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Enhanced Traffic monitoring XT8 Asuswrt-Merlin

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asusmaqui

New Around Here
Hello
I bough and installed the Asus XT* because I read that it has the best traffic analyzer, I installed the RT-AX95Q_388.1_0-gnuton1 firmware.
I tried connecting a USB flash drive and a USB hard drive but cwhen I reboot the router the data is gone.

Is there a specific USB flash that I should be using? How do I access the drive connected to the router from a Mac or windows pc to see if the file is there?
 
I bough and installed the Asus XT* because I read that it has the best traffic analyzer

Traffic Analyzer is the same as in all popular Asus* router models. It stores data to JFFS partition and they survive reboot.

Is there a specific USB flash that I should be using?

The only stored data to USB are from Traffic Monitor in Asuswrt-Merlin firmware and very basic - daily/monthly traffic only.

* - available in stock Asuswrt. You don't need to install 3rd party firmware for that. No USB drive needed either.
 
Traffic Monitor, standard Asuswrt loses the data (resets to 0) when rebooted. I understood that with Marlin the traffic monitor data saved to a USB will survive a reboot. That is what I am trying to do, to have the daily/monthly traffic data saved in case of a reboot.
 
You already have this data in Traffic Analyzer in stock Asuswrt on every mid to high-end Asus router and it survives reboot:

1675547160018.png


Whoever told you XT8 has the best Traffic Analyzer (or any different Traffic Monitor in Asuswrt-Merlin/fork) - incorrect information.
 
Thank you, I should have said "Traffic Monitor". Traffic monitor resets with reboot. Power went out for 1 minute on Friday, and my daily traffic data from Feb 1 to 3 was lost. I like to keep track of the daily usage data to compare against Xfinity usage meter.

I was given incorrect information about Asus having the best Traffic Monitoring, can you tell me which router does have the best traffic Monitor? I have until the end of Feb to return this XT8 set, before I had an Orbi mesh setup and their Traffic Meter also re-sets with boot up.
 
All Asus routers with included TrendMicro engine have the same Traffic Analyzer available in stock Asuswrt. There is no best - it's the same. Traffic Monitor can save data to USB in Asuswrt-Merlin, but you have to enable it in Tools menu, select where and how often. In case of traffic dispute your ISP will not even look at your data. You can get the router you want and fits your needs.

Not sure if you realize you don't need Traffic Monitor when you have Traffic Analyzer running. You don't need 3rd party firmware nor USB stick.
 
All Asus routers with included TrendMicro engine have the same Traffic Analyzer available in stock Asuswrt. There is no best - it's the same. Traffic Monitor can save data to USB in Asuswrt-Merlin, but you have to enable it in Tools menu, select where and how often. In case of traffic dispute your ISP will not even look at your data. You can get the router you want and fits your needs.
thank you for your reply, I know that all asus use the same engine, what I meant was Asus has the best traffic monitoring, not necessarilythe XT8.

I am saving data to USB, the reason I came to this forum was to ask why the traffic Monitor data is lost when router reboots. And I am not disputing or planning to dispute data usage with my ISP, I want to monitor my usage so I know if I am at risk to exceed my data cap and make adjustments to my usage before I do.

So, does anyone know why traffic monitor data is being cleared on re-boot?
 
As I told you already for Traffic Monitor you not only need Asuswrt-Merlin fork and USB stick, but also need to enable saving the data to this USB stick in Tools menu. I don't have Asuswrt-Merlin running at the moment to show you a screenshot - just look at your WebUI. The default save location is RAM and this is why it resets on reboot. As I also told you Traffic Analyzer contains the same traffic data daily/weekly/monthly and it survives reboot.

I'm not sure why you need the same data in 2 different places and have installed 3rd party firmware plus planning USB stick use for something you already have available in stock Asuswrt and it doesn't need any USB sticks. You can't read the file saved from Traffic Monitor if this is your intention.
 
As I told you already for Traffic Monitor you not only need Asuswrt-Merlin fork and USB stick, but also need to enable saving the data to this USB stick in Tools menu. I don't have Asuswrt-Merlin running at the moment to show you a screenshot - just look at your WebUI. The default save location is RAM and this is why it resets on reboot. As I also told you Traffic Analyzer contains the same traffic data daily/weekly/monthly and it survives reboot.

I'm not sure why you need the same data in 2 different places and have installed 3rd party firmware plus planning USB stick use for something you already have available in stock Asuswrt and it doesn't need any USB sticks. You can't read the file saved from Traffic Monitor if this is your intention.
My friend, I do have Asus-Merlin installed, I have a USB drive connected, saving data to the drive is enabled, I have done the process , get it? I have learned from you that Traffic Analyzer keeps the data and I can go a select a day and see the usage for that day, and it does not need the USB drive. But I want to understand why Traffic Monitor data is not surviving reboot, I prefer looking at that data , I can see every day at a glance. Thanks again for replying and trying to help. I will keep trying to find a solution, if I have loaded the merlin firmware and set up a folder in my USB drive to save the Traffic monitor data, I have to find out why is not surviving a reboot, is a challenge, it has to survive it and I need to fix it. It has to work or I will totally lose faith in Asus and the merlin and return the damn set of XT8's.
 
But I want to understand why Traffic Monitor data is not surviving reboot

Check again how the USB stick is formatted, the file location, the frequency of saving data, you can even check if the file was created on the stick. You have to create a new file on first setup. If you reboot before saving is done according to the schedule (usually 1h) - you lose the last period.

and return the damn set of XT8's.

I would return this XT8 set right away for different reasons. Many different reasons. Traffic Analyzer/Monitor is not one of them.
 
Check again how the USB stick is formatted, the file location, the frequency of saving data, you can even check if the file was created on the stick. You have to create a new file on first setup. If you reboot before saving is done according to the schedule (usually 1h) - you lose the last period.



I would return this XT8 set right away for different reasons. Many different reasons. Traffic Analyzer/Monitor is not one of them.
expand on reason for return, while I still have time, what would you get instead?
 
I don't know what your needs are, but if possible aim for single router solution and not AiMesh. XT8 is slow overpriced hardware with forever going firmware issues, worse if you use it in wireless configuration, may be worse if you have 3rd party firmware on it. Folks around hunt for good firmware for years. It's based on the same ARMv7 CPU found in cheapest Asus AX router RT-AX55. Expect very slow OpenVPN performance if you need VPN. This router also had some hardware changes perhaps due to chip shortages in form of different V1 and V2 hardware revisions with different firmware requirements. If one router is all you need - popular choice is GT-AX6000. If AiMesh is what you need - go wired and with 2x identical routers like RT-AX86U.

I wouldn't go with AiMesh at all, but this is my personal preference. I use completely different non-Asus hardware. Read this from another user:


You already have XT8 in your hands - try it and see what it can do for you. If you are happy - let it live. It has good WAF (wife acceptance factor). :)
 
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My friend, I do have Asus-Merlin installed, I have a USB drive connected, saving data to the drive is enabled, I have done the process , get it? I have learned from you that Traffic Analyzer keeps the data and I can go a select a day and see the usage for that day, and it does not need the USB drive. But I want to understand why Traffic Monitor data is not surviving reboot, I prefer looking at that data , I can see every day at a glance. Thanks again for replying and trying to help. I will keep trying to find a solution, if I have loaded the merlin firmware and set up a folder in my USB drive to save the Traffic monitor data, I have to find out why is not surviving a reboot, is a challenge, it has to survive it and I need to fix it. It has to work or I will totally lose faith in Asus and the merlin and return the damn set of XT8's.

Probably shouldn't jump in between you and Mr. Anti-ZenWiFi XT8, but I'll take my chances, I guess. As a long term, satisfied user of the ZenWiFi XT8, I have to wonder what traffic monitor data you're talking about. I've used Asus firmware 100% of the time that I've used the ZenWiFi XT8, and have never seen the traffic data go away with a reboot. With a full factory reset where you also tick the extra box that deletes the traffic data, yes. But not with just a reboot. Not sure what you're seeing there at all. My traffic data has been retained with all the Asus routers that I currently have at reboot, using all the firmware that I've been using for some years now. Even after flashing a new firmware version, the traffic data is retained unless I do a full factory reset with the above mentioned checkbox ticked.

Also, I've not needed to save traffic data on a disk, but I really don't care if traffic data restarts when I do a full factory reset. I hardly ever do a full factory reset, only when I'm having or expecting problems. I use the traffic data a lot, so I've had my eye on it just about every time I bring up the web admin interface to make sure that my clients are doing what they should. I've also had an ISP internet data cap until recently, so that gave me a good reason to care about client data use.

As to ZenWiFi XT stability, it really is very simple. When it's time to update your firmware, simply find a newer firmware version that works for you and you're done. This is much simpler if you keep your home network router demands as simple as possible...but that's apparently not always possible. My ZenWiFi has been very stable with security cameras, a solar panel controller, and various other odd electronics connected to it. Some people do have problems with their ZenWiFi meshes, and those are the complaints that you read about here. A lot of times those are simply remedied by settings changes, sometimes there's some bad hardware out there, and definitely some bad firmware versions (you simply revert to a stable firmware version). If you need absolute stability, you're well advised not to be the first user on new firmware. Watch for new firmware release threads here, and users will report on their experiences. But that's pretty much the case with any mesh hardware, it's more complex than one central router, or even a central router and an AP or two.

I wish you luck with your ZenWiFi, and am happy to help when I can.
 
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you simply revert to a stable firmware version

This is currently valid for other Asus models too, unfortunately. I'm waiting for something less buggy 388 for RT-AX86U. In your signature 386_49599 is right for this model. If you know what firmware works well on XT8 - share the information with @asusmaqui. I see yours on 386_49873. It will save time.

I've used Asus firmware 100% of the time that I've used the ZenWiFi XT8

I also suggest stock Asuswrt on both units. AiMesh works best with stock firmware.
 

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