Third-Party Cameras Go Offline After DW Spectrum Update v4.1

Third-Party Cameras Go Offline After DW Spectrum Update v4.1

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Affected Roles:  Owner, Administrator

Related Digital Watchdog VMS Apps:  DW Spectrum® IPVMS

Complexity:  High

Software Version:  DW Spectrum® IPVMS v4.1

Last Edit:  February 1, 2021

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Issue Description

Some third-party cameras appear offline when using DW Spectrum® v4.1.  Clicking the diagnostics button will display the following message:

FAILED: Camera request “GetProfiles” failed with error “Fault info. Reason: Action Failed. The requested SOAP action failed.. Aditional: SOAP-ENV:Receiver. Sub info: “http://www.onvif.org/ver10/error”:Action. “. Please try to reboot the camera, then restore factory defaults on the web-page. Finally, try to update firmware. If the problem persists, please contact support.

Cause of the Issue

This issue occurs due to difference between the implementation of the latest ONVIF API in DW Spectrum® v4.1 and some third-party cameras.

If onvif/media1 and onvif/media2 are requested by a third-party application within the same initialization session, in certain cases, the cameras may respond to the onvif/media request from DW Spectrum® at first, but not when requesting onvif/media2 from DW Spectrum® later in the process.

As a result, the cameras may display unexpected behavior during the initialization process when receiving onvif/media2 requests due to the different approaches implemented with the latest ONVIF API.  Because of this, the initialization of the affected models will be unsuccessful and cause the cameras to go offline.

Under normal circumstance, DW Spectrum® would only use onvif/media2.  However, DW Spectrum® must maintain backward compatibility as much as possible, so the platform continues to try onvif/media2 first and will only use onvif/media2 if the camera is known to support onvif/media2.

Troubleshooting

Below you will find recommended troubleshooting steps for an offline camera.  You may need to physically bring the camera down from its installed location to bench test if you are unable to communicate with it over the network from a workstation.

Solution A

If you are using a third-party IP camera that is showing as OFFLINE in DW Spectrum® IPVMS, please try the following:

1. Confirm that the camera model is listed in the DW Spectrum Camera Compatibility List. 
2. Reboot the camera.  This troubleshooting action can often resolve most issues.
3. Make sure that the camera’s firmware is up-to-date.  Outdated firmware can be a common cause of communication and operational issues.
4. Soft default the camera.  This will default all of the camera’s settings, with the exception of its IP address.
5. If the camera is still showing offline in DW Spectrum® IPVMS, verify that you can communicate with the camera at all.  Some things that you can try for this is using the Ping command from the computer’s Command Prompt program or attempting to connect to the camera’s web client. 

Following Step 1 – Step 5, if you cannot ping or connect with the camera at all, you may be experiencing a network issue and should bench test the camera with a patch cable.

Solution B

If Solution A did not fix the issues, but you can ping or connect with the camera on a local network, please try the following:

1. Make sure that DW Spectrum is up-to-date.  Outdated software can be a common cause of communication and operational issues.
2. Restart the mediaserver service on the DW Spectrum® Server.  This will force DW Spectrum to refresh its network connections.
3. Delete the camera from DW Spectrum® and allow DW Spectrum® to automatically detect and re-add the camera.  If it does not re-add automatically or you have the auto discovery feature disabled, try to add the camera manually.
4. If the camera is not being discovered, but you are able to ping the device, use ONVIF Device Manager (ODM).  This tool allows you to Verify that that you can view the camera’s live video feed through ODM. 
   • If you cannot view a livestream through ODM, there may be an issue with the camera’s ONVIF profile.  Try factory defaulting the camera.  This will reset the camera settings back to its factory standards.  If you do not know how to factory default the camera, please contact the manufacturer of the third-party camera for ONVIF troubleshooting.

**NOTE:  To learn how to test ONVIF streams with ODM, consult the Testing the ONVIF Stream section of IP Camera Streaming Troubleshooting Guide.

Solution C

If Solution B did not fix the issues and you can view the camera through ONVIF Device Manager, please try the following:

1. Contact DW Technical Support to report your issue.  Please provide the following:
   • Camera model and manufacturer
   • Firmware version of the third-party camera
   • Current DW Spectrum® version
   • Results of ONVIF Device Manager test (Solution B, Step 4)
2. DW Technical support may provide you with a software patch regarding your issue. If so, apply the patch build to DW Spectrum.