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1. Embed this notice
   Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿 (lightweight@mastodon.nzoss.nz)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:39:15 JST Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿

   Hmm - just ordered an OpenWRT-compatible home wifi/router - via Aliexpress... it's a GL-iNet Flint2 (GL-MT6000). https://www.gl-inet.com/products/gl-mt6000/ And shame on me, turns out I could've got it for less from the manufacturer's site (~NZ$265 with free shipping to NZ vs. ~NZ$320 with a little shipping + tax)... Live and learn!

   If anyone else in NZ is looking at moving to Quic for broadband (where you need to provide your own router), that router is my choice (replacing my own painfully old router).

   • Embed this notice
     djsumdog (djsumdog@djsumdog.com)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:39:11 JST djsumdog

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein
     pihole is just a fork of dnsmasq with built-in DNS and fancy charts and graphs. (You can add the same blocklists to dnsmasq if you don't care about the graphs). I got this thing on eBay for $88 USD. It has an Intel Atom processor, so you can install practically any distro:
     
     https://battlepenguin.com/tech/installing-void-linux-with-a-serial-terminal/
     
     Although the last time I looked up similar units they were nearly $200 😥
   • Embed this notice
     Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿 (lightweight@mastodon.nzoss.nz)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:39:13 JST Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein

     @Adam given that it runs OpenWRT out of the box (you might need to install your own to modify it, not sure yet), you might be able to install it... (this looks promising: https://discourse.pi-hole.net/t/pihole-directly-on-routers-tomato-merlinwrt-dd-wrt-openwrt/1314 ) but haven't fully read or tried it myself (yet).

   • Embed this notice
     Adam Lein (adam@social.lein.us)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:39:14 JST Adam Lein

     in reply to

     @lightweight Oooh! Wireguard server built in?! I want that! If only it also had PiHole built in (or installable).

   • Embed this notice
     djsumdog (djsumdog@djsumdog.com)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:40:20 JST djsumdog

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein
     Isn't Adguard owned by an ad company now? I'm pretty sure uBlock Origin is the only one that hasn't sold out yet. (They all use the same blocklist providers, the sellouts just have whitelists for approved adverts they get kickbacks from)
   • Embed this notice
     Adam Lein (adam@social.lein.us)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:40:21 JST Adam Lein

     in reply to

     @lightweight Oh wait, it looks like that comes with AdGuard Home software which does (probably) mostly the same thing as PiHole!! NICE!! https://adguard.com/en/adguard-home/overview.html

   • Embed this notice
     Adam Lein (adam@social.lein.us)'s status on Tuesday, 22-Oct-2024 10:47:17 JST Adam Lein

     in reply to

     • djsumdog

     @djsumdog @lightweight Nice! I'll have to read more on that too. Currently I have a RPI 3b doing the Wireguard VPN, PiHole DNS/blocking, and upstream DNS over HTTPS encryption, so it would be cool to clean up that pile with an all-in-one router.

     djsumdog likes this.
   • Embed this notice
     翠星石 (suiseiseki@freesoftwareextremist.com)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Oct-2024 18:36:23 JST 翠星石

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein
     @lightweight @Adam Unfortunately that router runs proprietary software.
     
     My router is GNUbooted btw.
   • Embed this notice
     翠星石 (suiseiseki@freesoftwareextremist.com)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Oct-2024 19:16:13 JST 翠星石

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein
     @lightweight @Adam Note how it's called "open" and not "libre".
     
     Typically the bootloader used by router's is u-boot, although many manufacturers do not follow u-boot's license.
     
     All 802.11ac and 802.11ax Wi-Fi cards to not operate without proprietary software loaded onto them.
     
     I use a freedom-respecting 802.11n card myself.
     
     
     The "Open"WRT package repos appears to contain many proprietary programs.
     
     Finally, "Open"WRT always uses the proprietary version of Linux and not Linux-libre.
   • Embed this notice
     Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿 (lightweight@mastodon.nzoss.nz)'s status on Wednesday, 23-Oct-2024 19:16:15 JST Dave Lane :flag_tino: 🇳🇿

     in reply to

     • 翠星石
     • Adam Lein

     @Suiseiseki @Adam mine'll be running OpenWRT, which, so far as I know, is #libre (although not sure about the bootloader).

   • Embed this notice
     翠星石 (suiseiseki@freesoftwareextremist.com)'s status on Thursday, 24-Oct-2024 08:29:30 JST 翠星石

     in reply to

     • Adam Lein
     @Adam Any computer with the right ports can be a router, but you really would want a computer GNU/Linux installed and then you can configure the routing with ip and netfilter (the config is the same for a GNUbooted one running GNU/Linux-libre).
     
     Optionally you can plug in a PCIe Wi-Fi card and configure wpa_supplicant and the routing.
     
     "Open"WRT is just BusyBox/Linux with routing and netfilter pre-configured.
     
     
     One company does sell routers that run LibreCMC (freed version of "Open"WRT); https://www.thinkpenguin.com/catalog/networking-gear-gnu-linux although that's just really a heavy markup on decent hardware - you can just purchase the hardware quite cheaply yourself and flash LibreCMC for much less costs.
     
     People do sell GNUbooted computers, but not pre-configured as a router.
     
     
     If you are installing something, what you are doing is installing software - firmware is impossible to install via software means, you need to physically replace the ROM or PROM chip to update firmware.
   • Embed this notice
     Adam Lein (adam@social.lein.us)'s status on Thursday, 24-Oct-2024 08:29:31 JST Adam Lein

     in reply to

     • 翠星石

     @Suiseiseki @lightweight Does anyone sell GNUboot routers or you gotta install that firmware yourself on something?