Arlo|Smart Home Security|Wireless HD Security Cameras

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maharrm
Guide
Guide

I recently started to experience the error, “Videos stored on Base Station are not available. Please check connection settings.” when trying to access locally stored videos in the Library (I have a VMB5000r5 base station recording to a microSD card). 

I have previously been able to access videos with Port Forwarding enabled and also without Port Forwarding when connected to my home network. 

I have again disabled Port Forwarding and am connected on my home network, but still receive the same error.

 

i can see from the storage setting info that my microSD card appears to be saving videos as the amount of space used is increasing.

 

Anyone else experiencing this error recently? Thanks. 

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions
ShayneS
Arlo Moderator
Arlo Moderator

The symptom with not being able to access local recordings remotely should now be resolved with app version 5.0.1

 

Please let me know if you are still experiencing this after updating to the latest version of the Arlo mobile app.

 

Thank you

 

 

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Best answers
  • ShayneS
    Arlo Moderator
    Arlo Moderator

    If you are still experiencing this symptom, please make sure that the forwarded ports have been setup on the router.

     

    To check if the forwarded ports from the app are open, you can utilize the below port checkers:

    https://portchecker.co
    https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/
    https://canyouseeme.org/

     

    If the ports are still closed, the router's firewall or ISP can still be blocking the ports. Please reach out to your ISP or router manufacturer for further assistance. 

  • vtmad
    Aspirant
    Aspirant

    No, my problem is solved. I had already updated to 5.01 but that did not solve things. I then did an IOS update and that took care of the problem.

  • ShayneS
    Arlo Moderator
    Arlo Moderator

    The development team is working on the fix for the issue with the remote access. I will provide another update as soon as I have more information related to the release. 

     

    Thank you for your patience

533 REPLIES 533
NYC-DanR
Initiate
Initiate

I have tried everything I can to have my cameras record to the home base hub.  I have reformatted the USB drive and also exchanged it for a new. I cannot connect to the base hub. I reset it, and reset my modem!! Nothing works.  What are the steps to evaluate?  Dan

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@NYC-DanR wrote:

I cannot connect to the base hub. 


What do you mean by this???

 

Also,

  • what hub model do you have?
  • Do you have Pro 3 cameras, or do you have a different camera model?
yammy86
Tutor
Tutor

Hello,

I have local storage set up and sometimes it works but often when I go to access local recordings I get the error message, "There was an error obtaining your library.  Arlo team is working on this issue."

If I power cycle my Home Station, recordings work for a bit, but within a few hours I get this error message again.  Power cycling my Home Station every day is not a great workaround.

Additionally, I have recently upgraded my Arlo app in an attempt to resolve this issue and now have "Feed" instead of "Library".  But when I open Feed I get the message, "You have found a premium feature."  Is local storage not available via "Feed"?

 

Thanks,

Ben

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@yammy86 wrote:

Is local storage not available via "Feed"?

Unfortunately it's not in the Feed.  Go to devices, and select the base.  You'll see recordings in "storage settings".

yammy86
Tutor
Tutor

Ah ok, thanks for that update.  However, in storage settings I get the error message, "There was an error obtaining your library.  Arlo team is working on this issue."  Do you know if there's a fix for that?

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@yammy86 wrote:

 Do you know if there's a fix for that?


Note I don't work for Arlo.  But I don't know of any real fix.

 

You could try a factory reset of the smarthub. To do that you'd

  1. Remove all the cameras connected to it from your account,
  2. Remove the smarthub from your account
  3. Do a paper-clip reset
  4. Add the smarthub and cameras back.

No guarantees that will work, though it did resolve a local storage issue I had with one of my own VMB5000s.

yammy86
Tutor
Tutor

Thanks for that info.  One other update, I was getting this error while away from home.  Then when I returned home, and was back on the same WiFi as the Home Station, it started working again.

 

Do you know if the local storage videos only available to be viewed when on the same WiFi network as the Home Station?

Edinburgh_lad1
Prodigy
Prodigy

The fix for that message is to access the SmartHub from the same WiFi network. Whenever one access it outwith the local WiFi network - for example 4G/5G - that's when the message appears. If you want to access the local storage while 'on the move', you need to access your local network via a VPN connection/secure tunnel to your router, and then to your SmartHub. 

 

The inability to access recordings via Feed is a big disappointment and unforgivable, especially that one is forced to use that keech of a new app. 

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@Edinburgh_lad1 wrote:

 If you want to access the local storage while 'on the move', you need to access your local network via a VPN connection/secure tunnel to your router, and then to your SmartHub. 

 


Or alternatively set up port forwarding in your router.

 

Edinburgh_lad1
Prodigy
Prodigy

Indeed.

 

The message 'There was an error obtaining your library.  Arlo team is working on this issue' is misleading. Clearly Arlo isn't working on the issue and because there doesn't appear to be an issue. I think a programmer used an error code (or a series of error codes) with a generic message, hence this confusing the user. 

 

Just to be clear: this is a "premium" product (as it's marketed) we're paying for as users... 

yammy86
Tutor
Tutor

Thanks, I was able to get this working eventually using port forwarding.  I happened upon another article that described the steps.

 

This thread can be closed out, is working now!

yemi_del_este
Star
Star

One of my 4 cameras stopped saving clips to the SD card on my base station. I get the alerts on my phone but when I check the SD card through the app there are no clips. I see the files from all of my other cameras. I power cycled the camera. Didn't help. Any know how to fix it?

 

Product: 4MC4040P

Base station: VMB4540

jguerdat
Guru Guru
Guru

You selected the VMB4500 which doesn't have the ability to show recordings via the app - only the 4540 and 5000 hubs support this. You must safely Eject the drive from your base for viewing on a computer.

StephenB
Guru Guru
Guru

@jguerdat wrote:

You selected the VMB4500 which doesn't have the ability to show recordings via the app - only the 4540 and 5000 hubs support this. You must safely Eject the drive from your base for viewing on a computer.


FWIW, the text in @yemi_del_este's post says

  • Product: VMC4040P
  • Base station: VMB4540

But the only base with an SD slot is the VMB5000.

 

@yemi_del_este - please do check the model of the camera and the base, and confirm what you have.

 

I'd first eject the storage and connect it to a PC. Then confirm that there are no recordings for the problem camera, but there are for the others.

 

Assuming that is the case, then I suggest doing a hardware reset on the camera.  

  1. remove it from the account
  2. remove the camera from the housing and press sync until the LED flashes amber (about 15 seconds)
  3. add the camera back to the account.

Step 2 assumes a Pro 3/Pro 4/Pro 5 or Ultra camera.

 

yemi_del_este
Star
Star

I have the 4540. (It wasn't available in the dropdown list when I created the post and I was required to put something, so I chose the closest option). 

 

 

yemi_del_este
Star
Star

Oh, I see the confusion. I meant to say USB drive not SD card. Thanks. 

 

Yes, I have a 4540. 

I'll try removing the device and reinstalling. Thanks. 

JasonKing
Guide
Guide

Woke up this morning to find one of my yard flags has been stolen and when I went to check the cameras, other than a single IFTT scheduled recording, nothing had been saved to my library since yesterday afternoon. IFTT is supposed to record every 30-minutes, but only a single run worked. None of the motion triggered cameras worked, even though they normally record every few minutes. I've restarted all of the cameras multiple times this morning, but only the doorbell records motion. I can manually view and record from any of the other cameras, but they won't detect and record motion. So frustrating to pay the steep subscription to only have the system fail exactly when you need it to.

DeviDarkL
Tutor
Tutor

I am having the same problem. No recordings or notifications since two days ago. I have tried everything, reseting the camera, testing motion sensor (which works), can access the camera and the feed but no recording whatsoever or motion detection with push notification.

JasonKing
Guide
Guide

Pretty obvious that Arlo made a server side update that broke their system again, and now all of us users get to play the testing game with their first line support who are kept in the dark about the real issue. Given that they broke it on Friday before Memorial Day weekend, it won't get an engineer to look at it until Tuesday, if we are lucky.

 

DeviDarkL
Tutor
Tutor

Meanwhile we are unprotected... but yes, this is something on their side. 

JasonKing
Guide
Guide

I discovered that my cameras were not working while trying to investigate a probable theft from my yard, so yeah, not protected 

yemi_del_este
Star
Star

Update:

Removed the device then tried to re-sync it however the app is not detecting it. I am not able to re-add it. 

 

I also started another thread because after I started this one I encountered more issues. 3 of my 4 cams are now "offline". First they were flashing blue, now they are flashing amber. 

 

https://community.arlo.com/t5/Arlo-Pro-3/Blue-light-flashing-Pro3/m-p/2335409#M15879

jguerdat
Guru Guru
Guru

During the same time period of these posts, my system continues to work normally. Where are you guys located since location may be an issue? Are all of you using the Pro 4 the OP shows he's using?

JasonKing
Guide
Guide

It's both of my Pro4 and Pro3 Floodlight cameras, and I'm in Utah