Remote Viewing Problem

[Tony Simmons]

Posting in this section of the group because I believe this to be a networking problem. Please correct me if wrong:

Just changed NVR to a Dahua NV4216-EI (No poe ports). NVR is connected directly to a router port.
There are 16 Dahua cams connected to a POE switch, then directly to a router port.

My previous system was networked the same way and worked flawlessly, but now I am unable to view the cameras remotely.
If viewed on Wifi in the office all is well.

The strange thing to me is that the Dahua phone app will send me push notifications correctly, but no video is available.

I've tried using the p2p seeting in the nvr and opening ports, but no luck. Help please.

Thanks,

Tony

 

[The Automation Guy]

OK. So you have no problem viewing the cameras through the NVR system while on the local network, correct? Your problem occurs when you try to access the NVR feeds while away? If this is the case, your issue probably lies within your network's router, not the NVR. Right now I suspect that any P2P connection that the NVR is creating is being broken by the router (which is doing it's job in that case). Your router needs to forward a port to the NVR for remote access. That being said, we recommend that you don't use port forwarding like this because it is extremely insecure. Basically when you port forward to the NVR, you are bypassing the router's firewall and are now relying on the security of your NVR's firmware to prevent anyone from hacking the NVR. These device's firmware is generally anything but secure.

A better solution would be to use a self hosted VPN or similar solution to provide access to your network while remote. Doing it this way, your remote device will appear on the local network as if you were sitting at home, so if you have access to the NVR while at home, you would also have access to the NVR via the VPN service without having to change any other settings (other than setting the VPN up).

Be sure to look through this wiki article for more information on how to secure your network. How to Secure Your Network (Don't Get Hacked!)

 

[Tony Simmons]

OK. So you have no problem viewing the cameras through the NVR system while on the local network, correct? Your problem occurs when you try to access the NVR feeds while away? If this is the case, your issue probably lies within your network's router, not the NVR. Right now I suspect that any P2P connection that the NVR is creating is being broken by the router (which is doing it's job in that case). Your router needs to forward a port to the NVR for remote access. That being said, we recommend that you don't use port forwarding like this because it is extremely insecure. This is when you port forward to the NVR, you are bypassing the router's firewall and are now relying on the security of your NVR's firmware to prevent anyone from hacking the NVR. These device's firmware is generally anything but secure.

A better solution would be to use a self hosted VPN or similar solution to provide access to your network while remote. Doing it this way, your remote device will appear on the local network as if you were sitting at home, so if you have access to the NVR while at home, you would also have access to the NVR via the VPN service without having to change any other settings (other than setting the VPN up).

Be sure to look through this wiki article for more information on how to secure your network. How to Secure Your Network (Don't Get Hacked!)

I have been guilty of using the p2p solution because of poor networking skills.
This would be a good time for me to become familiar with the open VPN setup.