DIY: Transforming Unstable TP-Link Archer C6 Cloud Wi-Fi Router to a Stable OpenWRT-based Cloud Wi-Fi Router

Last year in December I bought a TP-Link Archer C6 v2 Cloud Wi-Fi Router (EU make) to have Gigabit support on my Home Wi-Fi Router and also be future ready for the Internet Bandwidth upgrade. One of the reasons for choosing this model was – Dual Band Gigabit Router, MU-MIMO Support, 4 Antennas, Low Price and the most important – Cloud support. While the first couple of Firmware upgrades went on well and caused no issues, sever problems started arising from Firmware upgrades starting Mar’20 or so. The key issue was the stability issue with the 2.4 GHz Band. Devices connected to this Band will suddenly be thrown out even while the SSID would keep broadcasting (sometimes 2 – 3 times a day, sometimes in week or 10 days). After being patient for the initial couple of months, I found a Thread in TP-Link forum where many users kept complaining about this issue.

(https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/165494?page=50 ) 

With every firmware upgrade things went from bad to worse and other than the 2.4GHz stability issue, I also started facing issues with QoS, DDoS filtering and LAN access. Though the Router was under warranty I decided last night to go with the OpenWRT route. Though OpenWRT is a reputed non-OEM firmware, it did not have Cloud support for my Router. So with some experiments conducted on my RaspberryPi, I decided to make the Router an IoT device and install IoT services through which I could manage the Router from the cloud. Please go through the detailed instructions below if you want to make your Router an OpenWRT Cloud Router. Do keep in mind that you will loose product warranty for not using OEM firmware (though you can restore back to OEM firmware later on if required). You should also ensure that you have a Wi-Fi Router with sufficient on-board memory to support OpenWRT and other additional packages that need to be installed. 

Google Drive File Stream download for non-GSuite Users

#Google announced few months back that it will be offering #GoogleDriveFileStream even for non- #GSuite users. Surprisingly you still don't get a proper Download Page similar to #GoogleDrive #BackupAndSync. 

After some searching found that you can download Drive File Stream from one of the following links -

https://support.google.com/a/answer/7491144?hl=en

https://support.google.com/drive/answer/7329379 

Though the download file names are surprisingly different, they are the same files with the same version.

#DriveFileStream is like a Sharepoint drive mapped in #Windows #FileExplorer . Only those marked #offline will get downloaded. 

Internet Revolution: From 33.6 kbps PSTN Dialup in 1999 to 1 Gbps Always-on Fibre Internet in 2020, we have come a long way!

A few days back a read an article of Kapil Jain (from Tata Communications) about his 25 years journey of Internet in India starting with 15-Aug-1995. It makes me look back into my own journey not from 1995, but from 1996.

So in 1996 I joined NIIT (a reputed Computer Training institute in India) through the Bhavishyajyoti Scholarship scheme somewhere during mid-year. It was the Mumbai, Santacruz (W), Hasanabad Lane centre which was quite reputed those days. It was around the end of the year that Dial-up Internet connectivity arrived at the centre. There were many families invited to demonstrate what Internet was. I was lucky enough to get the first glance, being a volunteer in the centre. It was provided by VSNL those days and due to errors in Telephone lines, the connectivity would drop often. It would probably take a minute or 2 to just load an image in a website. The Internet was also available in 2 variants – Text and Graphical. If you had the Text package, then you would dial using Hyperterminal and then be presented with Linux logon prompt and post login we had to use the Lynx browser which would present the webpage in a non-graphical (Black & White) format. I had a close friend (Anish) who had all the latest things at his house in Vile Parle and other than NIIT, it was his place where I would explore all tech.

Do you really need a Google Drive Paid Upgrade?

Problem!

My Google account is more than a decade old now. 15 GB for free storage seemed absolutely fine until a few years back, when I started running short of storage space with lot of my storage lost to Google Photos. While per Google "High Quality" photos/videos are not counted against your storage space, if your photos/videos are not lucky enough to get auto-converted by "Google Backup and Sync" application to the "High Quality" format, the size of the files then get counted against your storage quota in Google Drive.

What did I do then?

I deleted some obsolete files. I then created a shared folder in my wife's Google Drive account and moved around 9 GB of archived files to the shared folder located in my wife's account.

DIY: Fixing Android "System Update" Boot Loops with Open DNS

 Few days back I received a pop-up for Software Update for my 3 year old Lenovo Yoga Tab 3. This Tab is an excellent Tab having premium looks, finish and performance. This was probably the 2nd or 3rd update I have received over the years. While the previous updates went through smoothly, this update did not happen.

The system would always prompt for an update, auto-download it and start updating a little while later. The problem starts after the Tab reboots for update. After showing the progress bar for few minutes, the update crashes on the Recovery screen (as shown in the screen shot) with a "Status 7" error. While I wanted to investigate more on the error and fix it, I couldn't do as the ab would reboot to android, download the update, reboot and this went into a loop. After googling,  found few solutions on disabling the "System Update" service, which unfortunately didn't work. Coming from a Network Admin background I realised that the best way to circumvent the System Update is to block the website from where the update is being downloaded.

DIY Home-made Hand Sanitizer

Due to the pandemic of Corona Virus, sale of Hand Sanitizers shot up. While trying to buy one for my family from Amazon, I ended up buying something which looked similar, but was a "Menthol perfumed Detton Disinfectant liquid". To ensure that my purchase doesn't go for a waste, I Googled and realised that making your own DIY Hand Sanitizer was really easy.

Ingredients -

1. Isopropyl Alcohol (99.9% pure).

2. Aloe Vera gel.

3. Essential Oils.

DIY: Making your RO Water Purifier compliant to Indian Laws

Around mid-2018 when my old water purifier conked off, I went for a RO Water Purifier (Livpure Pep Pro++) knowing that the water from RO tasted sweet to your tongue. However I hadn't done much research on water purification techniques and water quality of the supply that I received in my Mumbai home.

Background:

From around early 2018 the activities around water conservation and ground water recharge had increased in India. In addition to that the Indian Supreme Court introduced a ban on RO Water Purifier systems setting a baseline on the TDS parameters which should be considered before deciding to buy RO systems - https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/ban-on-ro-systems-to-continue-in-delhi-supreme-court-declines-to-stay-ngt-order/1772112/ . The Supreme Court ruled that you  need an RO system ONLY if the TDS is greater than 500 mg/litre (500 PPM).

Creating your UPI QR Code for easy FASTag Recharge

Let's accept the fact that we live in a world with QR codes. QR (Quick Response) codes have made our lives very simple.

So I thought of making lives simple for the frequent travellers across Toll Plazas, who will now need to recharge their FASTag's frequently. 

My now many of us know that NPCI has made our lives easy by enabling FASTag recharges seamless by transferrring the recharge amount to the UPI ID/VPA as per your FASTag linked Bank. For example: netc.@

I thought of going 1 Step above to make thing more simple. How about creating a QR code for the UPI ID/VPA linked to your FASTag. I will continue with the example of Vehicle Number MH02AB1234, which is procured through HDFC Bank.