Release Asuswrt-Merlin 384.19 is now available

[Vimes]

I don`t know, I just merge the closed source components from Asus.

Thanks. That, for me, has been the only aspect giving me some issues.

 

[Deleted member 22229]

Did anything change in regards to the Wi-Fi from the .18 to .19 release for the Ac86U router...?

Did you look at there change log for there last firmware or at least the one Merlin based .19 on for your model router.

 

[gattaca]

I am in no way faulting the nuclear reset guide. I just need to learn to RTFM, but I thought it might help other newbies like me. Thanks to everyone for all the great guidance and advice on these forums. FWIW, here are the links to Asus' [Wireless] ASUS router Hard Factory Reset FAQ and to the specific instructions for the RT-AC86U.

^^^ Yes... the Hard Reset for the AC86 IS different per the links. I think there is something to that b/c ASUS would not have broken out those few routers as different for no good reason. Those of us with AC86U should follow the ASUS Hard Reset... then go after the "nuclear reset". I used the ASUS Hard reset on my AC86 for my last round of attempts and my routers have been up longer than ever before. We shall see.

Update 25 Sep 2020 - I'm almost afraid to muck with my "production" AC86U (~ 4 days up). I have a test AC86U though that's going to get everything reinstalled including the nice and very useful (to me) J* scripts... As a general principle, our most stability will be with the fewest adds we make - KISS.

 

[bbunge]

Just a quick comment that might be helpful to anal retentive types like me. When I hold down the WPS button & power on my particular RT-AC86U (purchased last month), it only takes 2 - 3 seconds before the power LED turns off. I was holding it down for 10 - 30 seconds per the nuclear reset guide, and when I released the WPS button none of the LEDs were lit, so I powered off & on again to restart. Holding the button down for too long apparently thwarts the process and left my router in an unstable state, no matter what firmware or settings I tried.

Yesterday I finally looked up the Asus website instructions for my particular router and released the WPS button immediately after the power LED turned off. The two LEDs in the middle (WAN & LAN Port #1) started flickering, and then I pushed the Power button to turn the router off, and then pushed it again to turn it on. After that, I followed the rest of the nuclear reset guide & flashed the latest stock firmware (3.0.0.4_384_82072-gc842320), started with a Minimal & Manual configuration, etc. It has been less than 24 hours, but already I see some improvements. My Pi-Hole DNS server is more consistently recognized, wireless connections are more stable, and the web interface just seems faster to respond.

I am in no way faulting the nuclear reset guide. I just need to learn to RTFM, but I thought it might help other newbies like me. Thanks to everyone for all the great guidance and advice on these forums. FWIW, here are the links to Asus' [Wireless] ASUS router Hard Factory Reset FAQ and to the specific instructions for the RT-AC86U.

I have been stating for quite a while that the nuclear reset procedure is not necessary. What you did is what I did to go back to stock Asus. From there I flashed Merlin 384.17, factory reset, min config then flashed 384.18 then 384.19. Only then did I finish configuring. Did not have to mess with /jffs format as it mounted when I booted to 384.19. Eight days solid on 384.19!

 

[Deleted member 22229]

I have been stating for quite a while that the nuclear reset procedure is not necessary.

I have to agree. What router vendor would require such a ridiculous process to make there device work properly. If a straight up factory default reset form the indented button is not enough then maybe they should stop selling routers. Smoke @ Mirrors- Snake Oil

 

[cdlight]

^^^ Yes... the Hard Reset for the AC86 IS different per the links. I think there is something to that b/c ASUS would not have broken out those few routers as different for no good reason. Those of us with AC86U should follow the ASUS Hard Reset... then go after the "nuclear reset". I used the ASUS Hard reset on my AC86 for my last round of attempts and my routers have been up longer than ever before. We shall see.

I'm glad to hear some corroborating experience, Gattaca. If my router continues to work smoothly over the longer haul, I may be emboldened to wipe it again and then try 384.19. Thanks for the additional information, and glad to hear you may finally be putting this behind you.

 

[cdlight]

I have been stating for quite a while that the nuclear reset procedure is not necessary. What you did is what I did to go back to stock Asus. From there I flashed Merlin 384.17, factory reset, min config then flashed 384.18 then 384.19. Only then did I finish configuring. Did not have to mess with /jffs format as it mounted when I booted to 384.19. Eight days solid on 384.19!

You may well be right, and I don't know enough to offer an opinion. My flurry to redo the router yesterday was prompted by the discovery that our Ooma VOIP phone had disconnected from their server just before I needed to place some work-related calls. Ugh. Whatever the case, I'm so happy to have a stable home network right now.

In retrospect, my naïveté went beyond not R'ing TFM. Our old router (RT-AC68U) had run flawlessly on different versions of Merlin's firmware, so when the 86U arrived I simply made sure it was working properly out-of-the-box, and then immediately flashed 384.19— after I had bungled the factory reset. Then, I convinced myself that the 86U simply wouldn't be as stable as the 68U because it seemed fairly common after reading the forums here. I told myself (and my wife) that the 86U was simply a more finicky device, and that I simply needed to keep trying different configurations. Naïveté, self-deception, confirmation bias… I think I made just about every mistake in the book. Oh, well. Onward and upward.

 

[shabbs]

40+ days and going strong...

 

[thecheapseats]

that Nuke Reset procedure never (still doesn't) make the method distinction between a WPS Reset for newer HND routers and the older non-HND routers... does that make a difference? - who the hell knows...

 

[Vimes]

Did you look at there change log for there last firmware or at least the one Merlin based .19 on for your model router.

Yes, but there might have been changes to the WiFi not applied in this custom firmware that might have been noticed when compiling. As it is largely "closed" to making any changes it was unlikely but worthy of a question.

 

[JGrana]

that Nuke Reset procedure never (still doesn't) make the method distinction between a WPS Reset for newer HND routers and the older non-HND routers... does that make a difference? - who the hell knows...

Just a thought (and a shot in the dark) but if you go to the Tools tab in the GUI, there is a field labeled "Driver version" that seems to imply the wireless driver version.

On my RT-AX88U running Asuswrt-merlin 384.19 it shows:

wl0: Apr 15 2020 17:07:39 version 17.10.99.17 (r780087) FWID 01-ecfccd77

Maybe if others running 384.18 or 384.17 (on an RT-AX88U) posted their version it would show either a different or same version.

 

[G997]

My AX88U shows the same version on 384.19

I have observed that my 2.4 signal strength is lower compared to 384.18

 

[L&LD]

that Nuke Reset procedure never (still doesn't) make the method distinction between a WPS Reset for newer HND routers and the older non-HND routers... does that make a difference? - who the hell knows...

It doesn't need to make that distinction; it is a general guide. The proper method for the specific router is what it suggests. That is what makes a difference.

The 'clue' is to perform the WPS reset and get the setup Wizard. Otherwise, try again.

 

[thecheapseats]

It doesn't need to make that distinction; it is a general guide. The proper method for the specific router is what it suggests. That is what makes a difference.

nonsense... Asus seems to think it makes a difference and wrote two distinct procedures... fix your guide. - or don't - your choice...

 

[thecheapseats]

<snip> go to the Tools tab in the GUI, there is a field labeled "Driver version" that seems to imply the wireless driver version.

On my RT-AX88U running Asuswrt-merlin 384.19 it shows:

wl0: Apr 15 2020 17:07:39 version 17.10.99.17 (r780087) FWID 01-ecfccd77

same version here on both of my x88 routers... I don't have a wireless problem...

 

[cdlight]

Update 25 Sep 2020 - I'm almost afraid to muck with my "production" AC86U (~ 4 days up). I have a test AC86U though that's going to get everything reinstalled including the nice and very useful (to me) J* scripts... As a general principle, our most stability will be with the fewest adds we make - KISS.

I've had a small hiccup using the stock firmware, but that's because I got cocky and enabled Smart Connect. Other than that, it's all been very solid with adaptive QoS giving me lag-free VOIP and faster Netflix streaming. It's nice that you have a second AC-86U to experiment with and I'll look forward to hearing what works for you. For me, transitioning back to Merlin at some point would be nice.

 

[bbunge]

I've had a small hiccup using the stock firmware, but that's because I got cocky and enabled Smart Connect. Other than that, it's all been very solid with adaptive QoS giving me lag-free VOIP and faster Netflix streaming. It's nice that you have a second AC-86U to experiment with and I'll look forward to hearing what works for you. For me, transitioning back to Merlin at some point would be nice.

Hmm... Dual Band SmartConnect works really well for me on both Asus 384.82072 and Merlin 384.19. Just do not change any of the WIFI Professional settings, use fixed channels and bandwidth.

 

[cdlight]

Hmm... Dual Band SmartConnect works really well for me on both Asus 384.82072 and Merlin 384.19. Just do not change any of the WIFI Professional settings, use fixed channels and bandwidth.

Actually, it was reading one of your posts that gave me the idea to try it— I saw that it was from an established forum member with the same router, using recent firmware with good results. I went plain vanilla and left the 2.4 GHz bandwidth at 20/40 MHz with Control and Extension Channels at "Auto," and the 5 GHz bandwidth at 20/40/80 MHz also with Control and Extension Channels at Auto and "Auto select channel including DFS channel" unchecked. If I go with a fixed bandwidth, I'm guessing it would be best to choose the highest number (40 MHz for the 2.4 GHz channel and 80 MHz for the 5 GHz channel)— would that be correct, or is this a case where I need to try each option and see which works best for me?

I once tried using the NetSpot Android app to find the best channels. Finding a 2.4 GHz channel was easy, but when I selected a 5 GHz channel my throughput dropped, apparently because I selected a channel in the wrong part of the 5 GHz spectrum. But I could simply set my 5 GHz channel to what the router has currently selected, as it's working for me.

 

[Wisiwyg]

wl0: Apr 15 2020 17:07:39 version 17.10.99.17 (r780087) FWID 01-ecfccd77
Maybe if others running 384.18 or 384.17 (on an RT-AX88U) posted their version it would show either a different or same version.

AX88U V1.1 Merlin 384.18

wl0: Jan 3 2020 14:09:02 version 17.10.99.1302 (r779368) FWID 01-c08754ed

 

[cdlight]

@bbunge: Since my last post, I did some reading on selecting a channel and bandwidth for the 2.4 GHz and the 5 GHz bands. My router has selected Channel 11 (2.4 GHz) and 149 (5 GHz). These seem like reasonable choices given the distribution of neighboring networks, with only a couple of lower-powered networks that overlap some or all of each channel.

Since turning on Smart Connect, the single device that initially glitched has been working smoothly and there have been no further problems. I'll monitor it for awhile and if it remains stable, then I'll leave the settings as-is. If not, then I'll manually set these channels and set the bandwidth to 40 MHz and 80 Mhz for the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, respectively.