Is it safe to flash re-compiled firmware?

[copperhead]

I recently cloned and successfully compiled a copy of the asuswrt-merlin.ng // src-rt-5.02hnd for the Asus GT-AC2900 router using amcfwm. I did some search/replace on the amcfwm script to acknowledge my AC-2900's existence. The newly compiled firmware matches the file size of the merlin released firmware. I did not make any changes to the cloned source.

I haven't yet flashed the re-compiled version to my router. How safe is it doing so? I mean, can i confidentially assume my compiled firmware is identical to the released merlin firmware? If all goes well i'll be making some .ASP file changes then re-compiling. For now i'm using Greasemonkey to modify the Web UI's javascript but would still like to make more substantial changes.

For the record, the 386.1_2 merlin released firmware works well with my router. All AC2900 features are operational. There are a few minor issues which appear connected to the underlying base firmware version.

 

[Jack Yaz]

It won't be identical. It is no longer possible to compile the firmware with working Trend Micro components such as AiProtection or Adaptive QoS. Only developers approved by Asus (and thus given the secret steps) such as RMerlin can produce a firmware with working Trend Micro components.

 

[RMerlin]

If all you want to modify are web pages, I recommend editing the pages on your router, saving the modified copies to /jffs/ then using a binding mount command in a script to mount them on top of the firmware's original pages.

mount -o bind /jffs/Tools_Sysinfo.asp /www/Tools_Sysinfo.asp

 

[copperhead]

Jack Yaz and RMerlin, very good info from you both. Quite helpful!