Beta Asuswrt-Merlin 388.1 Beta is available for select models

[iJorgen]

Smooth upgrade from 386.7_2 and no issues after the first hours. Feels solid, great performance and system log as clean as before the upgrade. Thanks @RMerlin

 

[LimJK]

Hi,

Just like to report that I have a smooth upgrade from AX88U_Alpha1 to AX88U_388.1_beta1 for my configuration:

• AiMesh Router: AX88U 388.1_beta1 (GPL 388_20566)
• + 2 x AiMesh Nodes: AX86S 3.0.0.4.388_20566, AC86U 3.0.0.4.386_48260

Thanks!

 

[Deleted member 77025]

May  5 07:05:03 kernel: Registering button 2 (ffffffc00082ab68) (bpGpio: 0000801c, bpExtIrq:00000001 (1))
May  5 07:05:03 kernel:     extIrqIdx:1, gpioNum:28 ACTIVE LOW
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: genirq: Flags mismatch irq 36. 00000000 (brcm_36) vs. 00000000 (brcm_36)
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: request_irq failed for irq=36 (brcm_36) retval=-16

May  5 07:05:03 kernel:   bcm963xx-pcie: Core [2] UBUS Intr [UBUS_LINKUP]^M
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: pci 0000:00:00.0: of_irq_parse_pci() failed with rc=-22
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: pci 0000:00:00.0: bridge configuration invalid ([bus 00-00]), reconfiguring
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: pci 0000:01:00.0: of_irq_parse_pci() failed with rc=-22
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: pci 0000:00:00.0: BAR 8: assigned [mem 0xe0000000-0xe0bfffff]

May  5 07:05:03 kernel: proc_dostring_crashlogsave:  crash log filename is /jffs/crashlog.log
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: crashFileSet: log signature invalid ! 
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: ret 0 retlen 65536 buff <3>hub 1-0:1.0: config failed, hub doesn't have any ports! (err -19)

May  5 07:05:03 kernel: IGMP Query send failed
May  5 07:05:03 kernel: IGMP Query send failed
May  5 07:05:04 kernel: device eth6 entered promiscuous mode
May  5 07:05:04 kernel: CFG80211-ERROR) dhd_config_dongle : Dongle is already up
May  5 07:05:04 kernel: IGMP Query send failed

May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_busy(951): eth6: busy check failed for chanspec: 0x1903 (5u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_intf(1003): eth6: intf check failed for chanspec: 0x1903 (5u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_bgnoise(1320): eth6: bgnoise check failed for chanspec: 0x1903 (5u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_txop(1575): eth6: txop check failed for chanspec: 0x1903
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_cns(1411): eth6: knoise check failed for chanspec: 0x1903
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_busy(951): eth6: busy check failed for chanspec: 0x1904 (6u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_intf(1003): eth6: intf check failed for chanspec: 0x1904 (6u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_bgnoise(1320): eth6: bgnoise check failed for chanspec: 0x1904 (6u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_txop(1575): eth6: txop check failed for chanspec: 0x1904
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_cns(1411): eth6: knoise check failed for chanspec: 0x1904
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_busy(951): eth6: busy check failed for chanspec: 0x1905 (7u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_intf(1003): eth6: intf check failed for chanspec: 0x1905 (7u)
May  5 07:05:05 acsd: acs_candidate_score_bgnoise(1320): eth6: bgnoise check failed for chanspec: 0x1905 (7u)

May  5 07:05:15 odhcp6c[1388]: Failed to send RS (Cannot assign requested address)

dirty flash over alpha..

 

[netmik3]

I've definitely downloaded the correct one.

First time:
View attachment 45208

Second time:
View attachment 45209

Really odd!
Both nodes (AX86Us) have been updated without issue.

HB

Rog also fails?

 

[HeadBanger]

Rog also fails?

Yes, both fail on both browsers.
No USB attached btw.

HB

 

[bigAL991]

dirty update from 386.7_2 and to report no issues.
running 1 OpenVPN and 2 Wireguard without issue.

there are no options to test the vpn connections via the speedtest function.

Thanks as always @RMerlin

 

[pk73]

small bug on asus rt-ax68u - not showing connected clients to router (screenshots 1-3)...

.

 

[octopus]

there are no options to test the vpn connections via the speedtest function.
USER=10954]@RMerlin[/USER]

- REMOVED: Interface selector on Speedtest page (no longer

working, possibly due to an ookla client update)

 

[XIII]

Congratulations on this major step for supporting 388!

Unfortunately, I can’t run it on my AC86U. Luckily, I‘m not really interested in WireGuard (it would slow down my 1 Gbps symmetric connection a lot - though I don’t know whether I’d actually notice that…)

However, if it turns out no 388 for AC means no security updates (or getting them much later) I might upgrade to AX anyway (I have no urge/need right now).

What Asuswrt-Merlin capable model does the community suggest?

AX86S, AX86U, AX86U Pro (not yet available where I live), AX6000, something else?

(I might act on a good Black Friday deal later this month)

 

[octopus]

Thanks for new builds!

Just loaded on my two RT-AX86U and working fine.

Found vpn director can't edit clients, goes dirctly to "save settings" and Ethernet port not display properly (have done Ctrl-F5 clear browser cache)

EDIT: Hmm suddenly Ethernet port start to working

Found this under: Tools => Sysinfo => Network => connections

 

[nzwayne]

GT-AX6000 running on 388.1 Beta. When I update the downstream AiMesh RT-AX86U units to 388.1 Beta from the ASUS stock 388 level the AiMesh panel shows both RT-AX86U's show they lose their Ethernet connection. The RT-AX56U on 388.1 Beta with ethernet connection no issues.
I have power cycled off/on the GT-AX6000 and RT-AX86Us and no change. What does resolve this quirk is re-installing the RT-AX86U stock firmware that was previously installed: RT_AX86U_AX86S_300438820566. 100% re-creatable; 388.1 beta loaded on the RT-AX86U's no Ethernet connection shown, Stock 388 firmware loaded Ethernet connection shown.

 

[skeal]

GT-AX6000 running on 388.1 Beta. When I update the downstream AiMesh RT-AX86U units to 388.1 Beta from the ASUS stock 388 level the AiMesh panel shows both RT-AX86U's show they lose their Ethernet connection. The RT-AX56U on 388.1 Beta with ethernet connection no issues.
I have power cycled off/on the GT-AX6000 and RT-AX86Us and no change. What does resolve this quirk is re-installing the RT-AX86U stock firmware that was previously installed: RT_AX86U_AX86S_300438820566. 100% re-creatable; 388.1 beta loaded on the RT-AX86U's no Ethernet connection shown, Stock 388 firmware loaded Ethernet connection shown. View attachment 45217View attachment 45220

Did you reset to defaults and hand configure?

 

[alecmascot]

RT-AX86U: Ethernet Ports Display came up after some time.

 

[jakey]

AX58U, nothing serious

DNSFilter old link which goes nowhere now needs updating.

 

[alan6854321]

Upgraded my AX86S with just one hiccup...
Avast blocked the firmware page as a 'Phishing site'.
Had to turn off the protection to allow me to upload it.
(I think the problem is the old firmware upload page, not the new release).

All running OK at the moment.

 

[geobernd]

Dirty Flash last night a few minutes after it came out on my trusty RT-AX86U followed by a second reboot 15 minutes later...
Uptime now 8h30m - all quiet and working great for me.
Also FlexQoS with manually disable flowcache working great like before...
Will update if anything changes

Thank you Eric!!!

 

[abir1909]

Asuswrt-Merlin 388.1 Beta is now available for all Wifi 6 (AX) models. This release marks the merge with the new 388 code base from Asus. I don't want to list every 388-specific changes made by Asus, so I recommend checking Asus' own changelogs for more details. I will highlight the most important ones below.

388.1 Release notes
This code base is only available for AX models, AC models will stay on the 386.x code base. Asus hasn't added any of these to their End-of-Life list as of now, so that means they will still get updates, just not as frequently. Most of these models being 5-7 years old now, having reduced support isn't unreasonable (as opposed to competitors typically completely dropping ALL support within 2-4 years). On my end, I currently don't plan to drop support for these AC models for the time being, but as with upstream updates, these older models will get less frequent updates from me as well.

388.1 is based on 388_21224, except for the RT-AX88U and GT-AX11000 which are based on a slightly older 388_20566 release.

New model supported
388.1 introduces support for the new RT-AX86U_Pro.

Feature changes
388 introduces a number of feature changes. Some of them were already available in Asuswrt-Merlin (like DNSSEC or DNS rebind protection support). Some of the new features are only available through the mobile application, which may or may not work with Asuswrt-Merlin - it is not officially supported by me. Anything related to OpenVPN for instance will not work properly, as Asuswrt-Merlin's OpenVPN implementation is completely different from the stock firmware. I have no control over the mobile application, so it is what it is in terms of compatibility.

WireGuard
The biggest user-facing change is the introduction of WireGuard support as an alternative VPN protocol. This implementation is developped by Asus, the only changes made were to integrate it with VPN Director (which is Asuswrt-Merlin's alternative to VPN Fusion), and to integrate it into the web interface (as we don't use Asus' VPN Fusion management interface). Note that while supported, I don't intend to make any major changes to the WireGuard implementation, as my development focus will remain with OpenVPN. One important limitation to note is that WireGuard requires NAT acceleration to be disabled, which greatly reduces its usefulness on a router, as if you have a fast enough WAN connection to truly benefit from WireGuard performance, that performance ceiling will most likely cap at around 300-350 Mbps due to the lack of NAT acceleration for your router's traffic.

WireGuard was fully integrated into VPN Director. WireGuard rules will have the lowest priority, which means they will be applied after the OpenVPN rules (which will be applied after any WAN rule, these having the highest priority). DNS handling will be identical to OpenVPN clients set to Exclusive mode, which means DNS servers configured for WireGUard clients will use firewall rules to force routed clients to use that DNS server. Also, by default, no traffic is routed through WireGuard, you need to configure rules in VPNDirector. This is identical to the stock firmware which requires you to create VPN Fusion rules to handle WireGuard client traffic.


Other 388 changes
388 also revamped the Parental Control settings a bit. The networkmap uses a new port status display (note that this seems to still be a bit quirky on some models, but that code is closed source so outside of my control). This new display will tie in with Asus' new cable diagnostic feature, available on some models. There are also a few low-level changes made by Asus to improve reliability in general. Also, on newer HND 5.04 models (like the GT-AXE16000), they upgraded the amount of available nvram to 192 KB.


Other Asuswrt-Merlin specific changes
I tried to keep the other changes to a minimum for this first 388 release, to focus testing/debugging on the 388 code base itself. There were still a few internal changes made, for instance improvements around VPN Director, and a redesign of that page. Please see the changelog for details.

One thing worth mentionning is that I have decided to rebrand DNSFilter as DNS Director. There was no change in functionality. The name change was to avoid confusion with the company that bears the same name, and also to better describe what this feature does.

Also as an experiment, the ROG model archives (GT-xxxxx) contain a second firmware image with the _rog prefix added to the version. This is the same firmware compiled with the original ROG user interface enabled. Note that these images are provided as-is. I have fixed the most important display issues, however there may still be a few issues that remains, like the lack of any icon for the Tools menu (I don't have the artistic skills to create that icon). While I will monitor feedback, note that while I may fix issues, I don't plan on extending this interface any further. I may also decide to drop the experiment in the future, it will depend on the user feedback, and how much development time is required for future maintenance of this separate interface.

Note that after switching to a _rog version (or back to the regular version), you will need to either shift-reload the webui page, or clear your browser cache for the UI to load properly.


Upgrade procedure
You can directly upgrade from a previous Asuswrt-Merlin release. If coming from the original Asus firmware, note that while supported, you will need to reconfigure any existing VPN configuration after the upgrade. I implemented some upgrade code that will at least fix/prevent the most problematic issues, but if you notice any odd behaviour following the upgrade, be ready to do a factory default reset, and to manually reconfigure your router.


Things to test:

• RT-AX86U_Pro support in general, LED behaviour, etc...
• WireGuard client and server
• VPN Director in general (both with OpenVPN and WireGuard), including the new UI changes to directly edit a VPN client settings

Please keep the discussion on the topic of this 388.1 release. Any off-topic post may possibly be ignored, moved, or deleted.

Downloads are here.
Changelog is here.

Hi Eric, I read you comment “that performance ceiling will most likely cap at around 300-350 Mbps due to the lack of NAT acceleration”
I don’t see a difference on my AX86U. I have wireguard client enabled.
I am getting 500Mbps download on my wan with Wireguard on.
did you mean 300-350 max for the vpn client or for the entire network?

 

[FLA_NL]

Dirty upgrade from 386.7_2 to 388.1_beta1. Did not notice any issues, everything stays functioning. Thank you RMerlin!

 

[STRUZZIN]

Main 58U & Nodes all updated to beta1 and working great!

 

[BreakingDad]

Waiting on the release version, as everything working well, and for me see no value in system wide vpn as I only use it for torrents on one machine. Other new features are meh at best.