Question about ISP changing my IP address

T

Tony Wright

n3wb
Jan 15, 2019
14
0
Waterloo Ontario
Sorry if this is a basic question but I am still a beginner in things internet/IP related.

I got my first Lorex IP camera (LNW16XF) with SD card storage working with access from my phone anywhere and was about to buy several more cameras for a security system at our cottage. Then I read that my ISP can change my IP address at the cottage anytime and I would have to reconfigure every camera. Then I got lost with all sorts of DDNS information.

Is this ISP/IP change a real problem or is there a simple explanation of the solution?
I don't want an NVR or cloud storage or the need for leaving a computer at the cottage, I just want to be able to use stand alone cameras accessed from the phone app. The cameras and modem/router will be powered from a DC only solar system.

Thanks
Tony
 
There are couple of things to try:
- sometimes your internet router can provide (some kind of) DDNS process (eg ASUS has its own) - or you use a "free" one like no-ip.com, if your WAN IP changes, these processes are set-up to "follow" to the new IP address
- but some (like me) do not want to rely on external services, so I set-up a scheduled script which dials-out to myself, so I always have the "source" IP address of this ET-phone-home process. Luckily for me, my ISP did not change my IP since 7 years, but you could potentially setup something similar.

Hope this helps!
CC
 
Investigate dyndns.org, duckdns.org, no-ip.com, or others. Most consumer wifi routers provide dynamic DNS services. Many IP cameras will perform this service, as well. The concept is simple: your router (or camera) reaches out to the dynamic DNS service, and reports its external WAN IP address. The dynamic DNS service then updates your DNS node name to match that address. Most of the time, the DNS service simply reports "no change". But when the ISP changes your IP address, the DNS service will update your DNS name to match.
 
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I didn't mention that I am using a ZTE-MF-279T Rocket hub for cellular internet access to my cameras so I decided to do an actual test to answer my own question.
I tested what happens when the Rocket hub external IP address changes i.e. do I lose contact with my IP cameras? I forced the IP address to change by switching the Rocket hub off and on and then checked the IP address using "Whatsmyip" This showed that every time I did this (switch off and on) the allocated external IP address did in fact change. The good news is that it did not affect communication between my Android phone and the cameras. It was as if nothing had happened. I confirmed the contact using both a public wifi (McDonalds) and via a cellular data connection. I also tested connection with a remote wifi AC wall outlet switch (as used in Smart Homes) and got the same results.

So it seems that there is no problem and I don't need to get into DDNS with the Rocket Hub.
Perhaps someone can explain why it works like this?

Tony
 
Tony Wright said:
I didn't mention that I am using a ZTE-MF-279T Rocket hub for cellular internet access to my cameras so I decided to do an actual test to answer my own question.
I tested what happens when the Rocket hub external IP address changes i.e. do I lose contact with my IP cameras? I forced the IP address to change by switching the Rocket hub off and on and then checked the IP address using "Whatsmyip" This showed that every time I did this (switch off and on) the allocated external IP address did in fact change. The good news is that it did not affect communication between my Android phone and the cameras. It was as if nothing had happened. I confirmed the contact using both a public wifi (McDonalds) and via a cellular data connection. I also tested connection with a remote wifi AC wall outlet switch (as used in Smart Homes) and got the same results.

So it seems that there is no problem and I don't need to get into DDNS with the Rocket Hub.
Perhaps someone can explain why it works like this?

Tony
Click to expand...
this is because you are using the dahua/lorex p2p system which is not secure.
 
Tony Wright said:
So why did it work when I did the same test with the remote wifi AC wall outlet switch. It is a Orvibo switch and I used the "Homemate" app, not the Lorex app.
Tony
Click to expand...
the switch uses similar technology, it does not require an open port. You should run those on your guest wifi, they are not secure devices.
 
fenderman said:
the switch uses similar technology, it does not require an open port. You should run those on your guest wifi, they are not secure devices.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice, my router has guest wifi.
Am I right in assuming that putting the IOT devices on the guest wifi protects the rest of my system, like my computer, rather than protecting the IOT's?
Where is this leading if IOT's are such a security problem? There are more and more IOT's being sold every day and I'm sure only a very small minority of people will concern themselves with security.
Tony
 
Tony Wright said:
Thanks for the advice, my router has guest wifi.
Am I right in assuming that putting the IOT devices on the guest wifi protects the rest of my system, like my computer, rather than protecting the IOT's?
Where is this leading if IOT's are such a security problem? There are more and more IOT's being sold every day and I'm sure only a very small minority of people will concern themselves with security.
Tony
Click to expand...
Yes it will protect the rest of your network...by default most routers segregate the two. Double check your settings.
The small minority of people who care use routers that allow for vlan to keep these devices segregated.
 
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