VMB5000 offline

[jscunningham]

There appears to have been a firmware update within the last 18ish hours that has once again taken my system offline. This is the third time in recent months that this has happened to me and it seems the only fix is a factory reset on both of my base stations and all 18 cameras. This is beyond annoying and I’m ready to toss the whole thing in the trash. I’m tired of going up and down ladders to each and every camera to do a reset because of some complete incompetence on the part of the arlo developers. Stop forcing updates that break systems. You’re obviously not checking to see if they work before pushing them out.  You’ve already replaced a couple cameras because you bricked them with bad updates but they’re all getting close to being out of warranty and I’m guessing you won’t replace faulty products even though it’s because of issues you are causing with these updates. 

[dcfox1]

What is your lasted firmware? Arlo firmware forum shows last update for for the vmb5000 was march 31 

it shows  some other updated for other devices today. Not saying ur wrong they may have not posted it yet.

[jscunningham]

The base that’s still online shows 1.16.1.3_510_1a608c1. I can’t tell what the other one is as it won’t come back online. The firmware from March is 1.16.1.1_475_71659aa so they’ve obviously pushed another update and not posted it it the forums. 

[JamesC]

jscunningham,

This firmware just released within the last couple of hours. Were you able to factory reset the SmartHub that is offline? Did that resolve the issue?

JamesC

[jscunningham]

It must have been sometime last night as that’s when my base station went offline and the other was showing the new firmware early this morning. 
you’re missing the point of my issue. Why are you  releasing updates that take down entire systems. This is the 3rd time in as many months that I will be resetting 18 cameras and a base station because of faulty firmware.  The firmware updates need to have a manual update option so that this doesn’t happen.
No I haven’t tried resetting it yet. 

[GrantLeffler]

Document as much as possible and Save.  There will more than likely be a Class-action Lawsuit against Arlo in the future.  Their Stock is trading for $2-3 a Share which says a lot about this Company and it’s Employees.

I have 8 Cameras.  They all went down at the same day and time on multiple occasions.  This isn’t a coincidence, it’s crappy Programing by even crappier Programmers.  Arlo’s Online Support verified I have the most recent “Firmware” and even though the Cameras show as Online they don’t record any Motion or Audio Clips. 

My 8 Cameras have not recorded for 1 Second for 17 out of the 27 days this Month.  I don’t even get the 0:00:00 Motion/Audio Clip.  That’s right Folks….   8 Cameras, none of them Recording Motion or Audio Clips for 17 days yet they and the Bast Station show as Online.  Arlo has known of these problems since April 4th and has done nothing but tell me “Sorry, I haven’t received any updates” for 3+ weeks.

I’m done with the BS.  I’ll be buying a hardwired system from another Manufacture, contacting the Better Business Bureau, as well as creating Facebook and YouTube pages to Expose Arlo for the Trash that it is.  I have 4 months left on my 1 year Trial and I’ll pay for another year just so that I can continue to document all the Problems Arlo has, including the ones posted on this Forum.  Social Media works, it might not be overnight but eventually folks will know to steer clear of Arlo.  I certainly wish I would have known of all these Arlo Problems prior to purchasing, hopefully I can help save someone from the horrendous experience that is Arlo.

[JamesC]

GrantLeffler

If your cameras are online but not recording,check your subscriptions to make sure they are still participating in your Arlo Smart plan. You can do this by logging in to your Alro account and navigating to Settings > Subscription > Manage Cameras

JamesC

[jscunningham]

No the factory reset did not work. I am unable to remove the device from my list of devices and it will not find it as a new device after trying a full reset 5 times. It has a solid orange light on. It occasionally  to alternating blue/orange or solid blue for a few moments then back to solid orange. 

[jscunningham]

I had a similar issue earlier this month. Cameras on one base were recording but on the other they weren’t. I had to remove all cameras and the base then add them all again. That fixed it until this latest update last night now I’m going through the process all over again but this time I have one base that seems to be dead. 

[GrantLeffler]

Already did that and they're showing as participating (8 of 8 Cameras).  I've unplugged the Base Station from the Outlet as well as the back of the Base Station.  I've left them unplugged for Mins. to Hours and it doesn't help.  The Factory Rest was the go to move which would only work until the next "Update" was released and then we're back to having Problems again.  After this last "Update" this morning....  I was getting Offline Errors and a solid Amber Light.  I removed the Devices yet again and all I get now is a Solid Amber light (no Blue blinks) and I can't add the Base Station back.  The Factory Reset isn't even working.  I've also asked multiple times to have new equipment sent to me.  This would allow Arlo to Troubleshoot the Problems with my System and hopefully I'd have a working system again.  That hasn't happened.  Why.....   These aren't Hardware Problems, these are Software Problems and they know it.  I've spent 15+ years working in IT Departments for Nike and Daimler.  I know Quality Assurance prior to releasing "Updates" and that's obviously lacking at Arlo.  

[JamesC]

This issue has been escalated to the development team and they are currently investigating these details. I will provide an update as soon as I know more.

JamesC

[TurboVR4]

Same issue.  Something happened today to where all 10 cameras stopped recording.  I rebooted the UltraHub and it showed my single PRO3 and Video doorbell offline and I cannot get them reconnected.  The remaining 8 Ultra cameras are still not recording however I did the motion detection test and they are detecting motion.  I am not going to waste time with a factory reset and trying to re-add 10 cameras right now.   One thing to note, I noticed in the IOS app that the schedule shows it 'disarmed' even though all cameras should currently be armed.  If I change mode to armed the mode changes 'armed' but it still doesn't record.  Putting it back to schedule shows 'disarmed' even though the they should be armed.  Here we go again with another crappy firmware release that has rendered hour systems useless!

[DadBod]

Same issue, system bricked. I tried to factory reboot, delete and add the system again but now it can't find the base station on the network. If I cycle the power, it attempts to upgrade the firmware but is then unreachable.

Opened a ticket, but I'm done with this.

[n1976jmk]

Good morning James, when is this firmware notes being posted to the firmware sub group?

Thanks,

[TurboVR4]

Rebooted the UltraHub this morning and now its totally bricked.  App shows it offline.  Factory reset does nothing.  This is the last straw with this POS product! 

[Calvin84]

I have the same situation....

[nickcole11]

Same thing happening here. I've had to reboot two times a week and my cameras aren't recording. I have to keep going up the ladder, pulling the cameras out of the sleeves and hitting the sync buttons, because every time i reboot the smart hub the cameras go offline. 

Replying to see what the fix is. 

[LandJS]

Here's a personal observation Arlo doesn't seem to get  Even if a reset temp. fixes it or pulling the batteries or removing and re adding or cancel and re-add your subscription.  Peoples cameras aren't all sitting in arms reach and even if they were having to do this crap over and over on what is suppose to be a top of the line system is complete BS and certainly not what people payed for.

[n1976jmk]

Completely agree @LandJS.

I own many other smart devices at home, ecobee thermostat, August lock, light bulbs, etc.

But none of them do I need to maintain logging into their tech forums to either attempt to be ahead of a problem or report one.

It’s pretty insane how it’s so no big deal to reset or remove batteries.

And this is all during the corona virus!!!!

While Arlo keeps advertising everywhere they are the safest option for deliveries and talking with contractors.

My company stopped making IT changes unless they are critical at this time. Doesn’t seem Corona virus has stopped or slowed down Arlo from sending out botched firmwares and app software.....

[hxg]

When I launch arlo ultra from my computer , I have 30 to 40 seconds before it says offline. In those 30-40 seconds I can live view, but tool bar never loads, (battery etc..) even when the offline msg appears & camera goes blank, the sound stays on (live)..

when Launching from my iPhone or iPad , i immediately get the offline msg.. 

Any suggestions ?

[Ryeguy13]

Same exact issue here.  The timing of my experience lines up with the original poster's timing and experience as well.  All cameras are off line.  Hub cannot be found on the network.  I have 8 cameras connected and some are up high - I cannot imagine having to do a factory reset and re-register all cameras as that would be an all day project.

I tried unplugging & plugging back in.  I get an amber light (Steady), then it blinks Amber/blue, then it goes solid blue all within the first 4 minutes of plugging it in however the hub does not show as online and the connected cameras do not show as online either.  I know it's bricked because when I unplug the ethernet cable the blue light stays on (expecting it to turn amber to tell me it does not see internet).

[Ryeguy13]

my VMB5000 seemed to have received a firmware update in the last 24-48 hours. I know because I recall opening the app, app saying there was a firmware update and then watching the hub restart.  Now the hub has been offline ever since.  I tried power cycling the hub as well as changing ethernet cables.  The system was rather stable (I say rather because Arlo has never been perfectly stable for any amount of time in my 2+yr experience with it) prior to this firmware update.  

My VMB5000  now boots like this:

Power applied

Amber solid light (about 1min)

Amber/Blue blinking light (about 1min)

Blue solid light (stays like this)

The blue light suggests the hub is online but the app doesnt see it.  I know the Hub is frozen w/ the blue light on because when I disconnect ethernet to the hub, the blue light stays on and does  not change to amber indicating it lost internet like it should.

Factory reset is hardly an option.  With cameras in high reaching spots and 8 cameras in total (with elite subscription), factor reset and repairing all camera + re-doing the notification settings would be an all day chore.  

[tc81]

Same issue here - got told there was a firmware update, when I updated it my base station and cameras have all gone offline. this is the 2nd time in a month this has happened. with such an expensive piece of kit, one would expect for it to run all the time at a very minimum. What’s the point of these cameras if they can’t record anything?

[tc81]

Same issue here - got told there was a firmware update, when I updated it my base station and cameras have all gone offline. this is the 2nd time in a month this has happened. with such an expensive piece of kit, one would expect for it to run all the time at a very minimum. What’s the point of these cameras if they aren’t even online to record anything?

[JamesC]

The development team is actively investigating these reports. If you're still experiencing this issue, please contact the Arlo Support Team to further investigate and open a ticket. You will find several options for contacting support in the provided link.

JamesC