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Hacking Samsung 4510-Based APs
zoobab writes "Some belgian linux hackers met this week-end to hack some wireless access points based on the samsung4510 chip. They have succeeded in compiling and booting a uClinux kernel on a Dlink 614ap+, which is equipped with the infamous acx100 wireless chipset. There's still some work to do, but if you want to help, open your 22mbps AP and try to built your own JTAG adaptator to get access to the flash..."
The new Minitar (www.minitar.com) access point runs Linux. It uses the Realtek RTL8181 SoC (it's MIPS based) and if you look in the Minitar forum you will find the link for the source code. Unfortunately the good stuff such as the wireless core driver is in binary form only. Hopefully this will change soon.
The Linksys WRT54G runs on Linux. a lot of hacking done on them. some have even boosted its power output by send it command through its ping utility.
THIS is the kind of article that I started
reading slashdot for, pre-dotcom.
YuGo, girl.
-I like my women like I like my tea: green-
here
Very quickly I wish to say thank you to these hackers and similar programmers working on extending hardwares beyond original manufacturer intentions. I run a small business in India selling computer components. Many times, I am able to get much more out of inexpensive hardware due to peoples projects. In the developing world we simply cannot afford the high prices manufacturers are charging for certain equipment, but with these projects we are able to succeed. Many thanks. Rushabh.
The linux hacker
Not to mention, what the heck is an adaptator?
I don't think it's wise to plug a potato into an AP
Need a Catering Connection
is the Beowulf cluster due?!?!?! ;)
Gotta love using the ibook for the forces of good. That's really all I have to say, just a little fanboy post. I think what they are doing is commendable and someday I aspire to have the skill required to do things like that.
-or so you'd think
You make no sense. If you can't afford the equipment, how will the programmers' work help you? It sounds as if all they needed was perserverence and intelligence, not any specialized hardware besides the target platform.
A 614+ is like $25 AR, the radio and antennas in it sucks but for the money it really can't be beat . . . This is quite cool.
1q2w3e4r5t6y7u8i9o0pqawsedrftgthyjukilo;p'azsxdcf
I've been playing around with the firmware on my (non-linux) Linksys BEFW11S4 Acess point(the WAP/router one), but I've run into an issue where, apparently there is a checksum on the firmware image files, and it cannot thus be changed without also changing the checksum to match your changes.
Unfortunatly, I'm not leet hax0r, so I have no idea how to find the checksum in a hex editor, anyone have an idea where it would be?(yeah I've checked the first and last bits of the file.)
I would expect such blatant racism on Fark, but on Slashdot? Mods please ban this asshole.
Especially since virtually all such efforts result in a device less flexible, less reliable and harder to use than the original. (XBox?)
Perhaps combining these various pools of skill (which I do not minimalize or trivialize for a moment) and supporting some real helpful and Linux-promoting projects would be a better use of resources?
For instance, if Linux is to be a real competitor to Windows, how about using these skills to build simple distros and simple methods of installing and uninstalling apps on them that do not require arcane command line utilities and other tasks. Just insert the CD or click on the download and be done.
Usability based on installability is the achilles heel of Linux for the masses.
Until folks realize this and redirect their efforts to more useful pursuits, installing Linux by destroying a perfectly good AP is no more useful than installing it on a stapler.
Right now, a typical PC user without Linux is like an Astronaut without an accordian.
Very quickly I wish to say thank you to these hackers and similar programmers working on extending hardwares beyond original manufacturer intentions. I run a small business in India selling computer components. Many times, I am able to get much more out of inexpensive hardware due to peoples projects. In the developing world we simply cannot afford the high prices manufacturers are charging for certain equipment, but with these projects we are able to succeed. Many thanks. Rushabh.
I think he means, thanks to the works of these developers and others, he can afford to buy cheaper off the shelf items and get more utility out of them w/o having to buy [which he cannot always afford] higher priced versions of the hardware from other vendors.
"It's better to be a pirate then join the Navy"
sorry I was referring to other hardware, not the hardware in question
The linux hacker
JTAG adaptator
Is that like Tator Tots? Say, I'm hungry.
/me heads to kitchen for some overprocessed potato goodness.
This information is invaluable to all workers, everywhere. Thank you, sir.
Whats the big deal? We'll talk when you get reliable copy/paste, and when you keep your desktop linux machine stable after 3-4 months of up2date's and apt-get's. Then we can talk... see ya in 10 years.
It is rather unfortunate that slashdot moderators have nothing better to do than to use their mod points to mod posts like this down.
Too bad I don't have any more mod points, or I would give you a "+1 funny".
Dlink 614ap+, which is equipped with the infamous acx100 wireless chipset.
I have this router (and I have been nothing but pleased with it), and would like to know why the acx100 chipset is considered infamous. It seems to function correctly and the 22Mbps is a nice bonus when used with the compliant cards. Where (or rather what)'s the beef?
It must be able to read html and determine I want to give it a brain transplant.
A cook is nice. Cookbooks are better.
People make free drivers because the stupid devices are everwhere but limited by software. It takes lots of capital to make semiconductor devices, so there are only a few companies that do. Because of this, almost all hardware uses one of a dozen chipsets made for that kind of device. This is why Knoppix fits on a single CD and recognizes thousands of devices. Once you get a free driver, many devices can be used and you don't have to go out and buy a new one because the vendor does not make a non-free driver for the next eXPensive OS from M$. There are enough people interested in free drivers to get them. The pace is picking up and the quality is very impressive. Device drivers are a showcase of the effieciency of free software development. Everyone wins when a device driver comes out.
Especially since virtually all such efforts result in a device less flexible, less reliable and harder to use than the original. (XBox?)
Now you are a real troll. Obviously an Xbox that both runs M$'s games AND free software is more felxible than an Xbox that only plays M$ games.
Usability based on installability is the achilles heel of Linux for the masses.
So is the ignorance you display, except it's much easier to hit than a tendon.
installing Linux by destroying a perfectly good AP is no more useful than installing it on a stapler.
A stapler does not do iptables, run configuration utilities over a web server or act as a meshpoint. More importantly, your stapler won't tell other people about your bank account, herpese medication and other stuff most people would like to keep to themselves.
Right now, a typical PC user without Linux is like an Astronaut without an accordian.
A typical comercial software user is much like a typical free software user, except they are $400 poorer, have no privacy, suffer frequent crashes, and have to buy all new hardware every three years. Oh wait, that's nothing like the typical Linux user.
t intruder, you don't get paid enough to write such drivel but you are not worth what you are paid.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Thus "WiFry", as in "Would you like WiFry with your Happy Meal(tm)?"
I don't read ACs: If a post isn't worth so much as a nom de plume to its author then I wont bother either.
In a related note, Linksys/Broadcom have released source code and the toolchain used in the wrt54g access point. They even have instructions on how to build your own firmware.
Everything you need to build your own firmware is available in version 1.42.2
Note that my wrt54g linux distribution won't work with version 1.42.2 unless your modify the firmware to re-enable the wrt54g "ping hack"
This is one of those articles on slashdot that I wish I knew what it was talking about. I only understood "wireless" and "the" in the description. I'll keep reading.
A similar article is in 2600 as well. :)
Free software won't keep you from Xbox Live, Microsoft will. They will kick you off Microsoft live if they detect mods of any type. Non free software is like that, oops. Go buy a Play Station instead of a M$ gimped, 700MHz PeeeCeeee if you really want to play games. Sony does a better job at Linux too, Go figure.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Go back to Redmond, troll
... Everyone wins when a device driver comes out.
The man was talking about how we can make Linux more accessible to people who don't know much about how a pc works. He seems to be someone who likes the Open-Source Project as much as me, or you, or the next guy.
I don't fully agree with him either. Hey, if you like the idea of running Linux on everything around you, nothing stops you from trying it, right? (except for that evil DMCA mb) However, because you seem to see everything black-white ('us' vs. 'them'), you wrongfully classified him as an M$-lover, which he is clearly not.
Although most of your arguments perfectly make sense, let me just respond to some of them.
People make free drivers
This is very true, the more hardware is supported by Linux the better. However, we are not talking about device drivers here, we are talking about embedding Linux into various devices.
t intruder, you don't get paid enough to write such drivel but you are not worth what you are paid.
Didn't quite understand this, sorry. Looked offensive anyway. Can't we all just get along?
"Hell hath no fury like a hippo with a machine gun."
You aren't buying your network cards from Sun, are you?
Er, but why am I doing this again?
I understand it's good for other people to do this since it'd help them learn more about the chipset and make drivers, but can anyone tell me if there's a reason for me, Joe-User, to want to do this today?
I tried browsing the site/forums to see what advantages might be there, but I couldn't seem to get to any of them.
So, does anyone know what advantages I can gain with what's been done today by having some fun with another 614+? (not trolling here, I like it when there's a reason beyond "Because I can" and I am not really skilled enough to help with the driver development effort). Not that I need a reason, futzing around with hardware while exclaiming "For Science!" is enough . . .
An unfortunate problem with this sometimes is striking a balance between the communities desire for freedom and legal compliance. Nowhere is this more apparent than when dealing with wifi cards.
Laws about permissable signal strength and which wavelengths are unregulated vary quite a bit from country to country ( for example, if memory serves correctly, Japan has 802.11b bands up to 13, while Australia only goes up to 10 ).
Making different cards for different countries is going to be expensive. So perhaps legal compliance can be handled in the driver! This is a good idea, but people like myself want our drivers open so we can tinker with them, use them in monitor mode, etc. The problem is, if we can do these things, we can usually unlock the other foreign nation specific features of the card, e.g. running your wifi net on channel 13 to escape detection by your average scanner.
And this creates headaches for the vendor, because suddenly their FCC or whatever compliance is called into question, and hence the legality of their product. Not a nice place to be, business wise.
Sticky situation, and I'm not sure what the best solution is.
YLFIOne god, one market, one truth, one consumer.
Those Belgians. Not only can they hack a computer but they make a mean ale as well. :)
Cheers!
-- TT
TT
What's tators, Precious?
OpenAP - http://opensource.instant802.com/ is another Open Source Access Point project
n ux/Linux.Wireless.drivers.802.11b.html#Prism2-host AP
Also, Intersil Prism2 PCI (not PCMCIA) cards allow the host to act as an access point.
See http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Li
Which can be had for under $200, is Linux/OpenRG-based, and has a ton more features, including VPN and snmpd and much more.
s Wr v54g
This one is also in the process of being hacked apart. More info here:
http://www.seattlewireless.net/index.cgi/Linksy
Perhaps combining these various pools of skill (which I do not minimalize or trivialize for a moment) and supporting some real helpful and Linux-promoting projects would be a better use of resources?
For instance, if Linux is to be a real competitor to Windows, how about using these skills to build simple distros and simple methods of installing and uninstalling apps on them that do not require arcane command line utilities and other tasks. Just insert the CD or click on the download and be done.
No, the skills needed to hack drivers are quite different, and a lot rarer I believe, than those needed to "build simple distros". The latter needs to be done, but it requires a different mindset. Leave the driver hackers alone and let them keep hacking drivers - and thank god for them.
(granparent poster:)
> People make free drivers ... Everyone wins when a device driver comes
out.
This is very true, the more hardware is supported by Linux the better. However, we are not talking about device drivers here, we are talking about embedding Linux into various devices.
There are lots of things you do as an academic exercise that end up paying off in the end, both expectedly and unexpectedly. This is why large corps. fund R&D, and it is why experimenting with embedding Linux into various devices for its own sake is to be encouraged.
(parent poster:)
Making different cards for different countries is going to be expensive. So perhaps legal compliance can be handled in the driver! This is a good idea, but people like myself want our drivers open so we can tinker with them, use them in monitor mode, etc. The problem is, if we can do these things, we can usually unlock the other foreign nation specific features of the card, e.g. running your wifi net on channel 13 to escape detection by your average scanner.
And this creates headaches for the vendor, because suddenly their FCC or whatever compliance is called into question, and hence the legality of their product. Not a nice place to be, business wise.
Sticky situation, and I'm not sure what the best solution is.
I understand what you're trying to say, but anyone can create FCC havoc with a cheap transistor, a couple of capacitors, a resistor, a battery, and a length of wire wrapped in a coil. Yet you can buy these openly at any Radio Shack. So why should open drivers be any different? What I hate, fear, and think is wrong, is a government mentality that says they are different, thereby putting the manufacturers at risk of having losing product certification if they release open drivers. This is not the solution to the FCC problem. The solution is to crack down on people actually generating disrupting EM interference (and it's usually not so hard to detect and locate them when they do).
The danger I see in this kind of mentality is that it tends to take a life of its own, like the mindset that resulted in the DMCA, and eventually you may not be able to buy a transistor at Radio Shack.
Liberals are awesome. Guess what? Liberals invented the Internet!! Liberals cure cancer. Liberals make many of Hollywood's popular motion pictures. Many famous musicians are also part-time liberals. What I'm trying to say is, stop the hate . Racism is just not cool, and racism against liberals even more so.
I know that such projects are quite good if you really want to understand hardware and maybe write drivers for such devices to work on you favorite Operating systems, but I am an embedded developer myself and he point is that in case you need to do something like this, as in you can't make it work with you r computer without reverse engineering the device, such projects make a lot of sense. Otherwise it is fairly simple for a device manufacturer to simply burn the JTAG pins. Only thing they need to do is to create a in program bootloader which can proigram the flash either over tftp or over serial interface and you can easily protect such things with public and private keying mechanism, which is much harder to crack. The reason companies don't do that is because JTAG is more flexible and the fastest way to program a device but even my company is contemplating burning the JTAG chips once the device is programmed, so I guess other companies would be thinking in the same direction as well.
What's under yellowstone?
Shouldn't that be a separate story? Seems too important to just leave it here... :) Now let's see what my Belkin has in store for me...
Great news though
Slashdot: stuff for news, nerds that matter, matter for news, stuff that nerd
I sincerely hope that the next step will be the D-link 615+... that is the one i have, and it does not work in Linux.. I only tryed Mandrake and Suse though..
Does that include an 802.11g driver at all?
Nice work on the mini-distro btw!
Installing Linux on your iPod might result in a crippled showthing but broadband routers is another thing.
Cheap hardware - even if you get network card, a bootdisk and an old 486 in a dumpster it's going to be a pretty clumsy server...
Manufacturer independence - an independent firmware might protect us from sofware dowgrading and value-added upgrades to a more expensive router with the same hardware.
Useful purposes - two ethernet ports and a soldered on a serial port and some i/o would for example enable a heart-beat checking device with a small webserver able to take over from a crashed web-server and tell you whats wrong. Or you couldn't afford the juice to keep that P100 server you got for free running while you were on vacation and used the router device to controls startup and shutdown of your server together with a small relay for power...
Binary .o drivers only.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Boy, am I happy to see that these guys are worried about current! The use of 1/2 watt resistors and 14 gauge wire should make their JTAG "adaptator" much much safer!
[sarcasm off]
The JTAG (IEEE1149.1) standard was designed for on board and in-circuit testability. As such, there is the ability to access internal registers on and IC equiped with a 4 wire JTAG tap port (TDI/TDO/TCK/TMS).
If there is documentation available, the JTAG port is a terrific way to access internal registers on an IC. If there is no documentation then it is a tremendious reverse engineering effort, but with a PC, and lots of time, one could couple a 4 wire JTAG port, write data to registers, and potentially reverse engineer an IC.
My first thought on reading this article is that many IC vendors may wish to crypto lock the JTAG port to prevent hackers from getting access to the internal registers... another option would be not to bond out the JTAG pins, but that would defeat the purpose of having JTAG on the PCB.
Hackers would have a difficult time to learn the scan chain length, and number of internal scan chains, but it may be possible to do, given the right tools and time. When I retire (in 20 years)... this might be a great hobby. Sort of like mapping the human Genome, but with an IC. -- Ross Applications Engineer Credence Systems Corp
Ross Youngblood
I have the BEFW11S4v2, and according to Linksys, it supports IPv6 -- but, of course, it doesn't ... ... that's another discussion) ... maybe ... Anyone else willing to try?
(why did they claim otherwise
But, if I can get BSD onto the system, then I can make IPv6 work too
We didn' reflash those routers with Linux just for fun, we have a clear goal: having a cheap and reliable wireless node for use within a mesh network , a footprint small enough so you can easily put it on a building roof and hardware that does not consume a lot of power so you can power it from small batteries or solar cells. Good luck doing the same thing with classical desktop hardware !!
We also want to use a dynamic routing protocol such as AODV or ZRP and make those things IPv6 ready.
If you can find a router with such things in the firmware, tell me.
I think you've missed the point of the post. THE POINT, was that nationality on many levels is a GOOD thing. Yes, there are issues with some of the things the US has done through policy and action. But, this is MY country and I defend it, right and wrong. Incidentally, I only own ONE computer - but that is beside THE POINT.
To the moderator.. TROLL? Come on. This was a counter point to another person's post, hardly a troll. Offtopic, and Flamebait like I said, but not a troll.
It's possible. I lurked for four years before finally making an account. I felt like I had a lot of Dilbert and O'Reilly books to read in order to catch up enough to post.
Vino, gyno, and techno -Bruce Sterling