Any way to remote access without port forwarding in router?

[francois j bitz]

Sorry brand new user and for the life of me I can't figure out if BI can be setup for remote access WITHOUT going into the DSL router and doing port forwarding and using dyn/dns service....both of which I have done in the distant past but are a pain to start with.

However the reason now is I have NO way to access the router that was provided by my cable supplier(at least without using their tech support)

I have not played with port forwarding for over 4 years now as most IOT devices these days are able to be accessed without port forwarding of even DNS services...Last time I had to use the DSL modem as a bridge and buy another router to do this more easily.

 

[wayner]

The best thing to do is to set up OpenVPN server on a device on your LAN and then use OpenVPN clients on phones, tablets, PCs, etc when away from home. This is quite secure and also gives you access to everything else on your LAN. The best case scenario is if you can set up OpenVPN server on your router but it sounds like that isn't an option for you. But you can run it on a PC on your LAN.

You might also want to look into whether you can put your cable modem/router in bridge mode and use your own router. That's what I do - I don't want my cable company to have control over my LAN. My cable "gateway" is the Hitron CGN3 but I have put it in bridge mode and use a Ubiquiti Unifi USG as my router.

 

[slodat]

My Netgear Nighthawk router has OpenVPN installed on the router. Their setup makes it easy to get going on PC, Mac and smartphones. You just download the OpenVPN client from your app store, get the client files on the device and you are set. I use it to access BI and HomeSeer. I actually use HomeSeer to change BI profiles more often than not. Works well!

 

[francois j bitz]

What is the rational for BI not to have all that stuff built in? I mean work right out of the box
I spent $50 or so plus $10 on each IOS and Android App to find out I can't connect remotely without extra software or playing with the router.

Seems "outdated" to me. Every device I have bought these days does not make you go through such an "ordeal". Last time I went through this was with HomeSeer and now I can do more with stuff like Wink/Alexa/Google/Smarthings again right out of the box.

I am back to watching my Samsung cameras via the Samsung App for free and I don't need a PC or cloud storage..they have a built in SD card slot and I can review at any time.

My rational for BI is that I wanted to have video saved in case the internet goes down.

 

[fenderman]

What is the rational for BI not to have all that stuff built in? I mean work right out of the box
I spent $50 or so plus $10 on each IOS and Android App to find out I can't connect remotely "right out of the box".

Seems "outdated" to me. Every device I have bought these days does not make you go through such an "ordeal". Last time I went through this was with HomeSeer and now I can do more with stuff like Wink/Alexa/Samrthings again right out of the box.

I am back to watching my Samsung cameras via the Samsung App for free and I don't need a PC or cloud storage..they have a built in SD card slot and I can review at any time.

My rational for BI is that I wanted to have video saved in case the internet goes down.

lol...i think its amusing that you feel 60 dollars entitles you to free remote streaming on someones server for life. You dont seem to realize what a great value blue iris is...most other vms charge 50-150 PER camera licencing and offer LESS functions. 60 dollar is a joke in this industry.
The reason samsung can offer this is because they charge you PER camera upfront and most users login rarely...they also make money on the upcharge for cloud recording
IF you want free easy setup remote viewing, i suggest you check out DW spectrum...you will pay 70 dollars PER camera licensing, but its a lifetime upgrade.
Also note that most blue iris users cringe on passing their data through someone's server...you data is not secure, your speed is compromised, and when they are down you have no remote access.
Alternatively, you can buy a 60-100 dollar router - learn or pay someone to setup a vpn, and have secure access for the rest of your life...
To sum up, using a vpn is not outdated compared to cloud, its the smart solution...only fools or lazy folks rely on cloud solutions...they are charged a special perpetual stupid tax to do so...

 

[fenderman]

oh, and why in the world would you use you cable providers router? are they giving it to you for free or is there a monthly fee?

 

[wayner]

Alternatively, you can buy a 60-100 dollar router - learn or pay someone to setup a vpn, and have secure access for the rest of your life...
To sum up, using a vpn is not outdated compared to cloud, its the smart solution...only fools or lazy folks rely on cloud solutions...they are charged a special perpetual stupid tax to do so...

Absolutely the correct answer. Many of these services are huge security risks and port forwarding your cams is not a good idea other as IP cameras are notorious for having shoddy security. Setting up a VPN is not hard and has many other benefits.

 

[Mr_D]

What is the rational for BI not to have all that stuff built in? I mean work right out of the box
I spent $50 or so plus $10 on each IOS and Android App to find out I can't connect remotely without extra software or playing with the router.

Seems "outdated" to me. Every device I have bought these days does not make you go through such an "ordeal". Last time I went through this was with HomeSeer and now I can do more with stuff like Wink/Alexa/Google/Smarthings again right out of the box.

I am back to watching my Samsung cameras via the Samsung App for free and I don't need a PC or cloud storage..they have a built in SD card slot and I can review at any time.

My rational for BI is that I wanted to have video saved in case the internet goes down.

IOT devices handle it by charging a monthly fee to run the required network infrastructure and very often introduce major security vulnerabilities. Then they go belly up and brick all of your devices.

Port forwarding is not difficult but not particularly safe, although a hardened and well-maintained Windows box is likely safer than an NVR.

You're also free to setup a remote access program like TeamViewer for free on the BI box. No VPN required.

 

[venture996]

I just did what you guys suggested. It took 30 minutes, including closing my open port and seting up OpenVPN on my ASUS router, no prior experience! Crazy easy, only confusing part was needing to download an OpenVPN client. It works well. Thanks to the forum for making my network more secure.

 

[francois j bitz]

Whoah lot's of feedback which is great.

A few comments:

-It all started with my DSL router being hard to access although now they showed me how to set up it as a bridge and buy my own router.

-The IP address on the router has changed a few times which required to either pay extra for static IP or pay DYN (not expensive)

-Are you saying that OpenVPN is free of recurring charges?...when I checked their websites they charge a nominal fee per year.

-Not sure where you found TeamViewer for Free? they quote 49/month...I have used Radmin for 15 years and it is only 49 one time fee.

In the case of Samsung SmartCam the recording is done on the SD card and there are no fees as they DO NOT do cloud storage.
The problem with SmartCams is that THEY DO NOT work with BI anymore although they show up on the list of supported devices! Seems like the newest firmware has blocked BI from doing http access. its not even possible to use a regular browser anymore. they only support IE with a special plugin.

As for IOTs (ecobee, wink, MyQ,...), not they do not charge anything...but again its not a lot of bandwidth.

 

[Mr_D]

-Not sure where you found TeamViewer for Free? they quote 49/month...I have used Radmin for 15 years and it is only 49 one time fee.

TeamViewer is free for personal use. $49/mo is their business account.

 

[looney2ns]

DDNS can be found for free easily, usually right in your router.

OpenVPN is included in many routers, no fees. Or can be loaded with alternate firmware for the router.
VPN Primer for Noobs
Randy : OpenVPN on a Asus router

 

[fenderman]

Whoah lot's of feedback which is great.

A few comments:

-It all started with my DSL router being hard to access although now they showed me how to set up it as a bridge and buy my own router.

-The IP address on the router has changed a few times which required to either pay extra for static IP or pay DYN (not expensive)

-Are you saying that OpenVPN is free of recurring charges?...when I checked their websites they charge a nominal fee per year.

-Not sure where you found TeamViewer for Free? they quote 49/month...I have used Radmin for 15 years and it is only 49 one time fee.

In the case of Samsung SmartCam the recording is done on the SD card and there are no fees as they DO NOT do cloud storage.
The problem with SmartCams is that THEY DO NOT work with BI anymore although they show up on the list of supported devices! Seems like the newest firmware has blocked BI from doing http access. its not even possible to use a regular browser anymore. they only support IE with a special plugin.

As for IOTs (ecobee, wink, MyQ,...), not they do not charge anything...but again its not a lot of bandwidth.

yes, the DO charge for cloud recording and is available...SmartCloud
openvpn is free if you run the server on your own pc...also if you buy an asus router with open vpn it will be free...
logmein hamachi is also reported to work well and not even need ddns service...i have not tested it.

 

[francois j bitz]

Oops...I just logged in for my SmartCam and now I see a message about SmartCloud! did not have that popped up until now.
My cam has local SD card and I can still access without SmartCloud

 

[fenderman]

Oops...I just logged in for my SmartCam and now I see a message about SmartCloud! did not have that popped up until now.
My cam has local SD card and I can still access without SmartCloud

yes, so now the got you by the balls...sd card only recording is practically useless...

 

[francois j bitz]

Still does the motion detection and alerts and can be played back via web (albeit only IE with plugin)

SO: most high rated cams (Nest, Logitech,...) now have a cloud model for storage...seems like a new trend
Does that mean it's not possible to use BI with them? My Samsung was available for http for years now the new firmware turned that off.

Would be a great market to "hack" them to allow that.

 

[fenderman]

Still does the motion detection and alerts and can be played back via web (albeit only IE with plugin)

SO: most high rated cams (Nest, Logitech,...) now have a cloud model for storage...seems like a new trend
Does that mean it's not possible to use BI with them? My Samsung was available for http for years now the new firmware turned that off.

Would be a great market to "hack" them to allow that.

Nest/logitech are "high rated" by tech illiterates that are just happy it works...the image and function are subpar...they pay a stupid tax for using them....

 

[Malish]

Sorry I am crazy new at this. So I have an IP camera I would like to setup at my grandparents house. My grandmother is old and stubborn but refuses to go live with family. I would just like one or two cams to monitor that she has not fallen down or worse. Id like to use BI to just have everything in one spot. Do i need to setup a VPN on my router and have the router at her house connect into mine? I don't want to burden anyone here with how to do that I'm sure google will assist me.

 

[Mr_D]

Sorry I am crazy new at this. So I have an IP camera I would like to setup at my grandparents house. My grandmother is old and stubborn but refuses to go live with family. I would just like one or two cams to monitor that she has not fallen down or worse. Id like to use BI to just have everything in one spot. Do i need to setup a VPN on my router and have the router at her house connect into mine? I don't want to burden anyone here with how to do that I'm sure google will assist me.

The other way around: She'd need a VPN server at her house and you'd connect to it for viewing.

Unless you plan on covering every room with cameras, maybe something like Life Alert ("I've fallen, and I can't get up") might be more useful, especially if she falls in the bathroom. I have no experience with that service, just heard the TV commercials years ago.

 

[looney2ns]

Sorry I am crazy new at this. So I have an IP camera I would like to setup at my grandparents house. My grandmother is old and stubborn but refuses to go live with family. I would just like one or two cams to monitor that she has not fallen down or worse. Id like to use BI to just have everything in one spot. Do i need to setup a VPN on my router and have the router at her house connect into mine? I don't want to burden anyone here with how to do that I'm sure google will assist me.

Yes, you setup the VPN server on your router, then you setup the VPN client on her router.
Then BI can safely see the cam from your house to hers.
The Asus routers make this fairly easy to do.