Feedback for new network

General discussion about Gargoyle, OpenWrt or anything else even remotely related to the project

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donner
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2021 3:42 pm

Feedback for new network

Post by donner »

I'm new to the Gargoyle platform and am hoping to get some feedback and/or suggestions.

Current environment:
I currently have two Netgear routers (R6400V2 and R7000P) that have not been very reliable. I have AT&T gig service and I have turned off the wifi on the provided router. I am using the R6400 as a router only with wifi turned off and I'm using the R7000P as an AP only. I have a switch connected to the R6400 that has 10 devices connected and the R7000P is connected to the R6400 and there are about another 10 devices connected to the AP. The R7000P has been problematic in that the wifi signal frequently drops and the R6400 has recently started flashing orange on the ports.

New environment:
I'm planning to replace both routers with a WRT1900ACS and a AC1750. I was planning to use the WRT as the router because it has dual processor and more RAM. This would have Gargoyle and the wifi turned off, and the AC1750 would be an AP only. The only high demand wifi is when my daughter watches videos... which is intermittent. All other high bandwidth devices are wired.

I'm planning to start on this tomorrow and am curious if I'm heading in the right direction, or should I make some adjustments. Also, I currently have pihole incorporated and am wondering if I should retire it for an adblocker plugin I've seen mentioned in the forums, or continue to use it.

Appreciate all feedback - thanks.
Last edited by donner on Mon Oct 25, 2021 6:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Lantis
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Posts: 6735
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2015 5:33 am
Location: Australia

Re: Feedback for new network

Post by Lantis »

You won't be able to saturate your gigabit service using that device and Gargoyle + it's features enabled. You might get half of it.

Other than that, sounds fine.
http://lantisproject.com/downloads/gargoyle_ispyisail.php for the latest releases
Please be respectful when posting. I do this in my free time on a volunteer basis.

donner
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2021 3:42 pm

Re: Feedback for new network

Post by donner »

@Lantis - thanks for the info. Are you implying I should consider a different router instead of the WRT? If so, what would better perform with the gig service and Gargoyle?
Last edited by donner on Mon Oct 25, 2021 9:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Lantis
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Posts: 6735
Joined: Mon Jan 05, 2015 5:33 am
Location: Australia

Re: Feedback for new network

Post by Lantis »

Yes. Something like a custom x86 box.
Unfortunately that moves into a bit of a DIY area when it comes to Gargoyle. It is the least used/supported target/architecture, but if you get it working it can be very good.
http://lantisproject.com/downloads/gargoyle_ispyisail.php for the latest releases
Please be respectful when posting. I do this in my free time on a volunteer basis.

westapher317
Posts: 11
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2017 2:34 pm
Location: USA

Re: Feedback for new network

Post by westapher317 »

@donner - Jim Salter at Ars Technica has done some interesting work over the years setting up x86 routers - what he calls a "Homebrew Special." He seems to use Ubuntu Server for this, but it stands to reason you could use the x86 build of Gargoyle as well. Here are a few links to his reporting on this:

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/04 ... m-scratch/
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/09 ... mpetition/
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/01 ... wn-router/

donner
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2021 3:42 pm

Re: Feedback for new network

Post by donner »

@westapher - thanks for the reference links. I've been considering the x86 route but am a bit hesitant because I haven't yet found much information regarding recommended processor, RAM, NIC, etc. I'm not overly concerned about cost; I'm more interested in configuring a device that will best utilize the gig service. My other area of hesitation is the actual process of compiling the code and ensuring I include the correct packages.

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