AsusWrt-Merlin Firmware 3.0.0.4.378.54.1 for RT-AC56S

The AsusWrt-Merlin firmware was developed with the primary goal of boosting the original ASUS firmware, fix bugs and also add new improvements. This package includes a customized firmware targeted at ASUS routers that brings various changes without modifying the interface of the original firmware.

IMPORTANT:

- If you were previously using the AiProtection ad blocker, you will need to manually disable it over SSH after flashing this release, by running the following commands: nvram set wrs_adblock_popup=0, nvram set wrs_adblock_stream=0, nvram commit

Changes:

- NEW: Merged with Asus GPL 378_5134.
- NEW: OpenVPN policy rules can now be set to route matching traffic through either the tunnel, or to your ISP (allowing you to create exceptions to your tunnelling rules)
- NEW: Added OpenVPN server setting to let the OS manage socket buffers (by inserting rcvbuf 0 and sndbuf 0 in the server configuration)
- CHANGED: Upgraded OpenSSL to 1.0.2a, adding new tls ciphers to OpenVPN and the https webui
- CHANGED: Updated miniupnpd to 1.9.20150430
- CHANGED: Reverted kernel backport of the parallel printer support, and reintroduced fix in lprng. This should hopefully fix the recent printing breakage issues.
- CHANGED: Removed AiProtection's ad blocker, as it's too buggy to be usable, breaking numerous mobile applications, and not being configurable in any way.
- CHANGED: OpenVPN policy routing rules are now applied at boot time (when WAN comes up), so clients who are blocked while a tunnel is down will immediately be blocked until the tunnel comes up.
- CHANGED: Upgraded Quantenna firmware to 378_6065 release (AC87)
- FIXED: Router DNS weren't reverted to their original values when shutting down an OpenVPN client with "explicit- exit-notify" enabled. Now we manually clean it up after the user manually terminates the client- it might still not be cleaned up after an unexpected shutdown however. Ideally, users should try avoiding using this setting when possible.
- FIXED: Some legitimate VPN packets could get dropped due to their conntrack state. Now, only INVALID packets coming from the WAN interface are dropped.
- FIXED: OpenVPN client would sometime try to connect before the clock had been set by NTP at boot time, preventing it from connecting.
- FIXED: AiProtection security check would fail to load when Dual WAN is enabled
- FIXED: Various fields would allow you to enter a single quote character, which could break the webui. Now these fields re-validate the content after you deactivate the text field.
- FIXED: Switching between All Traffic and Policy Mode OpenVPN routing while the option to block traffic when the tunnel goes down wasn't properly removing those rules, so a tunnel going down in All Traffic would still block policed clients.
- FIXED: EMF wasn't working on ARM models (missing userspace tool)

Installation Notes:

- This custom firmware can be applied like any regular update.
- You should not need to reset to factory defaults.
- You can revert back to an original ASUS firmware at any time.
- Do not load a saved copy of your settings.

About Router Firmware:

Before you consider downloading this firmware, go to the system information page of the router and make sure that the currently installed version isn’t either newer or matching this release.

Due to the large variety of router models and different methods for upgrading the device, it is highly recommended that you read and, above all, understand the installation steps before you apply the new firmware, even if you are a power user.

In theory, these steps shouldn’t be much of a hassle for anyone, because manufacturers try to make them as easy as possible, even if they don’t always succeed. Basically, you must upload the new firmware to the router through its administration page and allow it to upgrade.

If you install a new version, you can expect increased security levels, different vulnerability issues to be resolved, improved overall performance and transfer speeds, enhanced compatibility with other devices, added support for newly developed technologies, as well as several other changes.

If you’re looking for certain safety measures, remember that it would be best if you perform the upload using an Ethernet cable rather than a wireless connection, which can be interrupted easily. Also, make sure you don’t power off the router or use its buttons during the installation, if you wish avoid any malfunctions.

If this firmware meets your current needs, get the desired version and apply it to your router unit; if not, check with our website as often as possible so that you don’t miss the update that will improve your device.