Troubleshooting What can I do if fail to stream the Tapo camera via the RTSP/ONVIF protocol?
The Tapo wired-powered camera supports RTSP and ONVIF (Profile S) protocols, enabling compatibility with third-party NVR or NAS devices that also support RTSP/ONVIF. If you fail to stream the Tapo camera via RTSP/ONVIF, please follow the steps below to troubleshoot.
Note:
- For battery-powered cameras/doorbells, only the special models (Tapo D235/D225/TD25) support RTSP streaming when hardwired, with a jumper cable installed, and the always-on mode turned on. Other models (such as Tapo C410/C420/C425/D230) do not support RTSP streaming due to battery and electronic design limitations.
- For dual-lens cameras, when connected to a PC/NAS/NVR via ONVIF, only the wide-angle lens stream is available.
Step 1. Check Your Camera Settings
1) Configuration: Ensure that the camera settings are correctly configured. The instructions below introduce some basic parameters that need to be configured on the camera.
How to view Tapo camera on PC/NAS/NVR through RTSP/Onvif Protocol
Note: Try to change the camera account(username and password) if they include special characters.
2) Subscription and Storage: Check whether the camera has subscribed to the Tapo Care service and if a microSD card is inserted. If both are present, the RTSP/ONVIF stream can't be established.
You may remove the microSD card from the camera to establish the RTSP/ONVIF connection.
Step 2. Review Your Network Diagram
The typical network diagram for streaming a camera via the RTSP/ONVIF protocol on a PC/NAS/NVR locally is shown below. Then you can refer to these instructions to establish the RTSP/ONVIF connection.
If you are streaming the camera remotely, more configurations are required on your home network. For detailed instructions, please refer to the article below.
How to View Your Tapo Camera Remotely via RTSP/ONVIF
Step 3. Test with Different Third-Party Applications
You can refer to the instructions below to establish the RTSP/ONVIF connection with the camera using Agent DVR or VLC, then test if you can stream the camera.
How to view Tapo camera on PC/NAS/NVR through RTSP/ONVIF Protocol?
Step 4. Pay attention to the number of devices that are streaming the camera.
The Tapo camera allows for up to 2 main streams (stream1) and 2 sub-streams (stream2) to be viewed simultaneously. Each RTSP/ONVIF connection occupies one stream. If all 4 streams are in use, you cannot establish a new connection.
You can try the following steps to troubleshoot interference from the device count limit.
1) Restart the camera to disconnect the device from viewing the camera.
2) Switch between the URL of the main stream (stream1) and the sub-stream (stream2) when establishing the RTSP/ONVIF connection.
3) Modify the Camera Account on the camera's Device Settings > Advanced Settings > Camera Account page to disconnect the device from viewing the camera.
Note: The Tapo Care service occupies one main stream, and viewing the camera's live feed through the Tapo app will occupy either a main or a sub-stream.
Next Steps If RTSP/ONVIF Streaming Cannot Be Established
You can reply to this thread or start a new thread with the following information for further assistance.
1. Describe the encountered phenomenon on the third-party apps. For example:
1) The third-party apps you are using (e.g., Agent DVR, VLC).
2) The URL used to stream the camera, such as rtsp://IP Address/stream1(For high-quality stream1).
3) The error message that appears if there is one.
2. List the results of the above four troubleshooting steps.
3. Provide the camera's model number, firmware, and hardware version.
QA related to the RTSP/ONVIF connection
Q1：What ports are used by the Tapo camera for RTSP/ONVIF?
A1: The Tapo camera uses the following ports for RTSP/ONVIF: ONVIF Service Port: 2020 and RTSP Service Port: 554.
Q2: Does the Tapo Camera support 2-way audio when connected via RTSP/ONVIF?
A2: The ONVIF standard includes multiple profiles, and the Tapo Camera only supports Profile S. This profile does not include 2-way audio. Profile S only covers basic functionalities such as video/audio streaming, network configuration, event handling, and PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) control.
Q3: What are the Tapo dual-lens cameras' (e.g., Tapo C246D, C840) RTSP URLs for different lenses?
A3: You can access different lenses by switching URLs as shown below.
Wide-angle lens (high quality): rtsp://IP Address/stream1
Wide-angle lens (low quality): rtsp://IP Address/stream2
Telephoto Lens (High Quality): rtsp://IP Address/stream6
Telephoto Lens (Low Quality): rtsp://IP Address/stream7
Note: Only the wide-angle lens is accessible via the ONVIF protocol.
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Hi,
If you want to remote watch your camera via RTSP/ONVIF, you need open ports(554 and 2020) on your router for your camera, if there is a modem router in front of your router, you also need open the ports(554 and 2020) on that modem router for your router.
The remote view URL should be rtsp://username:password@WAN IP for the router:554(or 2020).
Best Regards
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It works well on the same network. However, what I need is remote access (access from a different network). So, I set up port forwarding, and the port check shows it as successful.
The external port is 554, and the internal port is 2020.
In VLC,
rtsp://'id':'pw'@'privateIP'/stream2 works fine,
and http://'privateIP':2020/onvif/device_service (ONVIF) also works.
However, http://'publicIP':554/onvif/device_service does not work. Could you please help?
Could you also let me know how to access it via VLC remotely?
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Hi,
Your port forwarding entry seems incorrect.
You may need to open two ports on the router for the camera, one is port 554 and another one is port 2020. On the port forwarding entries, the two internal ports should be 554 and 2020, and the two external ports can be the same as the internal ports.
Best Regards
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First, I am an IT professional and have several cameras using ONVIF/RTSP - this is my first however in using C110. I am unable to connect to the device using the outlined URL's. The camera is on the same network as the laptop I am testing with. My mobile device that has the Tapo app installed is also connected to the same network and I can see the video from the app.
Camera is on IP 192.168.1.22
PC: 192.168.1.88 (giving just to show on same network)
Network diagram is PC and C110 connected on same AP wifi network
The other odd item, I can't even ping the IP of the camera. No firewall issue and I don't see anything in the camera that looks like it would block icmp traffic. At a loss.
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@mlg2024 Glad to hear your case is solved. And yes, the camera supports 2.4G Wi-Fi only.
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Dear Solla,
I have a strange problem, Tapo C200 is working with VLC but not with iSpy, of course I used the same configuration settings and when I I click get url it show it (640*360:rstp://IP:554/stream2) it but then in the main page it says camera1 ONVIF Offline. But in VLC it works
on iSpy the url shown is http://IP:2020/onvif/device_service, on VLC is rstp://IP:554/stream2
Any idea to suggest where to check?
Thanks
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I have a Tapo c100 and a Tapo c500 that i use with homeassistant, and yesterday they both updated the firmware and were unable to be connected with homeassistant and with Scrypted.
After googling it seems this is bechause of the newer firmware and i now need the old firmware to get my cameras working, or a new one to fix the thing you broke.
The camera connects fine to everything else, but homeassistant and scrypted both get authentication issues when connecting with the camera control accounts
Please help us!
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Hi,
1. Do you use the same PC to stream the camera via iSpy and VLC app? If not, please describe your network diagram.
2. How many devices stream the camera's live feed simultaneously? Locally or remotely?
Best Regards
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Hi,
Do you watch the camera's live feed on the HomeAssistant and Scrypted via the RTSP/Onvif connection, or need to integrate the camera into the HomeAssistant and Scrypted app?
Best Regards
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