Howto unlock your Eircom F1000

runswithascript

The link to Zyxel Italia is requesting a password?

Also, is your DSL light amber like mine and do you experience speeds higher than 50mbps using 802.11n on your router over WLAN?

runswithascript

The B10 link here should be the same thing?

http://www.zyxel.com/support/download_library/product/vmg8924_b_series_12.shtml?c=gb&l=en&pid=20131231171642&tab=Firmware&pname=VMG8924-B%20Series&mtname=Firmware

Dermot McDonnell

dusf wrote: »

The B10 link here should be the same thing?...

@dusf,

apologies, I replied on my tablet and deleted half of my last post. I put the Dec 14th, 2014 Zyxel released firmware,V100AAKL7C0, on google. The B10 you refer is a couple of releases earlier. ZyXel Italia is unreliable, it goes down for days sometimes.

Amber DSL light means you have a VDSL sync, Green means ADSL. Eircom do not distinguish on their firmware.

runswithascript

Thanks for clairfying. I have just uploaded that firmware and after reboot no improvement on WLAN speedtests over 50mbps although from LAN I am still getting 96mbps.

Can you please let me know whether you achieve speeds above 50mbps with this router in 802.11n?

murphaph

Great thread. Dusf...have you ensured your client device is n capable and also switched off all other wifi clients during testing? AFAIK the whole network will operate at the max speed of the slowest connected device.

runswithascript

murphaph wrote: »

Great thread. Dusf...have you ensured your client device is n capable and also switched off all other wifi clients during testing? AFAIK the whole network will operate at the max speed of the slowest connected device.

Yes, definitely n capable as they would not connect when the WLAN is set to n only otherwise. Although it seems counterintuitive the speed would be decided by the slowest connected devices, I will wait until everyone is awake here and then test. I know I could do it with MAC filtering but I will just wait.

What I have done is enable channel bonding. The channel band was set to 20Mhz and I have now set it to 40Mhz. If anything this has decreased the speed. In order for this to work the devices need also be capable of receiving wireless n at 40Mhz rather than 20Mhz. I have read this is restricted on UK devices which may explain no apparent speed increase at 40Mhz. There is a tablet from the US here I can test with later.

In the Wi-Fi options there is also a setting to limit the WLAN speed which I left blank. I noticed earlier it also notes that a limit will be set automatically if none is set manually. I set it to 100mbps but this made no difference.

FTR I have scanned and our WLAN is the only one on any of the channels, I have tested in front on the router but two metres from, cordless phone powered off from the mains, and the router is on a table and not near a fridge or any other electrical equipment. I will try again later with all other devices powered down.

What speeds are you guys experiencing with the Wi-Fi set to wireless n only, hacked and/or unhacked?

Dermot McDonnell

dusf wrote: »

...
Can you please let me know whether you achieve speeds above 50mbps with this router in 802.11n?

@dusf, sadly not, there are a couple of legacy devices here that don't do 802.11n unfortunately. Using Mode N only certainly helps if you are able to select it.

captain_boycott

Thanks Dermot for unlocking my device - great service, i'm especially grateful for the fast turnaround!

I got no improvement whatsoever in vdsl connection speeds. I never realistically expected there to be anyways, and I suspect that anyone reporting better speeds is really seeing better performance on Wifi rather than any improvement in line speeds. I use a separate AP for wireless to take advantage of external antennas, so i just disable the wireless on the F1000.

But the good news is that port forwarding - this is my reason for unlocking - now works!! And i can now keep updated with bug fixes/updates from ZyXel so happy with unlock.

Paul Thomas Rowland

captain_boycott wrote: »

But the good news is that port forwarding - this is my reason for unlocking - now works!! And i can now keep updated with bug fixes/updates from ZyXel so happy with unlock.

It is good to have further confirmation port forwarding works on the unlocked F1000. Eircom acknowledge on their forums that port forwarding does not work on their F1000 firmware.

doctorg

Paul Thomas Rowland wrote: »

It is good to have further confirmation port forwarding works on the unlocked F1000. Eircom acknowledge on this forums that port forwarding does not work on their F1000 firmware.

I was able to forward ports using the latest eircom firmware

http://broadbandsupport.eircom.net/download/zyxel/firmware/F1000/

Paul Thomas Rowland

doctorg wrote: »

I was able to forward ports using the latest eircom firmware

I had big issues with Port Forwarding since the F1000 ports closed every time the router reboots or reconnects to the xDSL, a not unfrequent occurence. I know a number of retailers who could not monitor the CCTV in their premises from home. The upgrade to recent Zyxel firmware fixes that. My F1000 uptime now exceeds 100 days.

@Captain_Boycott may wish to comment since he too has been having port fowarding problems, now resolved by flashing a recent firmware.

haggster

Paul Thomas Rowland wrote: »

The upgrade to recent Zyxel firmware fixes that.

Hi!

What firmware version are you currently using?

As my TTL cable should arrive tomorrow, I'm wondering which version I should download and flash (it's not really clear to me which ones are beta and which ones are stable).

Dermot McDonnell

haggster wrote: »

Hi!

What firmware version are you currently using?

I suggest the latest firmware linked in post #64 above, it is officially released by Zyxel and is not a beta. I have no reports of problems with it and have been using it since release. If you require multiple telnet sessions, as discussed in that post, then you need this.

Dermot McDonnell

Best xDSL stats seen to date. This from an unlocked F1000 with latest firmware in Belfield, Dublin 4. Thanks to Lee K for his numbers.

=======
VDSL Port Details Upstream Downstream

Line Rate: 20.477 Mbps 102.395 Mbps

Actual Net Data Rate: 20.478 Mbps 102.396 Mbps

Trellis Coding: ON ON

SNR Margin: 11.3 dB 18.5 dB

Actual Delay: 0 ms 0 ms

Transmit Power: -22.8 dBm 13.3 dBm

Receive Power: -27.4 dBm 7.0 dBm

Actual INP: 29.0 symbols 29.0 symbols

Total Attenuation: 4.7 dB 6.1 dB

Attainable Net Data Rate: 25.320 Mbps 136.634 Mbps

---

VDSL Band Status U0 U1 U2 U3 D1 D2 D3

Line Attenuation(dB): 1.0 5.9 7.4 N/A 3.9 8.6 14.4

Signal Attenuation(dB): 1.0 5.4 6.6 N/A 4.0 8.5 14.4

SNR Margin(dB): 11.4 11.4 11.3 N/A 18.6 18.4 18.5

Transmit Power(dBm):-32.3 -24.0 -30.9 N/A 10.1 7.8 7.0

haggster

Dermot McDonnell wrote: »

Best xDSL stats seen to date. This from an unlocked F1000 with latest firmware in Belfield, Dublin 4. Thanks to Lee K for his numbers.

just wow. How far away is he from the cabinet? I've got my line set to 90mbit by eircom (it was set to 50mbit after installation and I had to call to make them change it) and it's rock solid, with no stability issues. I might consider calling to get it increased to 100mbit...

Dermot McDonnell

haggster wrote: »

just wow. How far away is he from the cabinet? ..

Afraid I dont know.

This from Ovidijus in Killarney.

Nate--IRL--

doctorg wrote: »

I was able to forward ports using the latest eircom firmware

http://broadbandsupport.eircom.net/download/zyxel/firmware/F1000/

Much obliged for the link.

Nate

jca

doctorg wrote: »

I was able to forward ports using the latest eircom firmware

http://broadbandsupport.eircom.net/download/zyxel/firmware/F1000/

I updated to this firmware and the difference is noticeable. I freely admit that I would love to unlock the router entirely but haven't a clue how to to do it. I'm lost straight away when I attempt to follow the guide, I'd be shot if I sent the router away for a day:pac:.

rogercross

Hi Dermot,

Finally getting around to trying this, I have the following cable:

http://gruvin9x.com/shop/electronics/24-usb-to-uart-ttl-wires-serial-cable-pl2303hx.html

I have communications software set to the correct baud rate etc, but i dont see anything when i boot up the router. I don't think i'm connecting the TTL cable correctly, so based on my cable which has red, black, green and white, which colours go in which pin on the board?

eddiem74

These are my current stats, where would I see an improvement by unlocking?

eddiem74

doctorg wrote: »

I was able to forward ports using the latest eircom firmware

http://broadbandsupport.eircom.net/download/zyxel/firmware/F1000/

Is that firmware newer than what I am running? B2 vs D0?

haggster

What an amazing way to start the day... got an email from Amazon (ordered my TTL cable at amazon.co.uk last Friday because that's usually fast and reliable) saying that my order couldn't be delivered and has been returned to them.

I must've ordered at amazon hundreds of times, never got any problems and now my USB TTL cable doesn't arrive, for whatever reasons. argh!!

ok, feeling better now already...sorry. :-/

Dermot McDonnell

rogercross wrote: »

..I have communications software set to the correct baud rate etc, but i dont see anything when i boot up the router. I don't think i'm connecting the TTL cable correctly, so based on my cable which has red, black, green and white, which colours go in which pin on the board?

Do not use the Red (5v). Black is Ground, it should connect to Pin 5 - also Ground - on the serial header - see the pic in the first post. Green is Tx (transmit), it should connect to Pin 3 Rx (receive) on the serial header. White is Rx (receive), it should connect to Pin 2 (transmit) on the serial header.

Dermot McDonnell

eddiem74 wrote: »

These are my current stats, where would I see an improvement by unlocking?

@eddiem, sadly, afaik, there is no way to know in advance how xDSL will improve. Generally sync rates increase, sometimes by a lot, but not always. You wifi performance will certainly improve, especially if you use wifi N only. Expect 100%, or larger, increase in wifi throughput - some people get much more than 100% extra. VOIP and Port Forwarding all work. Regular reboots and xDSL resyncs will become a thing of the past.

doctorg

eddiem74 wrote: »

Is that firmware newer than what I am running? B2 vs D0?

According to the date, it would seem that you have the older version

rogercross

Dermot McDonnell wrote: »

Do not use the Red (5v). Black is Ground, it should connect to Pin 5 - also Ground - on the serial header - see the pic in the first post. Green is Tx (transmit), it should connect to Pin 3 Rx (receive) on the serial header. White is Rx (receive), it should connect to Pin 2 (transmit) on the serial header.

Ok so black (5) green (3) and white (2). I tried that combination last night, couldn't get anything on the console to show up.

I used extraputty, set the com port to what was detected, baud rate to 115200, 8bits, no parity. Bottom left showed as online but couldn't see any text when i booted the F1000.

It boots the eircom OS normally but I just can't see anything from the putty console.

Any ideas what I might be missing, I've attached an image of my settings

Dermot McDonnell

rogercross wrote: »

..
Any ideas what I might be missing?

Afraid not, I'm sorry to say. Once the pins are connected correctly and Putty is correctly configured, the boot sequence should appear on your screen as soon as the F1000 is powered up.

Double check your Com port number and settings. Make sure you have handshaking set to None. If you dont succeed PM your address and I'll mail you a spare USB TTL device I know works - I have a couple of spares here.

rogercross

Dermot McDonnell wrote: »

Afraid not, I'm sorry to say. Once the pins are connected correctly and Putty is correctly configured, the boot sequence should appear on your screen as soon as the F1000 is powered up.

Double check your Com port number and settings. Make sure you have handshaking set to None. If you dont succeed PM your address and I'll mail you a spare USB TTL device I know works - I have a couple of spares here.

Ah you're very good cheers Dermot, ill try again tonight and let you know.

AngryDiMaria

Hi Dermot, Ive tried a couple of times to unlock the bootloader but I keep getting this timeout error.



Country Code : 01
EngDebugFlag : 01
FeatureBit : 00
MAC Number : 0C
*** command status = 0
CFE> atbt 1

OK
*** command status = 0
CFE> atub

Starting XMODEM upload (CRC mode)....
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
Timeout, please download again...

ERROR
*** command status = -1
CFE>



Any ideas what might be causing the problem?

Dermot McDonnell

The xmodem file transfer of the bootloader from the PC to the F1000 is failing. When you execute the ATUB command on the F1000, it waits for the PC to send the bootloader via xmodem. Your PC app must have option to send a file, the bootloader in tghis case, via xmodem. You have several seconds after the ATUB command to kick off the transfer. Sadly, I dont have windoze so cant sent a useful pic.