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I have a Linksys WRT54GL router that I don't need anymore, since I had to buy a 3G capable router (Dovado 3GN). As I only have a 3G connection at home, I want to optimize it as much as possible.

I want to setup a caching DNS server, including some blacklisting of ad domains. The router currently runs the DD-WRT firmware.

Is it possible to use this router as an ordinary computer, running only a DNS server, disabling all other features such as DHCP, WLAN, etc? Connecting it to my other router, should I simply run a cable into the WAN-port of the Linksys router?

Hennes
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Jacob R
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2 Answers2

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The basic idea is sound. Yes you can setup an older router to perform services for your network. I would use OpenWRT, connect a LAN port of the router to another switch on your network and I would setup DNSMasq for handling the various DNS tasks you identified.

Zoredache
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  • I did what you suggested and it works fine. dnsmasq seems to cache requests on the router and ad blocking works for all of my clients and indeed speeds up browsing. – Jacob R Apr 07 '10 at 07:46
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Take a look at OpenWRT or DD-WRT, both provide a lot more functionality than the default firmware and should be able to do what you need.

OpenWRT will essentially turn the router into a small linux box and from there you can go to wherever you need.

Antitribu
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  • Thanks, but I stated in my comment that I already run DD-WRT. I will probably switch to OpenWRT though, since I have previously setup DNS servers in Linux. – Jacob R Apr 01 '10 at 10:54