Export recordings

Export copies recordings from a supported device’s archive to files. It does not delete the recordings or change the recorder’s recording schedule. The device must remain reachable while copying, and export must be available under your build’s license.

The Apple apps export from Xiongmai and Hikvision archive sources, including supported Hik-Connect connections. Android supports the address-based Xiongmai and Hikvision sources; it has no Hik-Connect account connection. ONVIF and HTTP cameras have no archive export in Watchpost.

Choose the channel and interval

On Mac, select a recorder channel in Archive. Hold ⇧ and drag on the timeline to select an interval, then choose Export… or press ⌘E. The form uses the selected interval, or the visible timeline window when nothing is selected.

Check Channel, From and To. The form uses the archive’s device time zone. It searches for recordings again when you change the interval and shows a count, total video duration and an estimated size where available. Export stays unavailable until it finds recordings. A search error is different from No recordings in this interval; check the connection and reported error before changing the dates.

A clip’s Save this clip as MP4 action exports that one clip without opening the interval form. Check its progress in Downloads.

What the interval contains

Source	Export boundary
Xiongmai	Whole recorder files overlapping the interval; the result can start before From and end after To
Hikvision, including the Apple Hik-Connect source	Continuous recording stretches within the requested interval

The interval is not a promise of a frame-exact edit. Review the saved beginning and end before sharing a file. Choosing one MP4 joins the selected pieces and cuts out gaps; its running time can be shorter than the wall-clock interval. Use separate files if you need to keep the pieces distinct.

Choose format and destination on Mac

MP4 copies the picture without re-encoding the video. You can choose One file, gaps between clips cut out or A separate file for each clip. Compatibility with another player still depends on the recording’s codecs. Open and check the result.

For Xiongmai, Recorder’s original files (.h264) copies each recorder file byte for byte, with a separate file per clip. These are the recorder’s own format for compatible software such as its CMS, rather than an MP4 conversion. This option is not available for Hikvision sources.

Save to shows the destination. By default it uses the recordings folder from App settings, initially Movies/Watchpost. Change… selects an MP4 filename for a single-file export, or a parent folder for a new folder of clips. Changing format or the single/separate-file option resets a custom destination, so check the path again before exporting.

Default names gain a number if already taken. A single MP4 filename explicitly confirmed in the save dialog can replace the existing file. Choose Export to start; the form closes and the job continues in Downloads.

Progress, cancellation and retry

Open Downloads from the toolbar or press ⌥⌘L on Mac. Jobs show progress, speed and estimated time when enough information is available. A device that supplies no sizes requires an estimate; progress does not guarantee that the final MP4 is usable.

Cancel a running job with its cancel button. On cancellation or failure, the exporter removes the file currently being written. Completed clips from a separate-file export remain in the destination folder. In a single-file export, the unfinished MP4 is removed.

Try Again restarts the job with the saved clip list and destination. It does not resume at the last downloaded byte. Clear removes finished, failed and canceled jobs from the list and leaves their files on disk. Individual removal from the list also leaves completed files.

A completed Mac job offers Play and Show in Finder. The Downloads list belongs to the current app session; it is not a permanent history or a restart-resume queue. Keep the app running until the export finishes.

iPhone and iPad

Open export from the Archive toolbar and set the dates and times. Choose one MP4, a file per clip, or the original Xiongmai files where available. Starting export leaves the form open and adds a Downloads entry.

Files go to Watchpost › Exports in the Files app. A completed job offers Share. Downloads also offers cancellation, retry and clearing the list. Closing the export form does not itself cancel a job; keep Watchpost active while waiting for the result.

Android

Open export from the Archive toolbar. The form starts from the selected interval or visible timeline window; its time controls change the interval within the selected day. Choose one MP4, separate MP4 clips or original Xiongmai files. Jobs appear in the form and in Downloads.

On Android 10 and later, successful publication puts MP4 files in Movies/Watchpost and originals in Download/Watchpost. Open appears for one published file; Share works with the published files. If publication fails, or on older Android versions, the result can stay in the app’s export folder without those actions. A completed row’s public-folder label alone does not confirm publication.

Before retrying a failed Android job, select its original device and channel in Archive: the mobile Downloads view uses the current archive source for retry. Clearing the list leaves the files. Export progress and jobs remain in memory for the current process; restarting the app does not resume them.

On Mac, see Open a video file for playback, recorder-file preparation and several files on one viewing timeline.