Debrick/unbrick TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 WiFi router using TFTP with serial console

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In this video we will debrick TP-Link AC1750 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router Archer C7 using TFTP server, however to undestand what is going on, we solder serial console interface to monitor its boot log.
The router was bricked by flashing wrong firmware version.
I got some feedback from clients that even OpenWrt is supported but sometime router still got brick flashing OpenWrt
If your router has this flahing pattern, you can follow this guide to unbrick/debrick it.
First step is to download Tp-Link C7 firmware, and find debrick guide from the Internet
My router is Archer C7 V2 so I will choose Download for Archer C7 V2 then Firmware
I will download Archer C7 V2 firmware to my PC
Then I will extract the firmware to a folder
Now we will learn how to debrick my C7 router
You can find it by search for tplink c7 debrick
To activate TFTP Recovery press and hold WPS/Reset Button during powering on until WPS LED turns on
Then we will disable my wireless and change LAN IP to 192.168.0.66 /24
Now start TFTP server and make sure 192.168.0.66 is in server interfaces option
Browse Current Directory and point it to the folder you store flash file
We can choose Show Dir to check the file name
To activate TFTP Recovery I will press and hold WPS/Reset Button during powering on until WPS LED turns on
I solder serial console interface for my TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 so we can see what is going on when we press and release the button
The router is boot up, set it own IP to 192.168.0.86 and downloading firmware file from 192.168.0.66 TFTP server
Flash chip is erasing before copying firmware
Now firmware is copying to flash chip
Now my router is reboot
Now we can access TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 GUI Interface via 192.168.0.1
My router is working now
Thank you for watching. If your router is bricked, you can follow my guide or send to us to get it unbricked
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More information:
TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 WiFi router
Dual Band (concurrent) and Gigabit Ethernet. Advertised as 1750 Mbps. It has simultaneous Triple-Stream (3x3) radios on both 2.4GHz and 5 GHz Bands. It supports 802.11n in 2.4GHz for 450Mbps throughput and IEEE 802.11ac (draft) for 1300Mbps throughput in 5GHz.

TFTP Recovery (De-Bricking)

The serial-less TFTP recovery method for the TP-Link TL-WDR4300 also works for the Archer C7 (confirmed on v1.1 and v2) and the Archer C5 (v1.20).

To activate TFTP Recovery press and hold WPS/Reset Button during powering on until WPS LED turns on. Setup your computer to 192.168.0.66 (SubnetMask /24 = 255.255.255.0) and connect it to LAN1. Start TFTP server and provide recovery file with it.

TFTP de-brick Alternative

Change your Ethernet adapter to IP 192.168.0.66, subnet 255.255.255.0, gateway 192.168.0.1
Choose 192.168.0.66 for your "server interfaces"
Choose Tftp server tap
Activate TFTP Recovery press and hold WPS/Reset Button during powering on
Recovery using serial connection

Connect to your router via serial, power it up, then type "tpl" until the boot process is halted and you should be at the console. Set up a TFTP server with your firmware at 192.168.1.100, then run the following commands:

V1

The V1 is different because it only has 8mb flash not 16mb that the other version do.

tftp 0x81000000 [name of your firmware file].bin
erase 0x9f020000 +7b0000
cp.b 0x81000000 0x9f020000 0x7b0000
reset
V2

tftp 0x81000000 [name of your firmware file].bin
erase 0x9f020000 +f80000
cp.b 0x81000000 0x9f020000 0xf80000
reset

[flaviodemolay]

Hi, I cant unbrick my archer c7 v2 following you process, and i didnt have na serial adapter, do you have any idea whats happen?
PS: I just can do the tftp using the ip 192.168.1.66  thanks for you bideo and attention!

[TRD_Mike]

I bricked my Archer C7 v2 and this video helped me unbrick it. Thank you!

[fernandosbtech]

You saved my day, I connected to port 2, turned on the way you showed and it downloaded the firmware and WORKED!! thanks a lot.

[KXKKX]

Thanks! I was failing on my own, but your video pointed out that i needed to call file V3 even though I have a V2 router. I missed that on my own and you saved my brick.

[luzianio]

Na pressa, coloquei o firmware (EU) no meu Archer C7 v2 (US), esse tutorial ajudou demais 😄🙏

[predator]

You have saved my Tp-Link C7 1750 v1.1

[baradorin]

Works also with a different lights pattern. Great

[davidvassallo]

I can confirm this works for the C7 Version 5. Just change filenames accordingly.

[isabelfrancoeur]

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
I used your method on the archer C9

[sledhead]

Worked perfectly! thanks for the clear and easy video

[ernesto-]

Hi, thanks for the video. Could you tell me where did you solder the serial adapter on the board ? I can't find the where to to connect it.

[snppd]

You saved my ass. Would buy a cup of coffee/choice of drink for you. THANKS!!!

[jootrnt]

worked very well in the first try. thanks very much

[TravisTerrell]

Good tutorial, but showing the serial console output (while nice information) may make the video a bit confusing for less-technical users.

[kaib]

Hi, thanks for those great instructions. Now, it all worked except for the fact that instead of the C7 v5 firmware, I have C20 firmware on the router. I have checked a few times if I downloaded the wrong zip file but the filenames, zip-package names are all correct. Anybody else with this issue?

[Homosaxum]

I installed openwrt and didn't find it interesting. So I decided to go back with the OEM firmware and used the openwrt interface and was not successful. I don't know, I think I used the firmware file I used to get out of the ddwrt downloaded from the website itself. I tried to do the recovery by tftp, where it shows to be loaded up to 100%. But, the firmware did not enter not in the router. What could have happened?

[DSteyn]

Thanks man, this video helped me to fix my brick.

[michelvankuilenburg]

Thanks, it worked also for me : Archer C7 v2

Only I needed to rename the file to v3 even i have a v2, like: ArcherC7v3_tp_recovery.bin

[adililhan]

when I try to upload the file, I get "timeout error" in Tfpd's console. The progress bar shows that 81% of the file has been uploaded. however, entire file didn't upload.

when I reset the device, I don't see any log in the tfpd. is there any suggestion?

[showdatarde]

Hello, I have the TL-WDR3600, do you know if I can use the same process? or could you make a video for this model? Thank you for your attention.