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Topic: sam's firmware collections for TP-Link WR703N

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@sam or anyone else:

R/W performance on NFS ? MB/s ?

(Last edited by maurer on 22 Dec 2011, 13:03)

@Sam
received my 703n today and the setup was a breeze. Pretty much blindly followed your instructions and it worked like a charm. Awesome job on the firmware!

Trying to troubleshoot an issue unrelated to the firmware. Looking for your linux audio expertise here. Now my setup has mpd running on x86 with local alsa and openwrt-pulseaudio outputs. I see that the lead-lag is random. sometimes alsa lags, which is a little weird. Any idea how I can rectify this.

@s7mx1
I am looking forward your next release.But I would very much appreciate it if you release the pulseaudio package with correct config include usbaudio.
Because I want install 703n to my wifi-car with UVC or 301 camera and stream audio function.

We all know the 703n has just 4M rom,which is so small for those softwares.
So I intend to boot my 703n from a tf card.I still cannot understand how your pulseaudio work...
When I flashed other trunk firmware from http://downloads.openwrt.org/snapshots/trunk/ar71xx/ with Luci webgui and opkg install pulseaudio-daemon kmod-usb-audio,the pulse seems unload anything,no sinks,no modules,even it cannot run...
Unless I input command pulseaudio -nC,entered the command line mode,there is a module-CLI loaded

Now I can stream audio from Windows box to 703n,of course 703n with your Pulseaudio Firmware.
Here is my default.pa file

#
# This file is part of PulseAudio.
#
# PulseAudio is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
# under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by
# the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
# (at your option) any later version.
#
# PulseAudio is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
# WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
# General Public License for more details.
#
# You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License
# along with PulseAudio; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation,
# Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA.


# Load audio drivers statically

load-module module-waveout sink_name=output source_name=input

#load-module module-null-sink

#Load audio drivers automatically on access

#add-autoload-sink output module-waveout sink_name=output source_name=input
#add-autoload-source input module-waveout sink_name=output source_name=input

# Load several protocols
load-module module-esound-protocol-tcp auth-anonymous=1
load-module module-native-protocol-tcp auth-ip-acl=127.0.0.1;192.168.1.111 #192.168.1.111 is my win7 ip address
#load-module module-simple-protocol-tcp
#load-module module-cli-protocol-tcp
load-module module-tunnel-sink server=192.168.1.104  #192.168.1.104 is 703n ip address

# Make some devices default

set-default-sink output
set-default-source input

.nofail

# Load something to the sample cache
# load-sample x11-bell D:\LeoN\ding.wav
# load-sample-dir-lazy D:\LeoN\*.wav

and set default-server = 192.168.1.104 in client.conf,next let the pulse running on win7.
then use mpd&mpc enjoy stream music.

Oh,tomorrow is Christmas Day,Merry Christmas to you,although I am a Chinese.

Hi Sam! Is it possible to add a print service into the NAS (network attached storage) firmware? I have only one WR703N, but I don't want to flash the different firmware to realise the different applications. Thanks!

pp0pp wrote:

Hi Sam! Is it possible to add a print service into the NAS (network attached storage) firmware? I have only one WR703N, but I don't want to flash the different firmware to realise the different applications. Thanks!

WR703N owns only 4MB flash,it's the problem.

cncaihua wrote:
pp0pp wrote:

Hi Sam! Is it possible to add a print service into the NAS (network attached storage) firmware? I have only one WR703N, but I don't want to flash the different firmware to realise the different applications. Thanks!

WR703N owns only 4MB flash,it's the problem.

Hi cncaihua, thanks for your response. I am a beginner for openwrt. So what is the minimum space to add a print service?

s7mx1 wrote:

The wifi chip inside WR703N is quite good and it's only being let down by the wifi antenna printed on the PCB. You need to adjust the position of WR703N to get the best reception. If you have some old wifi router lying around you can rip the antenna and solder it on WR703N which should give a boot to the wifi performance. I have seen other people installed SMA  (detachable) antenna on WR703N.

Hi Sam, I don't suppose you could elaborate a little on the replacement antenna or post some links?
Cheers.

pp0pp wrote:
cncaihua wrote:
pp0pp wrote:

Hi Sam! Is it possible to add a print service into the NAS (network attached storage) firmware? I have only one WR703N, but I don't want to flash the different firmware to realise the different applications. Thanks!

WR703N owns only 4MB flash,it's the problem.

Hi cncaihua, thanks for your response. I am a beginner for openwrt. So what is the minimum space to add a print service?

I just flashed my WR703N with a 3G firmware,you can install a printer server following the wiki http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/printer.overview

here you can find a typical printer server called cups,and the datasheet just show the minimum space . http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/cups.server

(Last edited by cncaihua on 25 Dec 2011, 03:11)

cncaihua wrote:
pp0pp wrote:
cncaihua wrote:

WR703N owns only 4MB flash,it's the problem.

Hi cncaihua, thanks for your response. I am a beginner for openwrt. So what is the minimum space to add a print service?

I just flashed my WR703N with a 3G firmware,you can install a printer server following the wiki http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/printer.overview

here you can find a typical printer server called cups,and the datasheet just show the minimum space . http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/cups.server

A print service needs more than 2MBytes space. It seems that there is no space to add a print service indeed. Okey, I have to drop my idea. Thank you all the same!

pp0pp wrote:
cncaihua wrote:
pp0pp wrote:

Hi cncaihua, thanks for your response. I am a beginner for openwrt. So what is the minimum space to add a print service?

I just flashed my WR703N with a 3G firmware,you can install a printer server following the wiki http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/printer.overview

here you can find a typical printer server called cups,and the datasheet just show the minimum space . http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/cups.server

A print service needs more than 2MBytes space. It seems that there is no space to add a print service indeed. Okey, I have to drop my idea. Thank you all the same!

you can do it - but with p910nd - will take quitel less space- you can fit it in 4MB flash
http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/p910nd.server
http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/uci/p910nd

(Last edited by maurer on 25 Dec 2011, 08:02)

Hi guys,

I managed to squeeze more exciting stuff into a shiny new release The Big Squeeze. Changes can be found on the first post.

I urge anyone using the nas firmware to upgrade. If you are using pulseaudio firmware and you don't mind missing out the easy to use pulseaudio status page and among other things then you can skip the upgrade.

Please be aware that wifi AP ssid/key has been updated, so is the shortened hostname. Please revisit the 1st, 2nd and 3rd post before upgrade.

Now both the firmware has the ability to extend storage either via usb hard disk or network file system. The next step for me is to work out a way to run software from those 'unlimited' storage. I am feeling there is not much room for me to squeeze inside the 4MB firmware and if new features need to be added this is the only way forward.

Enjoy your early new year present!

Sam

maurer wrote:

@sam or anyone else:

R/W performance on NFS ? MB/s ?

The nfs kernel server inside the new nas firmware can do 9MB/s read and 6.5MB/s write. The write speed is likely limited by the weak cpu inside WR703N.

pp0pp wrote:

Hi Sam! Is it possible to add a print service into the NAS (network attached storage) firmware? I have only one WR703N, but I don't want to flash the different firmware to realise the different applications. Thanks!

@pp0pp

I managed to squeeze usb printer driver and software (p910nd) on both of firmwares. Just visit the 1st and 2nd post and give the new firmware a try.

All you need to do is to plug in your printer and configure your client. Please follow the configuration part 2 of the excellent wiki page here.

Personally I have not tried so let me know how it goes.

s7mx1 wrote:

Hi guys,

I managed to squeeze more exciting stuff into a shiny new release The Big Squeeze. Changes can be found on the first post.

I urge anyone using the nas firmware to upgrade. If you are using pulseaudio firmware and you don't mind missing out the easy to use pulseaudio status page and among other things then you can skip the upgrade.

Please be aware that wifi AP ssid/key has been updated, so is the shortened hostname. Please revisit the 1st, 2nd and 3rd post before upgrade.

Now both the firmware has the ability to extend storage either via usb hard disk or network file system. The next step for me is to work out a way to run software from those 'unlimited' storage. I am feeling there is not much room for me to squeeze inside the 4MB firmware and if new features need to be added this is the only way forward.

Enjoy your early new year present!

Sam

Hi Sam, Your new CF sounds good, I use an ext. memory stick to run packages off, have a look at this wiki page : http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/techref/opk … stinations
I mount my memory stick on startup using fstab, and then export the $PATH and $LD_LIBRARY_PATH variables in rc.local, if the memory stick isn't present, it doesn't matter.

Hope that puts you on the way of integrating ext. memory support.

willprice94 wrote:
s7mx1 wrote:

Hi guys,

I managed to squeeze more exciting stuff into a shiny new release The Big Squeeze. Changes can be found on the first post.

I urge anyone using the nas firmware to upgrade. If you are using pulseaudio firmware and you don't mind missing out the easy to use pulseaudio status page and among other things then you can skip the upgrade.

Please be aware that wifi AP ssid/key has been updated, so is the shortened hostname. Please revisit the 1st, 2nd and 3rd post before upgrade.

Now both the firmware has the ability to extend storage either via usb hard disk or network file system. The next step for me is to work out a way to run software from those 'unlimited' storage. I am feeling there is not much room for me to squeeze inside the 4MB firmware and if new features need to be added this is the only way forward.

Enjoy your early new year present!

Sam

Hi Sam, Your new CF sounds good, I use an ext. memory stick to run packages off, have a look at this wiki page : http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/techref/opk … stinations
I mount my memory stick on startup using fstab, and then export the $PATH and $LD_LIBRARY_PATH variables in rc.local, if the memory stick isn't present, it doesn't matter.

Hope that puts you on the way of integrating ext. memory support.

@willprice94

Thanks for the info and will look into it.
I did a bit preliminary work on it. The variables are already in place in profile and there is a half baked script lying around somewhere in the pulseaudio firmware wink

(Last edited by s7mx1 on 30 Dec 2011, 15:34)

willprice94 wrote:
s7mx1 wrote:

The wifi chip inside WR703N is quite good and it's only being let down by the wifi antenna printed on the PCB. You need to adjust the position of WR703N to get the best reception. If you have some old wifi router lying around you can rip the antenna and solder it on WR703N which should give a boot to the wifi performance. I have seen other people installed SMA  (detachable) antenna on WR703N.

Hi Sam, I don't suppose you could elaborate a little on the replacement antenna or post some links?
Cheers.

@willprice94

If you can read simplified Chinese you can visit this page http://www.right.com.cn/forum/thread-53691-1-6.html. Use google translation if needed. You will need to register to see the images on that link and for your convenience you can view them here

http://xbox-remote.googlecode.com/files/IMG_0006.JPG

http://xbox-remote.googlecode.com/files/IMG_0008.JPG

http://xbox-remote.googlecode.com/files/IMG_0010.JPG

http://xbox-remote.googlecode.com/files/IMG_0003.JPG

http://xbox-remote.googlecode.com/files/IMG_0001.JPG

(Last edited by s7mx1 on 30 Dec 2011, 15:46)

@s7mx1
Thank you for the links, they're excellent, I'll have a bash myself and write up a guide in English!

hello. awesome firmware by the way. but i managed to mess it up again haha.

i installed the latest nas firmware and the following happened.

so i messed around with the wifi network part and i dont see the wifi signal aymore.. its set as a client  big_smile
the lan is also disabled by defaults!? i noticed it was disabled on first boot.
i tried to set static ip it recognizes that its an open wrt router but cannot go into webif.
i can telnet to it. but it seems like everything is a system file and cannot be modified.
i tried to set the passwd to enable ssh but apparently cannot change the setting because its a read only system file.


question....
is there a way to reset this router to defaults? by pressing the reset button ?
is there a way to change the setting of the router by command?


does anyone have any ideas?

(Last edited by faramisimo on 1 Jan 2012, 23:44)

faramisimo wrote:

hello. awesome firmware by the way. but i managed to mess it up again haha.

i installed the latest nas firmware and the following happened.

so i messed around with the wifi network part and i dont see the wifi signal aymore.. its set as a client  big_smile
the lan is also disabled by defaults!? i noticed it was disabled on first boot.
i tried to set static ip it recognizes that its an open wrt router but cannot go into webif.
i can telnet to it. but it seems like everything is a system file and cannot be modified.
i tried to set the passwd to enable ssh but apparently cannot change the setting because its a read only system file.


question....
is there a way to reset this router to defaults? by pressing the reset button ?
is there a way to change the setting of the router by command?


does anyone have any ideas?

@faramisimo

If you messed up the wifi client setting then the wifi AP will disappear all together since the AP is switching channels rapidly.  The ethernet port of the nas firmware is default to a wan port hence you need to connect it to a router. Nothing will happen if you try to connect it to your pc straight.

If you are able to enter fail safe mode and want to change settings or reset to default you can follow this  reference: http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/generic.failsafe.

Basically you log into the router via telnet and then issue the following command:

mount_root

At that point you will be able to modify any settings by hand but if you prefer to reset them to defaults you can do so by

mtd -r erase rootfs_data
reboot -f
Generalenthu wrote:

I am pretty much assuming your pulseaudio firmware supports wifi. Tell me if I am way off base there. I don’t have a lot of confidence on the WR703N wifi chipset and have a feeling pulseaudio streaming would be glitchy as I have a weak signal where I need the speakers. Also there is the issue of network saturation with raw audio streaming.

So it looks like a choice between mpd + alsa (if it is small enough) where it would be a stand alone wifi player _or_ a pulseaudio player with probably choppy music, but networked and in sync with my main wired speakers. 

Am a little worried about tinkering with my nas (raid) as it is my main repository for all the important docs and backups.

The other alternative is running mpd + pulseaudio on 2 Raspberries pi, one replacing my current x86 setup and another with wifi card and remote speakers. So raspi vs WR703N, raspi is more expensive by $13 +  wificard, but looks like it will give me the ability to switch between standalone mode and synchronized mode. I am raring to try pulseaudio on WR703N first in any case.

@Generalenthu

Hope you are enjoying your music powered by openwrt. Just to let you know what I have been working on these day. I am currently setting up mpd and pulseaudio on the same WR703N. This is achieved by installing mpd ( and mp3 files of course)  on the nfs share. What I can say is it has no problem at playing back mp3 files which is being re-sampled by mpd from 44.1k to 48K and then streamed back to pulseaudio locally (hardware only capable of 48K) for playback.  The CPU usage is about 35% during playback.

It looks like you can retire your laptop soon and replace it by one WR703N + your NAS. The above test is done locally however I don't see any problem for mpd to stream to any pulseaudio server on the network.

thanks for the reply.

i can telnet and connect. i entered the mount_root command and was presented with the following message.

 
root@(none):/# mount_root
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: set_jffs_mp: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: determine_root_device: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: can't create /.extroot.md5sum: Read-only file system
switching to tjffs2

the second time i enter this command i am left with the following. 

root@(none):/# mount_root
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: set_jffs_mp: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: determine_root_device: not found
switching to jffs2

i change password it seems to work. but i still cannot ssh to it.
i also entered the following command which seems to have worked but does not change anything when it powers back on again.

root@(none):/# mtd -r erase rootfs_data
Unlocking rootfs_data ...
Erasing rootfs_data ...

Rebooting ...

it reboots after erasing rootfs_data and im back to the same thing...
i try passwd to change password it only works after mount_root command but i am still getting refused connection in winscp.

how can i change the settings manually using telnet? .  let me know if you have any tips for me on how to somehow restore connectivity to the router.

thanks for your help.

edit--- adding more details.

ok i think this is the end of it for this router. i typed in "mtd -r erase rootfs" now its just a solid blue light no failsafe nothing..
poor router... sad

(Last edited by faramisimo on 2 Jan 2012, 07:48)

faramisimo wrote:

thanks for the reply.

i can telnet and connect. i entered the mount_root command and was presented with the following message.

 
root@(none):/# mount_root
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: set_jffs_mp: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: determine_root_device: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: can't create /.extroot.md5sum: Read-only file system
switching to tjffs2

the second time i enter this command i am left with the following. 

root@(none):/# mount_root
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: pi_include: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: set_jffs_mp: not found
/sbin/mount_root: line 1: determine_root_device: not found
switching to jffs2

i change password it seems to work. but i still cannot ssh to it.
i also entered the following command which seems to have worked but does not change anything when it powers back on again.

root@(none):/# mtd -r erase rootfs_data
Unlocking rootfs_data ...
Erasing rootfs_data ...

Rebooting ...

it reboots after erasing rootfs_data and im back to the same thing...
i try passwd to change password it only works after mount_root command but i am still getting refused connection in winscp.

how can i change the settings manually using telnet? .  let me know if you have any tips for me on how to somehow restore connectivity to the router.

thanks for your help.

edit--- adding more details.

ok i think this is the end of it for this router. i typed in "mtd -r erase rootfs" now its just a solid blue light no failsafe nothing..
poor router... sad

@faramisimo
The error you saw after executing is from this file /lib/preinit/50_determine_usb_root which is used to mount usb disk as rootfs. This will not stop you from setting up jffs2 user data partition where all your settings are saved. If you watch carefully it says "switching to jffs2" which means it managed to mount the rootfs_data partition as jffs2. You were also able to modify files at that point.

The "mtd -r erase rootfs_data" is to erase all user modified data i.e. reset to default and I don't think you have encountered any problem at all.

This leaves to either you did not attach WR703N back to the router when it boots or your pc is bit lazy at holding the dns cache. You should at least try using the ip address or check the "attached clients" in your router before doing the really totally totally devastating erasing rootfs command.

Now your router is screaming because of an empty rootfs and if you attach the ttl (serial) console you will see  the kernel panic message.

The only option left for you is to open the case and attach the ttl console and then tftp flashing the router. If you have not flashed openwrt image using ttl console then you better ask if someone nearby can help you as this involves a lot efforts. You can try the forum or IRC channel.

Hope this teaches you a lesson to be patient and good luck to your WR703N.

@faramisimo
The error you saw after executing is from this file /lib/preinit/50_determine_usb_root which is used to mount usb disk as rootfs. This will not stop you from setting up jffs2 user data partition where all your settings are saved. If you watch carefully it says "switching to jffs2" which means it managed to mount the rootfs_data partition as jffs2. You were also able to modify files at that point.

The "mtd -r erase rootfs_data" is to erase all user modified data i.e. reset to default and I don't think you have encountered any problem at all.

This leaves to either you did not attach WR703N back to the router when it boots or your pc is bit lazy at holding the dns cache. You should at least try using the ip address or check the "attached clients" in your router before doing the really totally totally devastating erasing rootfs command.

Now your router is screaming because of an empty ootfs and if you attach the ttl (serial) console you will see  the kernel panic message.

The only option left for you is to open the case and attach the ttl console and then tftp flashing the router. If you have not flashed openwrt image using ttl console then you better ask if someone nearby can help you as this involves a lot efforts. You can try the forum or IRC channel.

Hope this teaches you a lesson to be patient and good luck to your WR703N.

hi thanks for the reply. yes i am well aware of my impatience and what i've done.  i did notice that switching to jffs2 message and the fact that i was able to read write but i was bothered by the fact that nothing changed after the data wipe. the wifi wasnt on. pc wouldnt catch an ip and it wouldnt show under connected clients in the router. i have connected it and messed around with it for quite a bit of time actually. this is when i got bored and wiped it big_smile haha. yes i am well aware of what i've done. i am not sure why i do these things.

thanks for taking the time to reply to my post... and thanks for the info.

time to crack that blue brick open and make the cable which is the fun part... the rest makes me a little impatient

s7mx1 wrote:
maurer wrote:

a build with transmission big_smile ?

Probably I can squeeze transmission in with the expenses of openvpn. Will do it at later time but now I really want to release the pulseaudio firmware.

Sam,what about the transmission squeeze? I am a ADSL user,so the OPENVPN means little to me,I'd really like a firmware with NAS and transmission to setup a Bt/Pt client.

(Last edited by cncaihua on 3 Jan 2012, 09:04)

faramisimo wrote:

@faramisimo
...
thanks for taking the time to reply to my post... and thanks for the info.

time to crack that blue brick open and make the cable which is the fun part... the rest makes me a little impatient

I opened mine up the other day and soldered up the serial console (not because my router's bricked, but because I want to interface it with a microcontroller to control and LCD among other things). I'd suggest being patient when you're soldering as the pads really are minuscule, I used enameled copper wire (and scraped the enamel off, then tinned a short amount), use the finest iron tip you have (I just about managed with a 1mm tip, which is crazy, because it was about twice the size of the pad -- not recommended!). Good luck, it's a lot of fun. I haven't been able to get anything meaningful coming up when I try and use 'screen' to watch uboot, it's all gibberish, I'm waiting for my USB to TTL adapter to come before I try anything (I'm using a USB to RS232 at the moment, I think it's gibberish cause RS232 uses inverted logic)

(Last edited by willprice94 on 3 Jan 2012, 10:00)