How to unbrick a bricked router Belkin RT3200
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- čas přidán 2. 06. 2024
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When I tried to flash OpenWrt on my Belkin RT3200 Wifi 6 router, I bricked it by flashing the wrong image. The Belkin RT3200 has a specific UBI memory layout that is not optimized for OpenWrt. My attempt crashed the router and all I got was a blinking power LED after the reboot. I'll show what I did in order to unbrick it and then we will have a look at how to flash it properly in the right order
Please use my affiliate links if you want to buy one:
IN THE US YOU MAY ACTUALLY BUY IT AT WALMART : goto.walmart.com/c/3185682/56...
Belkin RT 3200 on Amazon: www.amazon.com/gp/search?tag=...
Linksys E8450 on Amazon: www.amazon.com/gp/search?ie=U...
Search for it on eBay: ebay.us/HMCicq
0:00 What happened
1:08 Options for unbricking
3:55 What went wrong in the first place ?
5:15 How I unbricked it
8:27 Unbricking step by step
11:25 How to flash OpenWrt on the RT3200 properly
13:05 Why the RT3200 ?
The RT 3200 Page on OpenWrt: openwrt.org/toh/linksys/e8450
The dangowrt github site is here: github.com/dangowrt/linksys-e...
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Your channel is a must for router DYI'ers
Thank you.
11:54, Marc you save my life today, jajajaa After purchasing about five of these devices, they never went into problems until last night. The router asked me for a password. The default password didn't work. So I perform a factory reset. The device went to a semi-brick stage. The config page didn't want to load. I can ping and power off by pushing the physical button. Then, this morning I was looking at the page through developer tools on Firefox, and I was thinking, if only I can see the full URL, I could try to upload the firmware. So I was watching your video and I saw that full path. This saves the router and now is fully working with OpenWrt. Many thanks again.
Awesome - glad you got it fixed!
Wow, nice, didn’t know they brought on board a openwrt member to mediatech when designing the rt-3200. You give me good reasons to buy certain HW, Marc ;-)
Hi Vince, I just need to clarify that Felix had not been contracted by Cisco/Linksys/Belkin but rather by MediaTek. So this reason is valid for any device having the MT7915 as a 5 GHz Wifi.
You explain very well in the video and even for someone who takes more time than most to learn. I was eventually able to figure out what I did wrong and get my router unbricked. Thank you!
I really appreciated this video. That you referred to the recording date is also very valuable. Many people miss it. One thing I think you forgot was to tell how many hours this experience cost. It usually takes a whole weekend to go through this for the first time. Not half an hour. All family life and a beer with friends must be left behind. But thanks for a well-conducted review.
Absolutely true - you are right - it does take time. That's one thing to keep in mind. But it's true in general for most things I present on this channel. The answer to the question "make or buy" depends on whether someone is willing and capable of investing time and effort and also potentially deal with being frustrated if things don't work out after having tried for a weekend. Totally agree !!!!
Another excellent video, I have just finally 20 years later got a 900/110 FTTP connection yay!! Using the r7800 NSS build did actually consider the RT3200 but wanted to wait for the software to 'mature'
Many thanks for the feedback Gary !
Your channel is very informative!
Thanks for the video, i really like your way of explaining things in all videos.
I did however miss the links in the description to opentftp and realterm used in the video.
Hi Gustav, many thanks - yes, forgot to put the links - but they can be googled easily ;-)
thank god i have a Linksys wrt3200acm router (actually 3 of them), I did so many mistakes on this model and always recovers as it has a dual firmware.
btw, amazing channel, helped me a lot in properly setting up 802.11r Fast Transition via OpenWrt
Awesome - many thanks for the feedback ;-)
I have been reading about this router, then by magic they got reduced to £49 in the UK. I read that there are issues with OpenWRT but at this price per router, i'm willing to give it a go. I got 3 for the price of my one old Ubiquiti AP. Thanks for these videos, and showing the pitfalls to watch out for.
Hi Matt, let me know if you're happy with your purchase. Also - looks like 22.03 Release candidate does finally have support for the Belkin/Linksys
i just bricked my archer a7. What a coincidence, coming across this video!!
Where you able to recover it ?
Thanks for sharing this useful information.
Hi David, you're welcome. thanks for watching!
Just finished my RT3200 based Fast Transition wireless setup at home. Of course I ended up bricking both units, but this video saved the day! Everything seems to be working and I'm loving OpenWRT. Thanks for such a great series of videos on the RT3200. I can't afford to subscribe on Patreon. Are there any other ways to support you or your channel (maybe a one time donation)?
Hi James - glad it helped you! I don’t have anything set up at the moment but I’m thinking of creating a Paypal account for that - I get the question quite frequently. Also - if you want then you can boost our siscord server for a certain timeframe - we are only two boosts away from the goal ;-)
Nice video(s). I got the Linksys E8450 and did it right the first time. But I have also done serial console at work on MT7621 devices when we bricked them. So I feel your pain.
Hi Alan, many thanks for sharing your feedback - yes it was painful to open a newly purchased device and void the warranty ;-)
@@OneMarcFifty I think we are voiding our warranty anyway when we flash the pretty much permanent UBI OpenWRT firmware (one that modified the flash layout.) I think there might be a way though that I saw that you can return back to the factory firmware (and flash layout). And it's probably not easy.
thanks marc i just bricked the router, i have a linksys e8450.
Hi Luis - Ouch. Did you manage to get it back ?
nice video as always, good job. i bricked a modem and a wifi access point as well, but i didn't even bother unbricking them, i just threw them away. isp modems are crap and not worth buying a usb-ttl adapter for it.
Aw - that's a bit harsh isn't it ;-)
@@OneMarcFiftyyeah - but that's just the reality with turk telekom branded routers sadly. Except ZTE ones, they do the job just fine.
Thank you for your informative videos
Unfortunately I bricked my RT3200 and now I don't get serial output 😔
I have only solid white power and internet lights
Could you please suggest a method to recover it
Thanks
Marc, I'm seriously considering moving to the Linksys e8450 (Same as this RT3200). I moved to OpenWRT for DFS and deployed it on 5 WRT3200ACM as WAP devices but also able to distribute VLANs throughout my property... There is and seems there will continue to be issues with the Broadcom drivers (ie the current Kernal issue with the switch hardware). If you use the UBI installer, is this a one way move? Or can you revert back to stock memory formatting and firmware? I have no intention of doing that for my use but ultimately I'll probably want to sell these off when a WiFi-7 solution in OpenWRT comes to be. It's always easier to sell off old routers with stock firmware.
Thanks Marc for your detailed instructions. I followed your instructions and flashed my Belkin a little while back and was super happy with it. Last night, while updating the snapshot from within Luci, it crashed. Now I only get the orange Internet LED and no power LED. Nothing comes up. Is unbricking my only option at this point? Have you heard of snapshots bricking the device? Thanks in advance for your help!
Yes, that may (unfortunately) happen as long as the device is not supported by the release branch.
Hello OneMarcFifty, I have a question. Do you know where I could buy the clamps you mentioned at or around the 5:29 minute mark? I ended up making the same mistake while flashing my Linksys E8450 and would like to restore it.
Hi, you should be able to buy these in any electronics store such as Mouser or the like - in Germany there's Reichelt for example. Alternatively you could find them on eBay or Amazon.
For anyone who comes across this video in the future, doesn't have an electronics store nearby, and is looking for them, like I was, they are called "test hook clips". Throw that term into an Amazon search and you'll see a vast selection to choose from.
Thank you! Is it also possible to chain accesspoints in the mesh?
Good as always :-)
Thank you ;-)
Hi Marc, Discovered your videos and went and bought a pair of Xiaomi 4A's. Easy setup and they work well with mesh and wireguard (just a bit slow). So on the strength of your RT3200 got a pair of those. I presume that the 8450 files will work as that is what you linked to in your video.
Edit: Answered my own question yes it is.
When you say the last two steps are not required they are. The installer only flash only configures one radio. Doing the sysupgrade configures both. I also found that installing the latest SNAPSHOT (r20146-bc43ad88ed) left me unable to access luci web interface. Commad line flash rolled it back and all good now.
Final thing to get working is wireguard as it complains about wrong kernel installed.
Hope the edit helps someone else :)
Hi, many thanks for the feedback. Yes - snapshot install does not contain LuCi by default. You would then need to get into ssh and do an opkg update and opkg install luci
@@OneMarcFifty I finally remembered you saying that, should pay more attention. The latest snapshot (22/07) also has wireguard implemented in it so will be a happy boy once I get SWMBO's permission to break the internet (again). The RT3200 is a very quick device indeed, I can see me having some fun with it as all that extra memory on it should allow me to install Adguard and then just use my VPS as a wireguard server and lock it down even further. Then of course I'll need to get unbound working. I like setting myself a challenge :)
Hi Marc, I am planning to buy Linksys E5600 (flash OpenWRT) and disable WiFi on it and use it as my primary Router. I already have a TP link Archer C6 V3 which will then be used as a AP.
Do you think E5600 is good enough for this job ?
Well - it depends on what you want to do with it and also the bandwidth you want to serve. It has a dual core Mediatek at 880 MHz which is below other models like the DIR-2640/2660. If you have crypto applications such as VPN and the like and/or SQM/QoS running on it then it might not be able to serve above let's say 300 MBits.
Nice video. What are those clamps called?
Quick question: I recently bricked my E8450 by flashing the most current snapshot to an already running OpenWRT configuration. This configuration has already been converted to UBI. In order to unbrick the device using serial, can I just reflash the 23.5.2 sysupgrade.itb image back to get it up again? Or, do I have to flash recovery then sysupghrade? Any input would be greatly appreciated! Great content, btw. Consider me subbed!
How can we trust the "Dangowrt" firmware mod. This has very high privileges ? Also does this method change now with the recent updates to openwrt? Very much looking forward to an updated easy and secure way to install Openwrt on this device. Thanks again for the great content ! Awaiting update.
Hi Vincent, I believe you had fired that question on the Discord Server as well - please see my long answer there. For everyone else: DangoWrt is the Github of Daniel Golle, an OpenWrt developper.
Love your channel! Can you do a video on broadband hamnet? That uses openwrt and it looks fascinating.
Hi Pavlovsky, I do agree that it looks awesome - it is for licensed ham only though...
@@OneMarcFifty this is true. I've been wanting to get a ham license for a while now and this idea really has me thinking. Anyways, I enjoy your videos on improving your internet/network resiliency (and speed). This is less speed and more resilience. A fallback with telco and mifi/cellular stops working (which is rare but does happen). Natural disasters like the Texas Blizzard last Valentines day come to mind.
How is the video for the batman-adv coming alone, we are all waiting for it...love your videos!
Hey, just saw your comment here - but I've answered it on the last video ;-) Please check out github.com/openwrt/luci/pull/5698
the wifi driver for mediatek ac device id still not giving performance as their stock firmware..will it improve in upcoming updates
Hi, as I say in the video - it's early days - need to monitor the commits on the mt76 github for this : github.com/openwrt/mt76/commits/master
Greetings! I have a manager of the same model. but not a single lighted bulb is entered into its settings, and it also does not connect to the Internet. i opened a way to reset it manually because the red button won't let.
Warning: only connect TX, RX, and GND when using the serial connection. The purpose of labeling VCC, if instructions do, is so that you can probe for the high voltage level, in case you're serial adapter is say, 5V instead of the 3.3V of the router, in which case you can use a voltage leveler for RX or TX.
Oh yes - very important point and so true - you may actually fry devices by pushing 5V to them. Thanks for pointing this out !
Hi Marc, I have bricked my Newifi 3 d2 router. This could be a good guide for me to unbrick it.
In the openwrt firmware selector website there are two options to download a firmware, KERNEL and SYSUPGRADE. I assume that the KERNEL download is the Recovery Intaller, Am I rigth?
Im a bit lucky because I have found out the tx rx gn on the Newifi 3 d2 board. Now I could get to serial console it. I now waiting to arrive my uart ordered online.
I might install back my discord just to follow you :)
Wish me luck because this is my first time doing this lol (crossed fingers!)
Im kind of a tech person but this one I could be suck lol :)
Thanks for this tutorial. Big help it is!
Hi, generally speaking the kernel image is just a basic linux that allows you to do troubleshooting and the like. If you can use the factory or sysupgrade image, go for it - give it a try. Let me know how it goes. Yes, joining the discord is a good idea ;-)
How long does the second prt take? I installed the ubi but the flash is taking a long time!
Hi, it should not take _too_ long - a couple of minutes at worst.
@@OneMarcFifty thanks!
Hi Mark. Looks like if RT3200 firmware ver is 1.2.00.360516 it does not work. I followed all steps from dangowrt but with this new firmware version does allow updating openwrt firmware.
Also tried to open the box and use the USB to TTL and followed all your steps from this video and never got to the options... i guess this new firmware does not allow either.
I would appreciate if you have a solution for this, since i really wanto to use openwrt on the RT3200.
Thank you sir!
Antonio
I was using AUC to update my RT3200. For some reason after installation I have a solid orange light. I have tried TFTP but cannot get it to work. I purchased the HiLetgo CP2102 USB to TTL cable off of Amazon. It did not come with any instructions and I have never done this before. Can you tell me what colors go where please? It is hard to see in the video.
It‘s not so much the color of the cables but rather the description of the pins. GND to GND, RX to TX and TX to RX. Do not connect any others, only those three
@@OneMarcFifty thank you Marc. If I have the Rt3200 board with the heatsink side up and the power button on the bottom right can you tell me which pins I need to connect too please?
@@OneMarcFifty Luckily all I had to do since I had a solid orange light after using AUC was use tftpd64. I just set my ip to 192.168.1.254 and 255.255.255.0. Then, add the OpenWRT recovery firmware file to the tftpd64 folder. I opened tftpd64 using the server tab, and selected my nic using 192.168.1.254 in the drop down box. Finally, I served the file using the tftpd64 server and turned on the router.
@@rockygrimjr.4788 i have the same issue, did the router automatic downloaded the file or did you do something with tfrpd?
Is it possible to install without converting UBI, so it can be returned to stock firmware, without bricking the device or is the only way to avoid bricking to not convert UBI?
I also noticed openwrt page says it is still on snapshot, does this degrade performance or security ?
Hi Vincent, I am not 100% sure if you can actually run OpenWrt permanently without converting. I remember having issues with that config. w/r to snapshots - that's really more of a scientific experiment ;-) I am running snapshot on some devices but you need to be aware that things might break or behave unexpectedly. If you are unsure, it would be better to wait for release or at least release candidate ;-)
@@OneMarcFifty Thanks for replying. Will look the project docs and release information as it is "experimental" as you mentioned.
It is unable to upload file when reflashing. Where should I put it or what is syntax for using a pathed file on Windows 10?
Hi Rich, are you talking about tftp ? It depends on the tftp client that you are using. There are some examples here openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/installation/generic.flashing.tftp . But ultimately you'd have to check the documentation of the tftp server software. Which one are you using ?
Hopefully the last questions. Shouldn't the 1st uploaded file be a *.ITB? What userid/password should I be using
You can rename the file to whatever you want. It doesn’t need to be called .itb. If you go over the serial console then you don’t need a password- you‘re root by design ;-)
@@OneMarcFifty I can select option 1 but continues to retry uploading without success.
I just ordered the RT3200 today using your affiliate link. I learn a lot from your videos/ Very valuable lessons for networking.
I have watched this video more than 5x and I still feel scared! Please help save me by confirming that
(a) The image that I need to flash first is the openwrt-22.03.1-mediatek-mt7622-linksys_e8450-ubi-initramfs-recovery-installer (and not the one without -installer appended)
(b) That the next image I need to fash after it is the openwrt-22.03.1-mediatek-mt7622-linksys_e8450-ubi-squashfs-sysupgrade
(c) And finally, I can install the openwrt-22.03.2-mediatek-mt7622-linksys_e8450-ubi-squashfs-sysupgrade from the OpenWrt download site.
I am asking because in the video, at 11.26, the video shows you start by flashing the image that doesn't have the -installer appended 🙂
I have the same problem and waiting for an answer. Is step b necessary?
@@67Kuchar1 I do not think it is necessary, but there is no harm in doing it. You can then test 22.03.1 before going to 22.03.2. That is how I did it with my RT3200 and I am happy with it.
Daniel Golle (dangowrt) has updated the installation guide. Please follow exactly the steps on github.com/dangowrt/owrt-ubi-installer
Btw guru, can we collect bricked router and use it to build a house? 😂😂😂
Hey, whatever you use them for is fine ;-) As long as you don't just throw them away ;-)
Opening the router does not void the warranty. Otherwise perfect video!
Peter, it depends which country you live in. Only the US follows US consumer protection law. Other counties make their own laws.
It's wrong to universally claim this voids warranty just because that may be the case in some USA states. That's what Marc did though and that's why I'm pointing out that that's wrong.
And if the serial connection doesn't work, you have to use the JTAG - which is much more difficult...
Absolutely. JTAG is no pleasure ;-)
Here is my problem: First, I installed the wrong firmware on the RT3200 and thought I bricked it(power button would be flashing and the device will not boot). I ordered jtag and was going to get it connected to my laptop, like suddenly, the router booted up into the stock firmware Oo. I followed the steps in the video, flashed first openwrt-22.03.1-mediatek-mt7622-linksys_e8450-ubi-initramfs-recovery. The router rebooted and took me to the WRT menu, then, I flashed openwrt-22.03.1-mediatek-mt7622-linksys_e8450-ubi-squashfs-sysupgrade, and it stuck! will not boot. What did I do wrong?
Hi, difficult to say from a distance with the information provided. On a general note, I found Daniel's Github to be the best resource here if you follow exactly the steps there github.com/dangowrt/owrt-ubi-installer#installing-openwrt
At 11:57 you are flashing the 'recovery' image, not the 'recovery-installer', but then you say that 'installer' image should be flashed. I'm a little bit confused here
It needs to be the recovery-INSTALLER
@@OneMarcFifty thanks for quick answer! Another question. Can I flash linksys firmware over the belkin's?
Are you getting stable 5g functionality. sadly I am not getting stable 5G
Yes I do - it's quite good actually - please do keep in mind that there is still a lot of development going on as you can see here: github.com/openwrt/mt76/commits/master
i can't follow your guide.....I have no experience in using UART, or even using Real term. Where do I upload the image?Where do i have to put the image to be read by UART?
No - the UART/Terminal basically only replace your screen and keyboard. The image is transferred over Ethernet and TFTP
@@OneMarcFifty I cant make the TFTP work.
It’s a bit tricky. The file needs to have the right name, be at the right place and also check if the firewall of your workstation blocks. This article may help openwrt.org/docs/guide-user/troubleshooting/tftpserver
I recently did this with a TP-link Archer C7.
The C7 has the best TFTP recovery mode of all routers. It's literally impossible to brick it. No serial cable needed.
It's true that unbricking or even flashing routers really can be so easy or so difficult depending on the device. I recently bought a couple of Asus Lyra's - you do need to use a serial cable where as the D-Link Routers are probably the best in terms of recovery with the built in recovery page/mode.
@@HexPortal yes I only recently started playing with Openwrt, so it was confusing at first.
Hello man I have a problem could you please help me ??
I'm asking you this question because you have a good knowledge about networking and VPN
If I connect my mobile to my wire guard VPN which I have hosted in my house on Raspberry Pi 4, many application on my mobile phone do not work properly or connect for example WhatsApp call does not connect but it is able to push messages slowly
Please help me and provide some guidance it's urgent for me ???????
Presumably the routing is not set correctly (i.e. you can VPN into your network but you can't get out of it) - that would need a closer look at the config of your Wireguard really. I have once posted my working Wireguard config on the Discord server - maybe you want to have a look there ?
@@OneMarcFifty hello man you are very kind to reply to me I really appreciate and thank you ..
By this time I was able to solve my problem checking my router settings in the house where I had put firewall at maximum security by mistake.
Alguien que sepa que sucedió, tengo un rt3200, quite el stock y coloque openwrt , todo bien hasta que lo enviaba a reiniciar y no encendía y entonces le quise volver a colocar el sysupgrade y ya nisiquiera la luz enciende. Antes lo hacía esperando más de 5 minutos , ahora nada
This mediatek soc is 28nm?
Honestly, I don't know ;-(
Ok, this is far beyond my skills ... I did brick my unit, but I did not understand how to get a serial connection as you explained
Hi Andrea, first you need a USB to serial connector ("UART") these USB-stick type devices have connectors named Rx(Receive) Tx(Transmit) and GND(Ground) which can be connected to the corresponding pins on the board. On the PC, when you plug the UART in, it will show as a COM port (like serial modems did in former times) and can be accessed using a Terminal Software. You are now communicating directly with the board.
@@OneMarcFifty Will try
Can you cover asus tuf 4200 please
Hey, I need help.
I bricked my MT7628 - chipset modem/router with a wrong firmware, I can't find any help online and you are my last hope
Have you tried unbricking with a serial cable ? What make and model is it ?
@@OneMarcFifty Not yet. Because there is no documentation detailing how to go through the process of unbricking the router. I had made a backup of all images like bootloader but I can't even access the router to restore.
I don't even know how to restore because I made the backups via ADB 😢
Have you watched this video?
Also - what is the brand/make and model of your router?
@@OneMarcFifty I have watched the video, like 4 times now.
The maker is unidentified since it's rebranded to smile network. The model number is SM-B940. I wish I could send a picture.
Description: Router is black in colour with 4 LAN ports, the usb port, charging port and power button, 4 antennas 2 LTE and 2 WiFi all at the back. WLAN, reset and WPS button in the sides and it looks just like yours.
How do I set it up
Please see my comment on your first question
I've bricked Linksys E8450.
I've seen the video and I've few queries for the same.
1. I cannot find the clips used in the video. Can you please share its name / the link?
2. How did you figure out Tx, Rx and Gn?
Please help.
Hi Joyal, in order to figure out RX, TX, GND you need a multimeter. First switch off the device, switch the multimeter to diode/connection test (beeps when connected), connect one end to a grounded metal plate in the router somewhere and test all pins. the one that beeps is GND. Next switch on the router, turn your multimeter to Voltage and measure all other pins. The one that stays stable at 3.3V is Vcc (don't use). The one that shows a changing voltage between 0 and 3.3 is Tx (which needs to go to Rx on your UART), the one that shows 0V is Rx (which goes to Tx of your UART). Hope that helps ;-)
For anyone who comes across this video in the future, doesn't have an electronics store nearby, and is looking for those clips, like I was, they are called "test hook clips". Throw that term into an Amazon search and you'll see a vast selection to choose from.
Teach me more
Thank you very much ;-)
In czcams.com/video/KgDbRJMG6uE/video.html you talk about recovery installer, but you show "non-installer" image loaded. Is that right?
The first thing should be the recovery-installer from the dangowrt github. Please see the detailed instructions in the readme on his github github.com/dangowrt/owrt-ubi-installer
@@OneMarcFifty I know that, was just politely pointing out what was shown on the video ;)
Oh ok - thanks mate ;-)
Sound like too much brain
Hi Carlos, you mean the topic, the voice or the way the content is described?
Sadly your affiliated link returns "No results for B08L4PJKKB" for me (((( otherwise it would have been with pleasure.
Yeah, not all devices are available in all countries- but thanks for trying !!!!