What Features Does FreshTomato Firmware Offer?

FreshTomato is an open-source, Linux-based firmware for routers with Broadcom chipsets, distributed under the GPL license. Its feature set centers on VPN support, traffic control, and network management that stock firmware typically omits or limits. The features below are the ones the project lists on its official site, so they apply to supported Broadcom-based routers running a current FreshTomato release.

VPN and tunneling

• Full WireGuard support with PBR (ARM) — Policy-Based Routing lets you send only selected clients or traffic through the WireGuard tunnel while the rest uses the normal WAN path. The ARM qualifier matters: this full implementation is tied to ARM-based builds, so check your router's architecture before assuming it applies.
• Built-in OpenVPN server/client — The firmware can act as either end of an OpenVPN connection, so you can run a VPN server on the router for remote access or use the router as a client to route your LAN through a commercial or self-hosted VPN.

Traffic control and monitoring

• Bandwidth monitoring — Tracks usage so you can see which clients or interfaces are consuming bandwidth over time.
• Advanced QoS — Prioritizes traffic classes rather than treating all packets equally, useful when one device's downloads would otherwise degrade calls or gaming.
• IP/MAC BW Limiter — Caps bandwidth per IP or MAC address, a per-device alternative to global QoS rules.
• ARP Binding — Pins IP-to-MAC mappings, which helps prevent ARP spoofing on your local network and keeps address assignments stable.

Access and administration

• Access control — Restricts which clients can reach the network or the internet on a schedule or by rule.
• Enabled SSH/Telnet protocols — Command-line access to the router for scripting and diagnostics beyond the web interface.
• SNMP protocol — Exposes router statistics to standard network monitoring tools, so FreshTomato devices can be folded into an existing monitoring setup.

Hardware and wireless options

• Configurable buttons and LEDs — You can remap the physical buttons and indicator lights on the router to trigger scripts or reflect custom states.
• Support for many wireless modes — Covers common operating modes (such as access point, client, and bridge-style configurations) rather than locking the radio to a single role.

How to decide whether it fits

The main constraint is hardware: FreshTomato targets Broadcom-chipset routers, so confirm your exact model appears in the project's supported routers list and that a current build exists for it before flashing. If your router uses a different chipset, the feature list above is not reachable through this firmware.