Importance of Firmware Upgrades

Another reason for updating firmware is to enable new features which are added to the camera software. One example is the 5MP Active Deterrence PTZ, which gained the ability to perform auto-tracking after a new firmware was released in 2021. Leo Xu from Uniview said this about firmware upgrades: “We do a major update every quarter and a minor update every month. Every product has some differences.”

How to Perform a Firmware Upgrade – Via EZTools 2.0

Now that you understand the importance of a firmware upgrades, you’ll want to know how it’s done. The easiest way to upgrade your camera’s firmware is via EZTools 2.0; Uniview’s robust camera configuration tool. You can download that from the support section of our website – 

After installing EZTools 2.0, open the software and follow the steps below to update your Uniview cameras’ firmware:

If you selected an NVR during steps 1 and 5, you will be able to upgrade all cameras added to the NVR during step 6. So, this method makes it very quick and easy to perform a firmware upgrade.

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How to Perform a Firmware Upgrade – Via Web Interface

Another way to perform a firmware upgrade is via the web interface of the camera. To access the web interface of the camera, use EZTools 2.0 to find the local IP of the camera and enter it in your web browser. Or, you can click the “Remote Web” icon to automatically open the camera in your default browser.

Login to your camera via the web interface; you may have to change the default password first. Once logged into the camera, navigate to Setup -> System -> Maintenance. You’ll see two options under Software Upgrade: “Local Upgrade” and “Cloud Upgrade”. If you already have the latest firmware package on your computer, choose “Local Upgrade” otherwise use the cloud upgrade function by clicking “Detect”. If a new firmware is available, the button will change to “Cloud Upgrade”; click it again to update the camera to the latest version.

How to Perform a Firmware Upgrade – Via NVR (using local monitor)

The previous two methods of upgrading your firmware require a laptop or desktop computer to complete. If you don’t have access to a computer, you can also upgrade the camera’s firmware through the NVR’s local interface. Of course, the NVR must be connected to a monitor via VGA or HDMI so you can see what’s happening.

Using a USB mouse connected to the NVR, right-click to open the menu and select “Main Menu”. Navigate to Maintenance -> Upgrade -> IPC Upgrade for a list of all cameras added to the NVR. Click “Check for Update” at the bottom for the NVR to search Uniview’s servers for the latest firmware version for your cameras. Next, select the cameras you’d like to upgrade by checking the box on the left side. Finally, click “Upgrade by Cloud” and hit “OK” to upgrade the selected cameras firmware.

Conclusion

It’s important to regularly keep the firmware on your Uniview cameras updated to the latest version for security and performance reasons. The instructions in this guide also apply to Uniview NVRs, which also need to be upgraded for the same reasons. If you aren’t able to find the latest firmware via cloud upgrade, you can try emailing Uniview support: globalsupport@uniview.com. Occasionally they have access to newer, stable firmware which has not been released on the cloud yet. In addition, we plan on adding firmware downloads to our site in the near future.

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Support – EZView Firmware

Please update at your own risk
We are not responsible for any device failure

DVR Firmware

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IP Camera Firmware

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Update by EZCloud

Updating from the recorder

Note: NVR must be online in order for this to work and make sure System > Network > EZCloud is enabled.

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How to Update Uniview Cameras Firmware (2024 Instructions)

If you own a security camera system, it’s very important to keep the firmware updated for all the components such as the cameras, recorders, and even the apps/software used for monitoring. Occasionally, vulnerabilities are discovered which can be exploited and have the system hacked or misused.

Recently, Uniview announced a security notice regarding their firmware and equipment that required an update to close bugs that allowed users to target the cameras.

Another reason to update the firmware of the cameras is to enable new features or other technical improvements.

Sometimes cameras may underperform and the update may fix issues such as a bad image, erroneous behaviors, unresponsiveness, etc.

Usually, Uniview releases a major update every quarter, and a minor update every month. Basically, you need to pay attention to your equipment and ensure that the units are using the latest firmware at all times.

In this guide, we will show how to update Uniview cameras, what software to use, and how to find the right firmware.

How to update firmware on Unview cameras

There are three ways how you can update the firmware:

Upgrading the firmware via EZTools

The easiest way to update Uniview’s camera firmware is by using the EZTools software. This tool can be downloaded here (or from Uniview’s website) and it’s basically a configuration tool.

It allows the user to scan the local network. Simply locate Uniview cameras and then by following the prompts you can update the firmware.

Once the EZTools is installed, run the tool. The software will scan the local network and list all the found devices (as shown in the picture below).

Check the box beside the camera (or NVR) that needs firmware update. Then click Login (the status should show “Not Logged In”). In this window, you need to type the camera’s username and password and then hit OK.

Next, click the Upgrade tab on the left hand. Choose Local Upgrade if you have previously downloaded the firmware in a .zip or .bin format (on your computer). Otherwise, select Cloud Upgrade.

Tick the box beside the device that needs to be updated and then hit Upgrade to start the process. The tool will show if there’s a new firmware update; if so, hit OK and the upgrade procedure will start right away.

Usually, it takes 2-5 minutes to complete. During this time, don’t disconnect the camera or perform any other action. If interrupted, the camera may be bricked.

If you did select to update an NVR, you will be able to update the cameras hooked up to the NVR during the last step. This method makes it easier to update all the devices at once. And as we said, keep all your equipment up-to-date.

Upgrading the Firmware via web interface (for UNV devices)

Another method to update the firmware is by accessing the device via the web browser and going through the on-screen prompts.

First, you need to find the IP address of the unit; install EZTools software in your laptop/computer and find out what’s the local IP address of the camera.

Once you have that information, go to the web browser and type the IP address in the URL bar. Additionally, you may click the Remote Web icon in the EZTool and the software will automatically open up the web interface.

Once you log into the camera using your username and password, navigate to Setup > System > Maintenance. In this section, you should see two options under Software Upgrade: Local Upgrade and Cloud Upgrade.

If you have the firmware downloaded to your laptop, choose Local Upgrade, locate the file, and start the upgrade process. Otherwise, select the Cloud Upgrade option by hitting Detect.

The camera will check online if there’s any update package available; if so, the button will change to Cloud Upgrade. Click update and wait until the unit is updated.

Once the update is done, the unit will automatically reboot. Wait until it comes back online.

Upgrading the firmware via the Uniview NVR

The two previous methods shown above require a laptop or a desktop computer to update the firmware.

If you don’t have access to a computer, you can easily update the camera’s firmware directly to the NVR’s interface. The NVR needs to be connected to a monitor (or TV) and you can use a mouse to navigate.

Right-click with your mouse and select the Main Menu option. Then navigate to Maintenance > Upgrade > IPC Upgrade where you should see all the cameras added to the NVR.

Hit the “Check for Update” button and the NVR will start searching Uniview’s servers for any available firmware.

Then, select the cameras that you want to upgrade by ticking the box. Click “Upgrade by Cloud” and wait until the firmware is updated. In some cases, the NVR may reboot.

Conclusion

It’s crucial to keep your security devices updated to the latest firmware at all times. This not just improves the performance, but ensures that your system is secure.

In this guide, we showed detailed instructions on how to update the firmware of Unview cameras by going through the web browser, using EZTools, or via the NVR’s update interface.

You can either download the firmware from Uniview, or you can use the Cloud feature to let the system find and automatically install the correct firmware.

Additionally, you may contact Uniview’s support team to get firmware files that the NVR cannot find via the Cloud. Make sure to send them the correct model and serial number as shown on the sticker.

Uniview camera Uplink firmware

Method 1. Updating From The NVR

1.Log into the Main Menu of the recorder.

2.Navigate to Camera > Camera > Advanced

3.Click on the By Cloud button for each camera that needs to be upgraded. Each camera can also be selected by clicking on its check box and then clicking the By Cloud icon to the right.

Method 2. Updating From The NVR Web Interface

1. Load the recorders IP address in Internet Explorer. Login to the recorder once the login page is
loaded.

2.Navigate to the Settings menu and then to Camera in the left hand menu and then to IP Camera in the sub menu.

3.Navigate to the Advanced settings tab

4.In the list of cameras find the cameras that need to be upgraded and click the Upgrade By Cloud Button

5.The cameras status list will then display downloading followed by uploading % and then finished off with upgrading. After it is done upgrading the camera will reboot.

Method 3. Upgrading From Camera Web Interface

1.Find the local IP address of the camera and navigate to the IP address in Internet Explorer

2.Login to the camera and navigate to Setup > Maintenance > Maintenance

3.Locate the Cloud Upgrade Detect button and click it

4.The camera will feed back A New Version Detected for Upgrade

5.Then click the Cloud Upgrade button again

6.The camera web interface will then show a camera is updating overlay.

Method 4. Updating From EZTools

1.Open the EZTools Program

◦ You can Download That here

2.Select the Upgrade Tab on the Left side

3.Click on the Online Upgrade Tab

4.Checkmark the Device you would like to upgrade

5.Click on the Upgrade button on the bottom right corner

6.Once online upgrade is clicked the EZTools will search automatically for newer firmware for the
selected devices. The EZTools will then give you a popup showing the current device firmware
and the newest available device firmware. Check off each device that you want to upgrade on
the left hand side and click the OK button at the bottom.

7.The status of the device in the main list of devices will then read updating

8.After the update is done the device status will say Upgrade Succeeded, the device will then
restart and be up to date

Method 5. Updating From EZView App

1.Open the EZView app and navigate to the main menu in the upper left hand corner of the app.

2.Select the Devices tab. The device that has a red circle next to it shows that an update is available for the recorder or the cameras.

3.Assuming that the device has already been added to the app (if not add the device) click on the
device and select the P2P Upgrade button.

4.In the next menu select all of the devices that have the red circles next to them indicating that
they need to be firmware updated

5.Click on the Start Upgrade button at the bottom of the screen. The update will take about 5-10 min depending on how many devices and internet speed.

6.After giving the recorder enough time check back to the app to see if all of the red circles are gone. If they are this will let you know that all selected devices upgraded correctly.

all Uniview firmware download

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Alternatively, you can also access and monitor your security system using your mobile device. To access your security system on your mobile device, please download the compatible app.

Lorex Cloud Client

The Lorex Cloud Client allows you to access your security system on your Mac or PC.

What are the compatible recorders?

DVR

• DV Series
• LHV Series
• D241, D242, D251, D441 Series*
• D841, D861, D862, D863, D871, D881 Series*

NVR

• NR Series
• LNR Series
• N841, N842, N843, N844, N845, N846 Series*
• N861, N862, N863, N864 Series*
• N881, N882, N883 Series*

*Disclaimer: Basic functions work from Live View and Playback. SMD feature not supported.

How to download the Lorex Cloud Client software?

For PC users, please download the Lorex Client here.

For Mac users, please download the Lorex Client here.

Lorex Desktop Software for Mac and PC

Read Next :

• DSS Pro Install and Configure Instructions
• Swann Security devices Password Reset Guide
• XMEYE VMS PC CLIENT Setup Guide

Lorex Client 13

The Lorex Client 13 allows you to access your security system on your Mac or PC.

What are the compatible recorders?

• LHA
• LHB
• LNK
• LHWF
• LHO Series
• Wire-Free

How to download the Lorex Client 13?

For PC users, please download the Lorex Client 13 here.

For Mac users, please download the Lorex Client 13 here.

How to manually update my recorder?

Download the firmware

If you have not acquired the firmware yet, download it from this article (click HERE) and save it to your flash drive (do not put it in a folder). We recommend a flash drive capacity of 32GB or smaller.

Update

1. Insert the flash drive into your DVR.
2. Access Menu and go to Advanced (left) then Maintain (top).
3. Click on Upgrade.

4. A new window will open which shows the files in your flash drive. Select the firmware you downloaded then click on OK.NOTE: Filename varies per model. Use the firmware sent to you if there’s any.

5. A confirmation window will appear, click on OK to continue.

Firstly, your device will need to be running recent / the latest available firmware.

We have only yesterday seen the first reference to this feature in the brief notes to the latest firmware for the -I Series NVRs:
Latest HikVision Firmware for -I NVRs – new V4.1.65 (76XX, 77XX, 96XX NI-I)
e.g. it should work with -I Series NVRs running firmware V4.1.65 or newer

However, we noted that in the videos below they demonstrate it working with older firmware, showing the previous GUI 3 on a connected monitor, and also shown with a 7108 DVR running firmware V3.4.89 (released 16th September 2018).

And, PLEASE NOTE you need to make preparations in advance for the day you forget your password.
e.g. set a ‘Reserved email address’ to which a reset code can be sent when needed.
Cometh the day you don’t know your password, you will not then be able to login and set a reserved email address.

Our advice, don’t forget your password – in fact, do what we do and use a service such as LastPass to manage ALL your passwords!
[that link earns us 1 month free if you sign-up – about $2; all the team at use-IP have used LastPass for years!]

And finally, because this thread will get loads of traffic from people who have forgotten their password and are stuck, we at use-IP Ltd can only assist you in resetting your password IF YOU PURCHASED YOUR HIKVISION EQUIPMENT FROM US.

Quick Guide

1. Finding the Latest Hikvision Firmware
2. Safire Control Center Setup Guide
3. SmartPSS Installation and User guide

Hikvision Password Reset

I can’t help but think that a slicker / easier solution could have been implemented – please don’t shoot the messenger.

I can say that lost/forgotten passwords for Hikvision devices is a huge problem; requests to us from strangers worldwide is a new form of spam – at least ten per day!!

If you take nothing else away from watching the below videos please just realise what a PITA it is when you do lose/forget your password and please use a service such as LastPass mentioned above to remember all your passwords AND use the tools therein to improve your security everywhere you login.

How to Do A Self-Service Password Reset on a Hikvision DVR or NVR via GUI 4.0
e.g. using a direct-connected monitor

How to Do A Self-Service Password Reset on Hikvision Device Web GUI
e.g. using a browser

How to Reset Hikvision Device Password via Hik Connect App
e.g. using your mobile phone or tablet – you’ll also need a monitor connected to your NVR, as you’ll be asked by the App to scan a QR code on it
I just realised that in this video they are not using GUI 4.0 – which implies it may work with older / other firmware?

How to Reset the Password of your Hikvision Camera/NVR in 5 steps using the SADP Tool

(IMPORTANT – We will only perform password resets for customers who bought the device they are resetting from us – use-IP Ltd – If you didn’t buy from us you will have to send your reset file to the company you did buy from)

Cybersecurity is a big issue for IP manufacturers at the moment and a key element of cybersecurity is the password and the resetting process, so in this guide we are going to take you through Hikvision’s secure process for resetting the password of your camera/NVR using the SADP Tool.

The process only takes 5 steps but will take quite a bit of time as emails have to be sent and received to complete the process, but we will talk more about this later in the guide, for now, lets start with:

Step 1: Open SADP and select the camera/NVR you want to reset by ticking the box next to the device on the left side of the list and then click the Forgot Password link at the bottom of the pop-out tab on the right of the SADP window.

Step 2: Click the Export button on the pop-up to export the reset file and then select a folder to save the file to that is easy to find

(IMPORTANT: Once you have exported the reset file the camera/NVR you are resetting must remain powered ON until the reset is complete)​

Step 3: Open your emails and attach the reset file to a new email, send this file along with the information listed below to info@use-ip.co.uk — (We will only perform password resets for customers who bought the device they are resetting from us – use-IP Ltd – If you didn’t buy from us you will have to send your reset file to the company you did buy from)

After sending the file to us we will confirm you have bought from us and then pass the file on to Hikvision tech support who will then send a reset file to change the password, which we will then email back to you. This series of communications with Hikvision can take up to 24 hours, but often Hikvision support respond much quicker than that

Step 4: Download & save the new reset file from the email you received from us to an easy-to-find folder (we would recommend the same folder as the original exported file)

Step 5: Open SADP and return to the export pop-up from before, this time you will want to go to step 2 and tick the Import File box, then click the folder icon and find the reset file we just sent you, open it so file route appears in the box like below, finally enter the new password twice and then click Confirm

After clicking confirm a box should appear with a green tick and the words Reset Password Succeeded

With the password reset you can now open an Internet Explorer browser, search the IP address of the device and log in using the new password, once in you can then proceed to do what you like with the device (we would recommend checking your Firmware is up to date before you do anything else)

If you need more help with this process then watch our How To… video below:

Hikvision’s SADP utility for 32-bit Mac users

Updated 4th April 2019 to clarify that there are 32/64-bit versions of this SADP utility for Macs.

Hikvision have just launched a new Apple Mac version (V3.0.0.3) of their SADP software, you can download it from their portal here:
HIKVISION UK PORTAL

It looks and functions just the same as the Windows version.
Great to see this, as it will be very helpful for Mac owners to have access to a Mac version of this basic Hikvision utility.

Mac-users you may now wish to read our post on everything you need to know about SADP.
And, how to reset the password of your Hikvision camera or NVR using SADP.

The user manual for SADP is attached.

Please note this version of the tool is for Mac users with 32-bit machines.
There is an alternative version for 64-bit machines – please see this post:
Hikvision’s SADP utility for 64-bit Mac users (V3.0.0.3)