HIK Vision 1 camera showing as offline?

[Chip]

Hi

I stumbled across this extremely informative site / forum whilst trying to sort an issue I have with my HIK system.

I have 9 cameras on my property; 4 are connected directly into the NVR & 5 (which are situated away from the house) by PoE. All have worked completely fine since they were installed a couple of years ago.

Recently, one of the PoE cameras (D4) has started showing as offline and I am unable to view it either via the HIK Connect app or via the NVR interface. The other 8 (including the other 4 PoEs) are still working without issue

Having spent hours trying to find a solution (to no avail) on the internet I came across this site. I’ve read through the various similar threads but I’m either doing something wrong or not grasping what is needed.

I attach a couple of pictures of the camera configuration and would be grateful if anyone could offer any words of advice. Although I am reasonably tech savvy with day to day stuff, I might need to be treated like a child with anything too in-depth!

Many, many thanks in advance

 

[Chip]

Hi Dan

I've tried it again using IE and I still get the same error, annoyingly.

 

[Dan]

okay,

When logged into the NVR can you go to Configuration > Network > Basic Settings > TCP/IP and confirm the Preferred and Alternate DNS servers that your NVR is currently using?

 

[Chip]

Of course. The auto DNS box is ticked. The preferred DNS server is 192.168.1.1 and the alternate DNS server box is blank (although there is a a green tick next to it)

 

[Dan]

okay,

We would recommend unticking the auto DNS box and then manually changing the DNS servers to the below default Google DNS servers:

Preferred - 8.8.8.8
Alternate - 8.8.4.4

Save these DNS settings and then go back to the Virtual Host setting and see if you can now enable it.

 

[Chip]

I’ve tried that and get the same “parameter error” when attempting to save the changes. ARGH!

 

[Dan]

Strange, I can't remember seeing this parameter error issue before.

Can I check, are you using a PC/laptop that is plugged directly into the NVR ports or a PC/laptop that is connected to a switch elsewhere on the same network as the NVR?

 

[Chip]

I’ve tried both (into the non PoE switch which the NVR is connected to and the switch itself) as well as trying directly into the main router / modem and over wifi

 

[Chip]

So, I’ve continued to try and get this to work. Wasn’t sure if it was something I could access via a monitor / hdmi from the NVR. But having tried I’ve come across a similar menu for setting the preferred / alternate DNS. When I add 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 here and try to save it I get the attached error message. Could this be what’s causing the “parameter error” when attempting to do it via the IP address and an IE browser?

 

[Dan]

Hi @Chip

Yes, that looks like it is the same error message just with more explanation, but I can't understand why it would be saying you have clashing IP addresses when I can't see any repeated IP addresses in any of the screenshots you have sent.

It might be that some other network device you have recently added to your local network has been assigned the same IP as the NVR and this is causing strange network conflicts.

Can you open Command Prompt on a PC on the same network as the NVR and try pinging some of the IP addresses around the one your NVR is currently using (e.g. 192.168.1.7 / 192.168.1.8 / 192.168.1.9 / etc...) and see if any of these addresses are free and unused by any other device. If they are you can disable DHCP in the network settings of the NVR and manually change the NVRs IP address to one of these available addresses before trying the Virtual Host setting again.

 

[Chip]

Hi Dan

It’s been another bizarre sequence of events. I did what you suggested, but whatever free IP address I changed the NVR to, I was unable to log in to it via an IE browser (I was just taken into a landing page for my router / ISP)

So I left the DCHP disabled and just entered the original IP address and it worked - it let me update and save the DNS servers and then log in to the NVR on a browser and tick / save the virtual host option. I have subsequently been able to update the firmware on the remaining cameras. So, strangely, it seems by just disabling the DCHP setting but leaving the original IP address, it all started behaving.

I know it’s pushing my luck…. But one final question if I may? Now the faulty camera has been reset and re-added (it’s hard to remember that was what set this whole chain of events off), how do I set the live view so it’s permanently zoomed in a little? I remember when I first had them installed there was a way to set the zoom but can’t recall how.

Many thanks again for all your help!

 

[Dan]

Hi @Chip

Good to hear you've figured it out and got the firmware updated.

To adjust the zoom of the camera you simply need to click the little red arrow on the right edge of the live view window to open the PTZ controls, you should then be able to zoom in and out until you find the coverage you want and that should be it, the zoom position should not change when you log in and out of the camera (it should only change if you reboot/reset the camera).