Openwrt Travel Router Build and Setup Guide

Building an OpenWRT travel router is a great way to stay connected on the go. You'll need a compatible device, such as the TP-Link TL-MR3020 or the GL.iNet GL-MT300A, which can be flashed with OpenWRT firmware.

For a seamless setup, make sure to download the latest OpenWRT firmware image from the official website. This will ensure you have the most up-to-date features and security patches.

To start your OpenWRT travel router, power on the device and connect to its default network using a computer or mobile device. The default network credentials can be found in the device's manual or online documentation.

A well-configured OpenWRT travel router can provide a stable and secure internet connection, even in areas with poor network coverage.

Here's an interesting read: Gl Inet Openwrt

The Advanced Features of OpenWRT Travel Router are a major upgrade over the stock firmware.

One of the standout features is WPA3 support, which allows for the latest wireless protocols and mixed modes.

This is a significant improvement, especially considering it's something TP-Link wouldn't have implemented through a future firmware upgrade.

A workaround for connection reliability issues is to have devices connect to the AP running on one wireless chip, while the WAN connection goes through the other chip.

See what others are reading: Openwrt Sysupgrade

This OpenWRT build script & configuration files creates a Raspberry Pi 3 or 4 image supporting multiple WAN connection options.

With multiple WAN connections, you can ensure a stable internet connection even when one connection drops.

The Luci "Travelmate" hotel captive portal GUI add-on is also supported, making it easy to connect to hotel Wi-Fi networks.

This feature is especially useful when traveling, as it can automatically connect to hotel Wi-Fi networks and provide a secure connection.

Here are some key features of this multi-WAN tethering setup:

I've had great success with LTE modems, especially when I don't have an upstream router.

Installing OpenWRT on an LTE modem is pretty straightforward, you just need to install a few packages like kmod-usb-net-rndi, wwan, and comgt-ncm, then reboot.

After rebooting, you'll want to add the new interface, which should be USB0, and set it as WAN as the firewall zone.

You can then access the modem's web GUI on a private IP address of 172.16.0 from a device connected to the LAN port.

This connection can be shared with anyone connected to the device, making it a great option for times when you don't have an internet provider.

Updating the firmware is also a good idea, I always do it because I love updating firmware!

Recommended read: Modem Router Computer Connection

The performance of an OpenWrt travel router can be affected by various factors. The CPU power is one limitation, as seen with the TP-Link AC750, which maxes out at around 13 Mbps download and 21 Mbps upload speeds due to its single-core CPU performance.

The WireGuard VPN client requires significant processing power for encryption and decryption, which can impact overall performance. An iperf3 test on the TP-Link AC750 running OpenWrt showed download speeds of around 15 Mbps and upload speeds of around 16 Mbps.

The internet connection speed is another limiting factor, as demonstrated by the 25 Mbps upload speed of the user's internet connection. This speed was consistently reached in the tests, regardless of the VPN connection.

See what others are reading: Tp Link Router Customer Care

Performance testing revealed some interesting results. The author used a Pi 3B+ as their OpenWRT router connected to a Ubiquiti AC LR access point via the Pi's internal WiFi. All tests were conducted over a VPN to an Oracle cloud server.

Related reading: Openwrt Raspberry Pi 5

The upload speed test was clearly bottle-necked by the 25Mbps upload speed of the internet connection. The tests were run using a Dell Latitude 7490 laptop, which is a mixed bag - the local speedtest was promising, but the Ookla speeds were disappointing.

A big performance improvement was seen in scenario 2, with Speedtest.net reporting results of 35mbps download. This is likely limited by the Pi's internal WiFi used as the "WAN" connection.

The CPU utilization was monitored during testing, and the Pi barely broke a sweat when connected to the Pi via WiFi. The CPU usage was around 12% while the WAN throughput maxed out at 20Mbps.

A more capable USB WiFi adapter is needed to unlock the full potential of the setup. The current setup has tons of headroom, and the author would love to rerun the tests with a better adapter.

The CPU power of the TP-Link is a limitation, as the WireGuard VPN client requires processing power for encryption and decryption. This limits the VPN bandwidth to around 13 Mbps (download) and 21 Mbps (upload).

The AC750 running OpenWrt can squeeze ~15 Mbps download and ~16 Mbps upload speeds through a WireGuard VPN. An iperf3 test using eight network streams corresponds to these Speedtest results.

The old GL.INet Mango has a similar CPU as the TP-Link AC750, but its real-world WireGuard speed is 30 Mbps for some reason.

Worth a look: Openwrt Tp Link Archer

The travel router can get quite hot, especially when the VPN link is enabled. The bottom side of the device heats up to around 40 degrees.

Operating it in an enclosed area like a backpack is not a good idea due to the excessive heat.

To set up your OpenWRT travel router, you'll need to start by downloading the OpenWRT firmware. This can be done from the official OpenWRT website.

You'll also need a compatible device, such as a TP-Link TL-WR902AC or a GL.iNet GL-MT1300, which have been specifically mentioned in the article as suitable options.

To flash the firmware, you'll need to connect your device to a computer using a USB cable, as described in the "Flashing the Firmware" section.

Worth a look: Openwrt Firmware

I decided to install OpenWRT on this device, which was a bit complicated but I had help from Stuart from the Protectli team and they updated their docs with the challenges we worked through.

The process of installing OpenWRT was a little bit complicated, but it was worth it in the end.

Protectli have documentation on their site on how to set up this device with OpenWRT, which was a huge help.

I quickly realized that I should have just used a hypervisor and created it as an OpenWRT virtual machine, which would have allowed me to make changes and back them up as I go.

This would have also allowed me to install other VMs and containers that I can use while on the go.

The device came assembled, which was a big plus.

I tested 8 wireless USB NICs before finally finding one that works with OpenWRT, which was a challenge.

The USB NIC I finally chose only supports 2.4GHz / Wireless N, which has a speed of around 150 Mb/s at most.

I would only use this option if you can’t physically connect your WAN port to your upstream router.

Here's an interesting read: Openwrt 安装 Usb 无线网卡

To set up a wireless access point, you'll need to configure your Protectli wireless NIC, which requires installing drivers and packages on OpenWRT.

First, you'll need to enable the wireless access point feature by installing a few packages and overwriting some files with ones from Protectli's website.

Once you've installed the necessary packages and files, reboot your system and you should see a new wireless section in the OpenWRT interface.

In this section, you'll need to configure the wireless network you want to broadcast to your clients, including the SSID, security, and wireless mode.

Keep in mind that you can't broadcast on both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands at the same time, so if you're using 2.4 GHz devices, you'll need to set the mode to the lowest common denominator of 2.4 GHz.

You can also configure a second NIC to broadcast on 2.4 GHz, but we'll discuss that later.

After applying the wireless configuration, you should be able to see your new SSID and connect to OpenWRT, and if you have the WAN port connected to an upstream network, you can use this as your router.

Consider reading: Openwrt Ap

Connecting to the device via LAN is as simple as configuring the virtual machine to connect to the bridge on Proxmox.

I plugged in a network adapter to a port dedicated as LAN and can now connect to anything running on the Proxmox bridge.

This will be the local area network for all of my devices on this subnet.

Configuring DHCP on this OpenWRT interface can be done later, but I'm planning to do that with Pi-hole or pfSense.

Running a speed test showed me getting anywhere from 180/200 Mbps, which is pretty decent considering I have 500 up/down here at home.

Tweaking some settings might squeeze out more performance, but with stock settings, I'm happy with the results.

Consider reading: Openwrt Bridge Mode

The WAN NIC is where things get interesting. You'll need to assign this NIC to WAN and turn on DHCP to get internet access.

Physically plugging an ethernet cable is my preferred method of connecting this router to an upstream network, like an Air BnB modem or any other network you don't trust. This is generally the most reliable way to get online.

You can expect speeds of around 180/200 Mbps, which is pretty decent considering I have 500 up/down here at home.

Proxmox is a great tool for virtualization and hardware passthrough. It supports creating virtual machines that can utilize hardware devices like network cards.

I installed Proxmox on a machine to create a virtual machine for OpenWRT, which uses less resources than a container. This was because OpenWRT doesn't support hardware passthrough like virtualization does.

The steps to create a VM on Proxmox were pretty straightforward, and I followed each step carefully. I created a simple virtual machine for OpenWRT.

To run a router and an access point, I passed through several devices, including a NIC for WAN access, a wireless adapter, a USB wireless NIC, and a USB modem. This allowed me to use the devices without having to physically connect them to the machine.

I gave the virtual machine 2GB of RAM and 2 CPU cores, which is more than enough for running a router and an access point. The disk size was 512 MB, which is much larger than the 32MB of RAM and 8 MB of disk space used by the OpenWRT router.

Additional reading: Openwrt Hardware

You can install OpenWrt on your travel router using the tftp method, which is a relatively straightforward process. The AC750 router's CPU is powerful, with 64 MB RAM and 8 MB of storage, making it suitable for the task.

To expand the root partition, you can use GParted on a Linux computer, which is a must-do due to the default partition size being around 100 MB.

You'll also want to configure the wireless settings, including setting up the access point for clients to connect to. This involves making changes to the Wireless page, including enabling wireless, setting the operating frequency, and configuring the encryption and password.

Here's a quick rundown of the necessary changes:

Once you've made these changes, save and apply them, and you should now have an access point set up.

You'll need to install the WireGuard client and DDNS client on your router to take advantage of their features.

The WireGuard client is a popular choice for secure VPN connections, and installing it on your router can provide an extra layer of security for your network.

To install the WireGuard client, you'll need to follow the instructions for your specific router model, which may involve using the tftp method, as seen in Example 1.

Alternatively, you can use a USB WiFi adapter with your Raspberry Pi, as described in Example 2. This will give you more flexibility in terms of choosing the right adapter for your needs.

Some USB WiFi adapters, such as the AR9271 based USB WiFi card, work well with OpenWRT, but may not provide the best throughput.

If you're using a Raspberry Pi, you may need to expand the root partition to give yourself more storage space. This can be done using GParted on a Linux computer.

Here are the steps to expand the root partition:

Remember to choose a free operating frequency and set up WPA2-PSK encryption for your access point.

To route all traffic via OpenVPN, you'll need to install the OpenVPN client and configure it on your router.

First, install the packages openvpn-openssl and luci-app-openvpn by typing their names in the Filter field and clicking Install.

Click Save & Apply and refresh the page to see a new tab in the top menu called VPN.

Choose OpenVPN from the dropdown, then click on the Browse button next to the OVPN configuration file upload and locate your OpenVPN config file.

Click Upload to add your VPN config to the OVPN config file text field, and enter your VPN credentials in the lower text field.

You'll need to add a specific line to the OVPN config file to use your credentials, so make sure to include it.

Under OpenVPN instances, check the “Enable” option next to your VPN and then Save & Apply.

Click Start next to your VPN to connect to your VPN server.

Consider reading: Config Openwrt

To route traffic through your VPN, click on the Network tab and choose Interfaces from the dropdown to open the interfaces configuration page.

Click on the button Add new Interface and fill the form with the following values: Name = OpenVPN, Protocol = Unmanaged, Interface = tun0.

That's it! All WAN traffic should now go through your VPN.

Take a look at this: Openwrt Interface

The AC750's low storage capacity is a significant limitation, with only 8 MB available. This is quite restrictive, especially when you consider that the basic OS, WireGuard, and DDNS client already take up a lot of space.

Installing packages like Samba for sharing files over the network is not feasible due to the limited storage. Older GL.iNet models come with 16 MB, while newer routers have 128 MB, making them more suitable for installing multiple apps.

I've personally never used the AC750 as a NAS on my travels, so I can live with the compromise. However, this limitation prevents me from installing other essential packages, like those necessary for smartphone tethering.

According to OpenWrt, tethering is actually faster than sharing a 4G/5G link with the phone's personal hotspot feature. Unfortunately, the AC750's limited flash capacity makes tethering impossible.

LEDs on routers can be repurposed to indicate important network activity. This can be done using OpenWrt firmware, which recognized the additional LED lights on the router in this case.

The WPS LED on some routers can function as a push button, as seen on the little AC750. This button can be repurposed as a VPN on/off switch.

To enable or disable the VPN link when the button is pressed, a specific snippet of code needs to be added to the /etc/hotplug.d/button/vpn file. This allows the button to control the VPN link.

The LED on the router should light up when the VPN becomes active, thanks to a previous configuration change in the LuCI web interface.

You'll need to install a few more packages for driver support when using a USB wireless NIC. I chose to install `mt7601u-firmware` for this specific wireless USB NIC.

Most wireless USB adapters use a Realtek chipset, which doesn't play well with OpenWRT. It's hard to find one without a Realtek chip, but it's worth the search.

I tested 8 wireless USB NICs before finally finding one that works with OpenWRT, and it's based on a Ralink chipset. This one works great and supports 2.4GHz / Wireless N.

For more insights, see: Openwrt Install Tailscale

You can configure the USB wireless NIC as a client that connects to an existing wireless network. This way, you don't have to physically connect to the WAN port, and you can connect over wireless.

The USB NIC only supports 2.4GHz / Wireless N, which is generally fast enough for the internet connection but limited to around 150 Mb/s at most. If you can physically connect to the WAN via ethernet, it's better to disable this NIC or configure it to broadcast the same private network on 2.4Ghz.

I've been carrying a mobile HomeLab with me on trips, and it's been a game-changer. This device serves as a network firewall, an access point, and a platform to run apps, services, and virtual machines.

It's essentially a cross between a router and a travel router, providing internet access whether I'm connected to an existing network or my carrier's mobile data network. This allows me to keep all my devices connected securely, rather than relying on public Wi-Fi.

I've been using an old Cisco Linksys router as my mobile HomeLab, but it's not ideal. Protectli offered to let me test one of their devices on my next trip to see if it could handle everything I need.

The device I'm using is a combination of a router and a Raspberry Pi, which provides a few more services on my local network. This setup allows me to do things like local Plex transcoding while on the go, which is a big plus for me.

A fresh viewpoint: Xfinity Mobile Global Travel Pass