OpenWRT Builds for TP-Link TL-WR841N/ND (16MB/64MB) 🚀

This repository contains pre-built OpenWRT images for the TP-Link TL-WR841N/ND router with 16MB SPI flash and 64MB RAM.

Supported Hardware Versions

This project supports the following hardware versions of the TL-WR841N/ND:

• v9
• v10
• v11
• v12

Installation

Prerequisites

Before installing these builds, ensure you have:

1. Upgraded your WR841N/ND's RAM and Flash: You should have upgraded your router to 64MB RAM and 16MB SPI flash. A guide like this one can help.
2. Installed a Base OpenWRT Release: You must have either the latest official OpenWRT 18.06 release OR a previous OpenWRT release from this repository already installed.

Installation Steps

1. Download the Latest Release: Download the latest pre-built OpenWRT image from the Releases page
2. Verify the Checksum (Recommended): It's highly recommended to verify the integrity of the downloaded image using the provided checksum
3. Flash the Image: Access your router's web interface (LuCI) and upload the downloaded sysupgrade binary
4. Important Notice for 18.06 Users: If you're upgrading from the official OpenWRT 18.06 release, you CANNOT keep your settings. This is due to a change in the target architecture from ar71xx to ath79. Attempting to keep settings will result in a boot loop, requiring a recovery process. Back up your settings if needed, but be prepared to configure from scratch.

Key Features & Information

These OpenWRT images are compiled to save you time and effort. The build configuration can be found in the diffconfig file. Basically it's the following:

• OpenWRT ath79/tiny target
• LuCI Web Interface
• Support for ed25519 SSH keys
• Pre-configured with Quad9 DNS servers for enhanced privacy and security

Disclaimer: While these binaries are tested, they are provided without any warranty. Installation and use are at your own risk.

The OpenWRT license can be found here.

Changing the DNS Server

To change the default DNS server:

1. Static DNS: Navigate to Network -> DHCP and DNS -> Forwards and enter your preferred DNS server addresses.
2. Use WAN DNS: To use the DNS server provided by your ISP via WAN, go to Network -> DHCP and DNS -> Forwards and remove all existing DNS entries. Then, go to Resolv and Hosts Files and uncheck the Ignore resolv file option.

WireGuard Performance Benchmarks

For users interested in running WireGuard on this router, here are some benchmark results using the excellent wg-bench script:

Routers details:
{
        "kernel": "5.10.201",
        "hostname": "OpenWrt",
        "system": "Qualcomm Atheros QCA9533 ver 1 rev 1",
        "model": "TP-Link TL-WR841N/ND v9",
        "board_name": "tplink,tl-wr841-v9",
        "rootfs_type": "squashfs",
        "release": {
                "distribution": "OpenWrt",
                "version": "22.03.6",
                "revision": "r20265-f85a79bcb4",
                "target": "ath79/tiny",
                "description": "OpenWrt 22.03.6 r20265-f85a79bcb4"
        }
}
Connecting to host 169.254.200.2, port 4242
[  5] local 169.254.200.1 port 33388 connected to 169.254.200.2 port 4242
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  2.29 MBytes  19.2 Mbits/sec    0    102 KBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  2.27 MBytes  19.0 Mbits/sec    0    132 KBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  2.27 MBytes  19.0 Mbits/sec    0    142 KBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  2.21 MBytes  18.5 Mbits/sec    0    142 KBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  2.27 MBytes  19.0 Mbits/sec    0    163 KBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  2.21 MBytes  18.5 Mbits/sec    0    163 KBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  2.33 MBytes  19.5 Mbits/sec    0    163 KBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  2.15 MBytes  18.0 Mbits/sec    0    163 KBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec  2.33 MBytes  19.5 Mbits/sec    0    273 KBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec  2.51 MBytes  21.1 Mbits/sec    0    273 KBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  22.8 MBytes  19.2 Mbits/sec    0             sender
[  5]   0.00-10.05  sec  22.5 MBytes  18.8 Mbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.