RT-AC68 - New firmware 3.0.0.4.376_3602 (AVOID)

[mgttr]

My reset button is fine. The reset button will just reboot the router. If you wish to clear the NVRAM then you press and hold the WPS button with the power off. Simply power up the router while pressing the WPS button and I hold it in for about 10 seconds just to be safe. The power LED on the router should pulsate very fast while you are pressing and holding the WPS button. That will wipe everything which by the sounds of things would not be such a bad idea for your router. Then manually reenter your configuration setting or use the utility that is attached to a thread in the Asuswrt-Merlin forum. Do NOT use a saved config file to reload your settings as this defeats the purpose of wiping your NVRAM clean in the first place.

Well, my reset button used to reset to factory defaults when held for 5 seconds. But no matter - your method worked fine for doing that. Thanks!

 

[wim7vs]

Is the link to the Polish site providing the Polish version or is the page just in Polish and the firmware is supported for US English?

I checked the official US support site for the RT-AC68U/P and either has that version. Am I missing something?

http://www.asus.com/Networking/RTAC68U/HelpDesk_Download/

 

[DaveMishSr]

Is the link to the Polish site providing the Polish version or is the page just in Polish and the firmware is supported for US English?

I checked the official US support site for the RT-AC68U/P and either has that version. Am I missing something?

The file on the Polish site is fine. It is the exact same file I flashed on my AC68U last night and it seemed okay. However, my ac87R is kicking butt and taking no prisoners at the moment. I think enabling the "Airtime Fairness" option put it over the top. At any rate I did not set up the AC68U. I just flashed 376.3626, made sure the web-based GUI would load properly (which it did) and buttoned it up for it's auction on eBay in the near future.

 

[neil0311]

http://www.asus.com/Networking/RTAC68U/HelpDesk_Download/

Thanks. I checked earlier. Must not have been posted yet, or I just missed it.

 

[twitchyzero]

does anyone know if you can downgrade FW from an older family?

I'm asking because the 374 drivers retained Tx power setting but 376 can no longer allow for >80mW?

If I upgrade to 376 and it doesnt work out can i go back to the 374's?

 

[DaveMishSr]

Sticky: [Fork] Update for 374.43 available

does anyone know if you can downgrade FW from an older family?

I'm asking because the 374 drivers retained Tx power setting but 376 can no longer allow for >80mW?

If I upgrade to 376 and it doesn't work out can I go back to the 374's?

Yes. Have you tried the 374.43 fork by john9527? It retains the wireless performance of that prior version with updated code that includes most of the updates without changing the drivers, if I understand correctly. Asus has also had to hard-cap all of their routers at 80mW in response to the lawsuit Netgear filed last year alleging violations of FCC regulations by Asus.

If you have any questions then ask john9527. I am sure he will answer you but a PM may be the best means of communication. Regardless, here is the link to his sticky post over in the Asuswrt-Merlin forum. Good luck!


http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showthread.php?t=18914

 

[DaveMishSr]

Holding reset button should also put router in recovery mode

Well, my reset button used to reset to factory defaults when held for 5 seconds. But no matter - your method worked fine for doing that. Thanks!

Really? That is strange. What happens when you press and hold the reset button while powering up the router? It should enter recovery mode. If so then the button is physically working and I suspect that there is something wrong with your firmware flashing attempt. If it were my router I would put the router into recovery mode (provided you can) & flash the firmware of choice (including TomatoUSB or DD-WRT). Then do a factory reset to make sure the new firmware settings load properly and also overwrite any older code. Good luck!

 

[Zbig]

And what about RT-AC56U?

It seems they forgot about RT-AC56U. They still list _3602 as the most recent firmware for it, with the "US and TW only" remark. Or perhaps this model wasn't affected by the 5GHz-crippling issue?

 

[Rcc]

I've skipped 3602 having followed this thread, but went from 374_5656 to 376_3626. The 5GHz went missing after the upgrade. I've done the reset and subsequent went back to 374_5656, both didn't help.

Is there anything I can try right now to get the 5GHz back? Thanks!

 

[DaveMishSr]

I've skipped 3602 having followed this thread, but went from 374_5656 to 376_3626. The 5GHz went missing after the upgrade. I've done the reset and subsequent went back to 374_5656, both didn't help.

Is there anything I can try right now to get the 5GHz back? Thanks!

Something is wrong then. My AC68U is running 376.3626 and all is fine. I would perform a factory reset, put the router into recovery mode and flash the firmware of choice including TomatoUSB or DD-WRT. I would also perform a factory reset after flashing especially if you opt to reflash version 376.3626 as it updates the bl version to v1.0.2.0 which requires it. This is necessary to load the proper settings into NVRAM and also wipes out any old code settings.

 

[wouterv]

With ref to:
http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showpost.php?p=150150&postcount=115
Is ASUS RT-AC68U Firmware version 3.0.0.4.376.3626 cancelled again?
It did show on the download site here in Europe but is gone (3602 being the latest again).

[EDIT]
Ok..different sites, different results.
It does show here:
https://www.asus.com/Networking/RTAC68U/HelpDesk_Download/

 

[Jimmy8881]

4tb HDD working! how to verify partition space?

well im happy to report that my Samsung 4tb d3 station HDD is working fine with both firmwares 3.0.0.4.376.3626 and 3.0.0.4_378_2807 !
I can finally leave the 374 firmware behind.

I do have a question, I was already on the 1.0.2.0 bootloader with the 32mb partition, how can I verify that the bootloader got updated with the 64mb partition ? is there a command to verify the partition space?

 

[denali]

I have an RT-AC66U and I'm a US user. Utilizing the RT-AC66U version of this firmware in my router killed my 5Ghz band.

Switching to Merlin's Firmware fixed it. I think this pretty much cemented me as a Merlin Firmware user.

 

[neil0311]

Anyone with Comcast who can report how 376.3626 works with IPv6? I've been having constant issues with newer revs of Merlin's builds and Comcast IPv6. I am considering flashing to the newest Asus build hoping those issues are fixed.

 

[DaveMishSr]

Oh no! Another unhappy customer!

I have an RT-AC66U and I'm a US user. Utilizing the RT-AC66U version of this firmware in my router killed my 5Ghz band.

Switching to Merlin's Firmware fixed it. I think this pretty much cemented me as a Merlin Firmware user.

It should not have killed your router. Recently, I have gone back to my tried and true method for flashing Asus routers. That is as follows:

1) Ignore the GUI and perform a NVRAM "wipe" by powering the router down, then press and hold the WPS button while powering the router back up. The power LED will pulsate rapidly indicating that the NVRAM is being cleared. Wait about 5-8 seconds and release the WPS button.

2) The router now needs to be placed into recovery mode. Power the router down again, then press and hold the RESET button while powering up the router. The power LED should be slowly blinking confirming it is in fact in recovery mode.

3) Now, use the firmware restoration utility to flash the firmware version of choice including TomatoUSB and DD-WRT. For good measure I perform another factory reset (it may be required as the 376.3602 update for the AC68U for instance). Do NOT cheat and use a config file to reload your settings. Either do it manually or get the setting restore utility that is mentioned over in the Asuswrt-Merlin forum. Otherwise you will defeat the purpose of all those factory resets.

I know this is overkill but it works every time. Not once have I had any problems when flashing a new firmware version as long as I take the time to use the procedure outlined above. Another advantage of using that system is that you really, really have to want to upgrade to go through all that (which is always a good thing).

Good luck!

 

[ronny]

I've had no issues at all with this upgrade? Everything is working very well....

 

[kmederos]

Last night I updated my AC66R with this firmware and it completely took down my 5ghz SSID. I was not able to change it from Auto to any other channels as none appeared. After a factory reset I was still unable to get my 5Ghz SSID active so I reverted back to the last firmware which solved my issues.


Has anyone had any luck with this firmware on an AC66U/R?

 

[RMerlin]

Last night I updated my AC66R with this firmware and it completely took down my 5ghz SSID. I was not able to change it from Auto to any other channels as none appeared. After a factory reset I was still unable to get my 5Ghz SSID active so I reverted back to the last firmware which solved my issues.


Has anyone had any luck with this firmware on an AC66U/R?

The issue is resolved with 376_3626.

 

[kmederos]

Oh man, what crappy timing I have! lol Boo..I hope i don't have to do a factory reset for this upgrade!

 

[g0pher]

Last night I updated my AC66R with this firmware and it completely took down my 5ghz SSID. I was not able to change it from Auto to any other channels as none appeared. After a factory reset I was still unable to get my 5Ghz SSID active so I reverted back to the last firmware which solved my issues.


Has anyone had any luck with this firmware on an AC66U/R?

I lost 5GHz Wifi on my AC66U after updating to 376.3602 as well. Restoring to defaults (through Web interface) didn't resolve the issue. I didn't have time to try other more thorough methods of clearing NVRAM.

Restoring back to 376.2524 did resolve the 5GHz Wifi issue.

In the end, I ended up upgrading to Shibby Tomato (v123) shortly afterwards anyways. I was looking for a good excuse to make the switch, and faulty stock firmware updates was a good reason.