RT-AC66U Original - confused about current support status

[Unparagoned]

I have the original version of RT-AC-66U and am a bit confused about what firmware I should be using. I used to use Merlin fine and updated whenever it said to. Now I understand Merlin no longer supports this router. With the news of various router exploits I've installed the latest Asus stock firmware. But looking round there still appears to be relatively recent Merlin firmware for my router.

• Should I just stick with the latest stock firmware?
• Is there a version of Merlin with the latest fixes for recent exploits?
• Should I look at something like Tomato ?

 

[Adamm]

I have the original version of RT-AC-66U and am a bit confused about what firmware I should be using. I used to use Merlin fine and updated whenever it said to. Now I understand Merlin no longer supports this router. With the news of various router exploits I've installed the latest Asus stock firmware. But looking round there still appears to be relatively recent Merlin firmware for my router.

• Should I just stick with the latest stock firmware?
• Is there a version of Merlin with the latest fixes for recent exploits?
• Should I look at something like Tomato ?

The original AC66U is no longer supported, best options are switching to Johns fork or stock firmware.

 

[el pescador]

Same issue here with my spare AC66U version A2.
Its abackup router for my AC88U.
Would prefer it to be the exact same firmware or worse case scenario to just be able to run FreshJR and Adam's scripts...
What firmware would i use?

 

[el pescador]

Looks like it will be John's fork.
Does skynet and FreshJr's scripts work on that?

 

[Adamm]

Does skynet and FreshJr's scripts work on that?

I can't say I've personally tested, but there aren't any compatibility issues that I'm aware of with Skynet and Johns fork. I can't speak for FreshJR though.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Looks like it will be John's fork.
Does skynet and FreshJr's scripts work on that?

If you're talking about FreshJr's script for Adaptive QoS then that doesn't apply as Adaptive QoS is not a feature of the N66U or AC66U.

 

[el pescador]

If you're talking about FreshJr's script for Adaptive QoS then that doesn't apply as Adaptive QoS is not a feature of the N66U or AC66U.

Ah ok.
Thanks Colin.

BTW.
question re the amazon link when buying.
Im in Spain and did try to buy something via the link but directed me to the usa site...I would like to contribute.
But no paypal due to no confidence after a hack a few years ago.
I do regularly get stuff off amazon and would really like to help you guys....i run a car business so regularly buy stuff.

 

[ColinTaylor]

BTW.
question re the amazon link when buying.
Im in Spain and did try to buy something via the link but directed me to the usa site...I would like to contribute.
But no paypal due to no confidence after a hack a few years ago.
I do regularly get stuff off amazon and would really like to help you guys....i run a car business so regularly buy stuff.

I asked @thiggins about this here.

 

[raykovski]

OK, Johns fork still supports v.374, Merlin discontinues v.380, but does anyone support v.382 which is the current official version on AC66U?

 

[reerden]

OK, Johns fork still supports v.374, Merlin discontinues v.380, but does anyone support v.382 which is the current official version on AC66U?

John's fork is a lot newer than the original 374 code. Some parts remain unchanged from that version (like the majority of the web UI), but any component with security issues or major bugs have been updated.

Open source components are always updated to the latest version in that build. Some of the open source components are newer than in the official Asus firmware.

The only other alternative is the official stock firmware. Honestly, if you don't need the extra features, the stock firmware is fine.

 

[Unparagoned]

John's fork is a lot newer than the original 374 code. Some parts remain unchanged from that version (like the majority of the web UI), but any component with security issues or major bugs have been updated.

Open source components are always updated to the latest version in that build. Some of the open source components are newer than in the official Asus firmware.

The only other alternative is the official stock firmware. Honestly, if you don't need the extra features, the stock firmware is fine.

Thanks for that I might switch over from the Asus build to that John's build. But since it's a fork of a fork of a fork, etc and isn't as popular as the Merlin is it as secure or on the same level of security as the Merlin build?
Does anyone know what components or parts where Asus build would be more secure or up to date than Johns build?

Sorry if I sound a bit paranoid and stuff but I just want to understand and pay a bit more attention with all the router hacks going round.

 

[ColinTaylor]

John's fork the best option by far. Both John and Merlin track each others changes as much as possible and usually apply security fixes faster than Asus. That's why Merlin recommends it's use:

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/release-380-legacy-asuswrt-merlin-380-70-is-now-available.45934/

The last, final release of the 380.xx series is now available for all supported models.

People using an RT-N66U or RT-AC66U and wishing to gain continued updates are urged to consider switching to @john9527 's fork, which is still in active development.

 

[Unparagoned]

John's fork the best option by far. Both John and Merlin track each others changes as much as possible and usually apply security fixes faster than Asus. That's why Merlin recommends it's use:

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/release-380-legacy-asuswrt-merlin-380-70-is-now-available.45934/

Thanks. I'll do some VPN benchmarking the latest ASUS firmware before I switch over to John's too see if there much performance increase.

 

[reerden]

Thanks for that I might switch over from the Asus build to that John's build. But since it's a fork of a fork of a fork, etc and isn't as popular as the Merlin is it as secure or on the same level of security as the Merlin build?
Does anyone know what components or parts where Asus build would be more secure or up to date than Johns build?

Sorry if I sound a bit paranoid and stuff but I just want to understand and pay a bit more attention with all the router hacks going round.

I did some looking around at the code yesterday, and most of the Asus components are at the same version as Merlin. As for the open source components, most of them are at the lastest version at the time of release. Compared to the official Asus builds, which have some open source components that are over a year old.

The only thing that's really old is the actual web pages themselves. Some components that were switched for alternatives by Asus were left at the original, but nothing that I would call outdated.

Probably the biggest security concern is the use of HTTP(S) basic authentication, and that's really nitpicking it for a LAN only web server.

The only reason I'm not using the build right now is that I could not get IP access restriction to work, which I find rather important. So I'm currently also using the official build. But I expect this to be fixed by John, he's usually pretty on top of issues.

 

[Unparagoned]

Thanks

I did some looking around at the code yesterday, and most of the Asus components are at the same version as Merlin.
...
Probably the biggest security concern is the use of HTTP(S) basic authentication, and that's really nitpicking it for a LAN only web server.
.

Thanks for the detailed response. It was the assurance I needed to go through the firmware recovery tool to switch over.

I did some really rough and ready speed tests. They fit my preconceived thoughts so they were just single runs, with a single VPN server.

No-VPN - 800Mbps
Official - 8Mbps - Asus stock 3.0.0.4.382.50470 - OpenVPN
Merlin LTS fork - 13Mbps - Johns fork :374.43_32E4j9527 - OpenVPN.

The test were done after factory resets and the basic VPN settings. No tweaks or anything like that. It all seemed roughly in line with what I expected. Well John's LTS fork seemed a bit faster than I expected. 13Mbps seems like the fastest OpenVPN speed you can get on RT-AC66U (1st gen/mips)

Note: Take this with a grain of salt but I found a note with a speed of 5Mbps. So the the last working Merlin firmware is closer to the ASUS stock speed. (There are a million explanation or reasons why this could be completely wrong).