Linksys really hit a niche when they created the WRT54G line of wireless routers, although unintentional. These particular routers were originally written using Linux which, due to the GPL, requires Linksys to release the source code. Since then, many open source groups have gotten ahold of this code and hacked it to bits. As such, there are many different open source firmwares available for the WRT54G line of routers that you can install. (Warranty voiding of course)

One of the most popular third-party firmware available is OpenWRT. This firmware is essentially a stripped-down embedded Linux operation system with addon packages to allow it to be a wireless router. It’s small, simple, and powerful; though not for the light of geek, as any configuration must be done by CLI.

I recently got a WRT54GL wireless router, which is the same as a WRT54G v4 router. (Linksys changed the model number since v5 does not use Linux and will not run custom firmwares.) In only a few hours, I was able to install OpenWRT and setup a powerful router/firewall for my home network. Here’s how you can too…
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