Integrating LAN8720 with ESP32 for Ethernet Connectivity with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)


In the world of IoT and embedded systems, the ESP32 has emerged as a highly popular microcontroller due to its versatility and WiFi capabilities. However, for projects that require stable and fast network connections, Ethernet is often the preferred choice.

Integrating LAN8720 with ESP32 for Ethernet Connectivity with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)
Integrating LAN8720 with ESP32 for Ethernet Connectivity with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)

This is where the LAN8720 Ethernet PHY comes into play. In this guide, we’ll explore how to seamlessly integrate the LAN8720 module with an ESP32, providing a robust and reliable Ethernet connection for your IoT projects.

Here my selection of esp32 ESP32 Dev Kit v1 - TTGO T-Display 1.14 ESP32 - NodeMCU V3 V2 ESP8266 Lolin32 - NodeMCU ESP-32S - WeMos Lolin32 - WeMos Lolin32 mini - ESP32-CAM programmer - ESP32-CAM bundle - ESP32-WROOM-32 - ESP32-S

lan8720 vs w5500

The W5500 and LAN8720 are both Ethernet controllers, but they serve different roles and have distinct features:

  1. W5500:
    • Manufacturer: Wiznet
    • Type: Full hardware TCP/IP stack Ethernet controller.
    • Main Features:
      • Integrated TCP/IP protocol stack which can handle TCP, UDP, IPv4, ICMP, ARP, IGMP, and PPPoE protocols.
      • Supports up to 8 simultaneous socket connections.
      • SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) for communication with host controllers.
      • Internal 32Kbytes memory for TX/RX buffers.
      • Suitable for embedded applications due to its ease of integration and minimal host processor loading.
      • Typically used with microcontrollers like Arduino, STM32, etc.
  2. LAN8720:
    • Manufacturer: Microchip Technology (previously SMSC)
    • Type: Physical Layer Transceiver (PHY).
    • Main Features:
      • Operates at the physical layer of the OSI model.
      • Supports 10BASE-T and 100BASE-TX Ethernet standards.
      • Uses RMII (Reduced Media Independent Interface) for communication with host controllers.
      • Lower power consumption.
      • Generally used in applications that require a separate MAC (Media Access Control) layer controller, often found in more complex systems like those with ARM processors.

Here a selection of the most widespread Ethernet devices w5500 lite - w5500 - enc26j60 mini - enc26j60 - lan8720

Key Differences:

  • Functionality: The W5500 is a more integrated solution with a built-in TCP/IP stack, making it easier to handle network communications for simple microcontroller-based projects. The LAN8720, being a PHY layer device, requires a separate MAC controller and is more suited to complex applications.
  • Interface: W5500 uses SPI, which is simpler and commonly found in microcontrollers. LAN8720 uses RMII, which is more complex but offers higher performance for systems that support it.
  • Use Case: W5500 is preferred in simpler, microcontroller-based projects where ease of use and integration are key. LAN8720 is better for more advanced systems where a separate MAC is available and more control over the network stack is required.

Wiring

By default, the CHIP device has this wiring.

Common Pin Assignments from the official documentation

Using ESP32 internal MAC

  • RMII PHY wiring is fixed and can not be changed through either IOMUX or GPIO Matrix. By default, they’re connected as follows:
GPIORMII SignalNotes
GPIO21TX_ENEMAC_TX_EN
GPIO19TX0EMAC_TXD0
GPIO22TX1EMAC_TXD1
GPIO25RX0EMAC_RXD0
GPIO26RX1EMAC_RXD1
GPIO27CRS_DVEMAC_RX_DRV
  • One of the following GPIO pins can be used as RMII REF_CLK input/output:
GPIOFunctionNotes
GPIO0EMAC_TX_CLK/CLK_OUT1input/output
GPIO16EMAC_CLK_OUToutput
GPIO17EMAC_CLK_180output
  • SMI (Serial Management Interface) wiring is not fixed. You may need to changed it according to your board schematic. By default, they’re connected as follows:
GPIOSMI SignalNotes
GPIO23MDCOutput to PHY
GPIO18MDIOBidirectional

Wiring the prototyping board

Here is the wiring with an esp32 with 38 pins.

In our prototype board, we start the wiring with this configuration (the standard one)

esp32lan8720
3V3Vcc
GNDGND
GPIO18MDIO
GPIO19TXD0
GPIO21TXEN
GPIO22TXD1
GPIO23MDC
GPIO25RXD0
GPIO26RXD1
GPIO27CRS_DV
GPIO0nINT/RETCLM

But with this version and China lan8720 board you can get a problem, rondomically you get a message like this.

mode:DIO, clock div:1
load:0x3fff0030,len:1184
load:0x40078000,len:13260
load:0x40080400,len:3028
entry 0x400805e4
ets Jul 29 2019 12:21:46

rst:0x1 (POWERON_RESET),boot:0x3 (DOWNLOAD_BOOT(UART0/UART1/SDIO_REI_REO_V2))
waiting for download 
ets Jul 29 2019 12:21:46

rst:0x1 (POWERON_RESET),boot:0x3 (DOWNLOAD_BOOT(UART0/UART1/SDIO_REI_REO_V2))
waiting for download 

Some time works and other times not; this is because you attach GPIO0 to the Crystal Oscillator, and when the Oscillator is HIGH, GPIO0 puts your ESP32 on boot mode; if you are lucky and Oscillator is LOW, you boot normally.

To fix this problem you must solder a wire from the enable pin of the oscillator to the NC (Not connected) pin, and wire like so.

esp32lan8720 patched
3V3Vcc
GNDGND
GPIO18MDIO
GPIO19TXD0
GPIO21TXEN
GPIO22TXD1
GPIO23MDC
GPIO25RXD0
GPIO26RXD1
GPIO27CRS_DV
GPIO0nINT/RETCLM
GPIO17NC

Here the patch on my device.

Test the device

Standard connection without patch

First, the most common sketch you can find on the web without using the patch. Remember that you probably must reset more than one time to put in work without going into download mode.

/*
 This sketch shows how to use lan8720 with esp32 with minimal/standard configuration

 You can set the parameter in begin function or at start with define before the import
 of ETH.h file, this way is preferible.

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */

// I²C-address of Ethernet PHY (0 or 1 for LAN8720, 31 for TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_ADDR 1 						// DEFAULT VALUE IS 0 YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Type of the Ethernet PHY (LAN8720 or TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_TYPE ETH_PHY_LAN8720 		// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the enable signal for the external crystal oscillator (-1 to disable for internal APLL source)
#define ETH_PHY_POWER -1 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the I²C clock signal for the Ethernet PHY
#define ETH_PHY_MDC 23 						// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the I²C IO signal for the Ethernet PHY
#define ETH_PHY_MDIO 18 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT
// External clock from crystal oscillator
#define ETH_CLK_MODE ETH_CLOCK_GPIO0_IN 	// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT

#include <ETH.h>

static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void testClient(const char *host, uint16_t port) {
	Serial.print("\nconnecting to ");
	Serial.println(host);

	WiFiClient client;
	if (!client.connect(host, port)) {
		Serial.println("connection failed");
		return;
	}
	client.printf("GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: %s\r\n\r\n", host);
	while (client.connected() && !client.available())
		;
	while (client.available()) {
		Serial.write(client.read());
	}

	Serial.println("closing connection\n");
	client.stop();
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin();
}

void loop() {
	if (eth_connected) {
		testClient("mischianti.org", 80);
	}
	delay(10000);

}

You can pass the same parameter also in the begin function like so (I add only as an example in this case).

/*
 This sketch shows how to use lan8720 with esp32 with minimal/standard configuration

 Parameter in begin function

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */

#include <ETH.h>

#define ETH_PARAM_PHY_ADDR 1
#define ETH_PARAM_PHY_TYPE ETH_PHY_LAN8720
#define ETH_PARAM_PHY_POWER -1
#define ETH_PARAM_PHY_MDC 23
#define ETH_PARAM_PHY_MDIO 18
#define ETH_PARAM_CLK_MODE ETH_CLOCK_GPIO0_IN


static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void testClient(const char *host, uint16_t port) {
	Serial.print("\nconnecting to ");
	Serial.println(host);

	WiFiClient client;
	if (!client.connect(host, port)) {
		Serial.println("connection failed");
		return;
	}
	client.printf("GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: %s\r\n\r\n", host);
	while (client.connected() && !client.available())
		;
	while (client.available()) {
		Serial.write(client.read());
	}

	Serial.println("closing connection\n");
	client.stop();
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin(ETH_PARAM_PHY_ADDR, ETH_PARAM_PHY_POWER, ETH_PARAM_PHY_MDC, ETH_PARAM_PHY_MDIO, ETH_PARAM_PHY_TYPE, ETH_PARAM_CLK_MODE);
}

void loop() {
	if (eth_connected) {
		testClient("mischianti.org", 80);
	}
	delay(10000);

}

The Output of the code is here.

ets Jul 29 2019 12:21:46

rst:0x1 (POWERON_RESET),boot:0x13 (SPI_FAST_FLASH_BOOT)
configsip: 0, SPIWP:0xee
clk_drv:0x00,q_drv:0x00,d_drv:0x00,cs0_drv:0x00,hd_drv:0x00,wp_drv:0x00
mode:DIO, clock div:1
load:0x3fff0030,len:1184
load:0x40078000,len:13260
load:0x40080400,len:3028
entry 0x400805e4
ETH Started
ETH Connected
ETH MAC: B8:D6:1A:68:E5:7F, IPv4: 192.168.1.115, FULL_DUPLEX, 100Mbps

connecting to mischianti.org
HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently
Connection: Keep-Alive
Keep-Alive: timeout=5, max=100
content-type: text/html
content-length: 3145
date: Fri, 02 Feb 2024 10:55:05 GMT
server: LiteSpeed
x-qc-pop: EU-FR-NTE-51
location: https://mischianti.org/

<!DOCTYPE html><html lang="en-US"><head>
<title> 301 Moved Permanently
</title>
<meta charset="utf-8"><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no">
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</style>
</head>
<body style="background-color:#f7f9fb; display: flex; min-height: 100vh;flex-direction: column;">
<div style="display:flex;background-color:#004262;padding:8px"><a href="https://quic.cloud/" title="QUIC.cloud" rel="home"><div class="site-logo"><svg height="50" viewBox="0 0 75 50" width="75" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="m71.301 15.049c-2.885-3.792-7.072-6.232-11.791-6.872-3.709-.503-7.415.154-10.721 1.901-.44.232-.873.484-1.289.75l-1.486 1.117 3.835 5.041 1.169-.889c.236-.147.481-.288.73-.421 2.13-1.124 4.518-1.547 6.908-1.224 3.045.413 5.744 1.987 7.604 4.432 1.861 2.445 2.657 5.467 2.244 8.511-.853 6.283-6.663 10.7-12.942 9.849-2.389-.324-4.579-1.37-6.332-3.022-.209-.198-.407-.399-.59-.599l-14.45-18.99-.005.059-1.522-2-.165-.199c-.346-.385-.712-.76-1.086-1.111-2.838-2.677-6.382-4.369-10.249-4.895-10.162-1.38-19.56 5.769-20.939 15.935-1.38 10.164 5.768 19.558 15.934 20.937 3.868.525 7.733-.16 11.186-1.983.14-.074.275-.153.413-.229l-3.895-5.119c-2.14 1.006-4.493 1.377-6.852 1.057-6.706-.912-11.419-7.106-10.51-13.812.91-6.705 7.099-11.418 13.811-10.509 2.549.346 4.885 1.461 6.758 3.228.219.206.432.422.637.644l11.357 14.928.006-.061 4.612 6.062.158.193c.324.361.676.723 1.046 1.072 2.72 2.564 6.117 4.187 9.825 4.689.811.111 1.614.164 2.412.164 8.775-.002 16.444-6.504 17.658-15.438.642-4.718-.594-9.405-3.479-13.196z" fill="#97a3aa"/><path d="m40.375 40.139c-.059-.061-.123-.121-.179-.182l-7.318-9.609c-.318-.356-.665-.711-1.03-1.056-2.72-2.565-6.117-4.186-9.825-4.69-.354-.047-.707-.082-1.061-.108h-.542l2.7 3.533c.058.06.123.121.178.181l7.317 9.61c.319.355.665.711 1.03 1.055 2.72 2.564 6.117 4.188 9.825 4.689.354.049.707.082 1.061.109h.542z" fill="#9ff"/></svg></div></a><div style="margin-top:20px;margin-left:5px"><a href="https://quic.cloud/" title="QUIC.cloud" rel="home" style="color:#fff;font-size:1.25em;text-decoration:none">QUIC<span style="color:#f60">.</span><span style="color:#e4e4f1">cloud</span></a></a></div></div><div style="max-width:1140px;margin:auto;padding:0 1.6em 1.6em; display:flex; align-items: center;flex: 1;"><div style="color:#555"><div class="text-center"><h2>301</h2>
<h4>Moved Permanently
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<h4>The document has been permanently moved.</h4>
<p>This page is generated by <a href="https://quic.cloud/">QUIC.cloud</a> CDN on the EU-FR-NTE-51 server.</p>
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closing connection

Connection of the device with the patch

If you do the patch, you need to manage the enable state of the Crystal Oscillator, you must set the GPIO17 as the power pin; this trick allows you to boot the device and, after the MCU boot operation, enable the Crystal Oscillator.

Probably with high-quality board, you don’t need that.

/*
 This sketch shows how to use patched lan8720 with esp32

 Remeber you must connect the enable pin of Crystal Oscillator to the NC pin of the board

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */

// I²C-address of Ethernet PHY (0 or 1 for LAN8720, 31 for TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_ADDR 1 						// DEFAULT VALUE IS 0 YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the enable signal for the external crystal oscillator (-1 to disable for internal APLL source)
#define ETH_PHY_POWER 17 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT

#include <ETH.h>

static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void testClient(const char *host, uint16_t port) {
	Serial.print("\nconnecting to ");
	Serial.println(host);

	WiFiClient client;
	if (!client.connect(host, port)) {
		Serial.println("connection failed");
		return;
	}
	client.printf("GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nHost: %s\r\n\r\n", host);
	while (client.connected() && !client.available())
		;
	while (client.available()) {
		Serial.write(client.read());
	}

	Serial.println("closing connection\n");
	client.stop();
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin();
}

void loop() {
	if (eth_connected) {
		testClient("mischianti.org", 80);
	}
	delay(10000);

}

Make a raw GET request

First of all, we’ll try to make a simple HTTP request. I chose an online service created to test this kind of request to do this test.

I’m going to use a simple service given from httpbin.org, and you can use the same REST API in HTTP and HTTPS.

Remember that HTTP works on port 80 and HTTPS on 443, so you must validate a certificate to query the endpoint on the 443 port.

Here is the simple get request

/*
 This sketch shows how to use patched lan8720 with esp32

 We are going to do a raw GET request to online service httpbin.org
 http://httpbin.org/get

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */


// I²C-address of Ethernet PHY (0 or 1 for LAN8720, 31 for TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_ADDR 1 						// DEFAULT VALUE IS 0 YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the enable signal for the external crystal oscillator (-1 to disable for internal APLL source)
#define ETH_PHY_POWER 17 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT

#include <ETH.h>

// if you don't want to use DNS (and reduce your sketch size)
// use the numeric IP instead of the name for the server:
//IPAddress server(74,125,232,128);  // numeric IP for Google (no DNS)
//char server[] = "www.google.com";    // name address for Google (using DNS)
char server[] = "httpbin.org";    // name address for Google (using DNS)

// Initialize the Ethernet client library
WiFiClient client;

// Variables to measure the speed
unsigned long beginMicros, endMicros;
unsigned long byteCount = 0;
bool printWebData = true;  // set to false for better speed measurement

static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.println();
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin();

	while (!eth_connected) {
		Serial.print(".");
		delay(100);
	}

	// if you get a connection, report back via serial:
	if (client.connect(server, 80)) {
		Serial.println("Connected!");
		// Make a HTTP request:
		client.println("GET /get HTTP/1.1");
		client.println("Host: httpbin.org");
		client.println("Connection: close");
		client.println();
	} else {
		// if you didn't get a connection to the server:
		Serial.println("connection failed");
	}
	beginMicros = micros();

}

void loop() {
	  // if there are incoming bytes available
	  // from the server, read them and print them:
	  int len = client.available();
	  if (len > 0) {
	    byte buffer[80];
	    if (len > 80) len = 80;
	    client.read(buffer, len);
	    if (printWebData) {
	      Serial.write(buffer, len); // show in the serial monitor (slows some boards)
	    }
	    byteCount = byteCount + len;
	  }

	  // if the server's disconnected, stop the client:
	  if (len == 0 && !client.connected()) {
	    endMicros = micros();
	    Serial.println();
	    Serial.println("disconnecting.");
	    client.stop();
	    Serial.print("Received ");
	    Serial.print(byteCount);
	    Serial.print(" bytes in ");
	    float seconds = (float)(endMicros - beginMicros) / 1000000.0;
	    Serial.print(seconds, 4);
	    float rate = (float)byteCount / seconds / 1000.0;
	    Serial.print(", rate = ");
	    Serial.print(rate);
	    Serial.print(" kbytes/second");
	    Serial.println();

	    // do nothing forevermore:
	    while (true) {
	      delay(1);
	    }
	  }
}

And here is the result.

ETH Started
ETH Connected
...........
ETH MAC: B8:D6:1A:68:E5:7F, IPv4: 192.168.1.115, FULL_DUPLEX, 100Mbps
Connected!
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Date: Fri, 02 Feb 2024 15:44:00 GMT
Content-Type: application/json
Content-Length: 199
Connection: close
Server: gunicorn/19.9.0
Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *
Access-Control-Allow-Credentials: true
 
{
  "args": {}, 
  "headers": {
    "Host": "httpbin.org", 
    "X-Amzn-Trace-Id": "Root=1-65bd0dc0-4ea2c7a33ad187b40ac5cda8"
  }, 
  "origin": "84.221.199.122", 
  "url": "http://httpbin.org/get"
}

disconnecting.
Received 424 bytes in 0.2767, rate = 1.53 kbytes/second

Now, an HTTPS request.

If we change only the port from

	if (client.connect(server, 80)) {

to

	if (client.connect(server, 443)) {

we receive an explicit error like this.

ETH Started
ETH Connected
.
ETH MAC: B8:D6:1A:68:E5:7F, IPv4: 192.168.1.115, FULL_DUPLEX, 100Mbps
Connected!
HTTP/1.1 400 Bad Request
Server: awselb/2.0
Date: Fri, 02 Feb 2024 16:25:02 GMT
Content-Type: text/html
Content-Length: 220 
Connection: close

<html>
<head><title>400 The plain HTTP request was sent to HTTPS port</title></head>
<body>
<center><h1>400 Bad Request</h1></center>
<center>The plain HTTP request was sent to HTTPS port</center>
</body>
</html>

disconnecting.
Received 370 bytes in 0.2764, rate = 1.34 kbytes/second

First of all, we must use the WiFiClientSecure that implements the SSL layer. But if you substitute the line

// Initialize the Ethernet client library
WiFiClient client;

with

// Initialize the Ethernet client library
WiFiClientSecure client;

we obtain

ETH Started
ETH Connected
.
ETH MAC: B8:D6:1A:68:E5:7F, IPv4: 192.168.1.115, FULL_DUPLEX, 100Mbps
connection failed

disconnecting.
Received 0 bytes in 0.0000, rate = 0.00 kbytes/second

This is because the layer SSL needs to validate the remote server via the Certification Authority, but if you are a bad guy, you can ask the library to avoid the control of the certificate with this command.

	client.setInsecure();

The complete sketch becomes.

/*
 This sketch shows how to use patched lan8720 with esp32

 We are going to do a raw GET request to online service httpbin.org
 http://httpbin.org/get

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */


// I²C-address of Ethernet PHY (0 or 1 for LAN8720, 31 for TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_ADDR 1 						// DEFAULT VALUE IS 0 YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the enable signal for the external crystal oscillator (-1 to disable for internal APLL source)
#define ETH_PHY_POWER 17 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT

#include <ETH.h>
#include <WiFiClientSecure.h>

// if you don't want to use DNS (and reduce your sketch size)
// use the numeric IP instead of the name for the server:
//IPAddress server(74,125,232,128);  // numeric IP for Google (no DNS)
//char server[] = "www.google.com";    // name address for Google (using DNS)
char server[] = "httpbin.org";    // name address for Google (using DNS)

// Initialize the Ethernet client library
WiFiClientSecure client;

// Variables to measure the speed
unsigned long beginMicros, endMicros;
unsigned long byteCount = 0;
bool printWebData = true;  // set to false for better speed measurement

static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.println();
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin();

	while (!eth_connected) {
		Serial.print(".");
		delay(100);
	}

	client.setInsecure();

	// if you get a connection, report back via serial:
	if (client.connect(server, 443)) {
		Serial.println("Connected!");
		// Make a HTTP request:
		client.println("GET /get HTTP/1.1");
		client.println("Host: httpbin.org");
		client.println("Connection: close");
		client.println();
	} else {
		// if you didn't get a connection to the server:
		Serial.println("connection failed");
	}
	beginMicros = micros();

}

void loop() {
	  // if there are incoming bytes available
	  // from the server, read them and print them:
	  int len = client.available();
	  if (len > 0) {
	    byte buffer[80];
	    if (len > 80) len = 80;
	    client.read(buffer, len);
	    if (printWebData) {
	      Serial.write(buffer, len); // show in the serial monitor (slows some boards)
	    }
	    byteCount = byteCount + len;
	  }

	  // if the server's disconnected, stop the client:
	  if (len == 0 && !client.connected()) {
	    endMicros = micros();
	    Serial.println();
	    Serial.println("disconnecting.");
	    client.stop();
	    Serial.print("Received ");
	    Serial.print(byteCount);
	    Serial.print(" bytes in ");
	    float seconds = (float)(endMicros - beginMicros) / 1000000.0;
	    Serial.print(seconds, 4);
	    float rate = (float)byteCount / seconds / 1000.0;
	    Serial.print(", rate = ");
	    Serial.print(rate);
	    Serial.print(" kbytes/second");
	    Serial.println();

	    // do nothing forevermore:
	    while (true) {
	      delay(1);
	    }
	  }

}

And now the result is this.

ETH Started
ETH Connected
..........
ETH MAC: B8:D6:1A:68:E5:7F, IPv4: 192.168.1.115, FULL_DUPLEX, 100Mbps
Connected!
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Date: Fri, 02 Feb 2024 16:36:00 GMT
Content-Type: application/json
Content-Length: 200
Connection: close
Server: gunicorn/19.9.0
Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *
Access-Control-Allow-Credentials: true
 
{
  "args": {}, 
  "headers": {
    "Host": "httpbin.org", 
    "X-Amzn-Trace-Id": "Root=1-65bd19f0-36775c160826895f26d52da8"
  }, 
  "origin": "84.221.199.122", 
  "url": "https://httpbin.org/get"
}

disconnecting.
Received 425 bytes in 0.1594, rate = 2.67 kbytes/second

Ok, now we try to be a good guy; we are going to download the Certification Authority certificate to validate the host.

So in the httpbin page click on setting of the site.

Then you must select the connection information.

Now click on the certificate.

And finally, select the line at the top of the list (the root certificate).

Export the certificate and open the file, copy the content and put all in a char array variable.

const char* rootCA= R""""(-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----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-----END CERTIFICATE-----)"""";

Now we can set the certificate of Certification Autority, needed to validate the server httpbin to the WiFiClientSecure to be able to do the check.

The code become so.

/*
 This sketch shows how to use patched lan8720 with esp32

 We are going to do a raw GET request to online service httpbin.org
 http://httpbin.org/get

 by Renzo Mischianti <mischianti.org>
 */


// I²C-address of Ethernet PHY (0 or 1 for LAN8720, 31 for TLK110)
#define ETH_PHY_ADDR 1 						// DEFAULT VALUE IS 0 YOU CAN OMIT IT
// Pin# of the enable signal for the external crystal oscillator (-1 to disable for internal APLL source)
#define ETH_PHY_POWER 17 					// DEFAULT VALUE YOU CAN OMIT IT

#include <ETH.h>
#include <WiFiClientSecure.h>

// if you don't want to use DNS (and reduce your sketch size)
// use the numeric IP instead of the name for the server:
//IPAddress server(74,125,232,128);  // numeric IP for Google (no DNS)
//char server[] = "www.google.com";    // name address for Google (using DNS)
char server[] = "httpbin.org";    // name address for Google (using DNS)

const char* rootCA= R""""(-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----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-----END CERTIFICATE-----)"""";

// Initialize the Ethernet client library
WiFiClientSecure client;

// Variables to measure the speed
unsigned long beginMicros, endMicros;
unsigned long byteCount = 0;
bool printWebData = true;  // set to false for better speed measurement

static bool eth_connected = false;

void WiFiEvent(WiFiEvent_t event) {
	switch (event) {
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_START:
		Serial.println("ETH Started");
		ETH.setHostname("esp32-mischianti-eth");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_CONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Connected");
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_GOT_IP:
		Serial.println();
		Serial.print("ETH MAC: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.macAddress());
		Serial.print(", IPv4: ");
		Serial.print(ETH.localIP());
		if (ETH.fullDuplex()) {
			Serial.print(", FULL_DUPLEX");
		}
		Serial.print(", ");
		Serial.print(ETH.linkSpeed());
		Serial.println("Mbps");
		eth_connected = true;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_DISCONNECTED:
		Serial.println("ETH Disconnected");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	case ARDUINO_EVENT_ETH_STOP:
		Serial.println("ETH Stopped");
		eth_connected = false;
		break;
	default:
		break;
	}
}

void setup() {
	Serial.begin(115200);
	WiFi.onEvent(WiFiEvent);
	ETH.begin();

	while (!eth_connected) {
		Serial.print(".");
		delay(100);
	}

	client.setCACert(rootCA);

	// if you get a connection, report back via serial:
	if (client.connect(server, 443)) {
		Serial.println("Connected!");
		// Make a HTTP request:
		client.println("GET /get HTTP/1.1");
		client.println("Host: httpbin.org");
		client.println("Connection: close");
		client.println();
	} else {
		// if you didn't get a connection to the server:
		Serial.println("connection failed");
	}
	beginMicros = micros();

}

void loop() {
	  // if there are incoming bytes available
	  // from the server, read them and print them:
	  int len = client.available();
	  if (len > 0) {
	    byte buffer[80];
	    if (len > 80) len = 80;
	    client.read(buffer, len);
	    if (printWebData) {
	      Serial.write(buffer, len); // show in the serial monitor (slows some boards)
	    }
	    byteCount = byteCount + len;
	  }

	  // if the server's disconnected, stop the client:
	  if (len == 0 && !client.connected()) {
	    endMicros = micros();
	    Serial.println();
	    Serial.println("disconnecting.");
	    client.stop();
	    Serial.print("Received ");
	    Serial.print(byteCount);
	    Serial.print(" bytes in ");
	    float seconds = (float)(endMicros - beginMicros) / 1000000.0;
	    Serial.print(seconds, 4);
	    float rate = (float)byteCount / seconds / 1000.0;
	    Serial.print(", rate = ");
	    Serial.print(rate);
	    Serial.print(" kbytes/second");
	    Serial.println();

	    // do nothing forevermore:
	    while (true) {
	      delay(1);
	    }
	  }
}

The result is the same, but the world needs a lot of good guys.

Thanks

  1. ESP32: pinout, specs and Arduino IDE configuration
  2. ESP32: integrated SPIFFS Filesystem
  3. ESP32: manage multiple Serial and logging
  4. ESP32 practical power saving
    1. ESP32 practical power saving: manage WiFi and CPU
    2. ESP32 practical power saving: modem and light sleep
    3. ESP32 practical power saving: deep sleep and hibernation
    4. ESP32 practical power saving: preserve data, timer and touch wake up
    5. ESP32 practical power saving: external and ULP wake up
    6. ESP32 practical power saving: UART and GPIO wake up
  5. ESP32: integrated LittleFS FileSystem
  6. ESP32: integrated FFat (Fat/exFAT) FileSystem
  7. ESP32-wroom-32
    1. ESP32-wroom-32: flash, pinout, specs and IDE configuration
  8. ESP32-CAM
    1. ESP32-CAM: pinout, specs and Arduino IDE configuration
    2. ESP32-CAM: upgrade CamerWebServer with flash features
  9. ESP32: use ethernet w5500 with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)
  10. ESP32: use ethernet enc28j60 with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)
  11. How to use SD card with esp32
  12. esp32 and esp8266: FAT filesystem on external SPI flash memory
  1. Firmware and OTA update management
    1. Firmware management
      1. ESP32: flash compiled firmware (.bin)
      2. ESP32: flash compiled firmware and filesystem (.bin) with GUI tools
    2. OTA update with Arduino IDE
      1. ESP32 OTA update with Arduino IDE: filesystem, firmware, and password
    3. OTA update with Web Browser
      1. ESP32 OTA update with Web Browser: firmware, filesystem, and authentication
      2. ESP32 OTA update with Web Browser: upload in HTTPS (SSL/TLS) with self-signed certificate
      3. ESP32 OTA update with Web Browser: custom web interface
    4. Self OTA uptate from HTTP server
      1. ESP32 self OTA update firmware from the server
      2. ESP32 self OTA update firmware from the server with version check
      3. ESP32 self-OTA update in HTTPS (SSL/TLS) with trusted self-signed certificate
    5. Non-standard Firmware update
      1. ESP32 firmware and filesystem update from SD card
      2. ESP32 firmware and filesystem update with FTP client
  1. Integrating LAN8720 with ESP32 for Ethernet Connectivity with plain (HTTP) and SSL (HTTPS)
  2. Connecting the EByte E70 to ESP32 c3/s3 devices and a simple sketch example
  3. ESP32-C3: pinout, specs and Arduino IDE configuration

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