[tempest2084]

I have a bricked Archer C7 v3 that I'm trying to save. I got it to take the recovery image using TFTP but it still won't work so I need to have a serial console up to see what part is failing. I ordered a cable for connecting to the serial pins inside the router, but I don't see them. All the pictures on the net are for the v2 version and there's a small row of pins to connect to. These don't seem to be there on the v3. Does the v3 not have them or are they hidden somewhere? Any help would be appreciated.

[tempest2084]

I found the header, it's in the upper corner and doesn't have any pins so I'll have to add my own. Hopefully the cable I got (a cheap Chinese one) will work straight out of the box without any need for software drivers.

[msoengineer]

The header is Molex P/N 0022102041.

See my sticky about putty and how to set it up right.
if you have drivers issues, see this.

[tempest2084]

Thank you. Rather than test my tenuous soldering skills I'm going to 'cheat' by using a male to male jumper wire. I'll give this a shot once they get here.

[msoengineer]

You need to solder to the board to ensure a good connection, otherwise you risk making things worse with an intermittent signal/connection.... you're asking for trouble...

[tempest2084]

Ok after getting my serial connection working, I can see what the problem is with the TFTP recovery file.

Bytes transferred = 4456746 (44012a hex)
original_product_id = 00
original_product_ver = 00
recovery_product_id = c7000002
recovery_product_ver = 01
auto update firmware: product id verify fail!


I'm using the correct firmware for my v3 router, so I'm not sure what the issue is. Any ideas?

[kernel-panic69]

tftpd32 v4.52 32-bit standard edition server/client software with "Use Anticipation Window of 1024 bytes" under settings for TFTP checked might help. Was the file you used stripped of the bootloader?