Security cameras not working?
Security cameras are great for keeping tabs on your property, and I can't imagine not having them. But sooner or later, you'll have problems connecting to one or all of your cameras. I'll explain the problems currents that could cause this.
What are the most common problems with security cameras not working and how do I fix them?
The camera is unplugged.
The camera too far from your router.
You are entering an incorrect username and password.
Has your router been reset or replaced?
The DVR or NVR unplugged.
The DVR or NVR disconnected from your router.
Your security cameras have been hacked.
1. Is the camera plugged in?
Wireless security cameras need power to operate, some wireless security cameras are battery operated while others are plugged into an electrical outlet.
A common problem for offline security cameras can be caused by either a dead battery or someone unplugging the power cable from the camera or the wall outlet.
First, make sure the camera is plugged into the electrical outlet or make sure the power cord is plugged into the camera. If your camera is running on battery, change the battery and wait 2-3 minutes for the camera to start.
Once you turn on the camera, it takes a few minutes for the video to appear on your smartphone, so be patient. Most cameras have lights on the front of the camera. You will see the LED light up on the camera as soon as you plug it in or change the battery.
If the video does not play after a few minutes, you may need to close the app and reopen it.
2. Make sure the camera is not too far from your router.
Most wifi cameras have a signal strength indicator in the camera settings. Go to camera settings in the app, find the camera status, and make sure the wifi signal strength is within an acceptable range of your wireless router.
Wireless camera signal strength
Explanation of signal strength
Most cameras display the signal strength and give you a guide to what the signal strength level means and some highlight the signal strength number in green, yellow or red.
When the signal strength is displayed in red, it means the wifi signal is weak, a yellow display means it is acceptable but could be better, and green means the signal strength is good.
If your camera doesn't have a signal strength reading, try moving it closer to your wireless router, I usually plug it in within 5-10 feet of the router and wait a few minutes for the camera to boot up.
If the camera starts working, unplug it again and move it away a bit. Repeat this until you get to the point where it's not working and you'll know how far it can be placed from the router until until it is out of reach.
What if you move it closer to the router and it still doesn't work?
Some wireless cameras have an Ethernet port on the back of the camera. If you have an Ethernet cable, try plugging the camera directly into your router and wait for it to power up.
If you don't see video from the camera after a few minutes, close the app and reopen it. If the camera starts working, the problem is most likely caused by entering the wrong wifi password.
3. Have you recently changed your wifi network router password?
If you recently changed your wifi password, your security cameras will not connect to the network. Log into the cameras app, go to settings and update the new wifi password.
4. Have you recently reset your router?
If you have reset your router, your wireless cameras will not connect because either the password has changed or the camera is no longer linked to your router.
Some security cameras don't give you the option to enter a wifi password, but connect to your router using the WPS button.
WPS stands for Wi-Fi Protected Setup.
Connect your security camera to your router using the WPS button.
Approach the camera to your router and plug it in. Wait 2-3 minutes for it to start.
Press the WPS button on the router for three seconds until the light starts flashing, the WPS light will flash for a few minutes to give you time to press the WPS button on the back of the camera.
Some cameras may not have a button. Instead, you will need to insert a paper clip into a small hole on the back of the camera and press it for three seconds.
An orange light will start flashing on the front of the camera to indicate that it is connecting to the router. When the camera connects successfully, it will stop flashing. Connecting the camera to the router should take no longer than 30 seconds. Sometimes you may need to repeat this step if it fails to connect.
Why are IP cameras offline?
Make sure your cameras are plugged in.
IP cameras will have a flashing light on the front, back, or inside of the camera when powered on or plugged into the network. If you don't see any lights on the camera, make sure that the camera is powered.
There are two ways to turn on an IP camera:
Using a transformer plugged into an electrical outlet or a power supply mounted near the NVR.
Using Power over Ethernet (POE). POE cameras only need one cable between the Ethernet switch and the camera for video and power. The Ethernet switch is either built into the NVR (Network Video Recorder), or it can be a separate unit mounted close to the NVR.
Check that your camera is powered.
If the camera uses a transformer or power supply, make sure it's plugged in and wait a few minutes for it to turn on.
If the camera is powered over Ethernet, make sure it is plugged into the POE Ethernet switch.
If the POE switch is not built into the NVR, then all the ports on the back of the Ethernet switch may not be POE ports. A few of the ports are usually standard ports that do not power the camera.
Make sure the camera is plugged into a POE port and not a standard port on the router.
Restart the camera
IP security cameras work 24/7 and, like computers, they need to be restarted from time to time. There are several ways to restart cameras.
Restart the NVR. If your IP cameras are plugged directly into the NVR, you can simply restart the NVR. Restarting the NVR will momentarily remove power from the IP cameras, allowing them to restart.
Unplug the Ethernet cable from the camera or Ethernet switch
If the cameras are plugged into a separate Ethernet switch and not the NVR, you can turn off and restart the Ethernet switch. Turning off the Ethernet switch will also turn off any other devices plugged into it.
If the IP cameras are powered by a power supply, you can unplug or reset the power supply, wait 10 seconds and plug it back in. This will also turn off any other cameras connected to power.
If the camera uses a transformer, unplug the transformer, wait 10 seconds, and plug it back in.
5. Maybe your DVR or NVR is offline?
You will know when your DVR (Digital Video Recorder) or NVR (Network Video Recorder) is offline because you will get an error when you try to view your cameras on your smartphone. It will say something like, connection failed or the camera is offline.
The most common reasons why a DVR or NVR is offline are:
The DVR or NVR is unplugged.
The DVR or NVR is unplugged and has no power. Make sure the lights on the front of the DVR or NVR are on. If not, check the following:
Make sure it is plugged into the electrical outlet.
Check the power strip or surge protector and make sure they are turned on and plugged in.
Check the power cable on the back of the DVR or NVR. The cable may have been unplugged on the back of the device or it may not be making a good connection.
6. DVR or NVR is disconnected from the network
Check the Ethernet cable, it may be unplugged from the router and no longer connected to the internet.
Check the router to see if it is unplugged and not receiving power.
There is a setting in your router called port forwarding that allows you to view your cameras remotely. If the router has been reset or replaced, port forwarding is disabled and prevents you from viewing your cameras remotely.
I can't tell you how to set up port forwarding because it's different for each router. You can google your router's port forwarding to know what you need to do.
To set up port forwarding you will need your router's admin username and password. Next you will need to login to your DVR or NVR, go to the network tab and find the IP address and the port used.
You will see several port numbers in the settings, but the port you need is usually called server port, monitoring port, mobile port.
Setting up port forwarding is a bit of a hassle and isn't something most people want to do, so it may be best to call your security company if you have one or contact a company like Geek Squad to do it for you.
Your IP address may have changed
Every device connected to the Internet has an IP address. Your Internet service provider assigns your modem a dynamic IP address. Dynamic means that the IP address changes and is not always the same.
When you view your security cameras remotely, the app on your phone tries to connect to your cameras using the IP address provided to your modem and if that IP address has changed, you will not be able to connect .
For this reason, we use what is called a DDNS address instead of your IP address. DDNS stands for Dynamic Domain Name Server, and this server keeps track of your changing IP address so you can see your cameras at all times. moment.
But on some DVR or NVR this update is not instantaneous or sometimes fails to update the new IP address. To fix this you will need to call the person or company that installed your system and ask them to put update your IP address manually in your DDNS account.
Restart your router
When all else fails, sometimes restarting the router will do the trick. Your router is on 24/7 and like anything else, it just needs a restart to work properly.
It doesn't hurt to restart your router before doing any of the other steps mentioned here, there have been a few occasions where I spent an hour checking everything and restarting the router to fix the problem.
7. Your security cameras may have been hacked.
The subject of hacking mainly applies to wired analog and IP security camera systems. Hacking has become a big problem for security cameras, and one of the symptoms of hacking is that the user cannot log in to see his cameras.
Someone who hacks into your cameras can remove your username and password, preventing you from logging in. To find out if your system has been hacked, you must first login to your DVR or NVR and follow these steps
To connect, you will need to connect a video monitor to the DVR if you don't already have one, and access the settings menu. If your system has been hacked, you may not be able to connect to the DVR at all because the DVR may have locked you out or the username and password have been deleted.
You will know if you have been locked out of the DVR because there will be an error message when you try to log in that says something like "user has been locked out, please try again later".
You can try restarting the DVR by turning it off for about 10 seconds and then turning it back on. Doing this usually unlocks the user and allows you to enter the settings menu.
If you restart the DVR and still cannot connect to the DVR, then you will need to contact the DVR manufacturer or whoever installed it.
If you are able to connect to the DVR, go to the main menu, then to the user settings and check if there are users added to the system, if not, go to the Add users or accounts tab and create a new one user profile for yourself. Then try logging into the app and see if you can see your cameras.
If you have been hacked another thing to check is the video settings of the cameras, sometimes the hacker will max out all the video settings such as contrast and color to the point where the image is completely black making it look like the camera does not work.
To check this, find the video settings which are usually found under the Camera tab and reset the values to the default settings if you can or change them manually.
Once you have reset the video settings, you will see the cameras image appear on the video monitor.
Conclusion
I hope some of these tips help you. Although these tips are general tips and not specific to any particular brand or model of security camera, most security cameras have very similar settings.