How to connect your IP camera to a Hikvision NVR?

Hikvision is the world largest security system distributor. As a results, it also has the most abundant OEM partners as listed by IPVM.

However, connecting your IP camera to a Hikvision NVR isn’t always straightforward.

This article will try to cover step by step instruction on adding your 3rd party IP camera to a Hikvision NVR. If you have a Hikvision camera and a Hikvision NVR, you should consult Hikvision support directly.

So we will be analyzing this from different scenarios. And please review each question one by one for your setup.

1. Figure out the connection: are you powering the camera using the NVR?

Scenario A: No.

If 1) you don’t wish to power the camera with the Hikvision PoE NVR, 2) your NVR cannot provide sufficient power to the camera or 3) if you are using a non-PoE NVR , then you will be powering your IP camera using a DC12V adapter or a PoE switch/injector.

And then NVR and camera needs to be connected to the same network. The NVR has a LAN uplink port that can be connected to the switch or a router.

Below is a simple wiring diagram.

Or if you prefer to use DC12V adapter, then you can connect them as follows. On a separate note, it is always recommended to use a separate non-PoE switch for surveillance devices only.

Note even if you have a PoE NVR, you can still connect your IP camera to the Hikvision NVR using the above diagram through the NVR’s LAN port.

Scenario B: Yes.

When you say “yes”, we assume you want to power your IP camera directly to the built-in PoE switch located on the back of the Hikvision NVR.

Then let’s first verify two things:

1).Is your IP camera a PTZ camera?

If so, then please make sure this Hikvision POE NVR also supports 802.3at protocol? This can be found from the specification sheet of your NVR posted by Hikvision.

802.3at is the protocol used by PTZ cameras.

802.3af is the protocol used by fixed bullet/dome cameras.

2). Does your NVR has sufficient budget for this camera?

Please take a moment to check the specification sheet of the PoE NVR and see its overall budget (power).

Note a fixed camera takes 15W and a PTZ camera takes 25W.

For example, the Hikvision DS 7608NI-I2/8P has 120W budget and 8 PoE ports. If it has already connected to 7 bullet cameras, taking a total of 15W x7 = 105W. So the remaining port is only sufficient to power 1 bullet camera. You cannot add an additional PTZ camera to the 8th port.

Note even if your POE NVR cannot provide sufficient power to the IP camera, you can STILL connect the IP camera in a “Non-PoE NVR” application as shown in diagrams from the Scenario A above.

 

2. Are you familiar with the ONVIF port of your Hikvision NVR?

For a 3rd party IP camera, you will most likely have to add the camera to the NVR using the ONVIF protocol. Most modern IP cameras are already ONVIF compatible to ONVIF supported NVR (except some baby wifi cameras and some wifi doorbell cameras).

You should be aware of your IP camera’s ONVIF port, and the default value of which is usually standard to each manufacturer.

For example, the default ONVIF port for Sunba is 8899.

Tip: The default ONVIF port for many other manufacturers are same as the HTTP port, which is 80. Once you change the HTTP port of the camera, the ONVIF port changes correspondingly.

Therefore, you should consult your IP camera manufacturer if you are not sure as this is the critical value that you need to enter into the NVR’s camera management section later .

You can usually find the IP camera’s ONVIF port under the network section of the camera’s UI configuration page.

3. Pre-configure the IP of the camera.

Once you figure out the ONVIF port of your IP camera, as well as how to properly power the camera and connect it to the NVR, the last step you should do before proceeding to the Hikvision NVR’s camera management page is to configure the IP of the camera to ensure it is on the same subnet as the NVR.

For example, if the router is at IP 192.168.1.1 and the NVR is at IP 192.168.1.8, you must modify the IP of the camera to 192.168.1.XXX so that all 3 equipments are on the same network.

In certain cases, if you just bought a new NVR, you might have to modify the IP of the NVR instead to match the other two equipments.

If you connect directly to the built-in PoE switch of the NVR (in Section 1. Scenario B), then please be aware Hikvision has a separate NIC (network interface card) dedicated for its built-in POE switch. The default value for this separate NIC is usually 192.168.254.1 (unless otherwise changed by user).

This means:

Hikvision NVR switch’s built-in NIC (Internal NIC IPV4 Address) = 192.168.254.1

This built-in NIC is DIFFERENT FROM NVR’s IP itself.

All cameras connected to Hikvision NVR’s built-in switch must be matching the subnet as its NIC.

Hikvision NVR will automatically recognize Hikvision IP camera and modify their IP automatically to 192.168.254.2, 192.168.254.3 etc.

That’s why you should also enter your camera’s configuration page, and modify its IP to 192.168.254.XXX if you opt to connect the camera directly to the POE NVR. Don’t forget to set its gateway to be the same as the NVR switch’s built-in NIC.

Once you have configured the IP of the camera, connect the camera to the NVR per the method noted in Section 1. Figure out the connection: are you powering the camera using the NVR? and then go to the camera management section.

For “adding method“, please select “Manual“.

Add the username, password, IP and ONVIF port (management port) of the camera.

And click OK.

 

For Sunba IP cameras, please refer to this video on how to connect your camera to a Hikvision POE NVR: