Router overview with incomplete disassembly, its web muzzle and client applications for Android. Careful, a lot of screenshots :)
I recently received this fresh device, disassembled it a bit, ran it, tested it and share my impressions. Since there are already a couple of reviews of the next creation of Xiaomi engineers in the net, in this I will try to talk about what does not lie on the surface and is realized with the experience of communicating with this undoubtedly wonderful thing.
Positioning
To begin with, a few words about what Xiaomi wanted to release in the form of a router and what it did. The developer positions Mi WiFi as a multipurpose device based on powerful gland, which should become a communication center smart home, allows for deep customization and, in fact, is a platform for almost endless development. At the same time, the device differs by traditional for Xiaomi top-end filling, concise and stylish design, ease of use and a very pleasant price. The developer promises cloud services, access to the ball through Kuaipan / Mi-accounts, support for extensions through the web interface and mobile applications.
Here it is worth making a reservation for those who are impressed by the above: any such device lives not so much due to the efforts of developers and support, but due to the community and a large number people interested in its development. On the this moment The Xiaomi community is huge, but it is almost entirely focused on wonderful smarts, and the owners of the Mi router are still few and how the community will react to it is still unknown. However, the already existing functionality allows a lot.
TTX
So, the main thing is iron in short:
- 2-core processor Broadcom BCM4709 (Cortex-A9) @ 1 GHz
- 256MB RAM DDR3
- 1 TB SATA hard drive
- Support Gigabit Ethernet(WAN and LAN)
- Supports WiFi 802.11ac and dual band 2.4GHz and 5GHz
- NFC support
The router is charged by full program- fast processor, huge, by the standards of this class of devices, volume random access memory, support for the freshest and fastest WiFi standard 802.11ac. the operation of each of the bands is provided by its own pair of antennas according to the 2x2 scheme (300 for n and 866 Mbit / s for ac).
A rarity for routers - an internal hard drive with a connection via a native SATA interface, which promises the possibility of its operation at the highest possible speeds. Of the other models of routers available on the market at the moment, as far as I know, HDD is used external and is connected via USB 3.0 at best.
Rarely enough NFC support.
The router software is based on the widespread Open-WRT firmware with the Lucy interface, greatly simplified and adapted to the vision of the developer of his product. There is no doubt that the interface will be finished soon by specialists from the community.
Unpacking and incomplete disassembly
The router was bought in a well-known store on Ali, there are no complaints about the packaging, and there is nothing to talk about and there is no point, the box at the factory is sealed in film, and the seller was wrapped in foam rubber on all sides and wrapped in tape.
Useless packaging pictures
Box on top
Bottom box
Box weight 995 grams
The kit that I received included almost nothing: a router, a power supply unit (the adapter to the plug was clamped) and everything ... Except for the almost useless literature in the form of a small brochure. I met on the Internet other configuration options with a network cable and other waste paper, but these are all inconspicuous trifles.
The router itself with the disk weighs 558 grams.
Mi lettering on the roof is almost invisible
The design is very simple and that's it. potential buyers surely know that Bottom part outside it is a matte soft-touch plastic, and the top is glossy, equipped with many ventilation slots.
From the rear connectors there are: USB 2.0, two LAN ports, WAN, a Reset button and a power connector. The location of the WAN port on the bottom is the right decision, since for many it will be the only cable connected to the router except for the power supply cable.
Who is interested in the insides of the router, please refer to Google, I slightly spun it up just to see what kind of hard drive is installed there.
The bottom cover is screwed on with four screws under the rubber feet, two of them are sealed. There is no guarantee anyway, so I boldly unscrewed them. The disc sits very tightly, it can be removed with difficulty, but this is rather a plus, since there are no latches and it will not fall out during careless disassembly.
I came across Seagate / Samsung ST1000LM024. It is a pity that it is not a hybrid ST1000LM014, which is now the most productive disk of this class on the market, but, if desired, the disk can be replaced with any other, even an SSD.
For the comfort of the disc, the cover contains a rubber gasket, into which it fits comfortably with its end.
When turned on, the router makes a rather noticeable noise with a turbine, after about half an hour after the first turn on it becomes easier, but I, as a lover of silent devices, had to put it on right side to the wall, noticed that at the same time the sound decreases several times, and such an outrage almost does not affect the quality of ventilation.
Since the only one accessible language Lucy (hereinafter more native Lucy) is at the moment a mighty Chinese, then for the screenshots I will use the translator kindly provided by Google.
To get into the router interface, you need to go to miwifi.com.
First of all, Lucy will offer to set up a WiFi network and set an admin password. This is a simple step, so I won't reset to show screenshots. After binding the router to shared account Xiaomi's welcome window will look like this: 
You can log in through your account, or you can simply enter the admin password. The name of one of the created WiFi networks is displayed.
Let's briefly go over the sections:
After login, we get to the status page, where the most basic information about the router, network status and pie chart traffic by clients. According to the status of the network, the information is clearly inadequate, since I have a gigabit network connected and there can be no ceiling of 10MB / s, especially since the current speed of 81.19MB / S is written on the graph.
In the second tab Device Management connected devices are displayed. Here you can quickly turn off access to the Internet or to a disk ball for those devices that are connected via WiFi.
On the first WiFi tab, 2.4G and 5G WiFi networks are logically configured
Google translated the second tab incorrectly, this is the provider's connection settings (external network)
In the "Network settings" tab, you can set the LAN IP of the router and the DHCP range
And here you can set any MAC address you like for external interface router (internal via Lyusya cannot be edited yet)
The "Radiocommunell and strength" tab allows you to select the channels for WiFi networks, ranges and signal strength. True, as a result, the router regulates the range itself.
On the "Wireless Access Control" tab, you can configure WiFi access according to black or white list schemes
Assigning static IP addresses via DHCP
In the "System Status" tab, you can see the standard data for any router about the router itself, the state of LAN, WiFi and WAN connections
Manual firmware update allows you to locally select the firmware file. If you install a developer, then the router will be updated several times to latest version, It seems that cumulative renewal immediately on the last is not provided.
It looks like the distribution of traffic, but I still did not understand what the essence of this tab is, maybe there is someone who figured it out.
"UPnP status" - status of automatic port forwarding
Manual setting of forwarding
Enabling plugin developer mode
Here you can enable the automatic sleep mode for the hard disk when there is no access to it.
Mi WiFi client for Android
I will give a quick overview of the client for Android, which was personally translated into Russian. Download it current version can . By the way, in this thread there is a lively discussion of this super-device and data on the study of this wonderful device are collected.
From the very first screen, hieroglyphs are striking - this is because so far the Chinese have not bothered to do a full localization at least into English, and I did the translation based on the English locale, since in Chinese I am a complete zero :)
The application already requires binding the router to the Mi account, which, in principle, is necessary for full-fledged work router, since recently cut, but promised to return to the firmware, applications and plugins also use it.
The main screen is divided into three areas, swiping to the side. The main screen displays information about traffic, downloads, recent transactions with a router, the number of connected devices available free place on the HDD, using the bottom two buttons you can go to the plugins and smart scripts sections.
Through a swipe to the right, we get to the settings menu, where the first item leads to a completely incomprehensible Chinese network diagnostics, and the second to the Router settings, so far presented only by the most basic parameters... At the bottom of the menu there is an "Update" button, by clicking on which you can quickly check for updates to the firmware of the router or client, but usually this is not required, since if there is, for example, a fresh firmware for the router, the program will inform you about it even in background... Very convenient, you can update the firmware home router via OTA while drinking tea at work.
In the menu of connected devices, in the same way as in Luce, you can configure access to the Internet or to a disk ball individually for each of the connected devices.
By clicking on the button with the image of the folder, you can get into the explorer on the HDD.
I will not consider plugins, since this functionality is still in its infancy and is entirely in Chinese.
Intelligent Scene - smart scripts, designed to make the owner of the Mi WiFi router feel like the owner of a "smart home", in theory, in scenarios, you can configure both the behavior of the router on a schedule (on / off WiFi, on / off the router, etc.), and the work of home appliances and utensils connected to a network or having an IR receiver. The router is able to control the controller of household appliances and electronics, for example (not advertising, just an example). Thanks to the combination of a router, a client and such a controller, you can control home devices from a smart manually or set up scheduled actions. This functionality is outside the scope of the review, I do not have a controller, so let's stop here.
Mi WiFi client for PC
There is nothing special to say - he is. Completely in Chinese, no functionality. It is needed to create a torrent folder on the HDD, into which you can upload torrents, which the router will download to hard. The process itself is simple: you drop the torrent file into the torrent folder, and the router starts downloading. While there is a limitation - no more than 3 files are downloaded at the same time. The download process can be seen in the Android client.
Tests
Level WiFi signal on Newman K1 at a distance of 50 cm from the router and 5 meters through a concrete wall, respectively. 
Speed test on a gigabit grid in Kiev: 
Test HDD operation in a router mounted via samba: 
It is strange that CrystalDiskMark did not intend to read enough, since Total commander shows stably at least 60+ MB / s.
Cons & Pros
Powerful filling
+ Nice laconic design
+ WiFi 2.4G + 5G, ac, simultaneous work both ranges
+ built-in HDD
+ confident reception / transmission of a signal
+ high speed transmission both within LAN and WAN
+ clients under mobile platforms
+ cloud services, however, at the moment, only a functional client for Android
The fan creates a noticeable noise, however, it is not noticeable for everyone, the average system unit makes much more noise.
- despite active cooling, the case of the router still has a noticeable heating, but for such devices this is normal
- mandatory linking to the Mi account
Notes:
* there are complaints about stability, but I have no complaints about uptime, it keeps it for several days without problems, and has not been tested yet
For now, ask questions, suggest tests, the review will be supplemented.
* In order to avoid impending holivars: I am NOT a fan Xiaomi, I do not have a collection of their products, not even a single smart card, and the purpose of the review is not to extol their next creation, but to objectively describe a specific router. I ask you to discuss and compare, and not prove that something is better or worse, fortunately, the choice of routers on the market is huge and you can find a piece of iron for any needs and for any money.
I plan to buy +95 Add to favorites I liked the review +75 +162According to Xiomi, the most expensive and productive router in their product line. The appearance completely copies the router R3P, but the filling, like the price, is already a little different.
For more detailed information invite further ...
Even though I've tested and Pro version and HD, but I will not compare them, according to outward appearance and software they are completely similar, but "more powerful" in all cases Mi Router HD
| Mi Router Pro | Mi Router HD | Dimensions (edit) | Dimensions - 195x145.6x66 mm Color - gray Weight - 932.2 grams | Size - 195x145.6x66 mm Color - gray Weight - 1 TB weighs 1522.2 grams, 8 TB weighs 1887.2 grams | Iron |
|
| Interfaces |
|
| Wireless Modules | Dual Band Wi-Fi - 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz 802.11ac support MU-MIMO technologies | Dual Band Wi-Fi - 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz 802.11ac, support for MU-MIMO technology | OS support | Support Web, Windows, Android, Mac OS, |
Packaging and equipment.
The new mail did not forget to open the box and see what was inside. And so practically, with each package, these curious, greedy people open it, they don't draw up any acts, they just opened it, looked it up and wrap it up with their scotch tape.
Inside there is such a box, with one understandable HD inscription and 1 terabyte at the bottom. In principle, it looks pretty cute and stylish.
On the back of the box are the characteristics of the router, everything is on Chinese, but from the various pictograms it is a little clear what the manufacturer wanted to focus on.
The box is made of rather thick cardboard, the router is placed inside a separate niche in order to exclude the possibility of deformation during transportation as much as possible.
The instruction is in an envelope under the antennas. All information, as it should be for Xiaomi, is in Chinese, there is no need for it for us.
A power supply unit with a Chinese plug gives out 12 volts and 3 amperes, which you will agree to the principle is quite a lot, but since we have a hard drive inside, this is just enough to spin it up. When connecting a power supply unit with a lower current strength, the screw does not trite unscrewed.
Mi HD is almost a complete copy of its younger brother PRO that without hard disk... If you put it next to it, then you practically cannot tell. Or did the Xiaomians just decide to save money and not create different cases for different routers ?!
Ports moved to back part router.
Massive enough aluminium case with rounded corners. There are plastic inserts on the left and right sides. They not only perform a decorative role, but also are ventilation holes for better air circulation and heat dissipation from the hard drive and router components.
There seems to be nothing on the front, but somewhere inside there is a small LED hidden, which signals us about different modes operation of the router.
Barely noticeable indicator works in three modes, orange is not ready for work, blue normal work and red is an error. Sleeping at night does not interfere.
There are anti-slip rubber stickers on the bottom of the router.
In the back there is 1 WAN port and 3 LAN port as in the HD version, all ports are gigabit. Next, there is a reset button "recessed" in the case, a power button and a USB 3.0 port for connecting a flash drive or external hard disk for backup.
Indication of all LAN and WAN ports is also present.
The dimensions of the router are 19.0 * 12.5 centimeters. The thickness is 6.6 centimeters and the length of the antenna is 16.4 centimeters.
The insides.
To disassemble the router, let's say to replace the hard drive, or just check what's inside or clean the cooler, we need to remove the rubber pads. They are glued well, I even broke one. Under one of the pads there is a sticker, if damaged, the warranty will be lost. Well, since we don't have much guarantee, so we have nothing to lose.Having removed the left plastic cap, we see such a Turbo blowing. With cooling, this router should be fine.
Unscrew the four screws at the bottom and move the aluminum and all-metal cover slightly to expose the insides.
I have no complaints about the board, there is no non-washed-off flux. Each antenna is connected to its own connector, I have not seen fake antennas in the line of routers from Xiaomi, but what the Chinese are not joking about ...
There are a lot of various small electronic components under the metal casing.
The hard drive is located in a kind of basket located at the bottom of the router.
Carefully, so as not to break, disconnect the cable coming from the hard drive.
As I said above, everything is very good with the cooling of the router, except for a massive heatsink for the entire board, there is still a small cooler on top. Which, if the set temperature is exceeded, turns on and cools our router.
Router components.
A 3.5-inch hard drive is installed inside the router Seagate drive ST1000VM002 1 terabyte.
| Type of equipment | Quiet HDD, HDD for video surveillance systems, HDD for media centers | 1 TB | 1 error at 1E14 (10 to the 14th power) bit | 24x7 | Yes | Dimensions (width x height x depth) | 102 x 20 x 147 mm | Performance parameters | 5900 rpm | 64 MB | 8.5 ms read, 9.0 ms write | 5.1 ms | Interface, connectors and outputs | SATA-II | Interface bandwidth | 3 Gbps | Cooling | Noise level | 1.9 Bel in Idle mode, 2.2 Bel in search - typical; 2.1 Bel in Idle mode, 2.3 Bel in search - maximum | Nutrition | Idle Power Consumption | 2.5W | Power consumption while reading / writing | 3.676 Watt | Power consumption in Standby and Sleep modes | 0.819 Watt | Consumer properties |
Web interface.
If you have seen other reviews of Xiaomi routers at least once, or are the owner of one, feel free to skip below. Almost nothing new has appeared in the interface. By default, the IP of the router is 192.168.31.1, there is no password for WiFi, but it is set at the first connection. Information about the number of connected devices, speed, traffic consumption, CPU load and router memory can be found on the home page.
The small difference is the presence separate tab with information about the hard disk. Available information SMART, speed of writing and reading, statistics on file types.
In addition, you can check the disk for errors, enable the "sleep" feature, or format it. Xiaomi warns that USB switching from 2.0 to 3.0 can have a detrimental effect on 2.4 GHz WiFi, but during the tests, I frankly did not notice the difference.
WiFi settings.
It is convenient that there is an opportunity to create guest WiFi for friends or, say, clients. MU-MIMO support is enabled by default.
In the Internet settings, you can specify either DHCP (by default), or static IP, or select PPPoE connection.
You can change the speed if necessary Wan port and / or clone the MAC address.
The router can work as a separate, independent device, or as a repeater.
You can create your own "white" and "black" MAC lists devices for access control. There is also the ability to change the administrator password. Unfortunately, there is no provision for changing your username.
DHCP settings.
Updates are present, but the changelog is in Chinese. Alternative firmware on this router yet!
Ability to add static IP inside local network.
If the provider does not provide a static IP, and you need to get access to the router, we use DDNS services.
We do port forwarding if necessary.
From VPN connections Either PPTP or L2TP connection is available.
Mobile app.
A router is added to the ecosystem of a smart home like any other device, search and installation of an additional plug-in.
In the main window - a list of connected devices, network speed. There is an additional tab at the bottom.
There is no physical VPS button, so you will have to use a mobile phone to connect other devices, if necessary.
In the "Storage" tab, you can manage folders, delete / download / upload files in them, various content.
According to Xiomi, the most expensive and productive router in their product line. The appearance completely copies the R3P router, but the filling, like the price, is already a little different.
For more detailed information, I invite you further ...
Although I tested both the Pro version and the HD, but I will not compare them, in appearance and software they are completely similar, but "more powerful" in all cases Mi Router HD
| Mi Router Pro | Mi Router HD | |
| Dimensions (edit) | Dimensions - 195x145.6x66 mm Color - gray Weight - 932.2 grams | Size - 195x145.6x66 mm Color - gray Weight - 1 TB weighs 1522.2 grams, 8 TB weighs 1887.2 grams |
| Iron |
|
|
| Interfaces |
|
|
| Wireless Modules | Dual Band Wi-Fi - 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz 802.11ac, support for MU-MIMO technology |
|
| OS support | Support Web, Windows, Android, Mac OS, |
Packaging and equipment.
The new mail did not forget to open the box and see what was inside. And so practically, with each package, these curious, greedy people open it, they don't draw up any acts, they just opened it, looked it up and wrap it up with their scotch tape.
Inside there is such a box, with one understandable HD inscription and 1 terabyte at the bottom. In principle, it looks pretty cute and stylish.
On the back of the box are the characteristics of the router, everything is in Chinese, but from the various icons it is a little clear what the manufacturer wanted to focus on.
The box is made of rather thick cardboard, the router is placed inside a separate niche in order to exclude the possibility of deformation during transportation as much as possible.
The instruction is in an envelope under the antennas. All information, as it should be for Xiaomi, is in Chinese, there is no need for it for us.
A power supply unit with a Chinese plug gives out 12 volts and 3 amperes, which you will agree to the principle is quite a lot, but since we have a hard drive inside, this is just enough to spin it up. When connecting a power supply unit with a lower current strength, the screw does not trite unscrewed.
 |  |
Appearance.
Mi HD is almost a complete copy of its little brother PRO, which is without a hard drive. If you put it next to it, then you practically cannot tell. Or did the Xiaomians just decide to save money and not create different cases for different routers ?!
The ports are located on the back of the router.
Quite a massive aluminum body with rounded corners. There are plastic inserts on the left and right sides. They not only serve as a decorative role, but also act as ventilation holes for better air circulation and heat dissipation from the hard drive and router components.
There seems to be nothing on the front, but somewhere inside there is a small LED hidden, which signals us about the various modes of operation of the router.
The barely noticeable indicator works in three modes, orange is not ready for work, blue is normal, and red is an error. Sleeping at night does not interfere.
There are anti-slip rubber stickers on the bottom of the router.
In the back there is 1 WAN port and 3 LAN ports, as in the HD version, all ports are gigabit. Further there is a reset button "recessed" in the case, a power button and a USB 3.0 port for connecting a flash drive or an external hard drive for backup.
Indication of all LAN and WAN ports is also present.
The dimensions of the router are 19.0 * 12.5 centimeters. The thickness is 6.6 centimeters and the length of the antenna is 16.4 centimeters.
 |  |
 |  |
The insides.
To disassemble the router, let's say to replace the hard drive, or just check what's inside or clean the cooler, we need to remove the rubber pads. They are glued well, I even broke one. Under one of the pads there is a sticker, if damaged, the warranty will be lost. Well, since we don't have much guarantee, so we have nothing to lose.
Having removed the left plastic cap, we see such a Turbo blowing. With cooling, this router should be fine.
Unscrew the four screws at the bottom and move the aluminum and all-metal cover slightly to expose the insides.
I have no complaints about the board, there is no non-washed-off flux. Each antenna is connected to its own connector, I have not seen fake antennas in the line of routers from Xiaomi, but what the Chinese are not joking about ...
There are a lot of various small electronic components under the metal casing. 
The hard drive is located in a kind of basket located at the bottom of the router.
Carefully, so as not to break, disconnect the cable coming from the hard drive.
As I said above, everything is very good with the cooling of the router, except for a massive heatsink for the entire board, there is still a small cooler on top. Which, if the set temperature is exceeded, turns on and cools our router.
Router components.
Inside the router is a 3.5-inch Seagate ST1000VM002 hard drive with a capacity of 1 terabyte.
| Type of equipment | Quiet HDD, HDD for video surveillance systems, HDD for media centers |
| 1 TB | |
| 1 error at 1E14 (10 to the 14th power) bit | |
| 24x7 | Yes |
| Dimensions (width x height x depth) | 102 x 20 x 147 mm |
| Performance parameters | |
| 5900 rpm | |
| 64 MB | |
| 8.5 ms read, 9.0 ms write | |
| 5.1 ms | |
| Interface, connectors and outputs | |
| SATA-II | |
| Interface bandwidth | 3 Gbps |
| Cooling | |
| Noise level | 1.9 Bel in Idle mode, 2.2 Bel in search - typical; 2.1 Bel in Idle mode, 2.3 Bel in search - maximum |
| Nutrition | |
| Idle Power Consumption | 2.5W |
| Power consumption while reading / writing | 3.676 Watt |
| Power consumption in Standby and Sleep modes | 0.819 Watt |
| Consumer properties | |
Web interface.
If you have seen other reviews of Xiaomi routers at least once, or are the owner of one, feel free to skip below. Almost nothing new has appeared in the interface. By default, the IP of the router is 192.168.31.1, there is no password for WiFi, but it is set at the first connection. Information about the number of connected devices, speed, traffic consumption, CPU load and router memory can be found on the home page.
A small difference is the presence of a separate tab with information about the hard drive. Available information SMART, speed of writing and reading, statistics on file types. 
In addition, you can check the disk for errors, enable the "sleep" feature, or format it. Xiaomi warns that switching USB from 2.0 to 3.0 could have a detrimental effect on 2.4GHz WiFi, but I honestly didn't notice the difference in my tests. 
WiFi settings. 
Conveniently, there is an opportunity to create a guest WiFi for friends or, say, clients. MU-MIMO support is enabled by default. 
In the Internet settings, you can specify either DHCP (by default), or static IP, or select PPPoE connection. 
If necessary, you can change the speed of the Wan port and / or clone the MAC address. 
The router can work as a separate, independent device, or as a repeater. 
You can create your own "white" and "black" lists MAC devices to control access. There is also the ability to change the administrator password. Unfortunately, there is no provision for changing your username. 
DHCP settings. 
Updates are present, but the changelog is in Chinese. There is no alternative firmware for this router yet! 
Ability to add static IPs within the local network. 
If the provider does not provide a static IP, and you need to get access to the router, we use DDNS services. 
We do port forwarding if necessary. 
Either PPTP or L2TP connection is available from VPN connections. 
Mobile app.
A router is added to the ecosystem of a smart home like any other device, search and installation of an additional plug-in.
In the main window - a list of connected devices, network speed. There is an additional tab at the bottom. 
There is no physical VPS button, so you will have to use a mobile phone to connect other devices, if necessary. 
In the "Storage" tab, you can manage folders, delete / download / upload files in them, various content. 
There is a choice of different plugins, for more comfortable work with a router. 
For example, you can find out how much space is still available or make a backup of all information to an external HDD.
Additional software.
The MiWiFi client can be installed on the PC. There are no special features in it, but as a bonus, you can choose folders for synchronization and / or association with .torrent files.In the local network, the router is accessible by IP address. You can rename and / or create your own folders.
Tests.
I have two more routers at work at home mini, 3G and HD.
How to make Time capsule from a Xiaomi router for 1500 rubles Xiaomi Router 3 was purchased to survive the renovation. The repair was over, the router survived and performed pretty well.
But it stayed that way. The reason is simple - Xiaomi Router 3 is friends with other xiaomi in the house on special conditions:
DLNA without setting,
convenient file server in the smartphone application,
a single network space when you first connect,
easy access via standard protocols to all connected gadgets,
expansion of the network in one click.
And, most importantly, Xiaomi routers work perfectly with Apple technology. But sometimes you have to work with your hands and your head.
What is in Xiaomi routers for iPhone and Mac I told you how to make a Time Capsule from a router with openWRT-based firmware. As it turned out a little later, Xiaomi routers can work file storage for system and data backups for devices with macOS, all all required packages for Time Capsule are already included in the firmware.
Why do they need to do something with their hands? Apparently, the reason is in patents. In addition, the main consumers of Xiaomi technology use computers on Windows based and smartphones on Android base... For these devices, the file macOS system may present a problem.
Anyway, Home editions of Microsoft operating systems in many OS variants do not support Apple File System (APFS), Mac OS Extended (HFS +), MS-DOS (FAT) and ExFAT. Similar problems on many flavors of Adnroid.
And, of course, the most important thing: the majority Xiaomi routers no hard disk included. Therefore, you first need to create network storage(NAS) based on it.
How to make file server from a Xiaomi router
Any "xiaomi router" is already ready to work as a NAS. Models with built-in storage use an internal drive. All others have a USB port, which is for connecting an external hard drive.
The power supply is sufficient for low-voltage notebook drives (2.5 'HDD / SSD). Bulky 3.5-inch requires external power supply... By the way, I have it organized this way: an external SATA box for 1 drive from A-Data with a 12V / 1.5A power supply is connected to the Xiaomi Router 3.
The solution is not elegant, but the box does a good job of being a stand. And the router is still hidden along with the wires.
Access to storage device Xiaomi organized several options at once:
In the admin panel at the network address 192.192.1.1,
In the admin panel by URL,
V mobile application as a separate tab,
In the Windows desktop client.
The work couldn't be easier: I connected the hard drive to the router, set up network connections and you can use it right away. The white "Wi-Fi box" out of the box does not restrict access to resources.
You do not need to configure anything: all gadgets connected to Wi-Fi networks those who know how to work with DLNA and Samba protocols see the entire drive at the first connection.
How to add Time Capsule function to any Xiaomi router
The algorithm is extremely simple. On macOS, run Time Mashine, on computers under Windows control- any program for creating automatic backups, Then we break external hard disk for the requirements of the utility (not forgetting to leave an additional section for downloads), connect the drive to the router and indicate the program used network drive to save.
ATTENTION. Xiaomi routers on native firmware do not work with HFS, so the drive must be formatted in Ext4 before connecting to the router. Because of this, only version recovery will work. operating system, deleted files and remote recovery using bootable media.
In this case, you still need to correctly connect to remote storage using Samba and network address//192.168.1.1/ (at least the first time). Automatic connection the drive of the router is DLNA, which is not suitable for creating backups.
For non-critical data backups, you can use the MiRouter client to desktop computers for macOS, Windows and Linux. Unfortunately, the whole system with boot sector MiRouter cannot save.
There is a more reliable option, but it will require flashing the router to Padavan (it will probably work on openWRT as well). We update the router's firmware (available in the admin panel), and install the packages via the console: opkg update, opkg install avahi-daemon, opkg install netatalk.
mimic model = TimeCapsule6,106 log level = default: error; Enabling guest access support
uam list = uams_guest.so; The path to the disk with write privileges for guests
path = / media / Backup
time machine = yes; We write in the console and restart the router
/ opt / etc / init. d / S27afpd restart
We connect from a computer on macOS to the afp: //192.168.1.1/ server. After that we go to " System settings»-> Time Machine and select the drive to save the backups.
Notes on operation. Pros and cons
I have several Xiaomi routers: a massive R1D and a simple Xiaomi Router 3. The details are long and boring to describe, so I will limit myself to the main points related specifically to working as backup storages.
The cheap Xiaomi Router 3 (only $ 30) does a great job. But you have to connect the drive to it via the USB port (but it's more convenient to carry it). Hence the noise external storage, problems with box cooling, not the highest speed (110 GB copied for almost 10 hours), and a second socket is needed.
On the Xiaomi R1D (for $ 100) at the expense of more powerful processor and connecting a disk via the SATA interface, everything happens in 4-6 hours. Yes, and it works faster, and there is a gigabit LAN, and access to a free Chinese cloud for backups (I did not understand, I do not use it). It is quiet, fast and supports 4TB drives.
Across native application MiRouter requires a Mi-account to access the routers. It also knocks on chinese servers, and refuse to work if there is no connection.
Direct access to the storage helps out. It is interesting that Router 3 shows any partitions and works smoothly, but R1D, for reasons unknown to me, sometimes stumbles and swears before rebooting.
Should you change your AirPort to one from Xiaomi? Only if we consider the new generation of routers: Xiaomi Mi Router Pro / HD (R3P). But they are almost more expensive than their Apple counterparts. Therefore, if there are no other xiaomi in the house, it is better to dwell on the original.
Part 1. Router, description and tests
The functionality of the device in question:
- NAT router,
- IEEE 802.11g wireless access point with the ability to use the Afterburner fast data transfer mode,
- 4-port switch with auto-polarity detection on ports (Auto MDI / MDI-X),
- with built-in hard disk 160 GB,
- and the ability to connect various external (hard and flash drives, printers, web cameras) USB devices.
This router is further development popular line of wireless routers from ASUSTeK:
- WL-550gE (s),
In the first part of this review we will consider the possibilities and ASUS performance WL-700gE as a router itself, and its additional functions related to the presence internal hard disk, the possibilities for connecting USB-devices will be postponed to the second part.
Appearance, equipment and device
The appearance of the router leaves no doubt that the epidemic of "ipodomania" has swept over the Asus designers as well - well-recognizable contours and white and silver colors clearly hint that "we are also one of these". :) In general, the appearance of the WL-700gE is pleasant and is quite suitable for Apple computers, although the secondary and reduces the impression.
Since the copy of the router that came to us is an engineering sample, it is not necessary to speak with confidence about the complete set of the retail delivery - in fact, we got our hands on a box of traditional Asusov white-blue-silver colors 
61.504 Mbps for incoming traffic at the maximum packet size - a very decent speed.
Note the more than fivefold excess of the incoming traffic outgoing in this mode (we would like the opposite), which is not observed with other packet sizes.
3. Traffic shaping
Since the device in question is able to limit traffic, this capability was investigated at various set speeds. The actual channel speed was measured using NetIQ Chariot (TCP traffic averaged over a two-minute test).
As you can see, ASUS WL-700gE fulfills its tasks very accurately - deviations do not exceed a couple of percent and may well be attributed to an error. During the research, it was found that ASUS WL-700gE's kilobits are decimal, that is, 1 Kbps = 1000 Bits / s.
Safety
During security testing, Nessus did not find any vulnerabilities, making a comment for the "guest" FTP account - well, this is from ignorance of the wider ASUS WL-700gE profile.
Price and availability
Average the current price (number of offers) for ASUS WL-700gE in Moscow retail:
| ASUS WL-700gE | N / A (0) |
As you can see, pleasure is not yet cheap ... :)
Interim findings
In its current form, ASUS WL-700gE as a router is a typical midrange - a more or less well-established set of functions has been implemented, including the 802.11g Afterburner extension, and the device's capabilities in terms of settings are more focused on a novice user who wants to go faster and with a minimum of headache. pain (here the proprietary Windows utility EZSetup is just the way) to start the device. To blame ASUS WL-700gE for its outstanding performance, some roughness in work, excessive laconicism of the documentation and the lack of Russification is not quite gentlemanly - after all, we tested a pre-sale sample, and to out of ASUS WL-700gE may well be re-equipped; although, on the other hand, the User Manual on the manufacturer's website is quite fresh, the firmware has already changed its version.
However, ASUS WL-700gE has something that lifts it above its fellows in the shop - USB ports and a built-in hard drive! And, accordingly, the related functions are the ability sharing disk space, mirroring data stored on the built-in hard drive, offline downloading of files from the Internet and much more, which we will consider in more detail in the second part of the review.
