I’m having same issue with Gateway not working after a few days. Here is the log hopefully someone can assist. Fyi I’m only using one instance of gateway.

MONOCLE RTSP SERVICE - INITIALIZED FQDN = 20fa027d-d919-4768-b031-5403dba0a00d.mproxy.io
HOST = 192.168.1.72
PORT = 443

WARNING
GATEWAY INSTANCE PROMOTED!

Another gateway instance has detached from your user account!
This could cause problems, please make sure that only one instance of Monocle Gateway is running on your network and associated with your account.

THIS GATEWAY INSTANCE [192.168.1.72] IS NOW THE ACTIVE GATEWAY FOR THIS ACCOUNT.

2020-12-04T08:57:35.849Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] read ECONNRESET
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’, ‘read ECONNRESET’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 8 seconds (attempt #1)
[Monocle Connecting]
[Monocle Connected]
[RTSP Server Registered]

MONOCLE RTSP SERVICE - INITIALIZED FQDN = 20fa027d-d919-4768-b031-5403dba0a00d.mproxy.io
HOST = 192.168.1.72
PORT = 443

2020-12-04T09:20:09.977Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] Closing connection due to PING response timeout; last PING response received was at: [2020-12-4 01:14:29]
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’,
‘Closing connection due to PING response timeout; last PING response received was at: [2020-12-4 01:14:29]’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 5 seconds (attempt #1)
[Monocle Connecting]
2020-12-04T09:29:56.255Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] read ECONNRESET
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’, ‘read ECONNRESET’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 13 seconds (attempt #2)
[Monocle Connecting]
2020-12-04T09:30:09.264Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’,
‘getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 18 seconds (attempt #3)
[Monocle Connecting]
2020-12-04T09:30:27.266Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’,
‘getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 23 seconds (attempt #4)
[Monocle Connecting]
2020-12-04T09:31:02.316Z [ERROR] [Monocle Error] getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443
[ ‘[Monocle Error]’,
‘getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND api.monoclecam.com api.monoclecam.com:443’ ]
[Monocle Disconnected]
[Monocle Reconnecting] … in 29 seconds (attempt #5)

@FineSir

In my experience the latency seems to be camera dependent. Some cameras I am using have a 10-15 second latency and other have a 5-10 second latency.

There may be a slight latency difference were the 10" may edge out the 8", but it may be only a second or two. Certainly not a dramatic improvement/difference.

I believe the latency has more to do with the limited processing power and H264 decoding capabilities of these devices. I see similar latencies when viewing my camera feeds from a Raspberry Pi.

Thanks, Robert

Same issue, Hmmm camera is not responding. I have non-standard RTSP ports configured on the camera configuration with Amcrest IP Cameras. Port forwarding enabled in the Linksys router config just in case.

This is the same on 2 different Amcrest cameras.

Is there relevance with the last number in the RTSP url? Does it need to be 2 for channel 2 or sub stream?

Has anyone found a solution.

Even more useful for future Reolink users. Thanks for letting us know…

Chris Muriel, UK.

Robert @ Monocle, Thank you for your reply, I’ll look into this Raspberry Pi to see what kind of a hassle it might be, otherwise, not sure. I was able to use your Alexa skill with just my Echo Spot 1st gen but was unable to with my subsequent newer Echo devices, however using your gateway I can view my camera’s on all my Alexa and Fire TV devices which I will continue to do for now. Thanks again Robert.

@GreggC

Thank you for using our Amazon link :-)
Every little bit helps !!!

@frysky

Does this Synology NAS support Docker instances? We do have instructions on getting the gateway working on Synology using Docker. It can be a bit complicated, but it does work.

Buying a Raspberry Pi or similar device can also work if you find the service useful.

Here is the older model 3B which works fine:
https://amzn.to/2OzhALU

or the 3B+
https://amzn.to/2DyHfxW

or the latest version 4B:
https://amzn.to/2P34t4D

You can probably get it cheaper if you have some of the parts like power supplies and microSD cards and don’t have to buy a full kit.

Thanks, Robert

Yeah i would assume this wouldn’t be backported to version 4. I upgraded to 5 just to stay current and get support. Obviously we know many vaporware that come and go but i will be watching for this and reminding him if a couple months pass… I really want access to the groups of streams.

Ok got it working…

my Notepad log as below, which while long may help others with my step by step process on BASIC v DIGEST, VMWare ports, use of Gateway etc… the answer for me was FIREWALL - kaspersky blocking something so just need to figure out - i suspect 443

"running gateway
when starting it identifies gateway as (not sure about the RTSP Server listening set as 0.0.0.0:8555 etc (assuming broadcast listening?) :

"VERSION = 0.0.4
OS/ARCH = win32\x64
PROCESS = monocle-gateway (PID=15164)
TIMESTAMP = 2019-12-15T10:20:36.394Z

MONOCLE GATEWAY SERVICE (Version: 0.0.4)

[Monocle Starting]
[Monocle Connecting]
[Monocle Started]
[RTSP Server Starting]
[RTSP Server Listening] 0.0.0.0:8555 (RTSP)
[RTSP Server Listening] 0.0.0.0:443 (RTSP-TLS)
[RTSP Proxy Started] (PID=18916)
[RTSP Server Listening] 0.0.0.0:8554 (PROXY)
[RTSP Server Started]
[Monocle Connected]
[RTSP Server Registered]

MONOCLE RTSP SERVICE - INITIALIZED

FQDN = 8bba3f78-c3b7-4534-b1d6-fafcdc03e7f1.mproxy.io
HOST = 192.168.0.14
PORT = 443"

ping the FQDN translates to the IP correctly - originally showed IP for a Virtual Ethernet… so disabled virtual ports on laptop
ipconfig /flushdns
ipconfg and restarted gateway
this now showed the laptops correct IP of x.x.x.14 as above

on DS-2CD2532F-IS Camera

the video configuration on the physical camera is set as :
main stream only for video (not video and audi)
substrem only for video (not video and audio)

substream set to :352x288, variable, highest quality, h.264
mainstream same but higher res.

on Monocole web config

have configured multiple configs
@noaudio, @tunnel/@no proxy, @proxy-tcp and trying all variants on ALEXA Show and monocole - still same - “not responding”

strings as below with settings which I have attempted - using varity of BASIC vs DIGEST, proxy TCP in lieu of UDP and also stream channels - password is long but simple using alpha and numerics:

MAIN channel ok on VLC - not working on SHOW8
rtsp://192.168.0.32:555/video.h264
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@tunnel

MAIN channel ok on VLC - not working on SHOW8
rtsp://192.168.0.32:555/Streaming/Channels/101
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@proxy-tcp

Sub channel ok on VLC - not working on SHOW8
rtsp://192.168.0.32:555/Streaming/channels/102
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@proxy

Sub channel with DIGEST - not working anywhere.
rtsp://192.168.0.32:555/Streaming/channels/102
DIGESTH264NONE192*192@noaudio@proxy-tcp

lost for ideas…
disabled kaspersky also and Thought id try the other cameras - (UK ones not the grey cam)
which was configured as:

SideCam
Manufacturer:HikvisionModel:DS-2CD2142-FWD-i
rtsp://192.168.0.34:557/Streaming/channels/102)
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@tunnel

this wasnt working before… it started showing up on the SHOW8!! (takes a few seconds to start)

Issue therefore isnt the frmware or grey v UK
you NEED the gateway
you NEED to disable firewall (will figure out if 443 or the cam ports n a bit)

I now have cams working ok as:

Manufacturer:HikvisionModel:DS-2CD2532F-IS
rtsp://192.168.0.32:555/Streaming/channels/102
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@tunnel

Manufacturer:HikvisionModel:DS-2CD2532F-IS
rtsp://192.168.0.33:556/Streaming/channels/102
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@tunnel

Manufacturer:HikvisionModel:DS-2CD2142-FWD-i
rtsp://192.168.0.34:557/Streaming/channels/102
BASICH264NONE192*192@noaudio@tunnel

will try to up the sub stream resolution as main stream displays black (prob cos resolution too high)
re-enabled the VM network cards and fushed DNS -the cams still work…

therefore all along it was firewall… sigh!
now to try and get my DANMINI doorbell to work… see if ti generates a RTSP stream to capture…

Hope this helps someone!"

Hi Robert,

Thanks for your replies.

The following rtsp address works on VLC and shows the 4 cameras for my Channel Zero feed. .57 is the IP of my NVR on my LAN.
rtsp://192.168.1.57:554/Streaming/Channels/001/

According to VLC my Channel Zero feed is H264. VLC codec info tab shows:-
Stream 0
Type: Video
Codec: H264 - MPEG-4 AVC (part 10) (h264)
Resolution: 704x578
Decoded format: Planar 4:2:0 YUV

I tried to use the @fake-fmtp parameter as a Monocle tag in the settings but Alexa says “Hmm, the camera isnt respodning”.

For additional info, I know Monocle on my Echo show can access my camera feeds in two different ways:-

By accessing each of my cameras directly on my LAN. By connecting to my Hikvision NVR then showing the camera feed via that IP (.57).

For example, the local IP for my front camera is:-
rtsp://192.168.1.101:554/Streaming/Channels/101/
101 is the camera IP address and /101 is ch1 feed 1 (its a coincidence they are both “101”.

The IP for my NVR is .57 and my front camera os No 1 (101)
rtsp://192.168.1.57:554/Streaming/Channels/101/

Both of these addresses work in VLC and both work in Monocle.

So I know Monocle can access all 4 cams either directly or via my NVR. This is why I think it should be possible to view my channel zero feed by connecting to my NVR on rtsp://192.168.1**.57**:554/Streaming/Channels/001/
The 001 being channel zero feed 1 (primary feed).

Robert, you mentioned getting captures of the Monocle Gateway log file and inspecting that to see where Alexa seems to be failing on the stream.

How can I provide you with the Monocle Gateway log file?

@FineSir
I assure you a hikvision nvr cannot handle the requirements of Monocle without a loopback cable.

I have 4 IP cameras. 3 of them are plugged directly in to the network ports on my nvr. My front door camera is plugged into a separate switch in my living room.

As a test, I removed the loopback cable that runs between my nvr and the switch. I could view my front door camera on my Alexa show using the Monocle Alexa skill.

My Alexa shows would NOT show any of the 3 cameras that are plugged directly into my nvr on my Alexa shows. When I say “Alexa, show driveway” she thinks about it for a few seconds, the screen flashes on and off and then she says “Hmm, the camera isn’t responding”.

The Alexa screen always starts to flash and then you know it isn’t going to connect.

As soon as I plugged the loopback cable back in I could view all of my cameras on my Alexa show.

I feel I have proven this by carrying out all of the necessary steps to show what is and is not possible.

I would be very interested to hear from anyone who has managed to get IP cameras that are plugged directly into an nvr to be viewable on an Alexa show using the monocle Alexa skill without using the separate monocle Gateway. I don’t think it’s possible because of the subnetting that is occurring within the nvr.

I would also just like to thank the guys and girls at Monocle because this is an excellent Alexa skill.

I mafe a post several months ago when I was trying to get the channel zero feed from my NVR to be viewable on my Alexa show so I could view four cameras at the same time.

You may think this is not possible because Monocle is not actually showing the content of the nvr it is showing the feed from each of the individual cameras. However, on the same LAN I can can use VLC Player to view my channel zero feed and it works fine on my laptop. I was therefore curious why the Monocle skill could not show the channel zero.

For those of you who do not know what a channel zero feed is, it is a way of viewing all of your cameras on the same image feed at the same time. This would be fantastic as it means my large 10-inch Alexa in the kitchen would be able to show all of my cameras at the same time which would be really excellent for my home security.

Monocle admin asked me to send them some logs but I made a post a few times to ask how I could send the logs so if anyone from Monocle is reading this please let me know how I can send you my logs to see if we can get the channel zero feed working on an Alexa. This would be a first and another excellent breakthrough for the Monocle team.

Will try take a look this week 👍

@jg00d3 said in "Hmmm, the camera isn't responding":

@admin @Monocle Any way to block the second audio stream to get this to work? I am totally unable to use monocle now and I was using it on a daily basis prior to this 2nd audio stream update rolled out through Unifi Protect.

Thank you!

I just received my new Unifi cameras and will be setting them up and try to resolve this issue within the next week. Removing a second audio channel should be fairly simply … I think.

Please stay tuned …

Working again. Thanks.

@mwoodage said in Reolink Camera wont show on Alexa TV [SOLVED]:

@james123 said in Reolink Camera wont show on Alexa TV [SOLVED]:

/etc/init.d/dnsmasq force-reload

Really interested in this post - i’ve got exactly the same problems with Reolink cameras, although i don’t have the same router as you. My router is a UK plusnet router, any ideas on how to get DNS binding active on that router?

Thanks in advance,
Martin

Hi,
I have Hikvision cameras and a Plusnet One Hub. Can find anywhere how to do the rebinding. I followed the guide on nslookup and its point to the binding issue. Anyone able to help a novice with some pointers?

Thanks

Steve

@mescopr

You should not need to open any ports on your router.

Do you have Monocle Gateway installed on a computer inside your network? That is what is needed first. The Monocle Gateway service running on this computer must listen on port 443 and the Alexa devices must be able to access this computer (on port 443) inside your local network.

The Monocle Gateway service does communicate over the Internet to coordinate when an Alexa device requests a camera stream, but you don’t need to expose any inbound ports for this to work. All the streaming data is maintained locally inside your private network.

Thanks, Robert

@Kit_Samad

Most of my experience with WiFi PTZ cameras are with the

Amcrest UltraHD 2K (IP3M-941B)
https://amzn.to/2jTnefh

Amcrest ProHD 1080P WiFi (IP2M-841)
https://www.amazon.com/Amcrest-1920TVL-Security-Wireless-IP2M-841B/dp/B0145OQTPG?tag=monoclecam-20

The 2K model is running about ~$55 and the 1080P model is ~$46. All of the unit I have purchased (as far back as 2016) are still operating today. Honestly for the small difference in price, I would personally go with the 2K model. Not because of the higher resolution, but its just newer and I have had less minor issues with it. In fact you may only run it at 1080P or less if you plan on running it over WiFi. Either one is probably a solid choice in this price range.

Any cameras I have tried cheaper than this price range have mostly been garbage. Many times the software and experience are just not worth it for the numerous cheap cameras out there. These Amcrest cameras are by no means perfect, but for the money they have held up well and perform solidly with the Alexa devices.

Thanks, Robert

@jwwhite This is an old thread. But I just got my SV3C camera working Monocle to Alexa.

I used rtsp://<ip>:554/stream0 for the URL

Authentication: DIGEST
Audio Codec: None
Tags: @proxy @noaudio

What finally fixed it for me was to login to the camera configuration, set the resolution to 1080P and save the profile and disable the audio

Hope this helps someone. Might work for other generic IP cameras too

Hello Robert,
Thanks for your help. I got most of the cameras working. I had to make sure audio stream was off from cameras themselves and remove the @ noaudio tag from gateway and go back to @tunnel only. The gateway seemed to be getting bogged down trying to remove the audio causing excessive buffering. This got all cameras except 1 to show for a period of 40 seconds before disconnecting. The other one is a different model openeye PTZ and it doesn’t respond at all no matter what I do.

Is it normal for the fire tv to disconnect automatically after 40 seconds?
Also, while this works on the fire tv, I have had no luck with the 4k version.

Best regards
Jacob

@LosBoricua I also have the UVC-G4-Bullet, and it works fine with Monocle/Gateway depending on the Echo device’s capability. I have tested it with two models:

Fire TV Stick 4K running FireOS v6.2.6.8 and FireTV Home v6200198.1, linked to an Echo Plus - Works

Echo Spot running FW v649600321 - Does NOT work