Setting Up Email Notifications for VMAX A1 Plus and VMAX A1 G4

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Affected Roles:  All Users

Last Edit:  August 1, 2024

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Email Notifications

VMAX A1 Plus and VMAX A1 G4 recording units can be configured to send out email notifications through an Internet connection when specified events are detected by the recorder, such as motion detection, video loss, S.M.A.R.T. warnings, and more.

This article will outline how to set up Email Notification settings for the VMAX A1 Plus and VMAX A1 G4.

**NOTE:  You may only add up to five (5) email addresses or SMS recipients to each recording unit. The recording unit must be connected to a router with an active Internet connection to send email notifications.

Supported/Affected Devices:

• VMAX® A1 Plus™ Series
• VMAX® A1 G4™ Series

Common SMTP Servers

The recorder does not have its own dedicated email service.  For the setup of this function, you will need to lend the unit access to an email account and the SMTP server information of the email provider.

Below are some of the most commonly used SMTP servers.

If you do not see your email provider listed, please contact your provider for the SMTP details.

Email Notification Setup

Step 1:  Configuration

To set up Email Notifications:

1. If you have not already logged in to the unit as the Administrator, at the recording unit, right-click with the mouse and enter the User ID and Password of the Administrator profile to log in.
   • Default ID:  admin
   • Default Password: 

2. Once logged in, right-click and select “Menu”.

3. Select Network, then select the Notification tab.

4. Enable the E-mail Notify setting to unlock the E-mail setup options.

5. Enter the following information:
   • Outgoing SMTP Server – enter the SMTP server address.  This is the server that manages the email service that you are providing.
   • Your Email Account User Name – enter the SENDING email address that you are providing access to.  The NVR does not have its own email service, so you will need to provide one.
   • Your Email Address – enter the same email address that was entered in the Your Email Account Username field.
   • Option – set the authentication method supported by the server.
   • Connection – set the connection type supported by the email server. Check with your email service provider to confirm if they use SSL, TLS, etc.
   • Port – enter the port of the provided SMTP service.
   • Password – enter the login password of the provided email address.
   • Interval – set a lease time.  This determines how frequently email notifications are allowed to be sent.  It is required to set this value.
   • Use SSL – enable this setting if the email provider utilizes SSL.

After configuring the SMTP information, click the Save button.

Step 2:  Add Recipients

To designate the email addresses that will be receiving the email notification:

1. From the Notification menu, click the Add button.  The E-mail Notify window will display.

2. Click in the E-mail box, and enter the email address of the recipient.

3. In the Events section, select which events will result in an email notification when triggered at the recording unit.

4. In the Options section, select the information that you would like to include with each email notification.

5. In the Text Message Length section, select Long Message.  This setting is mostly for if you are using an SMS address instead of an email address.

6. Once you have finished setting up the email recipient configuration, click the OK button.  The entered Email will then display in the Notification menu.

7. Repeat Step 1 – Step 6 for any additional email recipients.  Click the Save button to apply the settings.

Step 3:  Test the Configuration

After successfully adding the email recipient(s), click the E-mail Test button.  The DVR will submit a sample email notification to the designated email recipients.

If a test email is not received right away, allow the unit 2 – 5 minutes as there may be an initial delay.

If a test email has still not been received after five (5) minutes, try the following troubleshooting steps:

• Restart the DVR.  Power the DVR off, wait five (5) seconds, then reconnect power to the unit.
• Check that the network cable is securely seated in the rear panel of the DVR and is connected to the router.
• Make sure that the DVR has access to the Internet.  If you have not already done so, please complete the network setup for the DVR.
• Double-check the entered SMTP information for errors.
• If you are still unable to connect, please contact your Network Administrator to check for outbound network issues.

Additional Email Security Settings

If you are using an email service like Gmail, you may need to adjust additional email account security settings.

Other than using a different email service for setting up email notifications, to use Gmail be sure to use the Google Accounts App Passwords feature.

To create and use App Passwords:

1. Go to your Google Account.
2. Select Security.
3. Under "Signing in to Google," select App Passwords. You may need to sign in. If you don’t have this option, it might be because:
   1. 2-Step Verification is not set up for your account.
   2. 2-Step Verification is only set up for security keys.
   3. Your account is through work, school, or other organization.
   4. You turned on Advanced Protection.
   5. Alternatively, you may want to try going directly to https://myaccount.google.com/apppasswords

4. At the bottom, choose Select app and choose the app you using.

Use “Select device” to specify a device and choose the device you’re using, then click “Generate”.

5. Follow the instructions to enter the App Password. The App Password is the 16-character code in the yellow bar on your device.

Use this 16-character code as your new password as a replacement in your DW product’s SMTP email notification settings.

6. Tap Done to close the password window in Google.
7. Use the Test function of the Outgoing Email Settings to confirm that DW Spectrum can now use the email service for email notifications.

Tip: Most of the time, you’ll only have to enter an App Password once per app or device, so don’t worry about memorizing it.

Please be aware that if you change your Google Account password, App Passwords will be revoked as part of Google’s account protection campaign.

For more information on using Google App Passwords, click here to visit the Google Account Help site.