I've been using DD-WRT on my routers for over a year now, and I just
love it. It's full-featured, easy to set up and use, and very stable.
From what I can tell (I haven't worked much with HyperWRT, OpenWRT,
etc.), it seems the easiest to use of them all. It's meant to be able
to be used without touching a command line, and the browser
interface, which was overhauled a few months back, is really
intuitive and well-documented. If you want to get into the command
line, though, the option's there, and every setting available from
the web interface can be set through the CLI, plus many other
settings, installable programs, etc.
From a features standpoint, DD-WRT comes with the most by default.
It's not as modular as the others, but has a wide feature set (so
wide, in fact, that the more space-intensive things, like VPN and
VOIP, have their own builds to make room for them). The standard
install comes with everything needed to set up RADIUS authentication,
start a wireless hotspot, and run it all off your neighbor's
connection (with their permission, of course;).
I don't use most of the functionality. I like that it has SNMP built
in, so I can monitor bandwidth usage. I played around with WDS with
three routers, which was interesting (I don't recommend it. It cuts
the speed to 1/n, n being the number of routers). Right now, I've got
the main router and two set up as clients, to act as wireless bridges
for my media centers (half the price of the linksys wireless bridges,
and they support WPA2!).
So, if you're looking for an easy-to-use and easy-to-setup router
system, I heartily recommend DD-WRT. The support community is great
and active, and development is rapid (the newest version, v24 alpha,
is working on multiple AP's from the same physical router, which has
all sorts of uses), so, in the event that something doesn't work
right, a quick answer is usually just a forum post away.
- -David
On Dec 27, 2006, at 5:18 PM, Dazed_75 wrote:
> I wonder if people could comment on their experience with
> raplacement firmware for a router. Specifically for a Linksys
> WRT54GL since that is what some friends have and I have ordered.
> The little experience any of us have is with Thibor's HyperWRT but
> I know there are others such as DD-WRT and openWRT. I would love
> to hear from those of you with experience in theis area; especially
> with regard to the differences between the available choices in
> terms of features, ease of use, documentation, and reliability.
>
> --
> Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't
> matter and those who matter don't mind. - Dr. Seuss
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