Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 118 Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2012 0:17 Post subject:
If you're not sure which firmware to use, read through this thread and get familiar with the experiences of the users.
The 2500 support is a work in progress at this point.
These are experimental builds. They are not entirely stable. They can brick your router.
If you are not ready to take the risk of bricking your router with this firmware, then please, wait, until the releases are more stable. _________________ Linksys E900 dd-wrt v24-sp2 18946 mini
Linksys E3000 dd-wrt v24-sp2 15692 std-usb-nas
D-Link DIR-601 Gargoyle 1.5.3 ar71xx dir 600 a1 squashfs
But which to choose? My e2500 just came in today and I wanted to be sure I flashed the ideal version to it. I see big, mega, openvpn, usb_nas, and mini (all with the aforementioned nv60k suffix). My goal is to connect this to StrongVPN via their PPTP service. Does it matter which of these versions I pick? Should I upgrade to OpenVPN service for simplicity and then use the openvpn version? Any advice on this would be helpful before I flash and realize I'm back to square one.
Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2012 10:31 Post subject: Test results
Hi,
I tried the build on page 9. My observations were that my link speed went up from 72MBPS to 150MBPS while moving from the original Cisco firmware to the DD-WRT firmware. File transfers (internal to my LAN) between a PC connected via a DLink DWA 125 (N150)adapter and a PC connected via a 10/100MBPS port were around 40 -50MBPS. The web interface was a bit sluggish using the DD-WRT firmware. It worked via the wireless PC but sometimes was non responsive via the wired pc. In the end went back to the Cisco firmware to try out the 5GHZ spectrum with a new AE2500 USB adapter and now am finally happy.
Data transfer internal to my LAN is at 11MB/s or around 90MBPS which is to a PC connected through a 10/100 MBPS port on the router. So pretty much theoretical max bandwidth on a 100MBPS port.
The DD-WRT firmware offers excellent features, however my observation was that it was not stable enough.
Would love to try it again when it support the 5GHZ spectrum..
Joined: 22 Aug 2011 Posts: 16 Location: Thessaloniki
Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2012 18:35 Post subject:
Hi to all.
Successfully flashed the .bin from Page 9 to a fresh e2500. Everything is working fine till now.
P.S.: After flashing and NOT making a 30/30/30 reset, I played a bit (mostly with the web interface) and found some "bugs" in fields (incorrect values in fields). If needed, I can upload a screenshot to help developers fixing these errors.
A big thanks to fractal. Great job man!
Keep up the good work. _________________ 2 x Linksys WRT54GL v1.1
1 x Linksys WRT54G v2.2 [Dual WAN]
1 x Linksys E2500
Ok, so I flashed my router all seems to be fine. If I ping it I get TTL=64 which should mean that I am not bricked. However, when I attempt to connect my computer it keeps connecting and disconecting although no matter what I can succefully ping it. Thus, sometimes I can access the webgui and other times I cannot. Any ideas of what may be going on? Thanks for all you hard work!
Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2012 7:37 Post subject: Uploaded - a users experience
Okay, got my e2500 flashed and working last night with the VPN build - here is my feedback to help others.
1. Updated router to latest Cisco firmware release
2. Attempted to update router to latest dd-wrt VPN release
3. Update constantly failed
4. Updated to latest e2500.bin release successfully
5. Updated to latest VPN.bin release successfully
6. Attempted to configure PPTP client - failed to connect, but not sure if it was a router or ISP issue
7. Attempted to configure PPTP main configuration (from DHCP to PPTP on basic config page) as per the instructions on VPN providers page - failed, as for some reason PPTP configuration on this release does not properly update/configure DHCP option by graying out boxes...may be a bug, as my old dd-wrt router does this properly
8. Upgraded my VPN service to OpenVPN and ran provided OpenVPN script on router - success...VPN worked and all is well
Observations: Fractal stated he was able to directly upgrade routers right off the shelf - which is fantastic, but if you find that isn't working - go from Cisco to e2500.bin (latest version) and then your particular build desire (mini, VPN, big, mega, etc). Also, for some reason PPTP seems to have issues on this router (again, may be the router build, may be the ISP here). I can PPTP via my computer, but router seems to hiccup each time. May want to avoid the headache and find an OpenVPN provider that gives you the scripts to dd-wrt routers. Finally, and this one is fairly important - when I attempted to make any changes to the router while hardwired to it, I would get a server timeout issue when I clicked SAVE or APPLY SETTINGS. If I was connected wirelessly, I would have no issue. Not sure if this is a router issue or if it is on my end. Just an observation to help others out. Happy to provide additional details if they assist in fixing your issue or in advancing the code on this particular model from Cisco. Mod on...
Hey guys. I bought one of these routers as a refurb for a great price last year. Unfortunately, my WAN port is busted and I didn't try to work with this router until recently. Therefore, my warranty is gone and I have no other option but to turn a LAN port into a replacement WAN port (in software, of course, not physically). I was wondering if one of you kind gentlemen (or women) could assist me in turning LAN port 4 into the new WAN port with this router. I successfully installed the build on page 9 and haven't updated to a different/newer build since then. So far, I have attempted to assign LAN port 4 to vlan 2 where the WAN port also resides, using the VLAN page of the web gui. I have also attempted to turn the WAN port off using the VLAN page. This does not seem to have converted my port 4 into a WAN port. With the ISP modem connected to LAN port 4, I get a 0.0.0.0 WAN IP address and I cannot go anywhere on the internet using a PC connected to any other LAN port. Does anyone have any ideas? I can supply a dmesg and an nvram readout from DD-WRT if necessary. Thanks.
This would seem to imply that there is now full support for this router. Is that true? Should I be flashing the bin from page 9 or the one from the router-database?
I have flashed dd-wrt on 4 routers, but they have always been fully supported models. When I found the e2500 on the router-database, I bought the refurb ($25), but then looking for install instructions I found this.
I am really only interested in using this as a client bridge for my entertainment system...
This would seem to imply that there is now full support for this router. Is that true? Should I be flashing the bin from page 9 or the one from the router-database?
I have flashed dd-wrt on 4 routers, but they have always been fully supported models. When I found the e2500 on the router-database, I bought the refurb ($25), but then looking for install instructions I found this.
I am really only interested in using this as a client bridge for my entertainment system...
Note that 5ghz radio is not supported yet on the e2500.
DO NOT TRUST THE ROUTER DATABASE ALONE FOR WHAT VERSION TO USE. But I see it has been updated to show 18946 - there was an old first build listed there for awhile.
Do a 30-30-30 reset, then upload the firmware, dd-wrt.v24-18946_NEWD-2_K2.6_mini-e2500.bin
Wait 10 minutes after the flash completes, then power cycle the router.
Read through this e2500 topic and and the build 18946 topic above to see what people are having success and or trouble with.
Read the Peacock topic in the Broadcom SoC subforum.
If you are in doubt about what to do, WAIT.
This is still a test build, though in my experience, it's working fine for me.
Joined: 30 Dec 2007 Posts: 12 Location: Ajman, United Arab Emirates
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 22:16 Post subject:
I bricked my brother's E2500 when I hastily flashed just relying on the wiki. Fortunately it was replaced under warranty.
Now I'm sticking to stock firmware until some stable DD-WRT or Tomato builds appear. Since bricking this router would mean losing 50% WiFi coverage at our family apartment.
Stock fimrware has been stable so far, but very limited, doesn't even have wireless bridge. Cisco are really screwing their customers.
Will being going for the Asus RT-N66U as a backbone router and NAS. Since that supports both DD-WRT and Tomato. _________________ Currently running Buffalo WHR-HP-G54-5-EU with tomato-K26-1.28.9054MIPSR1-beta-vpn3.6. TomatoUSB Kernel 2.6 (experimental) for MIPSR1 Routers - NoUSB VPN version
Was running Buffalo WHR-HP-G54-5-EU with TomatoVPN (SgtPepperKSU)
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 18:30 Post subject: Thanks
More reading for me. Oh the joys of early hacking... My several andorid's, wii & xbox360 have all been just like this... read, read, read... then read some more... and once you have it all in your head, read a little more... Then, and only then, cautiously proceed.