Adding a camera

There are two ways to add a camera: let camera.ui discover it, or add it manually with its stream URL. Both start from the Cameras page (open it from the menu, or select Get started on the home screen when you have no cameras yet).

Before you start

• Power on the camera and connect it to the same network as your server.
• For network discovery, enable ONVIF in the camera's own settings.
• Have the camera's username and password ready. For a manual add, also have its RTSP URL (from the camera's manual or app).

Discover a camera

The Cameras page lists devices that have been discovered, ready for you to add. A camera shows up here when camera.ui's built-in discovery finds it on your network (ONVIF and other protocols), or when a plugin that manages cameras reports one. Either way, you add it the same way. Cameras you have already added appear under Adopted cameras. Discovery and adding are for admins; other users open the same Cameras page as a plain list and tap through to any camera.

1. Open Cameras. Discovery runs automatically. If a camera on your network doesn't appear, select Rescan and check that it's powered on and on the same network.
2. Select a camera under Discovered. A Connect dialog opens. Where the address is known, the Address column shows it, and the dialog repeats it above the credential fields.
3. Some cameras need credentials. If asked, enter the username and password (a few use a PIN instead), then select Connect. Others need no details and connect right away.
4. The status changes to Connecting…. camera.ui reads out the camera and opens Confirm camera, showing the Name, Room and the Sources it found. Adjust them if you want, or leave them as they are.
5. Select Add camera. The camera moves to Adopted cameras and shows up in your live view.

You can hide devices you don't want to see with the eye icon, and bring them back later with Show hidden devices.

Add a camera manually

Use this for cameras that aren't discovered, or to set up streams yourself. Select Add camera on the Cameras page.

1. Give the camera a Name, and optionally assign it to a Room.
2. Under Sources, set up at least one stream:
   • Enter a Source name.
   • Pick a Source role: High Resolution, Mid Resolution, or Low Resolution for streaming, or Snapshot for stills. At least one streaming role is required.
   • Paste the full stream URL including the protocol, for example rtsp://user:pass@192.168.1.50:554/stream. RTSP works with most IP cameras. camera.ui detects the protocol from the URL and shows Detected protocol under the field. Use the (i) button next to the field for protocol-specific help, or Test camera source to preview a frame.
3. Select Add source to add another URL to the same source. To add a second source with another role, for example a low-resolution stream for fast scrubbing, use the plus button below the Sources card.
4. Save. The camera appears in your Cameras list and live view.

TIP

The NVR plugin, if installed and enabled, is activated for every new camera automatically, whether you added it manually or adopted it from Discovered. Recording then starts on its own as long as your subscription has a free camera slot. You can change the mode or turn recording off per camera, see Recording.

Sources and roles

A camera can have several sources, each with a role:

• High / Mid / Low Resolution are streaming tiers. camera.ui uses the one that fits the situation, such as a low-resolution stream in a multi-camera grid and a high-resolution one at full screen.
• Snapshot provides still images.

One source is enough to get started. Adding a lower-resolution stream later improves performance for grids and playback.

Source options

Each streaming source has a few options:

• Hot mode. Keeps the connection to the camera always active, so there's no reconnect delay when a stream is opened.
• Preload. Preloads the stream so the camera view opens with minimal delay.
• Mute audio. Removes the audio track from this source. Off by default.

With hot mode and preload on, opening a stream is near-instant, whether the camera uses H.264 or H.265.

Connection protocols

camera.ui supports many connection types. RTSP works with almost any IP camera and is the usual choice, while ONVIF powers discovery. The protocol list also covers specific brands and systems, some of which connect directly and others through a plugin. The (i) button next to the URL field shows instructions for the protocol it detected, where they exist. See Connection protocols for the full list.^[1]

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1. Cameras that depend on a vendor cloud (such as Ring or Nest) can be connected, either directly or through a plugin, but they are not recommended and not covered by support. Use local RTSP / ONVIF cameras for a reliable experience. ↩︎