Adding IP Cameras to CamXip
Connecting your network cameras (and video servers) to camXip is easy. But it will be helpful if you have some experience and understanding of computer networking. If you've never configured a router before, or don't really understand basic networking terms and concepts, you might want to consult the manual that came with your router. Or better yet contact a local PC "geek" who can help you setup your camera(s) and networking equipment. The networking configuration should require no more than an hour or two, assuming a network consisting of several cameras.
Cameras are Servers, Like Websites
You need to consider that your camera will act as the "server" for incoming connections from the Internet. For most users this is the opposite role they are accustomed to. When you browse the Internet you connect to servers (at Yahoo, Google, MySpace, etc.). As such there is usually no need for you to make any special accommodations to establish a connection with a server. Conversely, IP cameras are web servers that clients connect to from the Internet. Consequently, there is usually a need setup the router to insure that incoming connections get routed properly.
Port Forwarding
When a visiting user (from somewhere on the Internet) attempts to view one of your cameras via camXip, a request is sent to your network. The incoming request is evaluated by your router and forwarded on to the camera. This is accomplished using a feature in your router called port forwarding, also known as NAT (Network Address Translation). Every incoming request specifies a port number. If a port is not explicitly specified, the default port '80' is assumed.
Did you know that entering http://www.yahoo.com into your browser the same as http://www.yahoo.com:80?
Take a look at the port routing table for a Linksys Router, virtually all routers have a configuration area that resembles this picture.
The site www.portforward.com offers a wealth of information on the subject along with detailed instructions and utilities for configuring virtually all consumer grade routers.
To differentiate multiple servers that are within the same network any valid port number (1 to 65535) can be used to effect routing. For instance, let's say that you have 3 cameras setup in your coffee shop. You will configure each camera with a unique internal IP address. (BTW - you can access a server by its internal IP address if you are on the same local area network.) External users, from the Internet, will access your cameras by the external IP address of your network (preferably a domain name like "www.greatcoffee.com"). To distinguish one camera from another, you will need to configure each camera to listen on a unique port number. This will allow camXip user's to specify the camera they want to view, e.g., http://www.greatcoffee.com:8000 for "Counter", http://www.greatcoffee.com:8001 for "Tables", and http://www.greatcoffee.com:8002 for "Front Door". When you add a camera to camXip you will be asked to associate a unique "port number" with the camera's descriptive name. When a camXip user selects one of your cameras the port number will be automatically appended to the IP address or Domain Name of your network.
On the camera itself you will need to set the HTTP port to match your routing. The screen shot to the left show's the 'Network Settings' area for an AXIS 2130 PTZ camera. All IP cameras will have a similar area where you can alter/set the port number.
After you change the port number in the camera you will need to access it locally with the explicit port number appended to the internal address, e.g., 192.168.1.4:8000.
Many cable broadband providers block port 80! Evidently they don't want their customers to run web servers. So the question you are probably asking now is: "How can I determine which ports I should configure my cameras to listen on?" Generally we recommend using 8001, 8002, 8003...
Don't Configure Cameras to use DHCP
When you configure your camera for the first time you may be asked if you want the IP address to be assigned to the camera automatically by your router via DHCP. This is not a good practice because it will negate your ability to effectively utilize port forwarding. At some point in the configuration process you will forward port numbers to IP addresses (cameras) within your network in order to route incoming clients to cameras. If you set your camera to use DCP your router is going to arbitrarily assign the IP address and this will negate the port forwarding you setup in the router. So a user might select to see your porch cam and end up in your bath cam!
There is no good reason to use DHCP when setting the camera, especially if you have multiple cameras. You should manually give your camera a unique internal IP address. This will allow you to easily setup routing.
Internal Versus External Addressing
When you configure your camera (using the configuration utility or interface that came with your camera) each unit should be setup with a unique IP address and a unique port numbers in the form "address:portnumber", e.g., "192.168.1.10:8000".
You should not setup your camera to use DCHP since it will affect your port forwarding assignments.
The internal addresses that you set in the camera can only used by clients that are within the same local network. CamXip users will not be able to access your cameras by their internal address. Instead, camXip will reference your camera by its external IP address followed by its port numbers.
How do I know my external IP address? Access the status screen on your router to display the external address of your network. Or your can go to www.whatismyipaddress.com. Just make sure that when you do this it's on a PC which is on the same network as your camera!
Dynamic Domain Names
We strongly recommend that you obtain an account with a Dynamic Domain Name Service. Most routers and probably even some IP cameras support DDNS automatically. If you address yourself with your IP address instead of a name then every time your broadband provider doles you out a new IP address, camXip user's will no longer be able to find you. You router can be configured to detect changes to your IP address and automatically inform your DDNS account. So even if your IP address changes your name will not.
