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[Weaver]

if you reset a ZyXEL modem with the pokey hole and wait 20 S until flashing red light turns solid red, and you upload a firmware bin file in, stupid question: do you then later also have to delete any rom-d file? Or is that all part of a total reset?

Just now, I’ve loaded Johnson’s firmware, and then loaded a previous-saved XML config file of my own, based on the AA standard one with my own tweaks applied and per-slot customisation 1,2,3,4 for my choice of 192.168.n.1 IP address and various distinguishing slot-n identifiers elsewhere too. Is that alone enough?

—

Another question: does anyone know if the modem will allow you to put xml comments in the config file and just safely ignore them like it should ? Or will it freak out because it’s not really processing XML properly?

(Like a stupid Firebrick, which doesn’t handle xml comments half the time and mangles the config, missing subsequent items out if you’re unlucky, but only sometimes. I have now written a tool for the iPad (in iOS Shortcuts) that strips comments out before upload by using regex-based search-replace processing, just to fix freakage and failed uploads or worse incorrect contents being ingested.)

[burakkucat]

The ROM-D is an area into which an ISP/CP can place their customisation, which then turns a "vanilla" ZyXEL device into an ISP/CP "flavoured" device.

Uploading firmware, either via the GUI or the Broadcom boot-loader firmware update page, does not modify the contents of the ROM-D.

In the specific case of a VMG1312-B10A, I always advise clearing ROM-D at the earliest opportunity. Access to the device via the supervisor login is required.

• From the CLI, issue the incantation save_default clean.
• From the GUI, Maintenance > Configuration > ROM-D and left-click on the Clean button.

[Weaver]

I had forgotten you can do this from the GUI; I have been doing the clean by using telnet instead which is more time consuming because I was already logged into the web gui anyway earlier, to upload the xml config, so now I know about the feature in the web gui I can use that while I’m there. So thank you for that, very helpful.

[Weaver]

an off-topic question; or one tangential anyway - how long does it take you to flash the firmware bin file in at the rescue/reset/recovery web prompt after 20 s solid red led hole poking? I waited forever, stupidly and never got any visible indication that it had finished; it said 2 mins so a tried just over that amount and that worked, but it never (visibly) rebooted, as I was expecting

[burakkucat]

I usually allow a good 3 - 5 minutes and then power off the modem/router. After allowing another minute to elapse, it is then powered back on.

[Weaver]

I didn’t reboot the modem - it just booted on its own and when I reconnected http, I got the usual web UI, and at http port 8000 the Johnson stats graphing web UI.

[burakkucat]

Right. 

As long as you have a known, reliable, method then just continue to make use of it.

[Weaver]

Your instructions and those of Johnson came in very useful - thank you. I also consulted Andrew’s pages at the AA support wiki:
        AA ZyXEL VMG 1312-B10A
and
        AA ZyXEL VMG 1312-B10A factory reset
and found those very useful.

[banger]

I found the factory reset page particularly useful when ftp the rom-d file for my VMG8924-B10A. All worked as it should with factory defaults restored after a reboot which happened automatically when I typed bye.

[Weaver]

@banger what rom-d file are you using, banger?


Would someone who can easily recover from mistakes try an experiment for me? Try putting an XML comment into a good XML config file and upload it into a ZyXEL VMG xxxx modem/router ?

I don’t really understand the ROM-D file; it is good to have a backup of a known-good or ‘base’ configuration, maybe that’s all it is and this way you can have a saved customised one. As simple as that. But it really doesn’t limit you, because you can always do the solid red led hole-poke and that then lets you get in as supervisor and you have godlike powers too. The ISP say has no protection against the end-user doing whatever they like, ultimately, because the user can replace the config and even kill the rom-d even without knowing the supervisor password. I suspect I’m looking for too much in it, it’s not really supposed to be a secured system, and that’s the right design.

It would be better if there were two rom-d files; an ISP one and a user’s own one ‘last known good’ - ‘came up ok’.

Is there a way of customising the rom-d file ? I don’t know what the contents of such a file looks like. AA’s page Tesla’s you how to restore a ROM-D file, but you have to have obtained one from somewhere in the first place. Can you take the config state that’s in a modem and save that state converting that into a rom-d file?

[banger]

@banger what rom-d file are you using, banger?


Would someone who can easily recover from mistakes try an experiment for me? Try putting an XML comment into a good XML config file and upload it into a ZyXEL VMG xxxx modem/router ?

I don’t really understand the ROM-D file; it is good to have a backup of a known-good or ‘base’ configuration, maybe that’s all it is and this way you can have a saved customised one. As simple as that. But it really doesn’t limit you, because you can always do the solid red led hole-poke and that then lets you get in as supervisor and you have godlike powers too. The ISP say has no protection against the end-user doing whatever they like, ultimately, because the user can replace the config and even kill the rom-d even without knowing the supervisor password. I suspect I’m looking for too much in it, it’s not really supposed to be a secured system, and that’s the right design.

It would be better if there were two rom-d files; an ISP one and a user’s own one ‘last known good’ - ‘came up ok’.

Is there a way of customising the rom-d file ? I don’t know what the contents of such a file looks like. AA’s page Tesla’s you how to restore a ROM-D file, but you have to have obtained one from somewhere in the first place. Can you take the config state that’s in a modem and save that state converting that into a rom-d file?

The rom-d file that was supplied with the firmware zip from the official Zyxel ftp site. ftp://ftp2.zyxel.com/VMG1312-B10A/firmware/