RT-AC66U in an enclosed cupboard - is heat build-up problem?

[Kritiker]

I understand from reading some of the posts here that some people have some concerns regarding the heat dissipation of this router.

My old routers (WiFi (802.11g and older) and wired) plus a gigabit Ethernet switch all lived in an enclosed cupboard (top shelf of a 2 ft x 2 ft x 1.5 foot cupboard with a closed door) and worked well.

Positioning the RT-AC66U elsewhere would be inconvenient. Cables would have to be relocated and might not be long enough to reach. Alternatively I could forgo three out of the RT-AC66U's four gigabit Ethernet ports and just connect it to a (bigger) main switch to connect to my home network.

At the moment I have the RT-AC66U in the open, in addition to my regular WiFi router in the cupboard but I want to replace the old one with the RT-AC66U soon. I suppose I could try it but I don't want to fry it. I suppose I could try RMerlin's firmware to get access to the router's radios' temperatures.

I am guessing that the RT-AC66U would not do so well in such an enclosed environment, oriented horizontally rather than vertically. Would I be right?

 

[RMerlin]

Measure the temperature after a few hours, you'll see.

 

[Kritiker]

Yes, I am trying to get to that point, really I am.

Unfortunately it seems that all the hardware I have been buying lately has issues that require me to explore, to test, to discover and to reinstall/update etc. I could spend all day, every day, just trying to get everything working the way I want it to. Compared to some of that hardware, this router has, so far, been a breath of fresh air.

I was hoping someone who had already explored this would be willing to share his/her findings.

But you are right, RMerlin. Someone else's experiences are no substitute for my own investigations. Every situation is different and my mileage may vary. And what better time to do the testing than before I actually put it into service, and while I can still return it, should I need to. Firmware update, here I come.

Temperatures out in the open (essentially under no load):
- ~59C for 5 MHz
- ~55C for 2.4 GHz

A few hours later, still out in the open, the temperatures have dropped to
~56C for 5 MHz
~54C for 2.4 GHz
(it's hard to tell more accurately from the graph)

A few minutes later still, after putting the router in a closed (but larger than ultimately intended) cupboard, on its back but with the stand still attached, the temperatures haven't risen, at all.

Several hours later, the temperatures have risen back to
- ~59C for 5 MHz
- ~55C for 2.4 GHz
still under essentially no load and in a largish cupboard.

[Hmm, inSSIDer trace (2.4GHz) isn't quite a smooth as it was before updating from 3.0.0.4.260 to 3.0.0.4.264.22.]

So, I have learned that under 65C is probably OK and that over 80C-90C is definitely abnormal and too high.

The problem is that the ideal location for this device as an Access Point is different from its ideal location as a router.

 

[Kritiker]

Temperature displays not updatng properly? Bug in 3.0.0.4.264.22?

SORRY: My posted images (from my albums or even attachments) do not seem to display in Internet Explorer or Opera unless the viewer is logged in. They do seem to display in Firefox. Very strange. I have added attachments. Are only registered users able to see images in this forum? I have checked all the setting I can find in my CP and cannot see any way to enable the viewing of these images. I will keep looking.

Running firmware 3.0.0.4.264.22 the temperature graphs seemed a little too flat to me so I opened up 4 browser windows, displayed latest (4) to earliest (1), and monitored the temperature.

The right hand edge of each display represents the same time instant that the screen shot was taken.
Image 1:

The 5 G Hz temperatures being displayed in windows 4 &1 seem to be the same and in 3 & 2 seem to be the same but are different from each other and should be the same. The 2.4 GHz temperatures all seem to be the same.

One might conclude that the graph is somehow based on the temperature when the page was (re)loaded, except there is a bit of variation right at the beginning of some plots, e.g., number 3.

Another view of simultaneous temperature readings:
Image 2:

It seems as if one has to refresh the page in the browser to see updated temperature readings, even for the plots. The plots don't seem to be real time - just a repeat of the initial temperature - except for a possible hiccup, right at the start of the plot - sometimes a bit of a spike, sometimes a bit of a dip and other times, nothing at all.

And one more set of simultaneous screenshots of two browser windows:
Image 3:

The time seems to be updated on an ongoing basis, even if the two browser windows are a little out of sync. The temperatures being shown are different however. I have not yet seen them change except when I refresh the window. I may just not have waited long enough, or ... ?

Is this a bug or, more likely, am I missing something?

 

[Kritiker]

To summarize what I (think I) have learned so far:

• Temperatures under 65C are probably OK and temperatures over 80C-90C are abnormal and too high.
• Temperature reports (values and graphs) (in firmware 3.0.0.4.264.22) are not updated in real-time but only when the page is refreshed, probably due to the temperature reporting feature's not being supported by Asus.
• Whether the router will overheat in my cupboard I'll have to determine by trial and error.

Thanks to all.

 

[RMerlin]

The Sysinfo page is not refreshed in realtime. The uptime is automatically incrementing simply because it's set as a Javascript clock that starts at the uptime value at the time the page is loaded, and automatically increments it every second.

 

[Kritiker]

Thanks. Appreciate it.

 

[gravejoker]

Hi
I just installed a new AC66U to replace a 5 year old Dlink 655.

Kind of stupid question. How do I view the temperature readings of the router? Which specific page/link do I need to go to? Seems to me like it's pretty hot.

I am running stock 266 firmware.


Regards

 

[Kritiker]

If running the Merlin firmware you can see the temperatures at Tools | Sysinfo and the temperature charts at Administration | Performance tuning. Neither is updated in real-time.