Troubleshooting

Start with the message on the affected screen. A failed connection, a hidden camera and an empty recording search need different checks. Keep the error text before retrying. The steps below link to the full instructions for each feature; available actions depend on your platform and device protocol.

Storage will not open

An app-lock screen asks you to authenticate as the device owner. Storage Is Locked means the encryption key is missing. The device password or a Watchpost account sign-in cannot replace that key.

Enter the recovery key for this installation’s storage. On Apple devices, the recovery screen distinguishes these failures:

Message	What to check
This is not a recovery key: check it for typos.	Check that you copied the complete recovery key, rather than a camera password or license code
This key is from another storage.	Find the key saved for these storage files
The keychain didn’t save the key.	The app could not complete recovery by saving the key in the Keychain; keep the files and key while resolving that failure

Start Over… creates an empty registry. On Apple devices, it moves the locked files to a separate folder, still encrypted. It does not open them. Read Storage and app lock before starting over or resetting configuration; a reset removes local devices and other saved data.

The device does not connect

Open the saved device’s Connection…, or return to the Add Device form if you have not added it yet.

1. Check the protocol, address and port together. The default control ports are 34567 for Xiongmai DVRIP and 80 for Hikvision ISAPI or ONVIF; the device can use a different port. An RTSP video port does not replace the control port. See Adding a device.
2. For a local address, check that this computer or phone can reach the device’s network. On iPhone and iPad, No Access to the Local Network directs you to enable Watchpost’s Local Network permission in system settings.
3. Read authentication errors separately. Wrong user name or password concerns the login used by this connection. If an import omitted the device password, the saved list can instead say No password is saved. Type it in Connection…. Enter the device credentials there.
4. If the device reports that it locked the account, correct the credentials and resolve the lock on the device before testing again. Repeated wrong passwords can lock an account. Signing in to Watchpost does not change camera credentials.

The device doesn’t respond does not identify a single cause: check power and reachability, then the address, port and chosen protocol. A successful discovery or TCP check alone does not prove that the device accepts the login.

Remote and cloud connections

For an address reached through a site, check the selected connection path. A route check tests TCP access, including hub token and port permissions. It does not sign in to the camera or test every video stream. Read a token, forbidden-port, certificate or busy-connection error before changing routes. Access ended requires renewed shared access from its owner.

For Hik-Connect on Apple devices, check the account’s region and returned device list in Cloud Accounts. Use Sign In Again… when credentials need replacing. An imported account without a password needs a sign-in. A picture-code request needs attention before further attempts; Watchpost has no picture-code entry in that form. Android does not currently offer Hik-Connect or Cloud ID connections.

The device is saved, but there is no tile

Check the device in Devices. Turn on Show in Live on Mac or Show in Cameras on mobile. Saving a connection and putting it in the viewing grid are separate steps; a successful test in the add form also does not save the device.

If the device is already in Live, check hidden channels and the selected camera set. On Mac, the chosen grid layout can leave channels beyond its capacity in the sidebar. Open a channel directly or adjust the layout. Network equipment has no camera tiles. See Live and Camera sets.

A tile has no picture, stalls or stays silent

Check the tile’s error first. On Apple devices, the player stops automatic retries for a wrong login and some Hik-Connect account or encryption errors. Correct the credentials or account problem rather than waiting for another retry. A message about the recorder encrypting video and withholding its key concerns stream encryption; the Watchpost storage recovery key cannot fix it.

If the main stream stalls, try the sub stream. On supported address-based Xiongmai connections, the Live Video menu also selects automatic RTSP/DVRIP, RTSP only or DVRIP only. That choice is unavailable for Cloud ID connections. Changing it does not repair a wrong password. Device compatibility describes what each protocol supports.

For sound, enable audio on the selected camera and check volume. Live plays one camera’s sound at a time. The camera must send audio; the Apple player can obtain it from the main stream when the sub stream has none. Archive sound is unavailable above 2× playback speed. See Live and Archive.

The archive is empty or will not load

First distinguish Couldn’t load recordings from a successful search with no recordings. For a load error, restore the connection and use Try Again. Changing the date alone does not resolve an authentication or transport error.

For an empty result, check these in order:

1. Select the recorder channel that owns the recordings. ONVIF and HTTP connections have no archive in Watchpost. A camera’s own memory-card archive is also unsupported; where a matching recorder channel is known, the app offers that channel’s archive.
2. Choose the day and show all recording types. The archive uses the device time zone; inspect the device clock if clips appear at unexpected times. Do not change the clock just to make one search match.
3. Check the recorder’s disks and recording schedule. Adding a device to Watchpost does not start recording video on the computer. An event’s presence does not prove that the recorder saved video at that time.
4. If the app shows a license restriction, check the trial or activation in Account and license. A license cannot supply recordings the device never made.

See Archive for filters, gaps and supported sources. Android uses supported address-based Xiongmai and Hikvision archive sources; it has no Hik-Connect account source.

Events or notifications are missing

Watchpost receives direct events from supported Xiongmai and Hikvision connections added by address. Hik-Connect cloud connections, ONVIF and HTTP cameras do not supply this event feed. Keep the device in Live; if all its channels are hidden, check Receive Events While Hidden where available. Mobile apps must remain in the foreground.

Check the event list’s selected channel and kind filters. Then inspect the device’s detector and event actions, including schedules. Hikvision’s Report to Events reaction (Notify Surveillance Center on the device) is needed for events to reach the direct feed. Enabling it does not add Hik-Connect cloud events to Watchpost.

If events appear in the list but no system notification appears, check Watchpost’s notification setting and the operating system’s permission. See Events for the difference between receiving an event and showing a notification.

A settings write failed or the device disappeared afterwards

Restore communication and read the affected block again before repeating the write. An error does not prove that the device kept its old values. Hikvision can write a list in parts; a successful write can also be followed by a failed reading. Compare what the device now reports with the intended values.

After an address or port change, check the new endpoint. The device can apply the change before the old connection loses its reply. For DHCP, find the assigned address rather than assuming the app knows it. Updating the saved connection and the site’s route or hub mapping are separate tasks.

When the settings window offers to follow a new address, finish other drafts first: following reconnects and clears the window’s drafts. Discard only drops pending edits. It cannot undo already sent user commands, clock synchronization, a restart or mail/FTP tests. Read Address and protocols and Advanced editor and backups before recovery. Block backups contain previously read configuration values, not recorder footage or a complete copy of device accounts.

An export failed or the saved file will not play

Open Downloads and read the job’s error. Check that the source device remains reachable and the destination has free space and permits writing. Try Again restarts the saved job from the beginning. On Android, select the original device and channel in Archive before retrying.

Cancellation or failure removes the file currently being written; completed clips from a separate-file export remain. Clearing the Downloads list leaves completed files on disk. Jobs belong to the current app process, so restarting Watchpost does not resume them.

Open the completed result before sharing it. MP4 export copies the video without re-encoding; another player may not support its codec. Original Xiongmai .h264 files need compatible playback software. An Android job can finish without publishing files to a public folder; check whether Open or Share is available. Destinations and recovery details are in Export recordings; Mac playback is in Open a video file.

Keep details for further diagnosis

Record the app version and build, platform, device model and protocol, connection method, exact error, and the time it happened. Note whether connection testing succeeds and whether the problem affects one channel or the whole device.

On Mac, Help → Show Connection Journal opens the folder of local connection logs. These differ from the device’s own log. Check logs before sharing them for addresses and other private details. Keep passwords, recovery keys and access tokens private. See Get started for version information and Update Watchpost for the update path for your build.