Finally got my ancient Wi-Fi router working after 3 factory resets

Honestly, I picked up this old Linksys WRT54G from a garage sale for $5 thinking it would be a fun nostalgia piece. Tried to set it up last weekend and the thing just bricked on me every time I hit save. After three factory resets and a firmware downgrade from a 2008 forum post, it finally booted up. The connection speed is like 15 Mbps max, way slower than my phone hotspot. But for a daily driver from 2005, it actually runs my Pi hole and an old printer without crashing. Anyone else mess with retro networking gear just to see if it still works?

2 comments

2 Comments

richardrodriguez19d ago

Wait, so you went through three factory resets for a router that gives you 15 Mbps? Thats like running a marathon to get a participation trophy. I admire the dedication though, honestly my old WRT54G is sitting in a box with a sticky note that says "do not touch" after I rage quit on it. You must have the patience of a saint to hunt down a firmware from 2008, I would have chucked that thing out the window after the first reset. At least your Pi hole has a cozy retro ride, mine just gets mad when I look at it wrong.

jones.grace19d ago

Honestly, I'd rather have a slow router that actually works than a fast one that acts up. Three resets is just making sure the thing knows who's boss. That WRT54G in the box is just biding its time, waiting for you to get desperate enough to dig it out again. Your Pi hole sounds like it has a personality disorder, mine just stares blankly at me until I feed it a new blocklist.