OpenWrt is a Linux-based operating system designed primarily for networking devices, such as routers, WiFi access points, and similar products. Once installed, yes substitute al firmware of the manufacturer and allows you to unlock features and customizations not originally foreseen. In another article we saw in detail what OpenWRT is and how it works.
To celebrate 20 years of OpenWrt, which occurs in 2024, the project managers have decided to release a dedicated hardware device. Is called OpenWrt One and it is a product designed to be fully supported upstream by the OpenWrt community, offering a hardware platform that meets the specific needs of users of the operating system and that reflects the principles of OpenWrt.
What is OpenWrt One
The main goal of OpenWrt One is to provide a tool for networking economically accessible (with a price of less than 100 euros), capable of providing key features deemed important by the OpenWrt community. One of the main peculiarities of the object is the impossibility of incurring phenomena brickingor in blocking the device for example after an activity flashing (writing) of the firmware failed. OpenWrt One actually uses due chip flash separated and allows simple access to the system console, without complications.
With OpenWrt One, users will have access to a routeran access point, a powerful firewall, a device to share the WiFi connection with customers after activating a captive portala VPN server, a solution for network performance monitoring, quality of service (QoS) control and much more.
All the features of OpenWrt become immediately accessible through a “ready-to-use” product, which aims to facilitate access and customization of the firmware and promotes the diffusion of open source solutions in the field of networks and networking equipment .
The main hardware features
The hardware just presented by OpenWrt uses the MediaTek MT7981B SoC, with a focus on hardware specifications that the OpenWrt community considers essential.
Alongside the main SoC, OpenWrt One takes advantage of a WiFi module MediaTek MT7976C, capable of supporting different modes and bands. There is also 1 GB of DDR4 RAM, 128 MB of flash memory to host the firmware and operating system, two porte Ethernet RJ45 (one 2.5 GbE type and one capable of transferring up to 1 Gbps), a USB 2.0 port and an M.2 slot useful for extending storage capacities via NVMe SSD.
The device, whose full name is OpenWrt One/AP-24.XY, will be distributed through Banana Pi, which will use existing distribution channels. Each device sold will contribute to a donation to the OpenWrt fund at Software Freedom Conservancy (SFC).
Banana Pi it’s a family of single-board computer designed to offer an economical and flexible alternative to devices such as Raspberry Pi. The device with the OpenWrt logo will apparently become part of this catalog.