How to setup DD-Wrt on a Cisco e2000

This is a condensed and precise version of the guide found at:

• http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Linksys_E2000
• http://www.dd-wrt.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=51486

The reason why I am making this guide is that although the write-up on the previous link is great there are some things that are left out. It kind of assumes that you have  some DD-Wrt experience. My goal with this article is to approach it like you have heard that DD-Wrt is awesome but are now wanting to install it and see what all the fuss is about!

First of all I want to congratulate you on your e2000 router. This router is awesome. It is now the router I recommend for anyone that is looking at new routers. It has Wireless N, Gigabit Network, and it has a wopping 32MB of ram installed on it! Please note that I will be doing the install on a laptop running ubuntu. The steps will be almost identical on Windows and Mac machines. I only mention this just encase you are following along and you are seeing something a tiny bit different. 😉

Overview of the flash process.

There are a couple of things to do when working with this router. I would recommend that you don’t even bother with setting up or configuring the Cisco router. Flashing a router means that we are going to be uploading a single file to the router. The router will process the file and install the software contained in the file to it’s internal memory. NEVER plug in the WAN cable in during setup.

One of the biggest issues with this router is that you need a very specific file for flashing the router. The first time I went to download this file from the DD-WRT website I had a very tough time the link was down. Because of that I have now made my own online copy of the software as I know this file works flawlessly.

Download e2000 DD-WRT flash file – I recommend that you just save the file to your desktop for easy access.

You are going to want to install a telnet client installed on your machine. Putty is a great piece of software for Windows. Linux and Mac machines normally have telnet installed.

Unpack your Cisco e2000.

** This section is for the people that already owned the Cisco e2000 router or went through the setup of it already like changing the password etc. If you haven’t done anything with the router just proceed to the next step called virgin state**

If you have done ANYTHING with the router I recommend reseting everything back to defaults using the 30-30-30 reset. Basically the 30-30-30 reset is where you hold the router in one hand and have it plugged in. Using a pen hold down the reset button for 30 seconds. After the 30 seconds are unplug the power while STILL KEEPING THE RESET BUTTON HELD DOWN! Once that is done re-plug the power back in while STILL KEEPING THE RESET BUTTON HELD DOWN!

Please excuse the caps but most people the first time don’t do this correctly. If at any time you don’t think you’ve done it correctly just restart the process from the beginning.

** Start here if you are sure the router is in a virgin state **

Virgin State

The first thing you want to do is have the router plugged in and your computer plugged into the router with a network cable. DO NOT attempt to do this with a wireless connection. NEVER plug in the WAN cable in during setup. I also recommend that both the computer and router are on a UPS. The reason for this if you happen to experience a power outage while this is happening you will brick the router and I won’t be able to help you.

Open your browser of choice and enter the url (http://192.168.1.1)

Once there you will want to log in. The username will be left *BLANK* and the password is “admin”. Once you log in the router might chirp at you about not using the Cisco setup software. Don’t worry about it. Go to the second last tab on the right. It is called “Administration”. When you click on “Administration” a new line will show up below. It will have a bunch of links. The last one will be called “Firmware Upgrade”. Click the link. You will now be able to browse for the file in the main area and start the flash by clicking “Start to Upgrade”.

The progress bar will go from 0 – 100%. I don’t think the router has ever gone to a DD-WRT page on its own. Once I see that the bar hits 100% I leave for about 5 minutes and then come back to ensure that the flashing is really complete. This is where people might brick the router if they reset the router.

After the 5 minute break I normally just close the Browser window and re-type the 192.168.1.1 address in the URL. Normally you will be presented with the DD-Wrt front page. If this does not happen I recommend that you close the browser and restart the computer you are on. As soon as the computer starts to reboot I unplug the router for 5 seconds. Then plug the router power cable back in. Try to log in to the URL

Now that you are in you will want to click on a tab. This will get DD-WRT to prompt you for the login info.

The default info is: user= “root” and password = “admin”.

Change the username and password. Write this down! The next thing is to secure your wireless connection. By default as soon as you turn on the device the wireless is completely open.

The next thing is to telnet into the DD-WRT box.

To log in you will need to log in with the user “root” and password = “admin” or what ever you changed it in the last step. Please note that the user will ALWAYS be root even if your web interface is something else! I don’t know why this is but it is what it is.

These are the commands that you will need to run at the terminal prompt. Each command must be typed (or copied) exactly. After each command is entered you must hit “enter”. After hitting reboot the router will reboot. It will take just under a minute for a full reboot.

nvram set clkfreq=300,150,75

nvram commit
reboot

Some people have some issues with disconnects with the router. I normally just make these changes while I am setting everything all up.

Wireless > Channel > Ch 161 (5GhZ)

Wireless > Channel > Ch 9 (2.4GhZ)
Wireless > Security > WPA2 Personal - AES
Wireless > Advanced Wireless Settings > Beacon Interval: 75
Wireless > Advanced Wireless Settings > Fragmentation Threshold: 2306
Wireless > Advanced Wireless Settings > RTS Threshold: 2307
Security > Firewall > Block Anonymous WAN Access <--- Uncheck

You are now done! Enjoy an awesome router. Hope you liked this write up.