Asus RT-N16

Asus RT-N16.

  • model: Asus RT-N16
  • cpu: MIPS (MIPS32 74K series) @ 480 MHz
  • platform: Broadcom BCM4718
  • bootloader: CFE
  • memory: flash 32 MB

  • RAM 128 MB

  • standards: IEEE 802.11 b,g,n

  • frequency: 2.4 GHz
  • mimo: 2.4 GHz x 2
  • antennas: external x 3

Hints: Recovery mode - hold in restore button until you get the slow flashing power LED,

back to network page.

Links

TomatoUSB, EasyTomato, Toastman, Victek, AdvancedTomato, Tomato by Shibby, WikiDevi: RT-N16, LinksysInfo.org (forums),

History

2024-10-12: reboot - I reboot the AP from the web gui.

2024-10-12: uptime - I had to try several times before I could ssh into the AP, the web gui works, but slowly.

tingo@kg-core2:~ $ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  20:55:16 up 279 days,  3:17
 Load average: 0.04, 0.03, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.3% (used 20.18 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

time to reboot it.

2024-01-07: reboot - some of the mobile phones complained, so I rebooted the AP from the gui.

2024-01-07: uptime

tingo@kg-core2:~ $ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  16:30:00 up 120 days,  4:37
 Load average: 0.01, 0.02, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.3% (used 20.19 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

uptime 120 days

2023-09-09: reboot - a few of the mobile devices acted up, so I rebooted the AP from the gui.

2023-09-09: uptime and status - at the second try I could connect to it via ssh:

tingo@kg-core2:~ $ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  12:43:46 up 116 days, 19:16
 Load average: 0.14, 0.05, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.2% (used 20.13 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ======================================================== 

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root#

uptime is 116 days. Chec ports

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# robocfg showports
Switch: enabled gigabit
Port 0:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 2 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 1: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: b4:2e:99:1f:c5:a7
Port 2:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 3:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 4:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 8: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: e0:cb:4e:86:81:09

downlink is gigabit good.

2022-07-02: uptime (via web gui) is 260 days, I can't ssh into the box (tried 3 times), so I reboot it from web gui. Afterwards ssh works

tingo@kg-core2:~ $ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  11:34:07 up 2 min
 Load average: 0.15, 0.13, 0.05
 Mem usage: 16.0% (used 19.84 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

show ports

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# robocfg showports
Switch: enabled gigabit
Port 0:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 2 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 1: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: b4:2e:99:1f:c5:a7
Port 2:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 3:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 4:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 8: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: e0:cb:4e:86:81:09

uplink ports is gigobit spped - good.

2021-10-14: check uptime

tingo@kg-core2$ ssh root@rt-n16
ssh: connect to host kg-rtn16.kg4.no port 22: Operation timed out
tingo@kg-core2$ ssh root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no
ssh: connect to host kg-rtn16.kg4.no port 22: Operation timed out

ok, that is not normal, so reboot the AP from the gui. Then try to ssh in

tingo@kg-core2$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  20:04:59 up 12 min
 Load average: 0.01, 0.03, 0.02
 Mem usage: 16.2% (used 20.13 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

better. Check ports

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# robocfg showports
Switch: enabled gigabit
Port 0:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 2 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 1: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: b4:2e:99:1f:c5:a7
Port 2:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 3:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 4:   DOWN enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: 00:00:00:00:00:00
Port 8: 1000FD enabled stp: none vlan: 1 jumbo: off mac: e0:cb:4e:86:81:09

good.

2021-07-07: I re-created this page on my self-hosted web server.

2020-12-08: reboot - I rebooted the AP again.

2020-05-10: reboot - a few of the mobile devices acted up (as if there was no connection / no dns) so I rebooted the AP again.

2020-04-01: reboot - I rebooted the AP. Yes - now I have much better throughput on my WLAN again.

2020-03-27: moved to channel 7

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# mymotd
 ========================================================
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  01:39:44 up 49 days, 10:42
 Load average: 0.03, 0.05, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.3% (used 20.18 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  -
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO7 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

status

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# wl status
SSID: "kg5"
Mode: Managed    RSSI: 0 dBm    noise: -78 dBm    Channel: 5
BSSID: E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B    Capability: ESS ShortSlot
Supported Rates: [ 1(b) 2(b) 5.5(b) 6 9 11(b) 12 18 24 36 48 54 ]
802.11N Capable:
    Chanspec: 2.4GHz channel 5 40MHz (0x2e05)
    Control channel: 7
    802.11N Capabilities:
    Supported MCS : [ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 32 ]

ok

2020-03-27: checking the AP

tingo@kg-core2$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password:


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ========================================================
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  01:03:28 up 49 days, 10:06
 Load average: 0.01, 0.02, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.2% (used 20.12 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  -
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO9 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

hmm, looks "normal".

2019-09-20: rebooted the AP, to see if performance will improve (my cell phone complained about "no internet" in some apps). Yes - rebooting helped, my cellphone stopped complaining.

tingo@z30b:~$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@rt-n16's password:


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ========================================================
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  22:29:46 up 9 min
 Load average: 0.13, 0.07, 0.02
 Mem usage: 16.1% (used 19.95 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  -
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO12 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

ok

2018-09-17: the access point have been getting worse and worse the last few weeks; lots of dropouts, connections that don't work and so on. Today I first tried rebooting, but then no devices could get on the net afterwards. Checked the switch that the AP is connected to - no connectivity light on that port. Bad cable? I changed the cable - yes, that was the problem.

2018-08-08: OpenWRT claims that the Asus RT-N16 is supported in 18.06.0, but it seems you need kmod-brcm-wl, wlc and wl packages for full Wi-Fi functionality. alternate: kmod-brcmsmac or kmod-brcmfmac for an open source driver with better functionality than the standard driver (still not as good as the proprietary driver though).

2018-08-08: reboot - the music players (Squeezeboxes) lost connection all the time, so I rebooted this AP.

2018-01-24: no extra lines in my firewall log today. So yes - rebooting the AP helped.

2018-01-23: reboot - some of my machines (including my Fedora laptop just upgraded to F27) is showing lots of disconnects in the firewall log. In a fault finding effort, I'm restarting my AP to see if that affects anything. Before restart:

tingo@kg-core1$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password:


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ========================================================
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  09:47:31 up 98 days, 18:34
 Load average: 0.08, 0.03, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.4% (used 20.31 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  -
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO13 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

it doesn't look overloaded.

2018-01-15: This afternoon I switched to channel 13 (better signal):

[tingo@localhost ~]$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@rt-n16's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  20:41:14 up 91 days,  5:28
 Load average: 0.01, 0.05, 0.06
 Mem usage: 16.3% (used 20.19 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: NO13 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ======================================================== 

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root#

ok.

2017-09-17: after reboot, the access point now runs version 140

[tingo@localhost ~]$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@rt-n16's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-140 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  13:46:30 up 3 min
 Load average: 0.10, 0.16, 0.07
 Mem usage: 16.2% (used 20.01 of 123.87 MB)
 LAN1 : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: 5 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ========================================================

check TID

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# nvram show | grep http_id
http_id=TID7c1dcbedd6ca3a4e

it is unchanged.

2017-09-17: upgrade - Tomato by Shibby 1.40 has been available a while now. Let me upgrade. First I switched to a different wireless AP for my laptop, then I selected Administration, Upgrade in web gui, and since I want ot keep my settings, I didn't check the "After flashing, erase all data in NVRAM memory" checkbox. Then I pressed "Upgrade". After a while (about 3 minutes plus) the browser said "Image successfully flashed", "Please wait while the router reboots...".

2017-09-17: the AP (access point) has been up 314 days now:

[tingo@localhost ~]$ ssh root@rt-n16
root@rt-n16's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-138 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  13:34:09 up 314 days, 16:08
 Load average: 0.02, 0.02, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.4% (used 20.29 of 123.87 MB)
 WAN1: 10.1.161.11/0 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0A
 LAN : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: 5 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ======================================================== 

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root#

ok.

2017-08-05: LEDE claims support for this router. Not sure if it works - haven't tested it.

2016-11-06: check TID

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root# nvram show | grep http_id
http_id=TID7c1dcbedd6ca3a4e
http_id_warn=10.1.150.61,35584

it has changed.

2016-11-06: connecting via ssh:

[tingo@localhost ~]$ ssh root@kg-rtn16
root@kg-rtn16's password: 


Tomato v1.28.0000 MIPSR2-138 K26 USB AIO
 ======================================================== 
 Welcome to the Asus RT-N16 [TomatoUSB]
 Uptime:  20:56:21 up 34 min
 Load average: 0.03, 0.03, 0.00
 Mem usage: 16.2% (used 20.02 of 123.87 MB)
 WAN1: 10.1.161.11/0 @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0A
 LAN : 10.1.10.11/16 @ DHCP:  - 
 WL0 : 2,4GHz @ kg5 @ channel: auto @ E0:CB:4E:86:81:0B
 ======================================================== 

root@kg-rtn16:/tmp/home/root#

it works now.

2016-11-06: upgrade - I decided to upgrade to latest Shibby (138), the file is tomato-K26USB-1.28.RT-MIPSR2-138-AIO.trx. I connected my Fedora laptop to my other wireless network (useful), and selected Administration, Upgrade in web gui. I selected "After flashing, erase all data in NVRAM memory" to have NVRAM cleared, then pressed "Upgrade". after a while, the browser said "Image successfully flashed", "Please wait while the router reboots...". I connected another laptop via ethernet cable to the router, started a browser and pointed it at 192.168.1.1, logged in with default username and password (admin). configured the router, leaving the local network settings (IP address, gateway, DNS server, disable DHCP server) for last). Then I connected the router (ok, access point) back to my network. It works.

2016-11-06: new software: EasyTomato, newest release is from 2013, Toastman - hard to figure out which version you need, Victek - newest release is from 2014, AdvancedTomato - new release for the RT-N16 from 16.8.2016 is 3.3-138, but the only change from Shibby is the gui part. Shibby release 138 is from August 2nd, 2016.

2016-11-06: router info:

root@unknown:/tmp/home/root# uname -a
Linux unknown 2.6.22.19 #7 Tue Nov 30 14:44:12 EST 2010 mips GNU/Linux
root@unknown:/tmp/home/root# cat /proc/version
Linux version 2.6.22.19 (root@tomato) (gcc version 4.2.4) #7 Tue Nov 30 14:44:12 EST 2010
root@unknown:/tmp/home/root# cat /proc/cmdline
root=/dev/mtdblock2 noinitrd console=ttyS0,115200
root@unknown:/tmp/home/root# cat /proc/cpuinfo
system type : Broadcom BCM4716 chip rev 1 pkg 10
processor : 0
cpu model : MIPS 74K V4.0
BogoMIPS : 239.20
wait instruction : no
microsecond timers : yes
tlb_entries : 64
extra interrupt vector : no
hardware watchpoint : yes
ASEs implemented : mips16 dsp
shadow register sets : 1
VCED exceptions : not available
VCEI exceptions : not available

unaligned_instructions : 0
dcache hits : 2147483648
dcache misses : 3656895991
icache hits : 2147483648
icache misses : 860326252
instructions : 2147483648

ok.

2016-11-06: getting NVRAM variables / info from the command line:

root@unknown:/tmp/home/root# nvram show | grep http_id
http_id=TID47cec4395463b70c

useful.

2016-11-06: trying to connect from my Fedora laptop:

[tingo@localhost ~]$ ssh root@kg-rtn16
Unable to negotiate with 10.1.10.11 port 22: no matching key exchange method found. Their offer: diffie-hellman-group1-sha1

ok, try from my FreeBSD workstation instead:

tingo@kg-core1$ ssh root@kg-rtn16
root@kg-rtn16.kg4.no's password: 


Tomato v1.28.9054 MIPSR2-beta K26 USB Ext

I should probably upgrade the router.

2012-04-03: TomatoUSB setup: WAN disabled (use WAN port for LAN), I setup the LAN IP address, gateway and DNS static, turned off the DHCP server, set the WLAN as access point. with WPA2 Personal. I started the ssh daemn, and stopped the telnet daemon.

2012-04-03: I flashed TomatoUSB on the router by following this guide, the RT-N16 has a MIPS R2 cpu, and I used Build 54, Kernel 2.6, Ext. I tried build 54 twice; it didn't work, I always ended up in recovery mode (slow flashing power LED). Next up is build 52. No, that didn't work either. So I'll just flash DD-WRT onto the router as an intermediary step. Using tftp again. Hmm, I figured out why it didn't work - user error; I must put tftp into binary first. Like this:

$ ls *trx
$ tftp 192.168.1.1
tftp> bin
tftp> put dd-wrt.v24-13309_NEWD-2_K2.6_mini_RT-N16.trx
tftp> quit

Will it work now? Yes, it did. So, let's re-try with the wanted firmware:

$ tftp 192.168.1.1
tftp> bin
tftp> put tomato-K26USB-1.28.9054MIPSR2-beta-Ext.trx
tftp> quit

wait five minutes, then power-cycle the router.