Cameras always going offline

[dannyb2100]

So, back in March one of the cameras went offline for no reason and I had to get a roof ladder out to check it, only to remove the battery and put it back in (nothing was seemingly wrong with it) 

It has however gone offline again, none of the standard troubleshooting has sprung it back to life, so I guess I have to get the ladder out and repeat the previous steps. 

Has anyone else had this happen? Do you suspect something is wrong with the camera?

The previous topic for reference

[mbphx]

Got out the ladder. Brought them inside. Resynced. One stable for 24 hours. Other lasted 12 and is offline again.

Is anyone listening? I’ve tried opening a case, chat, community, twitter. No help or response.

[mbphx]

Arlo called me. Kept me on hold for 30 minutes. All just to tell me that their update failed to fix my camera. And then told me sorry it’s out of warranty. And then they let me know I could buy a new one. Thanks!

I will buy definitely a new camera. I will buy 7 new cameras. However I won’t buy another Arlo.

[entilza]

Confirming the camera firmware update did NOT fix my issue.

This appears to maybe be two issues:

1. A basestation issue. All cameras go offline and the basestation can't be rebooted in the app. A physical reboot fixes the issue.

2. A camera issue. Cameras go offline one at a time, but the base station can be rebooted. Rebooting does not fix the issue and the offline cameras have to have their batt cage opened to reboot them and fix it.

Cameras seem to last 12 to 48 hours before disappearing.

I have not factory reset everything just yet due to the fuss involved - I have a strong hunch this is an Arlo head office issue, not a random once-off corruption (aka I strongly feel resetting everything will not fix the issue.

I'll give it a try when I get desperate.

[entilza]

I have observed something important:

One of today's "offline" cameras was flashing it's organge batt light. When I got the camera back online (by opening the batt hatch and waiting 10 mins) it reported it had 11% batt left.

As per my opening post 5 days ago, I replaced all batts.

That means this particular arlo has drained 4 fresh batts in 5 days. It has activated 32 times in that time. The other two cams: one is at 50% batt left after 5 days, and the other is about 80%.

None of those figures are good, but 32 activations from 100% batt power down to 11% has to be a record.

Something is burning up the batts on the cameras.

Oh, and the base station is reporting all cams offline again. 7 hours.

[entilza]

Clarification - when I wrote "As per my opening post 5 days ago, I replaced all batts" above, what I meant was "As a reminder, in my opening post 5 days ago I mentioned I had replaced all batts".

I did not replace the batts again today. Just 5 days ago.

[K1T]

I have 2 x Arlo Pro 2 cameras and 1 base station. On a regular basis the cameras go offline. The base station is within range for both cameras.

The only way to get them working again is by doing an app restart of the base station. The base always shows a green internet connection.

Why does this happen? I'm using Google Wifi in the home and the base station is connected to a switch.

[Dannybear]

There are numerous posts already regarding other users with similar experiences, have a read.
For me the App restart fails to fix the base issue post the base going offline and that can take up to an hour to restore. I note that a power cycle of the base is required after each offline session to restore full functionality.
Hope this helps.

[K1T]

My base seems ok. It's the cameras that go offline all time and can only work if the base is restarted (as cams have no option for that). I don't see similar posts on the camera issue

[Dannybear]

I guess it depends on what your error says. When my base is clogging the camera live view fails and the mode status says getting information. It stands to reason that if the base is not able to manage internet communication then it will also loose access to the cameras also giving an error. You could just have your own quirk like me that has the siren fail to function after each offline event and can only be fixed with a power cycle. Power cycling the base is not idea as it takes a while for the cameras to return, for me usually 20mins.
Hope this helps.

[K1T]

Below is the error I always get

[ChinJing]

Hello. If your base stations is truly offline - without any internet connection- then the cameras will also say they are offline in the app. If you restart the base station only and then the cameras come back online themselves - that means that it was the base that was the problem. I am pretty sure about this from my experience.
Alternatively . It could be that the base station is still connected to the internet but the cameras go offline - you would be seeing the same message In the app there is no way to tell the difference unless you check the actual status of the base station in the app. What is the status of the base - you can check in settings. Possibly the cameras can run out of battery or lost connection to the base for the cameras to be offline and the base offline or some other reason. I don’t know. For me the only way to fix that is to re sync the cameras back to the base. But power cycling the base won’t fix the camera itself being offline if the base is still online . Power cycling the base only fixed the base being offline.
There is a problem with the base stations going offline because of the software. Sometimes it will show that the cameras are offline in the app - sometimes it just says getting status.

[BrooklynNYC]

I purchased the system a week or two ago.  Very disappointed.  The cameras go offline from time to time and they are no being recognized with AC power even when they are plugged.  System is not reliable.  It is a great deal to get to the camers from my set up.  Everytime, Arlo Support wants to do a trouble shoot, I need to get a ladder in order to have access to the cameras.  Also, the three second lookback only works to the right side.  Objects moving from the left are not recorded until they are at the center of the screen. 

[NickDi]

See this thread...

https://community.arlo.com/t5/Arlo-Pro-2/Arlo-Pro-2-every-night-changes-time-zone/td-p/1692637/page/...

there is a big problem with the Base Station going offline and when it comes back, many settings are set back to default or screwed up.  It was thought to be just a Time Zone setting issue, but it was uncovered that it is a Base Station SW issue.   Please open a case with support. 

[entilza]

Hesitant update:

I may have fixed my issue.

I noticed that 2 cameras frequently went offline, and my third did not.

My third camera was purged from the app and resynced a week ago. It still goes offline, but only when the rest do too and never individually like the others often do.

So I purged and resynced the rest. They have been mostly stable since.

My unqualified theory (remember I own original Arlo's):

There's two issues at play. They both have the same error message, but the difference is the resolution and number of cameras offline.

Problem one: individual camera issue. This issue is resolved by purging the camera from the app, and resyncing. Restarting the device (pulling the power) will bring a temporary fix, but often requires the base station to be restarted too. These problems appear one camera at a time, but may quickly rise to be 100% of your fleet, making it appear like the problem below.

Problem 2: base station offline. All cameras appear offline and the base station can no longer be power cycled within the app - the button is missing (that is the key for identifying this issue). Physically power cycle the device to fix.

I found both of these issues mix and match themselves, making diagnosis more difficult.

But after purging and resyncing all cameras, and power cycling the base station, I've yet to have a problem. Two days success so far. Previously they would have gone down 2 to 4 times already.

[Pj22]

My cameras have gone off line and I am out of town. This happens frequently
Im not there so I cannot physically reset it. There has got to be a better way that works remotely? I am very disappointed with this product.
Please advise

[edawson23]

Since the last software update my cameras drop offline frequently. Have not had an issue for years till now?

[madkiwi]

---

@Pj22 wrote:
My cameras have gone off line and I am out of town. This happens frequently
Im not there so I cannot physically reset it. There has got to be a better way that works remotely? I am very disappointed with this product.
Please advise

---

Open app, tap the 3 dots in upper right,  Settings>My Devices, tap on the base station (you may have named it) and at the bottom of the next screen there are 2 black buttons- Restart and Remove Device. Click Restart.

Takes about a minute and hopefully it reconnects with your cameras.

[daytonagal1]

I am so sick of this ***p.  First 2 of my cameras were offline, now 1 came back up by itself and the other one is still down.  Can’t reset it until I get home.  So now I have a half ass working security system.  So if something happens at my house I have no video for proof.  Thanks Arlo for  your POS system.  

[entilza]

Since the post outlining my solution for my problem, my cameras have remained online. I am not convinced I "fixed" it. Maybe it was good luck? Or maybe the camera patch helped in some way? Your milage may vary.

[DewySand]

I started a new subscription a month ago and now my cameras keep going offline. We've had nothing but issues since the service started. Never had the issues before the subscription started. What can we do? I'm ready to give up the service all together and buy a new system.

[dimples239]

Same here.  I removed my devices to try to reinstall and nothing is working.  I thought it was my router, but that is not it.  Seems like my problems started when I did not subscribe to paying a monthly fee....hmmmmm  I am happy with the 7 days of monitering free.  I look at my recordings daily and if anything is unusual, I save it.  But I live on a street where there was a murder and I am a female that is home alone a lot.  I need these cameras for security.  PLEASE fix your problem Arlo!!!  I need these (3) cameras that cost a lot of money to work... get your stuff together so that I can feel somewhat safe when the door bell rings or some stranger knocks on my door!

[jojod53]

why is my two arlo cameras always going offline? it’s becoming very irritating as I have to remove the batteries, unplug the Base, and resync. it is happening very often. please advise.

[jguerdat]

While it may not help, try force closing the app or logging out. Then log back in to see if that works. I'd be interested in knowing your results.

[afscal]

 Very dissapointed sysatem stopped working . Everyday another camera would go offline .

I bought two systems from ARlO would not recommend to anyone . Was told basically out of luck past warranty 

[_-Niklas-_]

Hi, has there been any luck in finding out what is causing this issue. I have the exact same behaviour. My cameras were working fine, but now they are  offline and the only solution I have found is to make a total reset of the system (resetting base station and pairing all cameras again), but this will only make the system work for about a day or so and after that the cameras are offline again. The base station is online and LED is solid blue.

I just bought the system with 3 cameras. I hope your engineering team can have a look at whats causing this and hopefully fix it.

The firmware version for VMB4500r2 is 1.12.2.4_2773.

The firmware version for my cameras (HW Version H5) are  1.125.13.0_31717.

Regards

Niklas