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Asus T-Mobile T-Mobile (AC-1900) (Cert Refurb) $50

$50.00
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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product...UTF8&psc=1

Price is down $9.99 from where it's been at $59.99.

Not the lowest it has been (somewhere around $47.99 I believe) but as my router died, I have been shopping around for an AC1900.
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Asus T-Mobile T-Mobile (AC-1900) (Cert Refurb) $50
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Joined Nov 2008
L3: Novice
> bubble2 227 Posts
42 Reputation
jpell123
03-14-2018 at 05:38 PM.
03-14-2018 at 05:38 PM.
I bought a new unit about a year and a half ago. Flashed the firmware, but have not been impressed with it at all. Video stutters on all of our Roku boxes. Our older Linksys router was much better.
Reply
Joined Apr 2012
L5: Journeyman
> bubble2 704 Posts
315 Reputation
bennor
03-14-2018 at 06:08 PM.
03-14-2018 at 06:08 PM.
Quote from ST1NGY :
That's the way I did it. I believe I got it from some old instructions. The mini-CFE page responds much quicker than you'd think. It also times-out quickly. I suspect some people wait too long.
I suspected CFE page was timing out before I could hit the upload button even though I was trying to as fast as I could. What ever the problem was I got past it. Smilie
Reply
Joined May 2006
L3: Novice
> bubble2 160 Posts
15 Reputation
caseyatbt
03-15-2018 at 05:24 AM.
03-15-2018 at 05:24 AM.
Price went up to $59.99
Reply
Joined May 2014
L7: Teacher
> bubble2 2,290 Posts
283 Reputation
nickn8911
03-15-2018 at 05:55 AM.
03-15-2018 at 05:55 AM.
Quote from abenjani :
I picked one up last time they were FP. Immediately flashed it to ac68u and then Merlin. If you're familiar with terminal & FTP software, it should be a straightforward upgrade.

My only hiccup was getting the router to boot into recovery mode, I guess because I had a different firmware version than was written for in this guide -> http://www.bayareatechpros.com/ac1900-to-ac68u/

Since I've installed Merlin, I haven't had to touch it or reboot it. Very much worth the $50.
i agree. merlin is great. mine has been wonderful and no issues at all. incredible router for $50.
Reply
Joined Apr 2012
L5: Journeyman
> bubble2 704 Posts
315 Reputation
bennor
03-15-2018 at 06:35 AM.
03-15-2018 at 06:35 AM.
Just an FYI to those on the stock ASUS firmware (latest version). You may have trouble with the Time Zone setting where when you click the Apply button on the Administration > System page you get the following error: "Specified time interval can not overlap." and any setting changes on that page are not saved. Apparently this is a well known issue with ASUS firmware. Don't know if there is a definitive fix (haven't found one yet) but one workaround is to change the time zone to one that has only one DST setting (or no DST setting) then hit the Apply button. One can then make other setting changes on the Settings page and save them. Down side is the system time may/will be off. You may/will see the message; " * Reminder: The System time zone is different from your locale setting." under the Time Zone selection box.
Reply
Last edited by bennor March 15, 2018 at 06:40 AM.
Joined Oct 2009
L6: Expert
> bubble2 1,570 Posts
692 Reputation
ST1NGY
03-15-2018 at 06:44 AM.
03-15-2018 at 06:44 AM.
Quote from bennor :
Just an FYI to those on the stock ASUS firmware (latest version). You may have trouble with the Time Zone setting where when you click the Apply button on the Administration > System page you get the following error: "Specified time interval can not overlap." and any setting changes on that page are not saved. Apparently this is a well known issue with ASUS firmware. Don't know if there is a definitive fix (haven't found one yet) but one workaround is to change the time zone to one that has only one DST setting (or no DST setting) then hit the Apply button. One can then make other setting changes on the Settings page and save them. Down side is the system time will be off. You will see the message; " * Reminder: The System time zone is different from your locale setting." under the Time Zone selection box.
️Just set the timezone to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+0), click save, then change back to the correct TZ and save. Then make the rest of your other changes and save. No need to leave the TZ wrong. I have a feeling this is caused by not doing a factory reset after upgrading the firmware. Some things get screwed-up.
Reply
Last edited by ST1NGY March 15, 2018 at 07:46 AM.
Joined Apr 2012
L5: Journeyman
> bubble2 704 Posts
315 Reputation
bennor
03-15-2018 at 08:27 AM.
03-15-2018 at 08:27 AM.
Quote from ST1NGY :
️Just set the timezone to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT+0), click save, then change back to the correct TZ and save. Then make the rest of your other changes and save. No need to leave the TZ wrong.
Tried that on my end. Changed to GMT+0 then back to GMT-5 (East Coast) and it didn't work. Would get the error when attempting to save the updated time zone that has two DST days.

In looking around it apparently was a problem with firmware for certain ASUS routers where any time zone that had two DST days would generate this error. Selecting a location like AZ with just one DST day the error no longer appears.

I suspect (a wild guess) the problem could possibly trace back to having the TM firmware on the router in the first place that may not have had the ASUS fix included when ASUS fixed their own firmware several years ago.

This issue may not be that big of a deal for some/many. Just pointing out the stupid bug and workarounds to the problem for anyone else who has the issue.

So far that is the only bug I've run into post flashing this router to the latest stock ASUS firmware. Everything else that I've been testing so far is working great (knock on wood) with this router. laugh out loud
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Joined Oct 2009
L6: Expert
> bubble2 1,570 Posts
692 Reputation
ST1NGY
03-15-2018 at 08:55 AM.
03-15-2018 at 08:55 AM.
Quote from bennor :
Tried that on my end. Changed to GMT+0 then back to GMT-5 (East Coast) and it didn't work. Would get the error when attempting to save the updated time zone that has two DST days.

In looking around it apparently was a problem with firmware for certain ASUS routers where any time zone that had two DST days would generate this error. Selecting a location like AZ with just one DST day the error no longer appears.

I suspect (a wild guess) the problem could possibly trace back to having the TM firmware on the router in the first place that may not have had the ASUS fix included when ASUS fixed their own firmware several years ago.

This issue may not be that big of a deal for some/many. Just pointing out the stupid bug and workarounds to the problem for anyone else who has the issue.

So far that is the only bug I've run into post flashing this router to the latest stock ASUS firmware. Everything else that I've been testing so far is working great (knock on wood) with this router. laugh out loud
Well it fixed mine. I even had the DST start and stop dates swapped, like it was for the southern hemisphere. All four of mine were former TM-AC1900s. But only one had this problem. This was one where I let it automatically upgrade from ASUS 376.3626 to AiMesh 384. Others have reported that a NVRAM erase fixed it too.

BTW, Greenwich Mean Time has no DST. And it will certainly let you save when it is selected.
Reply
Last edited by ST1NGY March 15, 2018 at 09:26 AM.
Joined Apr 2012
L5: Journeyman
> bubble2 704 Posts
315 Reputation
bennor
03-15-2018 at 12:39 PM.
03-15-2018 at 12:39 PM.
Quote from ST1NGY :
Well it fixed mine. I even had the DST start and stop dates swapped, like it was for the southern hemisphere. All four of mine were former TM-AC1900s. But only one had this problem. This was one where I let it automatically upgrade from ASUS 376.3626 to AiMesh 384. Others have reported that a NVRAM erase fixed it too.

BTW, Greenwich Mean Time has no DST. And it will certainly let you save when it is selected.
I left it at GMT+0 previously until I experimented with erasing/resetting the unit. A Factory default - Initialize seems to have fixed the issue after trying and failing with; a Factory default - Restore and a NVRAM reset using the WPS button. Goofy things to fix but that's the trade off with these cheap TM Asus routers. laugh out loud
Reply
Joined Dec 2004
L7: The Hon
> bubble2 1,902 Posts
448 Reputation
awdawg
03-16-2018 at 08:20 AM.
03-16-2018 at 08:20 AM.
Quote from 80is :
i would like to do something like that, do you have any links.

.
To be honest it wasn't horribly difficult.
My century link modem has wifi. I left that one on so I have a "non vpn connection"
Then in the ASUS router there are Open VPN options to enable and setup.
When you setup an account with express vpn they will share config files for all their servers. You just have to download the appropriate one for the server you want to connect to. Then upload to your router and click connect.

https://www.expressvpn.com/suppor...h-openvpn/
This should help explain!
Reply
Joined Nov 2010
L10: Grand Master
> bubble2 15,688 Posts
1,906 Reputation
80is
03-16-2018 at 05:24 PM.
03-16-2018 at 05:24 PM.
Quote from awdawg :
To be honest it wasn't horribly difficult.
My century link modem has wifi. I left that one on so I have a "non vpn connection"
Then in the ASUS router there are Open VPN options to enable and setup.
When you setup an account with express vpn they will share config files for all their servers. You just have to download the appropriate one for the server you want to connect to. Then upload to your router and click connect.

https://www.expressvpn.com/suppor...h-openvpn/
This should help explain!
Thank you, i will give that a try.

.
Reply
Joined Dec 2004
L7: The Hon
> bubble2 1,902 Posts
448 Reputation
awdawg
03-16-2018 at 06:43 PM.
03-16-2018 at 06:43 PM.
Quote from 80is :
Thank you, i will give that a try.

.

Most welcome
Reply
Joined May 2006
L3: Novice
> bubble2 160 Posts
15 Reputation
caseyatbt
03-18-2018 at 08:01 PM.
03-18-2018 at 08:01 PM.
I keep reading that Merlin is beta testing AiMesh. I have flashed both the beta and stable releases and don't see AiMesh on either. How is anyone able to run Merlin AIMesh?


Nevermind, I just saw that Merlin posted this on Friday:

Also note that AiMesh is NOT supported, and there are currently no new information as to whether it will eventually be supported or not.
Reply
Last edited by caseyatbt March 19, 2018 at 05:28 AM.
Joined Nov 2006
L3: Novice
> bubble2 147 Posts
45 Reputation
beythain
03-21-2018 at 02:46 PM.
03-21-2018 at 02:46 PM.
Quote from caseyatbt :
I keep reading that Merlin is beta testing AiMesh. I have flashed both the beta and stable releases and don't see AiMesh on either. How is anyone able to run Merlin AIMesh?


Nevermind, I just saw that Merlin posted this on Friday:

Also note that AiMesh is NOT supported, and there are currently no new information as to whether it will eventually be supported or not.
Merlin's main reason, as he's stated on SNB forums before, is that Asus is not opening up the source code to AiMesh (I assume to prevent other competitors from copying). And in general, Asus is opening up less and less of the newer software features.
Reply

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Joined Jan 2013
L1: Learner
> bubble2 19 Posts
12 Reputation
kdaustex
03-21-2018 at 03:25 PM.
03-21-2018 at 03:25 PM.
Quote from kami333 :
Followed these directions and got mine flashed in ~30min, most of it spent trying to get the router to boot into recovery link [bayareatechpros.com]

(What worked for me: unplug power then plug power in and push power button while holding reset, and keep holding reset down for ~10secs while the router boots)
Yeah, getting it into recovery mode is a bear. Key points and differences from the bayareatechpros guide (it's written for Windows; I'm using Ubuntu 16.04):
  • Use the WPS Reset button (side of the router), not the Reset button on the back.
  • You don't need any software downloads from the Asus support site -- assuming that the mega.nz link works for you.
  • Don't need mt-write included in the download file. T-Mobile firmware provides mtd-write2 utility.

Step 1: Download files and prepare your computer.
  • Download the file from mega.nz in the link (https://mega.nz/#!jAEi0S5S!JvWZ0s...3ZSSAs8Vs0
  • Unpack it. You should see 3 files:
    - FW_RT_AC68U_30043763626.trx
    - TM-AC1900_3.0.0.4_376_1703-g0ffdbba.trx
    - mtd-write
  • Set your computer to static IP in the 192.168.29.x subnet, where x is 2 or higher. (In Ubuntu 16.04, you can do this graphically with Network Manager | Edit Connections | Wired Connection | IPv4 Settings). Disable then re-enable networking each time you change the IP.)
  • Connect an ethernet cable from your computer to one of the 4 LAN ports on the router.

Step 2: Flash to older T-Mobile firmware:
  • Power the router off.
  • Hold down the WPS Reset button on the router for 10 seconds.
  • Keep holding down the WPS Reset button and power the router on. Watch the lights on the front. The power LED will be solid blue.
  • Release the WPS Reset button when the power LED starts flashing.
  • Browse to http://192.168.29.1 (http://, NOT https://)
  • CFE miniWeb Server should appear
  • Upload (downgraded) firmware file TM-AC1900_3.0.0.4_376_1703-g0ffdbba.trx
  • Web server will say upload completed.
  • Reboot (~2 minutes or less).

Step 3: Upgrade to Asus firmware and new bootloader:
  • Login with username = "admin", password = "password"
  • Don't go through internet setup. Select "Back to" button
  • Go to Administration > System > Enable SSH > Yes > Apply
  • Open a terminal window on your computer: ssh -oKexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 -c 3des-cbc [email protected]
  • Make a copy of the CFE bootloader: cat /dev/mtd0 > original.cfe.bin
  • Copy the .bin file from the router to your computer. I used scp command running from my computer: scp -oKexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 -c 3des-cbc [email protected]:/tmp/home/root/original.cfe.bin ~/Downloads
  • Connect to the internet (a second computer helps) and browse to the online CFEeditor (https://cfeditor.pipeline.sh/).
  • Select the blue up-arrow button and upload the original.cfe.bin file. Select 1.0.2.0 US as the Source CFE. Select the blue down-arrow button to download the revised bootloader file.
  • Upload 2 files (On Ubuntu 16.04, you need extra parameters to connect with ssh or scp. Otherwise, "Unable to negotiate with 192.168.29.1 port 22: no matching key exchange method found. Their offer: diffie-hellman-group1-sha1"):
  • Upload the revised bootloader file: scp -oKexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 -c 3des-cbc ~/Downloads/new_1.0.2.0.bin [email protected]:/tmp/home/root/
  • Upload the newer firmware file: scp -oKexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group1-sha1 -c 3des-cbc ~/Downloads/TM-AC1900toRT-AC68U/FW_RT_AC68U_30043763626.trx [email protected]:/tmp/home/root/
  • Make the bootloader file executable: chmod u+x new_1.0.2.0.bin boot
  • Write the files to their targets ("boot", "linux"):
    mtd-write2 new_1.0.2.0.bin boot
    mtd-write2 FW_RT_AC68U_30043763626.trx linux
  • Reset the router again (WPS button, wait for flashing lights).

Step 4: Upgrade to latest Asus firmware:
  • Login with your browser to 192.168.1.1. (NOTE: IP address has changed. You may need to set a new static IP on your computer, or change it back to using DHCP)
  • From here on, just use the UI: Upgrade using the Administration |Firmware upgrade screen.

Step 5 (optional): Upgrade to Asuswrt-Merlin 3rd party firmware:
Notes:
Later Asus firmware (and Asuswrt-Merlin) will make your router's web admin UI available at the hostname http://router.asus.com or https://router.asus.com:8443.
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Last edited by kdaustex March 22, 2018 at 05:20 AM.
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