Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 0:41 Post subject: desperately need help with meraki outdoor
I've been at this for over 3 days now so forgive me if I might be a bit irate.
I have a brand new Meraki Outdoor which I am attempting to install DD-WRT on. I honestly don't care which version I have to use at this point as long as it functions as a repeater and is reliable. Despite trying numerous different root.fs files and reading numerous different guides I have run into a brick wall with each and every flash attempt.
Specifically when preforming the "fis create" for the root.fs the Meraki appears to reboot part way through. I've set a cmd prompt to ping the meraki constantly, which allows me to see when the telnet is active. I noted that when preforming fis commands the meraki stops responding to ping requests. If I preform a "fis init" when the command completes and prints the results in telnet the meraki begins responding to pings again. The same is true when preforming a "fis create" for the kernel. But when preforming an "fis create" of the rootfs the meraki begins responding to pings before any output is shown in telnet and if I press the enter key after it begins responding to pings telnet immediately tells me the connection has failed.
If I then log back into the meraki (which doesnt require power cycling it) and preform a "fis list" I find that the rootfs is not listed. I've tried countless different versions of dd-wrt, at least 4 different guides for installing dd-wrt from redboot, using/not using ping, and have also tried Ap51 EasyFlash using DD-WRT v24 RC4 which also stops at "Flashing rootfs..."
I'm no noob by far to computers, linux, or the concept of rom flashing (though perhaps my networking knowledge could use some improving). I understand the concepts of what is going on here and was able to successfully apply DD-WRT v24 RC4 on my Buffalo WHR-HP-G54 on the first try (using the same ping trick to see when the tftp server would be responding). None-the-less I'm out of ideas and theres no more guides/info for me to read.
If any one has any idea at all what I could be doing wrong I could relay use the help. I've a client who wanted this set up and ready this morning and has already called me to complain.
Thanx in advance for the help
- EDIT 1:44PM GMT-6 10/15/07 -
Just to note, as I may not have been clear. I believe that the failure to respond to ping requests when preforming fis commands is not a part of the problem but is actually normal behavior, any confirmation on this might help. The problem is that when using "fis create" to flash the rootfs file the meraki starts responding to ping requests too soon and stops responding to telnet at the same moment. When I log back in I find that the rootfs file is missing and that ip_addr reports the default settings despite that I had changed them previously. This in combination with my observations of the supposed "normal behavior" when using "fis init" and "fis create" on other files is what leads me to believe that about 5 minutes into the "fis create" for the rootfs file the meraki is spontaneously rebooting.
My question simply put is: "why?"
Of course it's possible the question i should be asking is: "If it's not rebooting what is really happening?"
I used the easyflash software with the latest winpcap on both XP Pro SP2 under a VMWare Virtual Machine and Vista Ultimate 64bit (ran as administrator). Oddly I received strange file not found errors when attempting to run the Linux versions of easyflash on Ubuntu and Gentoo (both 2.6 kernels without hardening). The windows version I got from here:
http://download.berlin.freifunk.net/sven-ola/area51/
Via Redboot I've been able to load openwrt-atheros-2.6-vmlinux.gz. However, when I enter the exec command. The serial console gives this message:
Now booting linux kernel:
Base address 0x80030000 Entry 0x80041000
Cmdline :
And it stops until Redboot reboots again. I observed that Redboot spontaneously reboots after exactly 5 minutes. It is possible that this hardware does not suport the actual release of openwrt?
i think the meraki outdoor is the same device as the standard but with an outdoor enclosure! why should it be different hardware? they have only to aps in the portfolio.
"....The Meraki Mini Outdoor is a weatherproof version of the Meraki Mini. It stands up to rain, snow, sleet, wind, hail, and direct sunlight. All you need to do is plug it in same as you would a Meraki Mini and you're all set...."
Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 3:26 Post subject: any luck
Just wondering if anyone has come across (or developed) a good methodology for flashing the outdoor units - Any advise would be greatly appreciated. THanks
