Arlo|Smart Home Security|Wireless HD Security Cameras
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Hoodleehoo
Aspirant
Aspirant

Hello all,

I currently have 2 Arlo Pro 3 Floodlights which I have had for a few years and were working fine (albeit with extremely lagged video feeds). My previous network was an Amplifi HD Mesh system and the cameras would connect and I could view their feed via the Arlo app.


Recently, I upgraded my network to the Ubiquiti UDM Pro. I created a separate IoT network/WIFI and transitioned all my IoT devices to it. When it came to Arlo Pro 3 Floodlights, the trouble began. I attempted to find/connect the devices and it would continually fail over and over. I removed the devices from my app, fully charged them, and would go through the process again and again.


After several attempts, I was finally able to at least get the lights to pair with the Arlo (still unsure as to the magic sequence of events that resulted in that) and configure them within the Arlo app.

My issue is viewing the video. While the cameras are registered in the Arlo ap, the video feed will never display. I highly suspect the cause is my new network, however, there are no special settings enabled. I do have the IoT LAN isolated, that prevents the IoT devices from seeing my other networks. My main LAN (where I am attempting to connect from) has full access to the IoT LAN.

I have other devices (Wyze cams, Ring doorbell, etc.) that are on the same IoT network that I can connect to without issue. The only devices I cannot connect to are the Arlo Floodlights.

Has anyone ever dealt with this issue? Is anyone aware of specific ports/mappings that have to be in place for the Arlo Floodlights to work properly? I know this is certainly an edge case, but wanted to check with this group. I’ve also searched the Ubiquiti forums with no luck.

Appreciate any help!

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DaOtherOne
Apprentice
Apprentice

Do you have UPNP enabled?

 

Have you moved 1 of the devices to the main LAN segment to see if the problem goes away?

 

I'm having issues with my cameras disconnecting every 30 to 50 minutes.  I have used Wireshark to trace the communications to the Arlo cloud servers and the connection reset is being initiated by the Arlo server.  They have agreed to send me an placement Pro4 camera. I explained that my issue happens on both my Spotlight and the Pro4 cameras and I doubt a new camera is going to fix the problem.

 

Like you, I have other IoT devices and cameras that operate perfectly with my network configuration and only the Arlo devices are failing.

 

Wi-Fi devices have been operating since1997 and we are now on version 6E.  It's completely baffling how a Internet based cloud company is unable to get their Wi-Fi devices to work correctly.

 

 

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@Hoodleehoo wrote:

 I do have the IoT LAN isolated, that prevents the IoT devices from seeing my other networks.


Have you tried removing the isolation, and see if that allows the video to be viewed?

 

My guess is that the cameras are trying to make the streaming connection directly to the app (not relayed through the cloud).  That would fail if the camera network is isolated.

 

 

DaOtherOne
Apprentice
Apprentice

If you are correct this is a major security flaw in the Alro implementation. IoT devices should always be isolated from the primary “trusted” network. The number of vulnerabilities in IoT devices is significant and this presents a large attack surface to the trusted network if they can’t be isolated.  https://www.cve.org/

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@DaOtherOne wrote:

If you are correct this is a major security flaw in the Alro implementation. IoT devices should always be isolated from the primary “trusted” network. The number of vulnerabilities in IoT devices is significant and this presents a large attack surface to the trusted network if they can’t be isolated.  https://www.cve.org/


I guess I'd say that the need to isolate is because many IoT devices don't have adequate security built in, and/or never receive security patches.  We don't isolate other devices (home media players, network printers, ...) even though they have similar attack surfaces.  FWIW, IMO Arlo is different from most IoT devices, in that they do have frequent firmware updates, and those do include security fixes.  

 

Back on topic - I am suggesting this as a test.  An alternative test is to disconnect the phone from your home wifi, and see if live streaming works then.  If it does, you could configure the app so that it is not allowed to use your wifi - which would force all communications to be relayed through the cloud, and allow you to keep the IoT network isolated. 

Hoodleehoo
Aspirant
Aspirant

HI all,

Thank you for the great suggestions. I tried them all with no luck.

- I have tried connecting to cameras while on 5G.
- I have connected my phone to the same 2.4 Ghz IoT network the cameras are on.
- I’ve tried enabling UPnP on all networks.
- I have a firewall rule in place that prevents traffic from the IoT network to my other networks. I have tried removing this rule, but still have the same issue.

With my previous router, I had no issues, so I suspect there’s something with the routing/traffic management, but have not been able to figure out what it is as of yet. As stated above, other IoT devices work without issue and it’s only the Arlo cameras I’ve had trouble with. For the IoT network, there is no client isolation, meaning anything on that network and can talk to each other. There are also no restrictions on that network to the internet.


The search continues…

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@Hoodleehoo wrote:


The search continues…


Please do update us when you figure this out.

DaOtherOne
Apprentice
Apprentice

I have stopped trying to diagnose the root cause of the problem.  I have tried all of the suggestions I found in the Arlo community. I have full Wireshark traces showing the reset of the connection to the cameras are being initiated by the Arlo cloud server (Amazon in Ireland). Arlo needs to review the Wireshark traces and identify why the server is doing this and fix the problem.

 

We have cameras from 2 other vendors that work perfectly on our test network. We are going to test 1 more vendor before we decide which vendor to use for our camera rollout.

 

Arlo needs to sort this out in the next month or they will be eliminated from the selection process.

Hoodleehoo
Aspirant
Aspirant

I am basically in the same position. I have tried nearly everything I can think of, with no success. Other cameras stream video fine. Every single device connects quickly and works perfectly on the network. Only the Arlo cameras struggle to connect and never show a video stream. 

Before I ever switched my router, I've had problems with the Arlos. While they would connect to my previous router fine, the video feed always took 9+ seconds to start. I researched that as much as I could, but never found a solution.  With the new router, they "may" connect when the planets align, but no video ever.

At this point, I have 2 $300 floodlights that I can't connect to. At least they still trigger when they sense motion, but I could get the same functionality from a $30, solar powered light. I'm very disappointed in the Arlo Floodlights, and have never had them working 100%. I don't love the security risk of the Wyze cams I have, but in 4+ years, I've never had an issue with them working. 

ShayneS
Arlo Moderator
Arlo Moderator

Hi @Hoodleehoo

 

Please reach out to the Support Team to further investigate this issue you are experiencing. You can find several options for contacting support though the Arlo Mobile App by navigating to Settings/System/Support.

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