Padavan's Custom Firmware

[kenguru2005]

Hey guys,

I was hoping someone could help me.

I have the latest padavan fw 3.0.3.3-042 installed on my ASUS rt-n56u router but I'm suffering from frequent wireless disconnections.

This mainly happens on my Macbook Pro. I'll be surfing the internet and then suddenly when navigating to another webpage, it will just sit there trying to load however, it shows my wireless is still connected! Then, I have to turn off my WiFi and after several 'the connection has timed out' messages, it finally connects. I've noticed this happens sometimes on my phone, iPad etc too so i'm guessing the WAN is disconnecting?

Has anyone else had this problem/ has anyone got any ideas on how to fix this?

Any help would be much appreciated!

Cheers!

Can confirm this. Today the hiccups came back.

 

[RogerSC]

i see, well i have freezing problems with official fw, at high speeds downloads (80-90 mbps) with 100+ connections my router freezes, with padavan's all is ok. might give a shot with firmware from recovery mode

Yes, when I flashed 042 it was from recovery mode. The saving grace for me with Asus .342 is very likely that my ISP download speed is only about 25Mb/s, and I don't use torrents, etc. So I'm not really pushing the router. Been doing a whole bunch of things using .342, and it's been fine, no odd log messages this time. Time will tell, though.

Thanks.

 

[hp2289]

have you turned igmp snooping off? Advanced - LAN - IPTV, turn off igmp snooping (it is on by default)

Nope, I haven't tried turning igmp snooping off. I will give it a go. What is igmp snooping and what happens if I switch it off?

Cheers.

 

[Shikami]

Fixed IPv6 neighbour table overflow (manual run script reset_ss.sh needed).

RogerSC, did you execute the reset script after the flash upgrade?

What is igmp snooping and what happens if I switch it off?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IGMP_snooping.

This should not cause a problem, unless it is an issue with how the multicast rate is handled. Meaning when IGMP Snooping is enabled the Multicast Rate could default to a setting which can then affect the minimal quality required to connect to the AP. When IGMP is enabled the multicast rate field cannot be configured, and I think it defaults to setting. (Thank you ceeKayy: http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showpost.php?p=58853&postcount=233) I have IGMP snooping enabled with no issues when using iPhones, iPads, Galaxy S3's, and other various PC's.

Multicast Rate: The Multicast Rate option sets the threshold throughput level a wireless client must obtain in order to be "accepted" by the base station. The lower this value, theoretically, the greater number of clients that can connect, especially those at greater distances from the base station. At the opposite end, the higher this number, only those wireless clients that can achieve the higher throughput value will be able to connect.

 

[RogerSC]

Fixed IPv6 neighbour table overflow (manual run script reset_ss.sh needed).

RogerSC, did you execute the reset script after the flash upgrade?

Now that I look at this, that script should be run if upgrading from a Padavan version before 027 to 027 or later and you are not clearing nvram in the process. Since I was upgrading from Asus firmware, and was clearing the nvram and resetting, there should be no carryover problem that needs to be cleared. So it wouldn't do anything for me.

I could be wrong, though. But the answer to your question is no, running this script isn't in the list of items for 042, so I didn't even see it *smile*.

Thanks.

 

[jhoffy22]

The routers are basically based on some of the same libraries and you would think that all routers would operate the same manner, but they do not. As for your issue, I cannot really help much. But most problems, are usually, simple networking issues, or such. For example, sometimes it can be an option that is incompatible with a wireless chipset.

Personally, I do know this one interesting fact that some may not know about this router. If you are to use USB attached storage use the port that is closer to the back. In-other-words do not use the top port for NAS. There is an electrical issue with the board and the ports, and this can cause erratic behavior.

I know some suffer from attached storage issues, and this may help some. But it can still be finicky, which leads me to think that really it may be better to make a power efficient and capable NAS (or buy one).



The settings that matter most will vary from network and needs. My options are all enabled for both radios and also my preambles are set to short. I do also have IGMP snooping, and that is it. I have all the options enabled on my wireless network for both radios because my devices are modern and capable.

As for the lag, you can still be configured properly but experience lag due to another player's network. But I can say that 1.5Mb up can start to slow you down in some cases. Especially, if others are using the network. You have only 187,500 bytes a second egress. Around 8Mb/s is where you start to have some head room because that is 1MB/s that is possible egress. This is a lot more headroom to work with multiple users.

I hate lag too, but with consoles you are basically in a set standard for gameplay. The only way you can make it better is how you connect it and connect it with. I always use Ethernet for gaming, and if not possible I will do everything to make it possible. I also would rather use a wireless bridge if I had to Wi-Fi. I would never be caught dead using a USB Wi-Fi adapter for gaming.



(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_address_translation ) NAT will affect the relationship of the packet traversal. You basically create a segregated network that will need translation of a public network to a private network and vice versa; especially since it is one public IP to many private IP's. That segregation differs with various NAT's, with some allowing more loose rules to the packets. Now one thing to note that NAT can and usually adds some security to a network, but it is inadvertently done so. But due to this NAT has become an expected security measure due to the segregation it creates.

Because of all of this some packets, which are based on particular connections, don't work well and need a little help to work with NAT. These are gateway applications, ALG's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Application-level_gateway). UPnP and NAT-PMP helps too, basically, in the same manner. In other words if you wish to run a server you have to have a service running that allows connections, then the router has to have ports that allow packets to traverse to a host. If these ports are not allowed, or the NAT is too strict then a connection may not take place because the packet cant traverse from the Internet to your private network.

I always use restricted and it is perfectly fine and the best NAT for MY network. Note, I have all the ALG's enabled; and note that sometimes they can impede rather than help too, which means that they should be disabled; if that is the case.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_address_translation and http://think-like-a-computer.com/2011/09/16/types-of-nat/



I think this project is the best 3rd party firmware project for a router. He has everything up to date, which with Linux can help a lot, and at times cause a problem (gotta love Linux). For example, going to the 3.x kernel solved soft IRQ's issues that are actually solved with a latter kernel, but for some reason no one complies a more modern kernel. 3.x also has better drivers and support for USB, better network handling of the protocols, etc.

They also keep everything up to date and recent, and they make sure the high performance is always a standard. That is unheard with many 3rd party projects. They have resolved many issues that Asus would never fix (some years later), and have added many features such as VPN and IPv6 to this router. Please give them a tip in the jar for their hardware work. Send them a mail with some respect; they deserve it.




iTunes server? Just to use something on a host does not necessitate the need to open a port. Ports only needs to be configured if something is trying to come into your private network. For example, to FTP to your PC you will need port(s) opened, depending on the type of FTP, for someone to connect. All packets will traverse through the NAT when YOU open that connection. Hence, the NAT table; the relationship of the connection that are created. This will do : http://www.firewall.cx/networking-topics/network-address-translation-nat/228-nat-table.html



I agree tremendously. Ever since 027 build many drivers have been updated and performance has increased. The past few updates resolved minor issues to that and made it even better. That is what I love about this project-making this router the best that it can be. You would never see that with many companies. Thankfully, there is Linux, and thankfully there are those that can work with it.

Shikami - Thank you for your helpful answer. I appreciate it. What about for someone that is playing Xbox through a wired connection through the RT-N56U? I play wired and still experience periodic spells of lag with this router on any firmware. What settings can I tinker with to improve my xbox live experience?

 

[ceeKayy]

What settings do you have setup...if your settings are the same as mine then the problem is not the router, but your ISP/modem/or someone on your internet connection downloading files or streaming movies etc as I've had the 56u for better on a year using Padavan newest version when it's available and I currently have 3.0.3.3.042 and play xbox wired alot and haven't experienced any lag whatsoever besides when someone has a bad host.

 

[jhoffy22]

What settings do you have setup...if your settings are the same as mine then the problem is not the router, but your ISP/modem/or someone on your internet connection downloading files or streaming movies etc as I've had the 56u for better on a year using Padavan newest version when it's available and I currently have 3.0.3.3.042 and play xbox wired alot and haven't experienced any lag whatsoever besides when someone has a bad host.

Just the stock settings. It lags no matter what firmware. What could be wrong with my ISP? My modem is brand new.

 

[ceeKayy]

a number of things...what ISP? Perhaps you got a bad modem or it isn't configured right from the ISP or maybe you have interference somewhere in the lines like a low upstream power level or downstream power levels out of whack...try plugging the xbox into the modem and play for awhile see if it lags any...

 

[Mat77]

What settings do you have setup...if your settings are the same as mine then the problem is not the router, but your ISP/modem/or someone on your internet connection downloading files or streaming movies etc as I've had the 56u for better on a year using Padavan newest version when it's available and I currently have 3.0.3.3.042 and play xbox wired alot and haven't experienced any lag whatsoever besides when someone has a bad host.

what settings do you use? NAT type? Port Forward or UPnP and so on? I´m alos intersted to find the best Settings for xbox live. And do you offload? I read about that it sometims is not good to offload.

here for example:
http://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/codel/wiki/Best_Practices_for_Benchmarking_CoDel_and_FQ_CoDel

Network hardware (even in cheap hardware!) has grown "smart", with offload engines of various sorts. Modern network hardware has often sprouted various "offload" engines, unfortunately now often enabled by default, which tend to do more damage than good except for extreme benchmarking fanatics, often primarily on big server machines in data centers. Start by turning them off. We'll write more on this topic soon. The implementers of this "smart" hardware are less "smart" than they think they are.

 

[Mat77]

Just the stock settings. It lags no matter what firmware. What could be wrong with my ISP? My modem is brand new.

what games do you play where you experience lag?

 

[jhoffy22]

a number of things...what ISP? Perhaps you got a bad modem or it isn't configured right from the ISP or maybe you have interference somewhere in the lines like a low upstream power level or downstream power levels out of whack...try plugging the xbox into the modem and play for awhile see if it lags any...

I'll give this a try. Unfortunately it's rare that I've got the opportunity to try this due to this internet connection being used for business as well.

what games do you play where you experience lag?

Halo 4. It's all I play online so I can't say if there is lag with other games or not.

 

[Mat77]

I'll give this a try. Unfortunately it's rare that I've got the opportunity to try this due to this internet connection being used for business as well.



Halo 4. It's all I play online so I can't say if there is lag with other games or not.

I write back in the xbox thread

 

[ceeKayy]

what settings do you use? NAT type? Port Forward or UPnP and so on? I´m alos intersted to find the best Settings for xbox live. And do you offload? I read about that it sometims is not good to offload.

here for example:
http://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/codel/wiki/Best_Practices_for_Benchmarking_CoDel_and_FQ_CoDel

CoDel is not included in Padavan firmware builds as it's still an older kernal compared to the kernal that CoDel was first introduced and bufferbloat is really a gray area as some believe it is there and others do not...I am one that believes that it is not there.

Alot of people that don't have CoDel have read online that QoS will help bufferbloat and that is not true (and also noted QoS overrides HW_NAT and you want that more than QoS) so Padavan removed QoS entirely from his firmware builds.

People will to the "bufferbloat test" and use QoS and it shows them have lower/stable ping during high upload and think Eureka! it's fixed!...well that's not the case being that it is only hiding the symptoms that you seen with the ping...it may provide a stable ping during high upload times, however it's not going to make your network perfectly sync and even will degrade your network with it lacking HW_NAT.


I use Full Cone NAT, No Port forwarding just UPnP and NAT-PMP, and I offload everything TCP/UDP for LAN/WiFi

 

[ceeKayy]

Just the stock settings. It lags no matter what firmware. What could be wrong with my ISP? My modem is brand new.

Some ISP's have bandwidth limitations so if you use over their allowed data they will throttle your connection...some have lifted data caps over the last year, but some could still be doing it.

and the modem could be a bad unit...I bought a brand new Motorola SB6141 and as soon as I plugged it in it was making a high pitched noise so I had to return it...everything is not perfect you could have gotten a bad unit.

Check your modem signal levels through the webGUI most are by typing 192.168.100.1 into address bar...when signals are out of whack internet is affected more than cable/tv is.

 

[kayakj]

For gaming ( even on LAN), my games tend to lag.. could that be because I have UDP Offload enabled? or does offloading only effect internet based games?
For gaming over the internet, should UDP offloading be enabled or should I just leave it disabled?

Also which type of NAT is better for regular usage ( aka not hosting a server etc) just regular browsing and skype usage?

 

[jhoffy22]

Some ISP's have bandwidth limitations so if you use over their allowed data they will throttle your connection...some have lifted data caps over the last year, but some could still be doing it.

and the modem could be a bad unit...I bought a brand new Motorola SB6141 and as soon as I plugged it in it was making a high pitched noise so I had to return it...everything is not perfect you could have gotten a bad unit.

Check your modem signal levels through the webGUI most are by typing 192.168.100.1 into address bar...when signals are out of whack internet is affected more than cable/tv is.

This is something particularly interesting to me. How exactly do you check the signals?

 

[ceeKayy]

when you type 192.168.100.1 into the address bar it should take you to your modem login page after you login click on something like signals and check the signal levels.

 

[asusguy]

I just installed this custom firmware and trying to get an understanding for a few problems that I have. Could someone tell me where are the logs? More detailed log than the "system" log in the GUI. I want to see activity such as wireless disconnecting/dropping, USB drive and network share disconnecting, etc.

 

[asusguy]

could some one tell me what is the best way to stream stuff off my HD attached to the USB of the router? I read UPnP should be disabled, but then again -- this is the main Media Server provided by the router. Should I disable it and "Enable NFSv3 Server"? Not clear what NFS is and how will that affect accessing the router from Windows devices and TV at home.