Cameras disappeared from my NVR after power cycle?

[Badger1966]

Hi all,
I have 4 Hikvision darkfighter cams that have been working with no issues for years. Recently I had to turn the power off to my garage where two of the cams are. After I powered back up, the two cams did not appear. I've tried everything I can think of.

I can see the cams are drawing power in the POE configuration on my NVR, but thats it. No picture. SADP tool can't see them either. I've tried rebooting the NVR, pulling the network cables and pluging back in. Powering off the cams and back on. Nothing works. Web GUI not seeing them.

I am lost, hoping someone can advise.

Thanks.

 

[Dan]

Hi @Badger1966

Can you confirm the exact NVR and camera models you have? Are the 2 cameras that are not working the same model?

 

[Badger1966]

Hi @Badger1966

Can you confirm the exact NVR and camera models you have? Are the 2 cameras that are not working the same model?

Hi Dan,
Both cams are DS-2CD4526FWD-IZH and the NVR is DS-7716NI-E4/16P. Strangely though, one of the cams suddenly started giving me a picture yesterday. I did nothing, it just appeared on screen when I started iVMS-4200 to view, and there it was. NVR also has the latest firmware V3.4.98. And both cams are V5.4.41

 

[Dan]

Ok,

The latest firmware for 7700NI-E4 NVRs is v3.4.106 and the latest camera firmware is v5.4.83

Can you please update to these latest versions and let us know if this resolves the issues with the cameras not streaming?

 

[Badger1966]

Ok,

The latest firmware for 7700NI-E4 NVRs is v3.4.106 and the latest camera firmware is v5.4.83

Can you please update to these latest versions and let us know if this resolves the issues with the cameras not streaming?

Hi, thats great, thank you. Wondering how in the first place, turning the power off, and then the cams not being seen would be affected by the firmware when they were working fine before? Also how do I upgrade the firmware on the one remaining cam that is not seen by the network?

 

[Dan]

Sometimes it is a firmware issue but with the age of your system it may just be due to how long the system was running without interruption before you rebooted it, we have seen in the past that NVRs/cameras that have been running without interruption for several years can suffer partial or full failures when the power cycles because the sudden shock of the loss of power can cause old hardware (e.g. PSUs, CPUs, sensors, etc...) in the devices to fail.

If the camera is directly connected to the NVR PoE ports you will need to enable Virtual Host to access the cameras directly to update firmware (although it has been many years since we have been hands-on with E-series NVRs so not sure they support virtual host)

If Virtual Host is not available and you have access to the NVR via a direct HDMI/VGA monitor you can update the directly connected cameras by loading the camera firmware onto a USB device (make sure it is a blank device containing only the firmware as you may need to format it) and plugging it into the NVR. Once plugged in you can go to the Camera Management device list and click the upgrade arrow for each camera and select the firmware file from the USB device to update the camera. (make sure if you go the USB route that you extract the digicap.dav firmware file from the downloaded firmware file before plugging it into the NVR)

 

[Phil]

It's best practice to make sure that all your devices are running the latest firmware.
It saves wasting any time diagnosing issues that Hikvision may have resolved in later firmware, and ensures you have the most secure version available (e.g. against hacks).

Might your issue be weather/cable related?
We have had a lot of weather

If the cameras are accessible and not too difficult to take down, then connecting them to the NVR with a short factory made patch lead will help to diagnose issues with the cable run.

 

[Badger1966]

Hi, thats great, thank you. Wondering how in the first place, turning the power off, and then the cams not being seen would be affected by the firmware when they were working fine before? Also how do I upgrade the firmware on the one remaining cam that is not seen by the network?

Hi, updated NVR. No difference. Stil missing one cam. SADP not seeing, neither is Web GUI. Virtual Host already enabled. Tried different ports on NVR. All no go.

 

[Phil]

If your cameras are plugged into the rear of the NVR, then SADP will not see them.

 

[Badger1966]

It's best practice to make sure that all your devices are running the latest firmware.
It saves wasting any time diagnosing issues that Hikvision may have resolved in later firmware, and ensures you have the most secure version available (e.g. against hacks).

Might your issue be weather/cable related?
We have had a lot of weather

If the cameras are accessible and not too difficult to take down, then connecting them to the NVR with a short factory made patch lead will help to diagnose issues with the cable run.

Cams are covered, no weather issues. It was as a direct result of powering off and back on and not a cable connection issue. One cam decided to be recognised of it's own accord after two days. Both cams in question are drawing power. Just one shows as "Camera does not exist"

 

[Badger1966]

If your cameras are plugged into the rear of the NVR, then SADP will not see them.

SADP will see them if you plug a network cable from an NVR port to the router.

 

[Phil]

That's true

 

[Badger1966]

Quick update. Have taken cam down and attached an old one, worked straight away. So defo no cable issues.

 

[Wavey]

Quick update. Have taken cam down and attached an old one, worked straight away. So defo no cable issues.

Hi did you ever fix this? I have a similar issue with a lost camera after upgrading the firmware