[Fork] Asuswrt-Merlin 374.43 LTS releases (Archive)

[cowst]

I haven't checked Merlin's builds in a long time. I know that when Asus switched SDKs, range on my N66U plummeted significantly. That's when I started using John's fork.

Exactly the same for me.

 

[john9527]

I saw in the changelog that this has been fixed in 28E9:

374.43_28E9j9527  (22-November-2017) ARM SDK
[...]
- FIXED: sysinfo: fix clock freq tools display for ARM routers

I would like to install this 28E9 release on my AC68U (cannot use an alpha release on this network), but where can I download it?

The 28E9 release was a 'checkpoint' build I did prior to starting the integration of the KRACK fixes and was never formally released.

I'd wait a bit for the upcoming OpenSSL security release. The 29 alpha looks like it is now really stable, so I plan on doing a formal V29 release with both the KRACK fixes and OpenSSL update.

 

[john9527]

is there any compelling reason to switch from Merlin's?

If you are happy with the performance you are getting from the main Merlin builds, there is no big reason to switch. Wireless performance is very environment dependent....some people see a big difference with the fork, for others it's basically the same.

 

[Markmaster]

I noticed, recently, that my local network speed goes down. Before 28E2 it was normal. So I update to 28E8 and the low speed is still presented. How am I measured: I often copy some video files from my Mac or external drive to my NAS which is a Windows PC that is on the same network. So the speed, if I connected to 5GHz AP, is about 20-30 Mb/sec. The last month it is 1-3 Mb/sec. It is veeeery slow for my needs. What should I change in the Wi-Fi settings or on my Mac to bring back those speeds?
macOS 10.12.1, Windows 10. Asus AC-68U model.
I am sure that I have the best type of connection.

 

[john9527]

Heads up on OpenSSL 1.0.2n release:

Running now with the update to test...integrated without any problems.

 

[RMerlin]

Running now with the update to test...integrated without any problems.

Not much to this update really. One issue is only for Intel CPUs, and the other is for poorly written applications that try to read/write data even after receiving a fatal error.

 

[john9527]

I noticed, recently, that my local network speed goes down. Before 28E2 it was normal. So I update to 28E8 and the low speed is still presented.

If you had said before V27, it would maybe make sense (that's where the wireless drivers changed). Don't know of anything in V28 that would do it. Have you tried doing a factory default reset?

Sorry, but I dopn't have an Apple devices to test on.

 

[john9527]

is for poorly written applications that try to read/write data even after receiving a fatal error.

Agreed....can't say for sure, but I'd guess the router isn't exposed (most probably would be in OpenVPN if they didn't use standard SSL sequences which I hope they would not)

 

[RMerlin]

Agreed....can't say for sure, but I'd guess the router isn't exposed (most probably would be in OpenVPN if they didn't use standard SSL sequences which I hope they would not)

Mssl would be one thing to check perhaps, since I never fully trusted that code.

 

[Markmaster]

Have you tried doing a factory default reset?

No.

 

[Max-H]

Finally had the time to flash V29A9 over V28E8 on my AC68U rev. A1. No problem. Smooth as always. No special settings, just Cloud Disk enabled for the connected HD at the USB 3 port. Besides that a printer connected to the USB2 port.
Internet speedtest(Wifi) Download 205Mbps, Upload 21Mbps. Exactly what i'm paying for.
John, keep up the good work.

 

[john9527]

Update-29E2 is now available! The Alpha stabilized nicely (thanks to the early adopters), so moving directly to release. Not many line items, but a fair amount of work/change behind them.

The 'E' Build series supports all the support routers, including the newer rev AC68U and similar routers, and is the default fork version. The biggest change is the inclusion of the KRACK fix for the N66, AC66 and AC68 routers when used as a Repeater or Media Bridge. The N16 will NOT be updated for the KRACK fix, and so far, ASUS has not released an update for the AC56.

For those of you with early rev (A1,A2,B1) AC68U's who wish to remain with the earlier wireless drivers, I've included a build directory that continues to be based on the earlier drivers/SDK, Update-29L (Legacy 'L' Build). IMPORTANT: The legacy builds do NOT include the KRACK fix for any supported router since part of the fix requires new wireless drivers.

I've also included a file @UpgradeMatrix.txt in the download directory. This shows the options for each router and build combination, including the need for a Factory Default reset or possible JFFS reformat.

Update-29E2 Highlights

• KRACK fix support for the N66U, AC66U and AC68
  The N16 will NOT be updated for the KRACK fix, and so far, ASUS has not released an update for the AC56.
• OpenSSL security update to 1.0.2n
• WGET update to 1.19.2 fixing interoperability issues with some sites (Merlin backport)
• Samba security updates for CVE-2017-15275, CVE-2017-12163 and CVE-2017-12150 (Merlin backports)
• Samba configuration changes for improved performance
• FIXED: avahi-daemon would not start (ARM routers) - @ColinTaylor
• FIXED: CPU frequency not displayed on the the Tools>Sysinfo page for ARM routers - @56kbps @mistercoffee1 @LostFreq

Please review the 'Installation Notes' section in the first post for further information on installing this fork, including the requirements for a factory reset or reformat of JFFS.

Thanks again for everyone's support!


LATEST RELEASE: Update-29E2, including support new rev AC68 class routers
9-December-2017
Merlin fork 374.43_29E2j9527
Download http://bit.ly/1YdgUcP
============================

SHA256

(Default Build - All supported routers)
95f0a9ed62a9b6f8c6e44d8eea1e5d2cf1491a5da1eec6fa91b721d75be46741  RT-N16_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
4edd2b3766701ccaf36b9119cf3da2d62531e376eda2a003e11518e8d31dde38  RT-AC66U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
14e1a810f233145e3ca3d90310a737eed4c431abefa5a1990e61a6e37ac844b6  RT-N66U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
0a80ba960f97c6e909456fe6a560403850aed6ef217645093b3a2395d1188fdc  RT-AC68U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
c71535430f7859bc7b8fbcaa89da18bd8089b0e5f288d3c3767cdd0c528cd55d  RT-AC56U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx

(Legacy Only Builds)
30721b38bfe5167336c30989c9ab1611769ca390f2ec58bd8caf14569e00835a  RT-AC68U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
38d5d455675b14d7b0af12de3d21ccc910e7478e4de5447f49d75ddfe492fbdd  RT-AC56U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
6bc08e813a7d58f17d95c2e2b51196560195bf205ee296e897e178c944b999f4  RT-N16_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
ed29a7ad5b5fe69e5206acfbd6cb91444d9a4a3ab00342a2eb4c171ae9832241  RT-AC66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
13ec9a9fa878648c95cfab270ae73a3307427de273572c541b425d5c04de4a53  RT-N66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx

 

[HallStevenson]

For those of you with early rev (A1,A2,B1) AC68U's who wish to remain with the earlier wireless drivers

What driver is used for the N66 ? I lost track over the past week or so.... You only did a fork for the AC68 ? Just asking but want to be sure.

 

[john9527]

What driver is used for the N66 ? I lost track over the past week or so.... You only did a fork for the AC68 ? Just asking but want to be sure.

Thanks for asking the question.....I see I need to make an additional doc update.

The 'E' builds now contain new wireless drivers and/or driver support files for every router. For the AC66, N66, and AC68 this also includes the latest drivers that support the KRACK fix.

The 'L' builds contain the drivers that were used in the original fork release up to V26(ARM) or V28(MIPS).

For the N66, even though it has the newer drivers for the KRACK fix, I was able to apply the same 'tweaks' that were used in the previous releases. So far, the early users have not seen any real change as a result of the new drivers.

 

[HallStevenson]

For the N66, even though it has the newer drivers for the KRACK fix, I was able to apply the same 'tweaks' that were used in the previous releases. So far, the early users have not seen any real change as a result of the new drivers.

Good deal ! I was intrigued by the reputation your build has with using these older but (very) stable drivers and so far, so good. I've used multiple builds of yours in the past ~2 weeks (you were cranking 'em out !) and I haven't noticed anything although I don't 'test' things other than normal, daily usage.

 

[martywd]

Update-29E2 is now available!
.....

• KRACK fix support for the N66U, AC66U and AC68]

Ahhhh! Now I finally, after a month and a half+, can use my rt-ac68u (media bridge mode) once again. No more CAT 6 laying acrossed the living room floor to a 5-port switch. LOL.

Thanks @john9527 !
.

 

[cvx01]

Update-29E2 is now available! The Alpha stabilized nicely (thanks to the early adopters), so moving directly to release. Not many line items, but a fair amount of work/change behind them.

The 'E' Build series supports all the support routers, including the newer rev AC68U and similar routers, and is the default fork version. The biggest change is the inclusion of the KRACK fix for the N66, AC66 and AC68 routers when used as a Repeater or Media Bridge. The N16 will NOT be updated for the KRACK fix, and so far, ASUS has not released an update for the AC56.

For those of you with early rev (A1,A2,B1) AC68U's who wish to remain with the earlier wireless drivers, I've included a build directory that continues to be based on the earlier drivers/SDK, Update-29L (Legacy 'L' Build). IMPORTANT: The legacy builds do NOT include the KRACK fix for any supported router since part of the fix requires new wireless drivers.

I've also included a file @UpgradeMatrix.txt in the download directory. This shows the options for each router and build combination, including the need for a Factory Default reset or possible JFFS reformat.

Update-29E2 Highlights

• KRACK fix support for the N66U, AC66U and AC68
  The N16 will NOT be updated for the KRACK fix, and so far, ASUS has not released an update for the AC56.
• OpenSSL security update to 1.0.2n
• WGET update to 1.19.2 fixing interoperability issues with some sites (Merlin backport)
• Samba security updates for CVE-2017-15275, CVE-2017-12163 and CVE-2017-12150 (Merlin backports)
• Samba configuration changes for improved performance
• FIXED: avahi-daemon would not start (ARM routers) - @ColinTaylor
• FIXED: CPU frequency not displayed on the the Tools>Sysinfo page for ARM routers - @56kbps @mistercoffee1 @LostFreq

Please review the 'Installation Notes' section in the first post for further information on installing this fork, including the requirements for a factory reset or reformat of JFFS.

Thanks again for everyone's support!


LATEST RELEASE: Update-29E2, including support new rev AC68 class routers
9-December-2017
Merlin fork 374.43_29E2j9527
Download http://bit.ly/1YdgUcP
============================

SHA256

(Default Build - All supported routers)
95f0a9ed62a9b6f8c6e44d8eea1e5d2cf1491a5da1eec6fa91b721d75be46741  RT-N16_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
4edd2b3766701ccaf36b9119cf3da2d62531e376eda2a003e11518e8d31dde38  RT-AC66U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
14e1a810f233145e3ca3d90310a737eed4c431abefa5a1990e61a6e37ac844b6  RT-N66U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
0a80ba960f97c6e909456fe6a560403850aed6ef217645093b3a2395d1188fdc  RT-AC68U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx
c71535430f7859bc7b8fbcaa89da18bd8089b0e5f288d3c3767cdd0c528cd55d  RT-AC56U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx

(Legacy Only Builds)
30721b38bfe5167336c30989c9ab1611769ca390f2ec58bd8caf14569e00835a  RT-AC68U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
38d5d455675b14d7b0af12de3d21ccc910e7478e4de5447f49d75ddfe492fbdd  RT-AC56U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
6bc08e813a7d58f17d95c2e2b51196560195bf205ee296e897e178c944b999f4  RT-N16_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
ed29a7ad5b5fe69e5206acfbd6cb91444d9a4a3ab00342a2eb4c171ae9832241  RT-AC66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx
13ec9a9fa878648c95cfab270ae73a3307427de273572c541b425d5c04de4a53  RT-N66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-29L2j9527.trx

Updated to RT-AC68U_374.43_29E2j9527.trx from 3.0.0.4.374.43_29A9j952 . As usual, zero issues and running like a champ. Thank you!

 

[IAAI]

Anyone knows why changing a dns takes much longer time than other firmwares ?

 

[john9527]

Anyone knows why changing a dns takes much longer time than other firmwares ?

Because they combined the DNS settings on a page with multiple other settings that require a wan restart (and it's a pain in their pages to determine what values may have changed when there are many to check). So changing the DNS actually restarts the WAN interface.

 

[Max-H]

Flashed V29E2 on my AC68U rev. A1. As usual, no issues. Thx!