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,
Try to stream the camera on a PC with an iSpy or VLC program, and check if you can establish the RTSP/Onvif connection successfully.
How to view Tapo camera on PC/NAS/NVR through RTSP/ONVIF Protocol?
Best Regards
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So, I have been using ONVIF to connect several Tapo cameras in a couple of DW Spectrum IPVMS systems and it is working very well. One thing missing though is the analytics detections (person, vehicle, pet, etc.) showing up in DW Spectrum, as they are not sent through the ONVIF protocol connection. What are the chances of getting a camera plugin written that would work with a third party VMS, like DW Spectrum, to capture these events?
support(dot)digital-watchdog(dot)com/kb/article/690-in-camera-analytics-of-third-party-cameras-supported-by-dw-spectrum-ipvms/
support(dot)digital-watchdog(dot)com/kb/article/991-dw-spectrum-adding-plugins-to-a-server/
If this post should be a new thread topic, please feel free to make it one.
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@Solla-topee I need replacement of outdoor csmera 320 ws reason in subject I had mention
Re: Tapo csmera not working its green and red linghting not blinking sometime is blink and tapo wifi network also not availble while connected to wireless wifi i think its has some faulty peice pan and tilt option is also not working in app
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@Hari235 please arrange replacement immediate basis
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Hi,
It's recommended to contact the retailer or local support to check if they can provide a replacement for you.
Best Regards
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@Solla-topee Im trying to view my rtsp streams, it fails with a "Failed: Invalid status code -1" error.
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@Solla-topee I have ONVIF working on my C120. It is connected to AgentDVR (successor to iSpy), and AgentDVR is receiving motion triggers from it. Thank you for supporting that! However, if I turn off motion detection in the camera and turn on person detection, though the Tapo app identifies me as a person when I walking by the camera, no motion trigger is sent via the ONVIF protocol. Is it possible to send ONVIF motion triggers for person, pet, and vehicle, and line-crossing detection via ONVIF when motion detection is turned off? The idea is to not trigger the DVR for meaningless motion (like the wind blowing a tree)?
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Hi,
Is your network diagram that PC --- router 1 --- internet --- router 2 --- camera? Do you want to stream the camera's live feed on your PC via iSpy? If so, you access the camera remotely, and the following configurations are needed.
1) Open ports 554 and 2020 on your router 2 for the camera. If router 2 is connected to a modem router, you need to open the two ports on the modem router, too.
2) When accessing the camera on the PC, please use the router 2's public IP address rather than the camera's IP address.
If the problem remains, please confirm the following information.
1) Please confirm whether the camera has subscribed to the Tapo Care service.
2) Please describe the network diagram if the above diagram is incorrect.
3) What URL have you used on the iSpy to stream the camera's live feed?
4) Send me(@Solla-topee) the camera's MAC address via a private message.
Best Regards
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Hello everyone,
At QueComparo, we recently faced a similar issue where our Tapo C200 camera failed to stream via RTSP/ONVIF protocols. After thorough troubleshooting, we managed to resolve the problem. Here's how we did it:
-Verified Camera Compatibility: We confirmed that our Tapo C200 camera supports RTSP/ONVIF streaming. Note that some battery-powered models like Tapo C420, C400, and D230 do not support these protocols.
-Checked Tapo Care Subscription and microSD Card: We ensured that the camera was not subscribed to Tapo Care and that a microSD card was not inserted, as these can prevent RTSP streaming.
-Adjusted Camera Account Credentials: We modified the camera's username and password to exclude special characters, as these can interfere with RTSP/ONVIF streaming.
-Configured Network Settings for Remote Streaming: Since we intended to stream the camera remotely, we set up port forwarding on our router for ports 554 and 2020 and ensured we had the correct public WAN IP address.
-Tested Streaming with VLC Media Player: We used VLC Media Player to test the RTSP stream using the URL:
rtsp://<Camera_IP_Address>/stream1
This allowed us to verify that the stream was functioning correctly.
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