TRENDNet CloudView Service Discontinued

Issue

Following TRENDNet discontinuing its CloudView service on 31 December 2020, it is no longer possible to set up affected cameras using the instructions for the TRENDNet CloudView app. TRENDNet provides instructions on how to use a camera that has already been set up on its website but they don't help if you need to set up from scratch or on a new network.

A Solution

This solution is based off my experience with a TRENDNet TV-IP745SIC that was previously used at a family member's home. It may or may not work for you. Proceed at your own risk.

If you picked an affected camera up on a sale table or site as new old stock, power it on and wait for the temporary hotspot associated with the camera to appear. If you've used the camera before or bought it second hand and it's being connected to a new network, you'll have to reset it to factory settings. The manual says to hold the reset button down for six seconds until the blue LED starts blinking. I had to hold it down when powering on and then again a bit later as it booted. Experiment until you get the steady amber light after the blinking blue light.

Take this opportunity to download the most recent firmware for your camera from the TRENDNet website. There were some serious security issues with earlier firmware. The TRENDNet CloudView app used to check and do the upgrade for you but no more. Once you have the steady amber light, connect to the temporary hotspot using a PC. Connect to 192.168.30.30, using your web browser, read the conditions and change the password as suggested. You are now on the setup pages. Go down to Tools, Firmware Upgrade, check your firmware version and upgrade if necessary.

It's now time to get the camera hooked up to your home network. Log in again, if necessary after a firmware upgrade, and go down to Network, Cloud Service and turn that off, since it is no longer available and you might as well tidy up loose ends. Then on to Router Connection. The camera will scan for available networks. Select yours and provide the required details. The camera will restart once you apply the new settings and the temporary hotspot will disappear.

Use the TRENDNet instructions or your favourite network scanning tool to find the new IP address on your home network. I would agree with the advice on setting up a reserved address on your home network. I would be less keen about punching a hole in my firewall to expose a no longer supported camera to the internet, though, so I haven't taken this step. If you are more security conscious than most, you have probably segmented your home network between your IoT and key devices, so this may be less of an issue for you.

Affected Cameras

According to TRENDNet:


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This page went live on 22 September 2021 and was last updated on 7 January 2022 to correct a typographical error.