Help with setting up security cameras/static IP

[#1]

Hi everyone, new user here, just moved to Plusnet and hoping I might be able to get some help from you experts, since Plusnet support are unable/untrained/unwilling to help.

I have used a dynamic DNS to connect my phone to my home security cameras for years, worked great and it's a huge help for the general anxiety of where we live, elderly family members, etc. 

Have just moved to to Plusnet fibre (which is fast as greased lightning so no complaints there) but forced to have a new router and struggling to set up my cameras because my dynamic DNS provider wasn't one of the 6 options offered in the Hub 2 router. (Was still able to access cameras when I was at home tho, using internal network viewer).

Plusnet support weren't able to advise what to do regarding the Dynamic DNS issue, but suggested I could have a static IP address for a one off £5. Little knowledge is dangerous I guess but I thought this might move me forward in the issue so said yes, however now I'm struggling to understand how this changes things for me in the bewildering settings (and now even my internal viewer no longer works).

I know I need to turn on port-forwarding, I have set up a rule for the internal ports, and one for the external ports but doesn't seem to be making any difference. 

I get that I'm probably asking really beginner level questions, but does anyone have any experience here?

 Many thanks,

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[#2]

Little knowledge is dangerous I guess but I thought this might move me forward in the issue so said yes, however now I'm struggling to understand how this changes things for me in the bewildering settings (and now even my internal viewer no longer works).

@salcalvert having a static IP means that you can use <youraccountname>.plus.com in place of the Dynamic DNS name you used to use. Everything else should be exactly the same.

When you use a dynamic DNS name, your router effectively updates the name so that it refers to your currently allocated IP when and if it changes. Having a static IP means that the IP doesnt change and so <youraccountname>.plus.com will always refer to your IP.

[#3]

@MisterW how kind of you to take the time to reply!!  Thanks.

I cant set everything up as "exactly the same" as before as I was forced to take a new router and the internal program appears to only offer the 6 options shown below for Dynamic DNS providers.  Are you saying somehow I use one of those but insert myaccountname.plus.com somehow?   I had thought I would be now looking for some settings outside of the realm of dynamic DNS.

[#4]

Also, the plusnet support person gave me a string of digits (eg: 12.345.67.890) which doesn't match what router is telling me my broadband IP address is, and not an address in the format you describe, and said this was for my router itself.   
So somehow I still need to somehow direct my phone from the router to the cameras. 

Any ideas?

[#5]

Forget the dynamic dns service the fixed IP has replaced it. Which ip cameras are you using ?

[#6]

So somehow I still need to somehow direct my phone from the router to the cameras. 

@salcalvert sorry if I wasn't clear earlier, but as @Champnet says, just forget about Dynamic DNS , you don't need it any more!

In your phone , you used your Dynamic DNS name somewhere to make the connection to your camera. Replace that name with <youraccountname>.plus.com i.e if your Plusnet accountname is xyx123 then use xyz123.plus.com. That should be all you need to do, assuming you have copied any port forwarding settings from your old router.

[#7]

@salcalvert 

You can check port forward rule using this site https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ 

If you view the Technical Log >Event log you should see incoming connections being forwarded to you device.

08:58:03, 06 Jun. FWL Port Forward Server(192.168.10.201) TCP 8081 accepted a new connection from 198.199.98.246

08:58:02, 06 Jun. FWL Port Forward Server(192.168.10.201) TCP 8081 accepted a new connection from 198.199.98.246

This proves the port forward rule below is correct. 

I am mapping external 30217 to internal 8081, for you I expect the same external and internal ports are being used are the same?

The port checker reports either 

Port 30271 is closed on <your public IP Address> - incorrect external/internal port mapped or device is turned off

Port 30271 is open on <your public IP Address> - successful connection.

Hope this helps with your fault finding.

[#8]

@salcalvert  Have you re-booted your router since the static IP purchase ? If not then do so.
Check the static IP has been set up by Plusnet , go to https://www.whatsmyip.org/ do the numbers agree with the ones’s given to you ?

[#9]

Hi @Champnet   thank you very much for helping.  yes I have rebooted the router.     using "whatsmyip" there it comes back with the same digit string as what my router is saying my "broadband IP" address is (beginning 212.), but this is a totally different IP digit string to what the plusnet support person on the phone told me it was (beginning 87.)   Would you be inclined to think the 212. string is the correct one?

[#10]

thanks @Dan_the_Van this is really interesting.   you're onto something here.  my phone viewer app needs a "http port" (I'm using 80 - my understanding this is for internal network purposes) and an "RTSP port" (I'm using 4505 - my understanding this is for web access)

Using the port checker there its showing port 80 is closed. But the viewer I was using within my network but after the new router was installed was working up until I asked them to give me the static IP, making me think port 80 WAS previously open - could them changing this have somehow altered the port forwarding?

[#11]

@Champnet I'm not using IP cameras.   I have a samsung DVR which is plugged into my router and I've assigned a static IP (beginning 192.) internally with 4 cameras attached.  

[#12]

@Dan_the_Van I have created new port forwarding rules but port checked is saying ports are closed.  Can you see what I've done wrong?

[#13]

using "whatsmyip" there it comes back with the same digit string as what my router is saying my "broadband IP" address is (beginning 212.), but this is a totally different IP digit string to what the plusnet support person on the phone told me it was (beginning 87.)   Would you be inclined to think the 212. string is the correct one?

@salcalvert I think it would be useful to establish whether your account is actually using a static IP.

If you perform an nslookup on <youraccountname>.plus.com does it return the same address that whatsmyip is reporting ?

If you have a windows device then you can use cmd to do the nslookup. Failing that , use the https://www.nslookup.io/ to perform the lookup

[#14]

@salcalvert 

The rules look good, but I think RTSP might need UDP so best you add UDP for port 4505.

If you look at >Advanced Setting Technical Log >Event log do you see an entry like I listed in my last post?

FWL Port Forward Server (IP Address of the DVR) TCP 4505 accepted a new connection from <internet host>

What @MisterW says about the public IP Address, dynamic IP would something like  1.0.189.80.dyn.plus.net with 80.189.0.1 being the IP Address

[#15]

@MisterW using nslookup.io i get the same IP begnning 212. as whatsmyip is telling me.  so i think that means i truly am on static IP at the 212. address not what plusnet told me.  Do you agree?