IP Camera Initial Network Setup
Follow this IP camera initial setup guide / network setup if you are using your
Viewtron IP camera without a Viewtron NVR with built-in PoE (Power over Ethernet). This includes Viewtron AI cameras. For clarification, when you connect a Viewtron IP camera to the PoE port on a Viewtron NVR, much of the initial network setup described in this article is not required because the NVR assigns and manages the IP addresses for you. To be clear, these instruction are applicable for the following installation types.
- Stand-alone IP Camera Installation - Camera is not setup to record to a separate DVR or NVR. Customer plans on using the camera for remote viewing only with no recording or customer will use the camera's internal SD card slot to record.
- LAN Connection to DVR or NVR - Camera is connected to a local network switch. A DVR or NVR connects to the camera over the local network.
All of these installation methods support the ability to view your camera(s) from iPhone, Android, Mac, and Windows.
Follow these instructions to install your IP camera on your local network so that you can access the camera directly, as opposed to accessing your IP camera through a DVR or NVR.
- Connect your camera to your network. Most customers either use a PoE switch (like you see above) or a single port PoE injector. The red lines that you see above represents CAT5e cable connecting the IP camera and laptop computer to the network switch.
- Your router will automatically assign the IP camera a network IP address.
- The blue cable represents the CAT5e network cable that connects the video uplink port of the switch to the router.
- Once the IP camera starts up, which usually takes about 10 seconds, you can locate the IP camera on your network using one of these 3 network IP scanner tools.
Here are four ways to locate your IP camera on your local network. Please note that the
latest IP Installer Tool, Mobile Apps, and VMS Software downloads can all be found here.
- IP Installer Tool - If you have a Windows PC connected to the same network as your IP camera, you can install the IP Installer tool to find your IP camera on your network.
- Mobile Apps - The mobile apps for iPhone and Android both have a network scanner / IP camera locator function built-in.
- Windows / Mac VMS Software - DVR / IP camera software for Mac and Windows is capable of connecting directly to Viewtron IP cameras. The software has a built-in network scanner / IP camera locator.
The Viewtron IP locator tool is only available for Windows at this time. If you do not have a Windows PC on the same network as your IP camera, please use one of the other methods to locate your IP camera on your LAN.
- Download the latest IP Installer software here and un-zip the file on your Windows PC.
- The un-zipped file is a software installer. Run that program.
- Please note that your Windows PC must be connected to the same local network as your IP camera.
- After you start the IP locator software, it will automatically scan the local network for Viewtron IP cameras. It will also search for any non-Viewtron brand ONVIF compliant IP cameras. This is what the network search looks like in the IP Installer software.
You can see above that the IP Installer tool found one Viewtron IP camera, model IP-D8 on the network.
The Viewtron mobile app for iPhone and Android has a built-in network IP camera search tool. This is convenient for customers who do not have a Windows PC on their network.
1)
Download the latest Viewtron compatible mobile apps here. Then, open the app on your iPhone or Android.
2) Tap on the Server List icon in the upper right. Then tap on the Add Server icon in the upper right.
3) On the "Add Device" screen, tap in the down arrow to reveal and tap on the "Local Scan for Device" option. It may take 15-30 seconds for the network search to finish and the app does not do a good job of letting you know that it is working, so please be patient and wait at least 30 seconds. When the network scan is complete, all of the IP cameras detected on the network will be displayed. You can see in the above right screenshot that one IP-B8 camera was found on IP address 192.168.0.131.
If you tap on the camera, the IP address will be added to the IP field in the app.
4) The IP address:port will be automatically filled in for you. Enter a Name for your IP camera, User ID, and Password. Then, tap the preview button to test the network connection. The default User ID for Viewtron IP cameras is "admin". The default password is "123456".
The VMS (Video Management System) software for Mac and Windows is identical in features and functionality. The interface is exactly the same.
- Download VMS software for Mac and Windows here.
- Un-zip the file on your PC and install.
- Please note that your Windows or Macintosh PC must be connected to the same local network as your IP camera.
- When you start the VMS software, you will be prompt for User Name and Password. The defaults are admin, 123456.
- From the main screen, select the Resource Management link or icon.
- From the main screen, select the Resource Management link or icon.
- On the Resource Management screen click on the Add button.
- The "Add Device" screen is a network scanner tool. It will scan the local area network for any Viewtron IP cameras, DVRs, and NVRs. It will also search for any non-Viewtron brand IP cameras that are ONVIF compliant. You can see in the above screenshot, that the IP scanner found the Viewtron IP camera that we were installing along with 2 other ONVIF IP cameras that are on our network. The 4th device that was found is a Viewtron DVR. Click the checkbox next to the IP camera that you are adding and press OK. You can make note of the IP address of your camera.
- Click Home, then Live View.
- On the Live View screen, you will see a "default area" on the left. Expand this list and you will see the IP camera that you added.
- Click and drag the IP camera from that list to the live view screen on the right. You should see a live view of your IP camera.
Above is a screenshot of the live security camera view of a Viewtron IP camera on the Mac software for Viewtron. It looks the same on Windows.
The Viewtron IP locator tool is only available for Windows at this time. If you do not have a Windows PC on the same network as your IP camera, please use one of the other methods to locate your IP camera on your LAN.
- Download the latest IP Installer software here and un-zip the file on your Windows PC.
- The un-zipped file is a software installer. Run that program.
- Please note that your Windows PC must be connected to the same local network as your IP camera.
- After you start the IP locator software, it will automatically scan the local network for Viewtron IP cameras. It will also search for any non-Viewtron brand ONVIF compliant IP cameras. This is what the network search looks like in the IP Installer software.
You can see above that the IP Installer tool found one Viewtron IP camera, model IP-D8 on the network. If you double click on the device, a web browser will open. Please note that only Internet Explorer is supported at this time for live video display. However, Chrome and Safari web browsers can be used to manage all of the settings of your IP camera (just no video display is supported)
The above network setup / installation instructions are also applicable when you are using a Viewtron DVR or NVR and connecting your IP camera to a local network (not directly to the PoE ports on a Viewtron NVR).
Please note that Viewtron DVRs also have built-in network IP scanner that can be used instead of the network scanners documented above.
Next Steps
Here are some additional setup tasks that you should do.
- DHCP Reservation / Static IP Address Setup - Now that you IP camera has been assigned an IP address on your network, you should reserve that address so that the same one is always assigned to it. DHCP reservation is setup in case your camera is ever restarted or looses power. This ensures that the same IP address is assigned and your desktop and mobile apps do not loose their connections to your IP camera.
- Port Forwarding - The above setup instructions enabled you to connect to your IP camera on your local network. If you want to access your cameras from remotely over the Internet (when you are not on-site with your IP camera), then you need to setup port forwarding on your router.
Learn more about Viewtron Security Camera DVRs / NVRs
Learn more about the latest Viewtron
NVRs for IP cameras with built-in PoE here. Please note that Viewtron AI security camera software in only integrated with Viewtron NVRs. Viewtron hybrid DVRs work with Viewtron IP cameras but the AI software is not yets integrated.
Works with Analog CCTV, Network IP, and HD BNC Security Cameras
We also Viewtron Hybrid Security Camera DVRs available that work with analog CCTV and HD BNC security cameras. You can mix and match different camera technologies. This is perfect for customers that have existing CCTV cameras and want to upgrade to high definition over time. Hybrid iDVR-PROs work with the following security camera types and resolutions.
4K security cameras.
- AHD Cameras (720p, 1080p / 2mp, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 4K / 8mp / 4K)
- HD-TVI Cameras (720p, 1080p / 2mp, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 4K / 8mp / 4K)
- HD-CVI Cameras (720p, 1080p / 2mp, 3mp, 4mp, 5mp, 4K / 8mp / 4K)
- Network IP Cameras - ONVIF compatible IP cameras up to 4K resolution supported
- Analog CCTV Cameras (all analog resolution supported including CIF, D1, 960H)
Complete Security Camera Systems
Did you know? CCTV Camera Pros can provide a complete surveillance system quote that includes any Viewtron DVR or NVR model? We can include security cameras, cables, connectors, power supplies, and monitors. We can even mix and match IP cameras and HD BNC security cameras because Viewtron DVRs are hybrid. This means that they work with just about any type of security camera. As you have probably already seen on our website, we have 2, 4, 8, and 16 camera surveillance systems in pre-made packages. However, it is not possible for us to package up every combination and quantity of all the different camera models that we carry. We now have a 32 channel NVR, 32 channel DVR, and 64 channel NVR available. So, we can also provide you with a custom quote with as many cameras as you need and a mix of any combination of camera model(s) based on your project requirements. Please
request a quote when you are ready.
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