Cannot connect with S/N

[JasG]

I have a new IP2M-841B-V3 camera.

I have two Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge phones. The first, call it “VZ”, has no SIM card but I use it often just as a wifi device. The second, call it “TM”, is a TMobile phone with real cell service.

I installed Amcrest View Pro on VZ and used that to install the webcam using the ethernet cable method. All good. I also got it to work fine from Chrome on a Windows PC on the same LAN as the camera, using a local IP address 192.168.0.x.

I also wanted to test that the VZ phone would work okay from any wifi anywhere, not just in my house. So I turned off wifi on the TM phone, turned on hotspot, and connected VZ to that hotspot instead of my house LAN where the camera is. Works fine.

But my brother needs to connect without being local: no ethernet cable, no QR scanning. I wanted to make sure this works, so I used the TM phone to test.

I set P2P mode on the camera from the PC or VZ, installed Amcrest View Pro on the TM, turned off TM’s wifi (it still has cell phone data connection to the Internet), and tried to add the device in Amcrest View Pro by entering the S/N of the camera. So I go to Device Manager, then Add Device, WiFi Camera, Add Connected Device, P2P Setup, check the light on the camera is steady green, and paste in the S/N.

Next it wants a Camera Name. This makes no sense, since the camera already has a name, but okay, I enter a name. Then I enter user admin, the password I set for that, and Start Live View. After a pause it says “Failed to connect.”

What’s wrong?

TIA/jasg

[Revo2Maxx]

Hello and welcome to the forum

So I am not sure I understand everything that you tried to do.. First of all if the camera has been connected then you don't have to setup your phone for the connection like your setting up the camera for the first time... Also you have to have your system connected over the Wifi for you to connect the camera first time.. So in the part where you were trying to connect phone had Wifi off on Data plan and tried to connect phone it don't and won't work that way..

So I am going to guess your trying to access the camera on another phone? Or you trying to connect to the camera on a different network? Meaning you moved the camera?

So if you have P2P on.. If I knew the Password, I could from here with your SN of the camera and Password I could see your camera over my Amcrest View Pro app on my S9 or my iPhone 7 that I still use with out service lol.. That is TM and the one I have service is VZ or any of my other older Cell phones I have kicking around I use for monitors if needed...

[JasG]

Thanks for replying.

I want to do exactly what you said after, "if I knew the password..." It doesn't work for me.

Read my msg from "So I go to Device Manager..." That's how I try to do it.

Is that how you would do this? Yes it acts like I'm trying to create the camera anew, asking for a new name. All i wanna do is connect, with a new phone, from a remote location.

[jack7]

JasG, you wrote:
"...I set P2P mode on the camera from the PC or VZ, installed Amcrest View Pro on the TM, turned off TM’s wifi (it still has cell phone data connection to the Internet), and tried to add the device in Amcrest View Pro by entering the S/N of the camera. So I go to Device Manager, then Add Device, WiFi Camera, Add Connected Device, P2P Setup, check the light on the camera is steady green, and paste in the S/N.
Next it wants a Camera Name. This makes no sense, since the camera already has a name, but okay, I enter a name. Then I enter user admin, the password I set for that, and Start Live View..."

That sequence works for me.
Maybe the hotspot is still on and affecting it.
Try it a few more times...

[Revo2Maxx]

So if you are working with just 1 phone and device maybe there was an issue with the install of the software.. I would try and remove it and add the software again... I have a few items in my list if I had to delete and add again I would toss in the towel lol.. However if your on a phone that has not had one active yet it might be an issue with software..

Once installed again. You will click, you have to make a name for the device on the Phone because you might call it what you like but someone other then you might not understand that so for the sake of keeping them different between devices you put in a name,

SO after you press the + then pick the type don't forget to change the top tab to Add Connected Device if you keep the first Tab (Connect New Device) you will have to act like the Setup for the camera is new.. Then Press the P2P Option then Scan the SN if you are by it if not click the Enter S/N Manually then enter the S/N Then next screen it will ask for the Name Put in a Name, then put in the password for the camera once you have that click on the Start Live View and camera should be added....

SmartSelect_20200801-215621_Amcrest View Pro.jpg (158.15 KiB) Viewed 1544 times

[JasG]

Folks, thanks for the help, it's working now. Not entirely clear why.

I had the S/N corrupted for a bit, fixed that, reinstalled the app at least once more, still no joy, reinstalled again, then it started working. I was using my LAN at that moment, so I reinstalled and tried again from scratch on cell data, and it worked. I was also getting the name I was giving the camera on that phone, sometimes using the same name as the other phone, sometimes not. Hard to see that the voice of name should matter.
Go figure....

Anyway, it worked. I don't have huge confidence that it will work trouble free for the other user who is very far away, but we'll see.

Thanks again.

[Revo2Maxx]

Well I have a Friend that has a camera over in another country and I helped them work on setting up some things and because of the cell phone they had we used an 841 connected to Wifi and a Battery that they placed around different areas while I helped them place cameras to better capture things they wanted in scene all while I was connected to their 841 on P2P.. As long as they didn't get between the Router and camera I was able to stay connected the whole time.. They were in the UK and I am in the USA so I don't think there should be an issue as long as you have a User and password with the right SN and it setup for P2P there should be no issues..

Also I always have them setup a new User and a Password normally just my user name to connect to P2P so after I am done helping them out they can just remove the account and I no longer have access to the system... If you are going to have more then 1 or a few I would setup user accounts that you can remove without having to send everyone else a new password any time someone is removed from the system... Also make sure you don't give right that could take away your own lol...

[JasG]

Well it's working, sorta. But for half an hour tonight in a restaurant, I was unable to connect. At home again (where the camera currently is) I tried for 10 minutes or so to connect with either phone, one via cell data, the other via wifi in the same LAN as the camera. I rebooted the camera and the phones. Nothing helped, until it did. And then suddenly it started working. As before, it was a mystery why. This is not inspiring confidence.

[Revo2Maxx]

Sorry to hear that.. I don't want to say that you have something wrong with your network either Cable to the camera or the cable to the Router to the Main ISP.. there are a lot of things that can go wrong.. Sometimes you can go into the View are for the camera and change type form main to Extra to make things work when away form home over P2P it might be that your Phone was on limited data to do how much or lack of charge you had or maybe the area you were in was a dead spot

Sadly there are many different things that can happen.. I know that once I changed all my Network cables from the ones that camera with the cameras and changed out an old cat5e that I had working my Network Router to my switches with a Better Cat6a cable I have had little issues with Network since.. I have 6 cameras that are running off my Router and from my Router on 1 Cat6a Cable to my Switch and from my Switch to my NVR and to make things worse I have 2 NVR's and 4 DVRs that are all on my Switch so there is a lot of Data going over my 1 Cat6a cable because I have my Computers connected to my Switches and then I have FTP and Games and Streaming movies and well the list goes on lol So that Cat6a cable is being well used and every once in a while I get all slow so I will Reboot my Router or depending on what Router is the issue I might reboot them all as I do have 3 indoor routers and 1 outdoor router on my network as well.. I will admit my 2116-HS has better connection then my 4108 when I am away form home and both going over the same switch and over the same cables from the switch to the router then to the modem and out to the internet.. I think it is just the 4108 is out dated and time to maybe buy the new 4208-AI one..

[jack7]

Well it's working, sorta. But for half an hour tonight in a restaurant, I was unable to connect. At home again (where the camera currently is) I tried for 10 minutes or so to connect with either phone, one via cell data, the other via wifi in the same LAN as the camera. I rebooted the camera and the phones. Nothing helped, until it did. And then suddenly it started working. As before, it was a mystery why. This is not inspiring confidence.

The problems stated could have been caused by the Amcrest P2P server in the cloud being down for some period of time.