Urrrggghhh. Late starting the kids on their first day of school due to configurating my new WiFi/VPN router.
My balls already ache... ![](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=81471.0;attach=779856;image)
mnem
And now it wants to do a FW update... ![Face Palm :palm:](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/xfacepalm.gif.pagespeed.ic.EBDwh1hCfo.png)
One thing... this router runs FAST. Like 20-30 seconds for a reboot. Gotta love that 3-core CPU; I wonder if there's a 4th core that can be unlocked... ![Evil >:D](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/xevil.gif.pagespeed.ic.tdrs7Uj5gu.png)
*remembering many afternoons spent at a console waiting for CISCOs to reboot 5-8 minutes at a time*
mnem
*shudder*
Yeah one reason that Cisco 1941 ISR I have is sitting in the hall still rather than being my router. I got it and now I'm not in the mood for a ball kicking ![Laughing :-DD](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/smiley_laughing.gif.pagespeed.ce._hfWAz_QHO.gif)
Ugggh. I misunderstood the manual when I was shopping this thing... while I CAN limit router management to a single specific MAC address(es), I cannot limit it to a single interface or preferably a single ETH port like a REAL router; if I add the MAC of my WiFi adapter to the management whitelist it happily pops up a login portal.
Why the FUCK would ANY router manufacturer ever take away such a fundamental security measure...?
![Banging Head |O](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/bangheadonwall.gif.pagespeed.ce.8iLbFYV4Bc.gif)
Fucking toy. If I can't find a precompiled build of OpenWRT I think it's going back. A shame too... awesome hardware otherwise.
![Banging Head |O](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/bangheadonwall.gif.pagespeed.ce.8iLbFYV4Bc.gif)
mnem
assholes.
At least I waited until after I took the kid to school to start on mine.
Oh no, I am not competitive, no, not at all ....
First thing I noticed was that the patch cable supplied with it is only cat5. Not even cat5e. They do advertise very prominently that it has a Gigabit WAN port. Will never get that performance with a cat5 cable. Immediately replaced with cat6; at least I have a supply of those on hand.
Second thing that set off alarm bells in my head is this little paper slip, not much bigger than a business card that says "Some older versions of driver or software for wireless devices may be incompatible with 802.11ax router." Uh oh, I have some embedded devices that i may or may not be able to update. I have older devices that up till now worked fine, will have to see how this works out. Also, that is not consistent with the TP-Link website (https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/wifi-router/archer-ax1500/) which quotes "Backward Compatible: Archer AX1500 supports all previous 802.11 standards and all WiFi devices." ![Blah :blah:](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/blah.gif.pagespeed.ce.iJS9qlFEPg.gif)
Third thing is common with consumer products where the wall wart is always rotated such that it blocks two receptacles on a power bar. The advice is always to mount the device high up for better signal propagation, but the cord is never long enough. Time to go shopping for an extension cord; I did not plan that one as well as the Ethernet cabling.
So in the end my network is lagging behind the dwagon network. Did I say anything about being competitive?
I always assumed that cable was just tossed in there so you could configure the stupid thing; I would never actually use it for a uplink... works okay on my Roku tho.
![Confused :-//](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/confused0024.gif.pagespeed.ce.5xOqKkq0Co.gif)
That card is nothing to worry aboot; older wireless A/B adapters don’t properly support WPA/PSK, and any router sold in the last decade should have WEP disabled for the love of little kids & kitty kats. So they kindof HAVE TO have that little disclaimer for the 1D10Ts who expect to connect a PalmPilot via WiFi.
![Face Palm :palm:](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/xfacepalm.gif.pagespeed.ic.EBDwh1hCfo.png)
Think carefully aboot location; while higher is better in principle, you don’t want it on the ceiling or floor if you live in a apartment building. You want it located in the physical center of the 3D volume that is your living space, or as close as you can get in the room you expect to spend most of your time using WiFi.
This makes your WiFi radio minimize RF output required to maintain good links, thereby reducing the size of the sphere of influence of outside agencies with nefarious intent.
What kind of nerd would think twice aboot extending a wall-wart DC power cord...? Certainly not this one...
![Evil >:D](https://www.eevblog.com/forum/Smileys/default/xevil.gif.pagespeed.ic.tdrs7Uj5gu.png)
mnem
Have heat-shrink, will travel...