• From: Florida Panhandle
  • Registered: 2008-02-20
  • Posts: 92

Topic: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

This is just an FYI.. You know everything in my house is running on something hacked...LOL
My Linksys wrt54g was no exception. I was using http://www.dd-wrt.comDD-WRT Version 24 RC4, RC5 & RC6.
No matter what settings, everything from no wireless security, WPA, WPA2, share keys.. blah blah.. The Chumby just would not connect through this router.
After an hour, I reverted to an Official Linksys firmware and got it online in 2 minutes and tested again with different security types.

So just be aware that that this aftermarket firmware has issues with the defenseless Chumby. LOL

MyridoM

When someone annoys me, it takes 42 muscles in my face to frown...but it takes only 4 muscles to extend my arm and b**ch-slap you!
http://haunterofthenight.com/ * new blog location

myridom's Website

  • From: San Diego
  • Registered: 2007-10-25
  • Posts: 205

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I have spoken to a few customers in the past running DD-WRT firmware successfully, I only wish I could tell you the versions.

Chumbymatt's Website

  • Registered: 2007-11-09
  • Posts: 340

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

WRT v23 SP1 Final works fine.  I am using it now.

  • From: San Jose, CA
  • Registered: 2007-11-27
  • Posts: 52

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I'm running 24RC6 and haven't had any problems.  Did you try reseting DD-WRT to factory defaults and seeing if it works then?

Want to see a cool project? check out my projects on Gadget Gangster

nmcclana's Website

5 Reply by myridom (edited by myridom 2008-02-25 16:39:42)

  • From: Florida Panhandle
  • Registered: 2008-02-20
  • Posts: 92

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Yes, I did reset to factory defaults. Even flashed back to Linksys firmware and then up to DD-WRT.

This weekend, if I have time, I'm going to log the handshake and see what's going on. It might just be a chipset problem since they are porting to so many devices.

Wasn't a big issue for me, but just got my Chumby and wanted to play.. heheheh

MyridoM

When someone annoys me, it takes 42 muscles in my face to frown...but it takes only 4 muscles to extend my arm and b**ch-slap you!
http://haunterofthenight.com/ * new blog location

myridom's Website

  • Registered: 2007-12-26
  • Posts: 115

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Try a shorter Key.
Yaesumofo

A Chumby in hand is worth 20 in the Wherehouse.
  • Registered: 2008-03-11
  • Posts: 1

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

How short? I have the same problem and my WPA key is only 12 characters (letters only - no special chars or numbers)..

I am running DDD-WRT V24 RC6 and only noticed this problem after the Chumby upgraded. When I was running the beta control panel on Chumby all was fine. Everything went bad after the code released.

  • Registered: 2008-03-26
  • Posts: 7

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I'm running DD-WRT v24 RC5 on two identical WRT54G routers (one as root and one as repeater). Though it's in the same room as the repeater, the Chumby (on cold boot) connects to the root. This is long enough to download the control panel and cycle through about 7 of the widgets. Then, it loses the connection and doesn't get it back. It has extreme trouble connecting to the repeater AP.

I was chatting with one of the reps for a while, but nothing we tried works (including changing channels, removing security, changing to WPA, etc).

Question: Does anyone know if boosting the power of the access point would cause troubles?

  • Registered: 2007-11-09
  • Posts: 340

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

vijtable wrote:

I'm running DD-WRT v24 RC5 on two identical WRT54G routers (one as root and one as repeater). Though it's in the same room as the repeater, the Chumby (on cold boot) connects to the root. This is long enough to download the control panel and cycle through about 7 of the widgets. Then, it loses the connection and doesn't get it back. It has extreme trouble connecting to the repeater AP.

I was chatting with one of the reps for a while, but nothing we tried works (including changing channels, removing security, changing to WPA, etc).

Question: Does anyone know if boosting the power of the access point would cause troubles?

That's really a dd-wrt question.  As I understand it, you get more of a risk of frying your linksys at higher powers.  Some people have put on heat sinks to compensate.
Having said that, I've increased the power 50% and have had no problem.


wayn3w

10 Reply by ApoXX (edited by ApoXX 2008-03-26 20:56:32)

  • From: Colorado
  • Registered: 2008-03-10
  • Posts: 50

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Have you tried changing channels vijtable? It almost sounds like an interference problem.. what is the signal to noise ratio?

I have DD-WRT RC6.2 running on my WRT54G v8 and the Chumby maintains a stable wifi connection from 2 floors up (Signal: -72, Noise: -92). The power is boosted to 46mW. If you increase it past 70mW you are probably going to start seeing degraded signal quality, also, most wifi devices (laptops, etc) are only capable of 50mW.

ApoXX's Website

11 Reply by vijtable (edited by vijtable 2008-03-27 04:13:45)

  • Registered: 2008-03-26
  • Posts: 7

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

ApoXX wrote:

Have you tried changing channels vijtable? It almost sounds like an interference problem.. what is the signal to noise ratio?

Absolutely. Changing channels was one of the first things we tried. No dice. The chumby stays connected for a short while at first (for about 5 minutes max), then loses it and can't get it back.

I just cold started my chumby and it has a link quality of 88/100, signal of -48, and noise around -79. It is pretty noisy, but living in New York does that (other people, lots of concrete and metal). According to the access point, signal is weaker, but there's much less noise. No matter what the channel, the numbers have been more or less the same. And then the chumby gets disconnected and can't get it back.

I also wonder - would the repeater and root AP interfere, noise-wise, with each other? I haven't observed it when I adjust the power. Essentially, I've had no problem with the boosted power output in the past, and chumby's the first time I've really had to do more thinking about it. I ask because the chumby stops "seeing" the repeater, which is no more than 10 feet away from it at any time, but still sees the root router.

Finally, I wonder if it's a hardware thing, like the specific routers people are using. I'm using WRT54G v.8.0

Thoughts?

Thanks!

  • Registered: 2007-11-09
  • Posts: 340

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Do you get these problems with other wireless devices, like a laptop?

I'm not well-versed in wifi; just enough to get by, so my advice is limited.  Make sure your AP and repeater are on distinct channels that do not overlap.  If you can, get on a laptop with decent drivers and software to find out how many other other access points are broadcasting using the same channels.

For me, I have an older pair of linksys boxes -- rev 3 or 4 I think (the original flavor was Linux).   I do not have the second one set up as a repeater, but as a second AP, and it is configured to forward DHCP requests et al to the main AP.  Both are connect by wire and are at the farther corners of my house. 

I chose not to have it as a repeater because I did have copper available, and I didn't want to potentially cut the throughput in half.

Having said this, my new chumby sometimes drops connection from the network, and it is 5 feet from the AP.  The older chumbyis about 20 feet away from the slave access point and it is solid.   I've been meaning to write a widget that displays signal quality et al to help with diagnosing these issues, but the problems have not been that great to warrant it.

wayn3w

13 Reply by vijtable (edited by vijtable 2008-03-27 13:28:44)

  • Registered: 2008-03-26
  • Posts: 7

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

wayn3w,

No problems with other devices (the five laptops ranging from brand new to 5 years old, Wii, and three cell phones). That's the puzzle for me. According to the AP, wireless signal quality is never excellent, but it is solid. From the laptops' "perpective", signal is always very strong and stable.

I'm also at a similar level of expertise, AP/router-wise. I don't mind the reduced throughput, since it's nothing major for me. Becuase of the peculiarities of my apartment, this is my config: The repeater acts as a virtual AP, doing DHCP itself, because there were issues with stability when the repeater forwarded DHCP requests (though that was on a very unstable WDS setup). I have noticed that the quality/stability of the new routers (I burned out one of the old ones) is a little lower than the previous revs I had (1 and 5), which were able to do WDS just fine. Not sure if that's the routers, or the fact that they can only take still-unstable firmware.

Regarding channels, I'm not sure if I can have the repeater talking to the host/root AP on one channel, and communicating with devices on another. I'll look into it when I get a chance (probably in a week).

What I take away from this is that the older chumby is more solid when it comes to networking? Is that true? I'll definitely experiment with channels and different router configs, but I'm worried that the chumby can't handle a "noisy" apartment building. Any others with experience in the very crowded and noise apartment world?

  • Registered: 2008-03-13
  • Posts: 7

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Your repeater setup is hard for wireless drivers to handle.  Most "full" PC drivers (like for the rest of your equipment) usually have no problem with that kind of setup, but that isn't always the case for embedded drivers.

At work we're also building an embedded device (no competition to the Chumby...) that has wireless and I'm the guy who got stuck testing it.  At our corporate wireless LAN is setup the same way (multiple AP's using the same SSID).  We've tried 3 different wireless driver vendors and of those 3, only one worked out of the box (we had to get the vendor to fix the driver in the other two cases).

So not really a help in any way except that I blame the wifi driver.  smile

  • Registered: 2008-03-26
  • Posts: 7

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

billnapier wrote:

Your repeater setup is hard for wireless drivers to handle.  Most "full" PC drivers (like for the rest of your equipment) usually have no problem with that kind of setup, but that isn't always the case for embedded drivers.

So do you have any recommendations for me? Because of the peculiar geography of my apartment, I'm really not able do internet without WDS / bridging, neither of which seems to make the chumby happy. I'd really rather not have the equivalent a cute beanbag paperweight on my hands.

  • Registered: 2007-11-09
  • Posts: 340

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

vijtable wrote:

wayn3w,
What I take away from this is that the older chumby is more solid when it comes to networking? Is that true? I'll definitely experiment with channels and different router configs, but I'm worried that the chumby can't handle a "noisy" apartment building. Any others with experience in the very crowded and noise apartment world?

No, I didn't mean imply the older one was more solid; i'd have to say that wifi network performance varies a lot from place to place.  There's probably very good reasons why the newer one disconnected more often, but it would take a long time to diagnose since I'm not a wifi expert. 

I will say that the brand new beta seems to recover well from from the network outage -- I haven't found any dixconnects since I installed it.

  • Registered: 2008-06-11
  • Posts: 6

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

dd-wrt v23 sp2 works or me
i am running 5 wds aps
sometimes the chmby wont get an ip at first try but 2nd try workd always so far

  • From: Bethesda, MD USA
  • Registered: 2007-11-15
  • Posts: 124

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I've got my chumby connecting into a WRT54G running DD-WRT v24 and connecting via WEP (there are other devices that are stuck using WEP).  Seems to work fine.

I've never had good long-term success with repeater setups.  Every time it ends up being considerably more hassle to try and use them versus just running some CAT5 for an access point instead.  Bear in mind that repeaters, by design, lose half your wireless bandwidth.  The single radio in them has to listen and retransmit everything, this effectively cuts your transmission speed completely in half (if not even a little more due to interference issues).

  • Registered: 2008-05-19
  • Posts: 5

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I used to use WRT I lent it to someone but I just put an Athero wifi card in my spare firewall now my chumby does not work. 4 other things to such as my roko, sangien, my wife's PC and my eeePC all work fine.  Just the Chumby stopped booting. Seems the chumby does not see the dhcp reply. I am going to change the dhcp server to udhcpd tomorrow.

21:48:46.981237 IP (tos 0x0, ttl 64, id 0, offset 0, flags [none], proto UDP (17), length 576) 0.0.0.0.bootpc > 255.255.255.255.bootps: [udp sum ok] BOOTP/DHCP, Request from 00:12:0e:6f:b5:63 (oui Unknown), length 548, xid 0x5ab46d5e, Flags [none] (0x0000)
          Client-Ethernet-Address 00:12:0e:6f:b5:63 (oui Unknown)
          Vendor-rfc1048 Extensions
            Magic Cookie 0x63825363
            DHCP-Message Option 53, length 1: Discover
            Client-ID Option 61, length 7: ether 00:12:0e:6f:b5:63
            Vendor-Class Option 60, length 11: "udhcp 1.6.1"
            Parameter-Request Option 55, length 9:
              Subnet-Mask, Default-Gateway, Domain-Name-Server, Hostname
              Domain-Name, BR, YD, YS
              NTP
21:48:46.981771 IP (tos 0x0, ttl 64, id 0, offset 0, flags [DF], proto UDP (17), length 338) 192.168.1.1.bootps > 192.168.1.145.bootpc: [udp sum ok] BOOTP/DHCP, Reply, length 310, xid 0x5ab46d5e, Flags [none] (0x0000)
          Your-IP 192.168.1.145
          Server-IP 192.168.1.1
          Client-Ethernet-Address 00:12:0e:6f:b5:63 (oui Unknown)
          Vendor-rfc1048 Extensions
            Magic Cookie 0x63825363
            DHCP-Message Option 53, length 1: Offer
            Server-ID Option 54, length 4: 192.168.1.1
            Lease-Time Option 51, length 4: 43152
            RN Option 58, length 4: 21576
            RB Option 59, length 4: 37758
            BR Option 28, length 4: 192.168.1.255
            Domain-Name Option 15, length 10: "mianos.com"
            Domain-Name-Server Option 6, length 4: firewall4.mianos.com
            Default-Gateway Option 3, length 4: firewall4.mianos.com
            Subnet-Mask Option 1, length 4: 255.255.255.0
            NTP Option 42, length 4: firewall4.mianos.com

  • Registered: 2008-05-19
  • Posts: 5

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

I think the problem is documented on "Accept packets with extra garbage (me) "
on the changelog http://udhcp.busybox.net/ so t is fixed in later versions.

Apparently the earlier udcp client ignores the whole packet with extra stuff in it. Only some dhcp servers have other stuff. That explains why some dhcp servers work and the dd-wrt if it is using udhcpd but not if the dsmasq one is turned on.
(P.s. I forgot to say. The chumby does work with a static IP)

  • Registered: 2008-02-21
  • Posts: 526

Re: DD-WRT router firmware will not work with Chumby

Hmmm might be worth having someone try recompiling busybox with an updated udcp client...