06:39:10 CEST) built-in shell (ash)

Linksys WRT1900AC (Mamba)
Security is enabled, and your IP address has been logged.

root@AC1900M:~# uptime
14:46:39 up 12 days, 21:21,  load average: 0.07, 0.03, 0.04
root@AC1900M:~#

Post #6861
davidc502
9 Aug 2015, 22:01
gufus wrote:
jmschu02 wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

I've always liked the fan, as it reminds me of every PC I've own has had a fan for its processor. Having a processor (V2) that runs cooler under load (probably because consumes less volts), is really an advantage for Linksys, because they can save installing a fan in every router. They probably save 50¢ per sale, and if they sell 1 million, would save 500,000 dollars (Example Math). That's really the way they look at things as they aren't doing it because they are looking out for the customer. They are looking out for themselves and to stay profitable.

I only have 1 ac device, and it runs much better with OpenWrt wifi drivers than stock.  I just ran a speed test with the laptop capable of AC speeds..

This is what Luci says is connected >  -62 dBm    -90 dBm    780.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz    702.0 Mbit/s, MCS 0, 20MHz

Actual throughput during a speed test > 251.77mbps

That's the speed with no tweaking, and I'm completely happy with that though, I'd understand why some would feel underwhelmed smile

So just flashed the OEM firmware AC is at 878Mb/s and N is at 217Mb/s....So i'm going to stick with that for a while...especially since the WiFi is super packet lossy right now with OpenWRT on Cobra

Wonder why..

Cobra uses the same wifi chip (88W8864) and wifi driver as Mamba.

Don't know Actual throughput on mamba but link speed here on AC is 702.0 Mbit/s.

Performance of v1 and v2 are theoretically the same (wifi included)... However, v2 through NAT on the outside interface should have about 50mbps more throughput -- According to some people who have tested.  This is due to slightly faster cpu cores. I've not tested because I don't own version 2, but seems reasonable.

Post #6862
gufus
9 Aug 2015, 22:17
davidc502 wrote:
gufus wrote:
jmschu02 wrote:

So just flashed the OEM firmware AC is at 878Mb/s and N is at 217Mb/s....So i'm going to stick with that for a while...especially since the WiFi is super packet lossy right now with OpenWRT on Cobra

Wonder why..

Cobra uses the same wifi chip (88W8864) and wifi driver as Mamba.

Don't know Actual throughput on mamba but link speed here on AC is 702.0 Mbit/s.

Performance of v1 and v2 are theoretically the same (wifi included)... However, v2 through NAT on the outside interface should have about 50mbps more throughput -- According to some people who have tested.  This is due to slightly faster cpu cores. I've not tested because I don't own version 2, but seems reasonable.

Sounds reasonable

I'm happy with my Mamba(s) got 2 of them, just in the process of rebuilding my LAN, I picked up a refreb Mamba for $100.00 bucks, bet their cheaper now.

Hahaa..
They went up in price here, still cheap IMHO
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_ … hu3agfihs2

(Last edited by gufus on 9 Aug 2015, 23:01)

Post #6863
davidc502
9 Aug 2015, 23:03
gufus wrote:
davidc502 wrote:
gufus wrote:

Wonder why..

Cobra uses the same wifi chip (88W8864) and wifi driver as Mamba.

Don't know Actual throughput on mamba but link speed here on AC is 702.0 Mbit/s.

Performance of v1 and v2 are theoretically the same (wifi included)... However, v2 through NAT on the outside interface should have about 50mbps more throughput -- According to some people who have tested.  This is due to slightly faster cpu cores. I've not tested because I don't own version 2, but seems reasonable.

Sounds reasonable

I'm happy with my Mamba(s) got 2 of them, just in the process of rebuilding my LAN, I picked up a refreb Mamba for $100.00 bucks, bet their cheaper now.

Hahaa..
They went up in price here
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_ … hu3agfihs2

Great deal -- 100 bucks...  I got mine for 130 on Ebay... Was supposedly factory refurbished, but instead, it had a Trunk version of CC where someone didn't know how to install Luci, and sent it back. Still, I was happy in that I got a good deal.

Post #6864
gufus
9 Aug 2015, 23:19
davidc502 wrote:
gufus wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

Performance of v1 and v2 are theoretically the same (wifi included)... However, v2 through NAT on the outside interface should have about 50mbps more throughput -- According to some people who have tested.  This is due to slightly faster cpu cores. I've not tested because I don't own version 2, but seems reasonable.

Sounds reasonable

I'm happy with my Mamba(s) got 2 of them, just in the process of rebuilding my LAN, I picked up a refreb Mamba for $100.00 bucks, bet their cheaper now.

Hahaa..
They went up in price here
http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_ … hu3agfihs2

Great deal -- 100 bucks...  I got mine for 130 on Ebay... Was supposedly factory refurbished, but instead, it had a Trunk version of CC where someone didn't know how to install Luci, and sent it back. Still, I was happy in that I got a good deal.

I'll take a pic of the referb box, Mine did come from Linksys ... I did get it from http://www.canadacomputers.com/ they were cheaper before.

You got a good deal hu IMO

Post #6865
gufus
10 Aug 2015, 00:09
davidc502 wrote:

Great deal -- 100 bucks...  I got mine for 130 on Ebay... Was supposedly factory refurbished, but instead, it had a Trunk version of CC where someone didn't know how to install Luci, and sent it back. Still, I was happy in that I got a good deal.

ops...

Dug out my invoice, Did pay $140.00 for a REAL refreb Mamba from Linksys, Still cheep IMO

Post #6866
davidc502
10 Aug 2015, 01:32
gufus wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

Great deal -- 100 bucks...  I got mine for 130 on Ebay... Was supposedly factory refurbished, but instead, it had a Trunk version of CC where someone didn't know how to install Luci, and sent it back. Still, I was happy in that I got a good deal.

ops...

Dug out my invoice, Did pay $140.00 for a REAL refreb Mamba from Linksys, Still cheep IMO

Now that RC3 CC and the new Wifi drivers are out, the 1900ac is 'stable'... Well worth the money IMHO.

Post #6867
gonzlobo
10 Aug 2015, 04:02
davidc502 wrote:
gufus wrote:
davidc502 wrote:

Great deal -- 100 bucks...  I got mine for 130 on Ebay... Was supposedly factory refurbished, but instead, it had a Trunk version of CC where someone didn't know how to install Luci, and sent it back. Still, I was happy in that I got a good deal.

ops...

Dug out my invoice, Did pay $140.00 for a REAL refreb Mamba from Linksys, Still cheep IMO

Now that RC3 CC and the new Wifi drivers are out, the 1900ac is 'stable'... Well worth the money IMHO.

The drivers are baked in RC3 right, or are they separate?

Post #6868
fecaleagle
10 Aug 2015, 05:03
gonzlobo wrote:

The drivers are baked in RC3 right, or are they separate?

The mwlwifi driver is included in RC3, but there has been an update since then which is supposed to address a couple of issues:

https://github.com/kaloz/mwlwifi/blob/3 … 8W8864.bin

Post #6869
Id0n0tunderstand
10 Aug 2015, 06:45

Now things are getting even worse for me. My computer keeps crashing on my while I am surfing the net. I am using sabayon and it never has chrashed on me before. For instance yesterday the computer crashed three times on me. Each time I went and did some time thing else instead of using the computer other wise it would have crashed on me even more times. I do not know what is going on here. I just do not understand.

(Last edited by Id0n0tunderstand on 10 Aug 2015, 06:50)

Post #6870
jmschu02
10 Aug 2015, 07:33
Id0n0tunderstand wrote:

Now things are getting even worse for me. My computer keeps crashing on my while I am surfing the net. I am using sabayon and it never has chrashed on me before. For instance yesterday the computer crashed three times on me. Each time I went and did some time thing else instead of using the computer other wise it would have crashed on me even more times. I do not know what is going on here. I just do not understand.

Sounds like memory got corrupted or bad hard drive sector.  Your computer might crash from bad network driver but it is highly unlikely that a sound OS would crash due to OpenWRT on any router.  Because of this please post this on your OS's forum not here.

Post #6871
Id0n0tunderstand
10 Aug 2015, 17:36

Well it is still possible. Am I right. When I look at how my firefox browser is behaving with constant network connection problems and that sort of stuff I am not surprised that eventually the OS would crash. I am really upset that I did not wait for the final release and instead went with the RC3. This is just agonizing and I can not do any thing now because I have this room mate that is always online due to internet addiction so I have to wait until the end of August when she moves out.

I am going to have to eventually start using the laptop. There is no point in getting frustrated over this any longer. It just does not work for me.

Post #6872
Chadster766
10 Aug 2015, 18:58

For Boot Loader Recovery I found the below command line worked. It would fail if "-a" was the first argument. In the wiki instructions the u-boot-uart.kwb file is one directory up which caused the command to fail too.

./kwboot -B 115200 -t /dev/ttyUSB0 -b ../u-boot-uart.kwb -a

I also added one line of code to "kwbimage.c" but I'm not sure it's required:

http://lists.denx.de/pipermail/u-boot/2 … 05826.html

I recommend having x32 and x64 binaries included in the zip file because the file name isn't important in the command:
./kwboot-x32 -B 115200 -t /dev/ttyUSB0 -b ../u-boot-uart.kwb -a

If the *.kwb files were in the tar file then the command line would work without the "../".

(Last edited by Chadster766 on 10 Aug 2015, 19:16)