Basic Routing Duties for Parents

[MichaelCG]

My in-laws have moved to a new house and working on getting their networking setup there. They moved from an ATT Fiber location to an XFinity Cable location. So already have a MB7621 on order for modem duties. They have been using one of my retired Asus RT-N66U for routing duties for several years now. It is still working fine as far as I know....but they are now a 9-10hr drive instead of a 3hr drive and worried about what happens when it does fail.

Internet Speed - 100/5Mbps
Routing - Asus RT-N66U
WiFi - UniFi UAP-AC-LR

I don't "need" WiFi in the router since we plan to continue to use the UniFi equipment. I can always disable it. It is highly unlikely they will move to higher than 500Mbps ever on their Internet connection. The N66 is plenty fast, just worried about how much longer it will remain functional.....as well as it hasn't had a security update in several years.

What is a safe go-to affordable option to look at here?

 

[Tech9]

RT-N66U is a very durable router. The latest Asuswrt update is from 2020/06/18. If you want something newer, not expensive (under $100) and still actively supported by Asus, RT-AC66U_B1 (a variant of popular RT-AC68U) is the best replacement. Comes with standard now AiProtection and Adaptive QoS.

 

[MichaelCG]

The thought the N66U was EoL back in 2017 or 2018. The last release of ASUSWRT-Merlin I see is 380.70 which I think is from 2018. Where are you seeing 2020/06/18 for that device? I can't even find this device mentioned anywhere within the Asus site.

I have been comparing the AC66U_B1 against the Archer A9, and leaning to the A9 at the moment....mostly off of price point and basic features.

 

[Tech9]

Where are you seeing 2020/06/18 for that device?

Here, Asus released newer firmware (perhaps the last though):

RT-N66U - Support

www.asus.com

This router is also supported by @john9527 with his Asuswrt-Merlin fork:

[Fork] Asuswrt-Merlin 374 LTS Overview

ASUSWRT-MERLIN 374 LTS This is an LTS (Long Term Service) fork of Asuswrt-Merlin based on 374.43_2. This older code base has a history of being very stable, and some of the older code components may perform better in some environments. It may be a good choice for those who desire a 'set it and...

www.snbforums.com

I have been comparing the AC66U_B1 against the Archer A9

Both are good performing routers in budget segment, but RT-AC66U_B1 has faster hardware, AiProtection, Adaptive QoS, Asuswrt-Merlin support (I don't think you need it). Asus releases firmware updates more often than TP-Link. I would get the RT-AC66U_B1, the price difference is small.

 

[Tech9]

but they are now a 9-10hr drive instead of a 3hr drive and worried about what happens when it does fail

Keep the RT-N66U pre-configured as backup router. Tell your parents to connect it back, if something goes wrong with the new one. Everything new is made cheaper and don't be surprised if the new one fails sooner than you expect. I would remove the UniFi AP, an extra point of failure. If you go with RT-AC66U_B1 router - it uses the same power supply as RT-N66U. You'll have also 2x power bricks, just in case.

 

[MichaelCG]

The UniFi AP isn't going anywhere. Overall a pretty big fan of those devices. I have five across my house. They had three across their last house and could have used more due to poor coverage due to the plaster and brick walls. New house....I haven't been there yet to fully understand the layout and how many APs will be needed for proper coverage.

You have great points about the rest of the Asus hardware and power supplies. I will most likely go that route with them to keep things as simple as possible.

 

[Tech9]

New house....I haven't been there yet to fully understand the layout and how many APs will be needed for proper coverage.

That's different. A few APs will do the job better indeed.

 

[Adooni]

why you afraid your router will be damaged. if you buy new one can R.I.P too. old one can last longer then new one - all Asus cost saving happen now (in the past quality was more important). Now router that have a bit more than warranty is failing - companies have knowledge and software to calculate device life that when warranty is off you will buy new one. Or introducing technology like 2.5Gb WAN/LAN ports or wi-fi AX that most of user do not need at all.

looking from perspective of time I have Asus WL-500W (2006), RT-N16 (2009) and RT-AC56U (2013) working all the time and no issues.
as example I had RT-N16 with tomato v132 @Shibby that was not turn of/reboot for 5y and with new models people are adding reboot schedules as after few days/week/moth they cannot connect to internet etc.
new do not mean is good at all, new do not mean is better than old one . In the past for example Asus have few routers models now they have 50+ and what we see cannot handle with soft to be stable etc as they have to much configurations etc.

you should change router when current one is not enough, not stable or R.I.P

very often new device have even worst wi-fi coverage

for Asus RT-N66U you have FreshTomato available that is very good alternative soft

 

[MichaelCG]

Using a router that is Internet facing that is EoL/EoS is a bad idea in general. I have never messed with FreshTomato and with this device being 10hrs away from me, finding the time to mess with 3rd party firmware is pretty much out of the question at this point. This device has to be easy to configure, update, and manage in 10 min or less as well as over the phone via non-technical folks. The last thing I want to do while visiting is spend hours messing with this hardware instead of enjoying the outdoors and playing with my kids.

But as for quality...I have zero argument with you there. There is a reason I had two RT-N66U devices in my house for many years as well as a RT-AC66U. They were pretty darn solid devices until the radio in one of the devices started failing after several years.

 

[Adooni]

it is all about experience. I have one tomato router at my parents loc for 10y now - it doesn't matter how easy is to setup it up if you need to log to it it is already to complicate
2nd tomato device it 5h driving from my loc and I did not had even one call from 2014 - this one was not even one rebooted/power off for 5years.
@Shibby when was working at tomato was offering it even for small businesses as it is very stable, more than AsusWRT (it is my opinion do not want to start discussion) - I personally change in 10+ loc AsusWRT for tomato as I had issues with stability/ client disconnecting/ issue to log to router after longer period of time etc.
A lot of people is moving to EdgeRouter as normal price solution - I cannot tell is better than Asus but definitely they do not fallow Asus policy and introduce new routers every few months. This could be the reason that Ubiquiti Networks EdgeRouter X SFP (2015) or ER-12 (2018) are now very stable - they do not have anything new (excluding Unifi devices). Asus do not have time to correct soft as they need to work at new ones . This is the reason FreshTomato is so good as they do not have access to new Broadcom drivers etc and it is hard to add new routers and have time to fix challenges/ security fix etc.

I can setup tomato faster than Asus WRT but

if you want ori soft and very easy to setup AsusWRT/RMerlin is the way to go
For AsusWRT the best option now is AX86U but it will be definitely overkill. You can consider AX58U that is good start/budget router

 

[Tech9]

You have great points about the rest of the Asus hardware and power supplies. I will most likely go that route with them to keep things as simple as possible.

New RT-AC68U V3 routers are on sale in my area for CAD125, or USD100. It's the same hardware as RT-AC66U_B1, but in vertical design enclosure. Both run exactly the same software as well. May be a better option for optimizing space. It also uses the same power supply as RT-N66U. I fully support your view - get something proven reliable, not very expensive, supported, on stock firmware and easy to setup just following the included instructions. If you want secure remote access to router's settings - Asuswrt has VPN server available. You already know.

 

[Trip]

@MichaelCG - If utility-grade is really what you're going for here, especially since you already have a UniFi AP in the mix and intend on running it for wireless access, why don't you just go full stack, with a USG (fine for 105Mb/s of WAN), a US-8-60W switch and a CloudKey Gen2? Put it all on a short-depth telco rack with a 1U UPS. Short of a physical failure, the network should never need any user intervention, and should just run like an appliance.

If your folks do want admin control over the gateway, and the UniFi app is too overwhelming, an Asus AIO (with wifi disabled) might be one way to go, but leaves them (and you) with a bit of a piecemeal, disjointed stack. At that point, I'd consider replacing everything with Eero; it's way simpler for average Joe's to operate, gives complete visibility of the network, tends to be more reliable than most other consumer stuff, Asus included, and you can delegate access to multiple app instances (your phone and theirs) for troubleshooting and assistance. Also, in the event of a hardware failure, if anything would give them a shot at self-servicing a complete network rebuild, it's Eero.

That's how I'd approach this. Happy to help further if need be.

 

[MichaelCG]

So I did end up with a new Asus, configured, radios disabled, and up and running with no fuss. The N66 was boxed up and kept in storage as an emergency backup. While I was there I replaced the Comcast modem/router with a Moto MB7621 so they don't have to pay the monthly rental fee. I also just looked at my Amazon history....that N66 has been in service since Dec of 2013. It spent its first 5 years at my house then their house since then. It had a good life and was still a solid router. Its WiFi wasn't stable anymore (which is why I stopped using it), but the router and switch portions were fine.

As for going for UniFi? I have never heard good things about the older USG boxes. I run a UniFi controller out of my house already which manages their WiFi along with my own. Since I had not seen the house yet, nor knew what the wiring situation was, I had no time to plan out a rack or anything that fancy at this time. I ordered the router the week before we got out there, and setup their entire network and A/V systems over the next three days. Maybe a future update...who knows? I don't even run a UniFi gateway at my house.

 

[Tech9]

So I did end up with a new Asus

What model Asus router did you go with?

 

[sfx2000]

What is a safe go-to affordable option to look at here?

Considering the distance, etc...

I would suggest going with a combo box - see what they (comcast) offers, and purchase it outright...

DOCSIS 3.1 which is becoming almost mandatory with Comcast and Cox...