openwrt: what routers just plain ***work***?

James Knott james.knott-bJEeYj9oJeDQT0dZR+AlfA at public.gmane.org
Sat May 16 19:07:11 UTC 2009


Peter wrote:
>> What I've read suggests that making the list you want is extremely
>> difficult because manufacturers quietly and sometimes frequently
>> change the chips in their routers - often without bothering to change
>> the router name or even part or version number.  Thus we have lists
>>     
>
> Correct, but that should be illegal because the FCC or equivalent RFI compliance
> ID applies to the initial revision only and any hardware change voids it. Trust
> me, I know this. In other words:
>   

FCC regulations are irrelevant in Canada.  We have to comply with
Industry Canada regs, which are often similar to the FCC ones.
> 1) A FCC ID must uniquely identify one type of equipment, including any possible
> hardware mods (jumpers, wires, connectors etc) defined at certification time.
>
> 2) ANY other hardware configuration voids the FCC ID and may additionally
> subject the manufacturer to massive fines if the device radiates RFI and
> disturbs something else (such as flight traffic control, DME or nav beacons).
>   
Licensed radio amateurs are allowed to make such modifications or "roll
their own", provided the equipment then operates according to amateur
radio regulations.
> So the answer is, yes, they to silently change chips and software revisions, but
> they do it offshore and hope to get away with it by passing liability on to
> other parties. The small software glitch or hardware 'improvement' (manufacturer
> originated, of the kind he'd forget to mention by the time revision B is
> shipped) in a 802.11 wireless router that turns it into an inadvertent 2.4GHz
> cordless phone jammer and prevents a life-saving 911 call is *very* small.
>   
As that is an Insdustrial Scientific & Medical (ISM) band there is no
protection from interference.
> Since the bad guys already have handheld jammers (one can buy them over the
> internet apparently), and amateurs are usually up to good things in small
> numbers, and won't try to jam anything out of malice (it is hard enough to make
> the quipment work as is), that leaves manufacturers who 'forget' to re-certify
> their new hardware, with their potentially buggy firmware in them, as the most
> likely culprits in case of trouble.
>   

Part of the 2.4.GHz band overlaps part of an amateur radio band.  Since
amateur radio is a licensed service, it is entitled to protection from
all ISM type devices and those devices must also accept any interference
from a licensed service.  This means that amateurs do not have to
consider interference to your WiFi network or cordless phone, but you
are responsible if your device, including microwave oven, causes
interference to him.


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