Click here [dd-wrt.com] for a guide on installing DD-WRT
If you are not interested in using custom firmware yet, these routers support mesh with the stock firmware, but the USB port is disabled.
The stock firmware is relatively new, but is speculated to not receive many, if any, updates, so it may be best to wait until custom firmware support is merged and more mature before messing with installing custom firmware.
How to enable mesh:
- Setup your Main router completely.
- Plug your child node using the wan port to the main router lan port, wait for a solid purple light on the child node before proceeding.
- Log into your main router web admin.
- Click on CA at the bottom right.
- Click on Connectivity and CA Router setup.
- Click on both Add Wired and Add Wireless nodes buttons. Wait for the Add wireless button to re-enable.
- Click Done adding Child Nodes and then Apply.
- Now the child node light should start flashing purple and turn into a mesh mode when it turns blue.
- Disconnect Ethernet and wait for blue light again.
- Move node to desired location.
How to set up as access point:
- Disable DHCP (optional).
- Set the device to Bridge Mode under Connectivity tab.
- Connect cable from your router to a LAN port.
- Get some nail polish and a round sticker to cover the annoying flashing right light.
- Click the 'AC' at the bottom of the page to see the detailed configurations of wifi.
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DD-WRT runs FLAWLESS on this !!!
Here are the details from another thread:-
https://slickdeals.net/f/17735319-linksys-ln1301-tri-band-ax4200-wifi-6-wireless-router-20-free-shipping?p=1753
Top Comments
With wireless mesh (instructions below), it's one heck of a deal and blows DECO AX5000 deal out of the water, imho.
EDIT: UPDATED instructions for enabling MESH (thanks to @rbtcordell for the original source):
1-Setup your Main router completely.
2-Plug your child node using the wan port to the main router lan port, wait for a solid purple light on the child node before proceeding
3-Log into your main router web admin.
4-Click on CA at the bottom right.
5-Click on Connectivity and CA Router setup.
6-Click on both Add Wired and Add Wireless nodes buttons. Wait for the Add wireless button to re-enable.
7-Click Done adding Child Nodes and then Apply.
8-Now the child node light should start flashing purple and turn into a mesh mode when it turns blue.
9-Disconnect Ethernet and wait for blue light again.
10-Move node to desired location.
https://forum.dd-wrt.com/phpBB2/v...?p=1304991
openwrt release notes
https://github.com/asd333111/open...ax-fd13d50
disassembly photos for the curious
https://imgur.com/a/linksys-ln130...ly-YJM1qfw
qualcommax: ipq807x: add support for Linksys MX4300 (LN1301)
Hardware specification:
========
SoC: Qualcomm IPQ8174
Flash: 1GB (Micron MT29F8G08ABBCAH4 or AMD/Spansion S34MS08G2)
RAM: 2GB (2x Kingston B5116ECMDXGJD or ESMT M15T2G16128A DDR3L)
Ethernet: 4x 10/100/1000Mbps (Qualcomm QCA8075)
WiFi1: 5GHz ax 2x2 (Qualcomm QCN5054 + Skyworks SKY85755-11) - channels 36-64 (low band)
WiFi2: 2.4GHz ax 2x2 (Qualcomm QCN5024 + Skyworks SKY85340-11)
WiFi3: 5GHz ax 4x4 (Qualcomm QCN5054 + Skyworks SKY85755-11) - channels 100-177 (high band)
LED: 1x RGB status (NXP PCA9633)
USB: 1x USB 3.0
Button: WPS, Reset
1. Disable DHCP (optional)
2. Set the device to Bridge Mode under Connectivity tab
3. Connect cable from your router to a LAN port.
4. Get some nail polished and a round sticker to cover the annoying flashing right light.
5. Click the 'AC' at the bottom of the page to see the detail configurations of wifi.
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1.2K Comments
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These things must be wild when you really tinker with them.
Mesh-performance-wise (again with the caveat that this is on stock) - unfortunately it did not quite match my eero 6+ (not pro) 3-node mesh performance in the same exact locations. The Linksys was 15% percent slower (down) and had ~30-40% more latency. After a scan of channels I switched from auto to less congested channels for each of the 5ghz bands and it is now comparable to my eero's speeds. But I don't get why it wasn't smart enough to find these better channels on auto out of the box. Also, was surprised that the stock firmware limited the channel options you could select to 36 - 48 for the lower 5ghz band and 149 - 165 for the higher 5ghz band. Anyway, hoping this speed boost holds to I can switch eero's to only serve my iot and amazon devices (with wifi lights - over 40 devices) and switch all the actual networking to these.
BTW, even though these are past End-of-life, Linksys site lists the End-of-support sometime in '26, which is supposed to mean they'll issue security updates as needed. Now whether they follow through - it's anyone's guess, but fwiw, it shouldn't be complete abandonware quite yet.
At any rate, this seems like an amazing sale even if you're only going to stick to stock - but especially with aftermarket firmware.
2 hours later finally got it to work with my Specturn modem only by cloning the MAC address.
Interestingly, said the router was out of warranty, having started on 3/13/2023
Wonder if all of them are out of warranty. For $15 - $20 it's not a big risk.
I am considering attaching an external SSD to the USB 3 port and run an FTP/SMB server on this router !
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I am considering attaching an external SSD to the USB 3 port and run an FTP/SMB server on this router !
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