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

[scales11]

See the post below for a Chrome workaround.

[Fork] Asuswrt-Merlin 374.43 LTS releases (V39E3)

Awesome, that fixed it! Thank you very much for the speedy reply! FYI, Edge also had the same issue...which is why I was not certain it was a chrome thing.

One more question...One of the biggest things I dislike about the Asus GUI is the lack of a good way to view all of the DHCP clients. I see them on the main screen in a short list, but I no longer have access to the pop-up view which showed more information.

How do others view a detailed view of all the connected clients?

 

[Max-H]

New dev build 40EC.
https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=!AKXdaMzjqVKbGsc&id=9332FC159A7E129!4392&cid=09332FC159A7E129

 

[dave14305]

1. This is what I've ended up doing. Even though it was nice looking at the tc graphs there really was no reason for me to use QoS with a 380Mbps feed.
...
4. Or get a faster internet service.

I’ve come to find out that my ISP-provisioned speeds are now 300/25, which tests close to 340/25 without QoS enabled. What’s your criteria for QoS/no QoS on an asymmetrical connection like that?

As a creepy reminder of how insecure the web “used to be”, I got this in-browser pop up when loading an unrelated website over http.

Spoiler

 

[Ampicillin]

Hello, I have Sprint AC66U version which I wanna upgrade to john's. Right now, it has 380.67_X7.6 firmware. John has mentioned 2 builds E and L. I want to flash to improve the WiFi signal in my house.

Which build provides a better WiFi signal?
Should I use the ethernet cable to flash firmware or through wireless its fine?

 

[ColinTaylor]

I’ve come to find out that my ISP-provisioned speeds are now 300/25, which tests close to 340/25 without QoS enabled. What’s your criteria for QoS/no QoS on an asymmetrical connection like that?

There's only ever been one test, the WCT (wife complaining test). Back when I had a 150/10 line and an RT-N66U, if I started a download on my PC that saturated the line it would cause buffering when my wife was watching Netflix or Amazon Prime. Implementing QoS stopped this happening. After I upgraded to 250/20 and an RT-AC68U the problem went away. I still ran with QoS enabled (capped at 200Mbps) for quite time just so I could see my graphs and understand the traffic flows. But after my line was upgraded to 380Mbps there was really no point in crippling the connection to 200Mbps any more for no benefit.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Hello, I have Sprint AC66U version which I wanna upgrade to john's. Right now, it has 380.67_X7.6 firmware. John has mentioned 2 builds E and L. I want to flash to improve the WiFi signal in my house.

Which build provides a better WiFi signal?
Should I use the ethernet cable to flash firmware or through wireless its fine?

I don't remember anyone ever having said they have installed this firmware on the Sprint hardware. It's definitely not a supported router so you do so at your own risk. You're also currently running the illegal Koolshare firmware so that might complicate the flashing process.

If this were a "real" RT-AC66U and you had a legitimate installation of Merlin's 380.67 firmware you would have to use an Ethernet cable, put the router into Rescue mode and use the Asus Firmware Restoration utility to flash the new firmware.

https://www.asus.com/support/faq/1000814/

I can't say which build has "better" WiFi. You'll have to experiment for yourself.

 

[ualdrivr]

LATEST RELEASE: Update-39E3/39L3
17-April-2019
Merlin fork 374.43_39E3j9527
Download http://bit.ly/1YdgUcP
============================

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 forget it' router solution. Additional information on the differences between this firmware and the later Asuswrt-Merlin releases can be found following the recent change highlights.

The following routers are supported by this firmware:

• N16, N66U, AC66U (original MIPS based revs)
• AC56U, AC68U (Rev A1,A2,B1), AC68P (and the retail and color versions, R and W, of each router)
• AC68U (Rev C1,E1), AC1900 and AC1900P (and the retail and color versions, R and W, of each router) and the AC66U-B1

The following routers were released after the base code used for this fork was available, and are NOT supported.

• AC87U, AC3100, AC3200, AC88U, AC5300, AC86U, AC88U (and the retail R versions)

Source: https://github.com/john9527/asuswrt-merlin : branch 374.43_2-update
IMPORTANT The github repro was rebased on 29-November-2018.
If you have a local repo created before this date, you should save any custom changes, clone a new copy, then re-apply your changes.

Following are the major changes (full changelog is in the zip files)

Update-39E3 Highlights

• Backported fixes for two buffer overrun exposures from Merlin 384
• Custom scripts now post a log message if they are not marked as executable
• SMB custom script processing now uses shared common subroutines
• Fix a case where the JFFS syslog copy may not be updated

Update-39E1 Highlights

• Updated curl to 7.64.1
• Updated nano to 4.0
• Updated Dropbear to 2019.78
• Updated Dnsmasq to G5c464ef snapshot
• Updated CA bundle to 2019 January 23rd version
• Multiple fixes to Stubby server selection, Updated resolver csv
  These fixes should address problems selecting/properly activating some servers (symptom is wrong server shown as selected or no DNS access with some servers). If you have manually updated the resolver csv, you should pull a new copy via 'stubby-update-resolvers.sh'
• Provide filesystem type as second argument to pre-mount script (Merlin backport)
• Increase OpenVPN interface queue length (Merlin backport)

Installation Notes

• Firmware is now packaged as a zip file (consistent with Merlin firmware releases). Remember to extract the .trx file prior to updating the firmware. An sha256sum file is included in the zip file to validate the firmware.
• For supported routers currently running ASUS firmware 380.3000 or above, or Merlin 380.60 or above, you cannot load this fork using the built in firmware update web interface. You must use the ASUS Firmware Restoration Tool from the ASUS support website or the built in CFE Mini-Web Server to install this fork firmware. You must always perform a factory default reset following the firmware update when moving from ASUS OEM or Merlin firmware above level 374 regardless if you updated via the web interface or Restoration Tool.
• When using the ASUS Firmware Restoration Tool or CFE Mini-Web Server to install this fork firmware on MIPS based routers (N16, N66 or AC66 non_B1) the upgrade process can take from 40 minutes to 1 hour. Please be patient and do not interrupt the process.
• Currently, two build streams are maintained.
  • The 'E' Builds are the recommended builds and contain the latest wireless drivers and related fixes, including the fixes for the KRACK exploit on all supported models except the N16 (ASUS never released a KRACK fix for the N16). The 'E' Builds for ARM routers also contain the latest ARM SDK providing support for the newer rev level AC68U and it's variations.
  • The 'L' Builds contain the original wireless drivers (2014 release) and DO NOT address the KRACK exploit, and for ARM routers DO NOT contain the latest SDK providing support for the latest AC68U rev levels. In addition, some fixes dependent on either the latest wireless drivers or latest ARM SDK may not be included in the 'L' builds. Please review the release notes/Changelog for further information.
• If you are updating an AC56U or AC68U running a fork version V26 or earlier, a factory reset is recommended following the firmware update to V27 or later. You may also need to reformat and restore JFFS due to updates for compatibility with the Merlin releases. Other fork users running an N16, N66U or AC66 can update to the 'E' Build as normal without a factory reset.
• Please review '@UpgradeMatrix.txt' in the download directory, which describes the upgrade options for all the supported routers. Included are the requirements for a Factory Default Reset or reformat of JFFS.
• Users are reminded to have a jffs backup. For users with MIPS based routers, changes in the code image size may affect the jffs space. For users of ARM based routers, changes in the jffs partitioning may also affect the jffs allocations. If you are having jffs script errors or cannot access jffs after loading the firmware, please reformat jffs from the Administration page and restore your jffs backup.

Additional Information
The fork does include

• Maintenance for documented security issues
• Maintenance for supporting open source components (such as dnsmasq, miniupnpd, etc)
• Backports of applicable fixes and new functions from Merlin's main branch
• Some unique support for options requested by users, such as DoT, NTP Server and improved Traditional QoS
• A different IPv6 stack which may work better in some environments
• A separate build with older versions of the wireless drivers that some feel offer better performance (especially on the MIPS based routers)
• Less of a lockdown on tweaking power levels

The fork does not include

• The new TrendMicro DPI engine functions for ARM routers
• The enhancements to the networkmap for custom icons, client naming, etc.
• Some of the enhanced gui formatting of later releases, for instance the new wireless log
• Support for the ASUS router control app
• Support for 5 VPN Clients as in Merlin (this fork supports 2 client instances). Note that the N16 does not support VPN Client/Server due to memory limitations.

Custom features of the fork which are not exposed in the gui can be set by an nvram variable. These custom features are documented in the Merlin_Fork_Options file in the download directory.

Thanks to all for your continued interest in this fork.

SHA256

(Default Build - All supported routers)
1da9783719ba049db983d951f2bf1d2e491eb54da536f6c37b91f83382570b41  RT-N16_374.43_39E3j9527.trx
7ff2550da6a757f989d0e826a65ad564882d9b964bc59be4ea70b85216705d21  RT-AC66U_374.43_39E3j9527.trx
79375da7d3f55626b9cd24aec5b13fb9871e86014f26959b70b32b16fae7fb64  RT-N66U_374.43_39E3j9527.trx
8e21b418e7df90d01b574e1fda08a6be5a8720ac9896a45cf1c8cba01c9dff0f  RT-AC68U_374.43_39E3j9527.trx
0bb8364fda5740a1314115dbc1d9acc1f39f92498df55d1f2622ba7d6b0d48d3  RT-AC56U_374.43_39E3j9527.trx

(Legacy Only Builds)
fbba5033a87c5fbed9b3f83a2960838a5d53b717075d1aadc5c0d0ddfe54e4eb  RT-AC68U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-39L3j9527.trx
92faa3693ffc2cbef324fad7ff510d302628c57d977d5597e374e534fb04690b  RT-AC56U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-39L3j9527.trx
545927719c46e359a0db6bf9dcb348f99c0f3d8786725780cb182994c61b19be  RT-N16_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-39L3j9527.trx
5e9c82a5b250097172fe3867667149dfa46ed792782cc9f7d11959c44957c2f5  RT-AC66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-39L3j9527.trx
9aa05ea06237b4ebec4619c43d9b7ad221c2565a4667971d172a6d857d1bac88  RT-N66U_3.0.0.4_374.43_2-39L3j9527.trx

So.., 39E3 was the perfect revision, there won't be any others any more John?

 

[Grisu]

John has mentioned 2 builds E and L. I want to flash to improve the WiFi signal in my house.
Which build provides a better WiFi signal?

L=legacy uses older wifi-code and gave me much more radio power on RT-AC68U, might be the same on 66U but dont know.
Whats the problem to test it on your own, 5min. and its done!

 

[Ampicillin]

I don't remember anyone ever having said they have installed this firmware on the Sprint hardware. It's definitely not a supported router so you do so at your own risk. You're also currently running the illegal Koolshare firmware so that might complicate the flashing process.

If this were a "real" RT-AC66U and you had a legitimate installation of Merlin's 380.67 firmware you would have to use an Ethernet cable, put the router into Rescue mode and use the Asus Firmware Restoration utility to flash the new firmware.

https://www.asus.com/support/faq/1000814/

I can't say which build has "better" WiFi. You'll have to experiment for yourself.

Can I install official Merlin firmware older version like 374 and then if it takes try John's?

 

[Ampicillin]

L=legacy uses older wifi-code and gave me much more radio power on RT-AC68U, might be the same on 66U but dont know.
Whats the problem to test it on your own, 5min. and its done!

Thank you. I'll search more info whether it supports sprint version or not.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Can I install official Merlin firmware older version like 374 and then if it takes try John's?

Maybe. Everything I said about installing this firmware would equally apply to installing the old version of Merlin's. But if you did install Merlin 374 you could probably update to John's through the GUI.

 

[jrmwvu04]

I’ve come to find out that my ISP-provisioned speeds are now 300/25, which tests close to 340/25 without QoS enabled. What’s your criteria for QoS/no QoS on an asymmetrical connection like that?

As a creepy reminder of how insecure the web “used to be”, I got this in-browser pop up when loading an unrelated website over http.

Spoiler

View attachment 20321

It depends on how often you saturate your uplink and whether or not you can live with the consequences when it does. I have 200/10 so I'm working with less than you, but 10 Mb up is sufficiently crushed when any of our resident iDevices does a cloud backup. That's not super frequent, but when it does happen, goodbye everyone else, especially if it's an online game. Xfinity has upped the max download a couple of times but never the upload sadly.

But beyond that, I would agree with what @ColinTaylor

 

[Ampicillin]

Maybe. Everything I said about installing this firmware would equally apply to installing the old version of Merlin's. But if you did install Merlin 374 you could probably update to John's through the GUI.

Thank you. I took a risk and flashed John's. It took less than 5 mins. It's working perfectly.

One question, I want to reset now router completely and then put back ISP details. It seems I can't find reset button for sprint RT 66U.

 

[dave14305]

Thank you. I took a risk and flashed John's. It took less than 5 mins. It's working perfectly.

One question, I want to reset now router completely and then put back ISP details. It seems I can't find reset button for sprint RT 66U.

You can reset to factory defaults in the GUI under Administration -> Restore/Save/Upload Setting -> Factory default -> Restore.

 

[dave14305]

So.., 39E3 was the perfect revision, there won't be any others any more John?

There are others (up to 40EC). See the post a few above yours. Developed by John and posted to his OneDrive development folder. Use at your own risk since John is not currently active on the forums and the source code for the later builds are not pushed to his GitHub repository.

or look at this post for John’s last post linking to his Dev directory if you want it straight from the horse’s mouth:
[Fork] Asuswrt-Merlin 374.43 LTS releases (V39E3)

 

[Ampicillin]

You can reset to factory defaults in the GUI under Administration -> Restore/Save/Upload Setting -> Factory default -> Restore.

Thank you.

 

[Ampicillin]

I can't connect to Astrill VPN router. I successfully installed and VPN says connected but there's no internet access. I tried different servers but still the same problem.

Does anyone know what could be the issue?

 

[MON@H Rasta]

Am I the only one who have problems with NAT loopback? My device is RT-N66R and I'm using latest stable build 3.0.0.4.374.43_39E3j9527. The problem I have is I can't connect to services on my server like TeamSpeak for example from inside my local network using my public IP/domain. It works just fine for outside connections, so I guess ports configured right. And I can connect using internal network IP (192.168.1.XXX).
Am I missing something?

UPD: I have searched this thread and I found the solution: LAN - Switch Control - NAT Acceleration - Disabled
It's resolving my issue and I able to connect to my server using public IP, but I feel bad about disabling this option
Is there any other way to fix it?

 

[dev_null]

UPD: I have searched this thread and I found the solution: LAN - Switch Control - NAT Acceleration - Disabled
It's resolving my issue and I able to connect to my server using public IP, but I feel bad about disabling this option
Is there any other way to fix it?

What is your internet connection speed? NAT Acceleration really only matters if you are above 200Mbps. Granted the N66 is underpowered these days but not sure NAT Acceleration is going to help that (I've run my N66U without NAT Acceleration on a 100Mbps fiber connection without issue).

 

[slobodan]

What is your internet connection speed? NAT Acceleration really only matters if you are above 200Mbps. Granted the N66 is underpowered these days but not sure NAT Acceleration is going to help that (I've run my N66U without NAT Acceleration on a 100Mbps fiber connection without issue).

RT-N16 is an even older router and still handles 350 Mbps OK. Perhaps 500 Mbps (download speed).