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

[a5m]

Hello,
Yes, when using the Chrome browser (76.0.3809.132 as well as 77.0.3865.75), I am seeing some overlapping text, etc. Same with MS Edge.

Safari iOS and Internet Explorer look fine, so it may be a Chromium browser issue?

Thanks for your reply. I did the same thing, tried Edge and same issue. I didn't try IE, that might be working fine.

But this didn't happen before, and I've always been using Chrome. I think switching between firmwares caused the issue. Flashing stock Asuswrt then going from there might be the solution.

 

[mistercoffee1]

Thanks for your reply. I did the same thing, tried Edge and same issue. I didn't try IE, that might be working fine.

But this didn't happen before, and I've always been using Chrome. I think switching between firmwares caused the issue. Flashing stock Asuswrt then going from there might be the solution.

Mine seemed to just start around two weeks ago (perhaps a Chrome update?). I’ve also always used Chrome.
I've used this latest version of the FW since it came out in April, and it did not have the issue initially. So for me, it did not start happening with the FW version update.

 

[nbdwt73]

For what it is worth, I am seeing the same issue with Windows Chrome but all is well with MS Edge. As I remember, this seems to have shown up after latest Chrome update (works fine on Chrome running on a Linux machine)...

 

[a5m]

Mine seemed to just start around two weeks ago (perhaps a Chrome update?). I’ve also always used Chrome.
I've used this latest version of the FW since it came out in April, and it did not have the issue initially. So for me, it did not start happening with the FW version update.

Agree it's not the firmware update. I've been running it for a while now too and it was fine until 7 days ago when I flashed the main Merlin firmware. Everything was still fine. Then this morning I flashed the stock Asuswrt and then immediately John's Fork. Now the text is all screwed up.

Maybe it's not the back and forth with flashing different firmware, but some other update like Windows or the GeForce driver, which I did yesterday? But that was between the firmware flashes and everything was fine until I flashed John's Fork. I don't know, I finally got everything running the way it should so am hesitant to try and flash firmwares again just to fix this bug.

 

[KGB7]

Agree it's not the firmware update. I've been running it for a while now too and it was fine until 7 days ago when I flashed the main Merlin firmware. Everything was still fine. Then this morning I flashed the stock Asuswrt and then immediately John's Fork. Now the text is all screwed up.

Maybe it's not the back and forth with flashing different firmware, but some other update like Windows or the GeForce driver, which I did yesterday? But that was between the firmware flashes and everything was fine until I flashed John's Fork. I don't know, I finally got everything running the way it should so am hesitant to try and flash firmwares again just to fix this bug.

Hard Reset the router.
Flash it again with Fork.
Once it’s finished installing the firmware, hard reset the router again.

I use recovery mode to flash from one brand firmware to another brand firmwares and never had issues, instead of flashing from GUI.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Hello,
Yes, when using the Chrome browser (76.0.3809.132 as well as 77.0.3865.75), I am seeing some overlapping text, etc. Same with MS Edge.

Safari iOS and Internet Explorer look fine, so it may be a Chromium browser issue?

I didn't have an issue until I updated Chrome earlier today. Even then everything was fine, until I cleared the browser cache and then immediately got this issue.

 

[a5m]

Hard Reset the router.
Flash it again with Fork.
Once it’s finished installing the firmware, hard reset the router again.

I use recovery mode to flash from one brand firmware to another brand firmwares and never had issues, instead of flashing from GUI.

I did that. I went from the latest stock Asuswrt to Fork so had to use the FW Restoration Tool. I restored settings to default, did WPS NVRAM clear, flashed firmware again but through GUI and repeated the above.

It may need to be flashed with the FW Restoration Tool again. Might try it once the RT-AC86U comes back from RMA.

 

[a5m]

I didn't have an issue until I updated Chrome earlier today. Even then everything was fine, until I cleared the browser cache and then immediately got this issue.

Sounds like Chrome updated during all the firmware flashing I did last night. Why Edge is doing the same though is beyond me. Perhaps Windows update related, or graphics driver?

 

[mistercoffee1]

Edge is based off of chromium.

 

[a5m]

Edge is based off of chromium.

Oh wow I didn't know that. So Edge must've received the same update. As long as it's a browser issue and not firmware I'm okay with it.

 

[dave14305]

Oh wow I didn't know that. So Edge must've received the same update. As long as it's a browser issue and not firmware I'm okay with it.

It’s not widely released yet, so if you didn’t download the Edge Chromium beta, you’re probably not running it. Probably another explanation for the behavior you see.

 

[a5m]

It’s not widely released yet, so if you didn’t download the Edge Chromium beta, you’re probably not running it. Probably another explanation for the behavior you see.

Thanks. No I didn't download it. Hmm then something else must be the cause.

It's probably one of those things that'll just fix itself one day. Don't think it's worth the effort chasing.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Mine seemed to just start around two weeks ago (perhaps a Chrome update?). I’ve also always used Chrome.
I've used this latest version of the FW since it came out in April, and it did not have the issue initially. So for me, it did not start happening with the FW version update.

I got fed up with trying to figure out what had changed in Chrome that caused this so I went back to an earlier version. I disable Chrome's automatic update process so wasn't exactly sure which version I previously had but I knew I hadn't updated it for a couple of months.

Anyway, I tried the previous version (76.0.3809.100) from 15th August and that still had the problem. Then I tried the version before that (75.0.3770.80 5th June 2019) and everything was working again .

So it looks like the problem appeared with version 76.0.3809.100.

 

[_st_ty]

Anybody following this list with experience how to produce an L-build (with the legacy drivers) from johns gitlab repository? The branch head seems to be set to the E-version. Any hint would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Nik.

Hi,
maybe my reply is too late for you. Anyway, if your router model is MIPS-type, try to start the building process (with make <your Asus router model>... command) in /release/src-rt directory instead of /release/src-rt-6.x directory. In /release/src-rt directory the drivers of Broadcom-SDK5 ("L-Build") are located instead of BCM-SDK6 drivers in /release/src-rt-6.x directory ("E-Build").
BR
_st_ty

 

[jeff288]

Is anyone aware of any security vulnerabilities in this firmware or keeping a log of potential fixes when/if John returns or when someone cares to curate and compile a new fork? My router has always been stable with this firmware but I'm just worried about security issues, if any, after not being updated in a while.

 

[ColinTaylor]

So it looks like the problem appeared with version 76.0.3809.100.

Even though it's the release notes for the enterprise version of Chrome, I suspect this might be the cause:

• A new layout engine is being used
  
  LayoutNG is a new layout engine with several improvements such as:
  • Improved performance isolation
  • Better support for scripts other than Latin
  • Many issues around floats and margins fixed
  • Numerous web-compatibility issues fixed
  Although the impact to the user should be minimal, LayoutNG changes some behavior in very subtle ways, fixes hundreds of tests, and improves compatibility with other browsers. Despite our best efforts, it is likely that this will cause some sites and applications to render or behave slightly differently.
  
  If you suspect that WNG caused a website to break, please file a bug report, and we'll investigate.

https://support.google.com/chrome/a/answer/7679408#76

 

[a5m]

Even though it's the release notes for the enterprise version of Chrome, I suspect this might be the cause:

https://support.google.com/chrome/a/answer/7679408#76

Just checked if there was a Chrome update - Version 77.0.3865.75 - same problem.

Took a screenshot and reported it. Let's see how quickly (if at all) Google fixes it.

 

[cvx01]

I got fed up with trying to figure out what had changed in Chrome that caused this so I went back to an earlier version. I disable Chrome's automatic update process so wasn't exactly sure which version I previously had but I knew I hadn't updated it for a couple of months.

Anyway, I tried the previous version (76.0.3809.100) from 15th August and that still had the problem. Then I tried the version before that (75.0.3770.80 5th June 2019) and everything was working again .

So it looks like the problem appeared with version 76.0.3809.100.

Thanks for posting this, I thought it was only me with a messed up user interface.

Here is how to fix...

• chrome://flags/
• Search for "LayoutNG"
• Set to "Disabled"
• Problem Solved

This worked on Version 76.0.3809.132 (Official Build) (64-bit)

EDIT: Chrome autoupdated to Version 77.0.3865.75 (Official Build) (64-bit). Still working without issue.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Here is how to fix...

• chrome://flags/
• Search for "LayoutNG"
• Set to "Disabled"
• Problem Solved

Excellent info @cvx01. That's worked for me also after updating to v77.

 

[anotherengineer]

Anyone hear from John? He still alive/ok?