I can connect to my old Reolink-cameras, but I cannot connect to a Reolink E1 Outdoor Pro if there is a mark with UTF-8. This happens with all 23.05.2 APs. But if I tried Openwrt 18, it worked.
It doesn't help to use a very simple password for the camera like "rose".
So what could i try?
Is that the NVR or the camera that you are connecting to? How are you currently connected (ethernet? wifi?) to access the page you're showing.
I don't own a Reolink NVR.
This is a connection camera - PC via Ethernet and the configuration page is displayed by Firefox.
The screenshot is old and I have returned the camera already, but I am thinking of buying the Pro again, since the POE model doesn't support Wifi and doesn't have a power adapter included and has less megapixels. So at the end I get with the Pro model a better camera for a similar price, even if Wifi doesn't work.
Unfortunately the place where the camera should be used, doesn't have Ethernet, so I probably have to change cameras, if the Wifi connection is not possible.
Any idea what this UTF-8 in the screenshot means. Neighbour networks don't show this. If I use an android phone as AP, there is not UTF-8 shown and it works. I only see UTF-8 with my Openwrt-APs.
If your other devices connect normally to the AP, it would suggest something potentially wrong with the reolink firmware or wifi implementation. But since you don't have the camera, there won't be any method to test/experiment until you get one again.
UTF-8 is a character set encoding definition, but what is not clear is what the difference is for the neigbhor APs -- how are they encoded and/or what characters are they using (for SSID and/or passphrase).
If you were to use an SSID and passphrase with only alpha-numerics (and no special characters), would that make a difference?
I would check Reolink's support channels to figure out if others have described this issue and/or if they have new firmware or other advice for this issue.
Yes, that was the reason I returned it. I am also angry to update my old Reolink cameras because of this.
I fear the thread is closed, when I get another one. This takes a while.
Tried this, limited to US-ASCII and then to simple characters without a dot or dash. I never used UTF-8 characters for the SSID. The password uses UTF-8 characters normally. No problems with the indoor camera E1 zoom and UTF-8. It didn't help to use a simple passwort "rose" as mentioned.
Yes, I tried to avoid this. For the moment this seems to happen with opernwrt-devices only. As already mentioned, older openwrt-devices work (in the meantime all are update to 23.05.2), they don't show UTF-8 and my 2.4GHz neighbours don't show UTF-8 too.
I never had a similiar situation with an android phone or another camera.
This specific thread should remain open as long as a solution is not marked. If it does close, you can message me or one of the other mods/admins and we can re-open it. Or you can make a new thread.
This passphrase is too short. WPA2 must be at least 8 characters.
I think it should be clarified that you've experienced it only with the combination of Reolink devices and OpenWrt >18.06. It could be an issue for some (but clearly not all) other firmware and/or other vendors wifi devices when used with this reolink camera. But importantly, it doesn't appear to be an issue for connecting any other client devices to OpenWrt 23.05. That strongly suggests it is an issue with the camera's firmware.
We can review your config if you'd like, but it's probably most useful with the camera in hand to be able to test. Otherwise, we don't know what might be triggering this. (for example, if you have 802.11k/r/v enabled, wpa3 or sae-mixed encryption, etc.)... we'd have to experiment.
I know.
They look simple, letters and numbers only.
I don't know, For sure no UTF8-characters, as well as with my SSIDs.
No idea, which passphrase my neighbours use.
I didn't try this, but something similar:
SSID: ABC
PW: simple
So UTF-8 must come from somewhere else.
Please accept my apologies if this seemed obvious. I don't presume to know your comfort level with different character encoding methods one way or the other -- I was simply answering this question:
Yeah... I guess what I'm getting at is if there is anything in your SSID/passphrase that is not available in whatever other encoding scheme is involved when it doesn't say UTF-8... in other words, is there a character you are using that requires UTF-8, but that your neighbors aren't using and therefore can use a different encoding. We don't know what encoding is being used (if different) for the neighbors APs, though. But by the sounds of it, you've tried to use simple alpha-numerics which would be available in all text encoding methods, so that alone might be a dead end.
Sorry, I tried different passwords, but maybe it was shorter than 8 characters, not sure.
I agree with you. I am confused why the configuration page shows UTF-8 with my openwrt devices. I tried 2.4 and 5 GHz. The original SSID was 5GHz limited to WPA2 only, not mixed.
I cannot imagine what this could help, since another Reolink works with the original used SSD and an UTF8-password.
nothink like this. This is an AP for the camera only, and I know it doesn't support WPA3. Locked my out already with WPA3 with another camera, where I could save it, but this one popped up with an error using a WPA3 SSID.
Ok, I will come back when I have the camera. Could be that the password was too short, but I think I have tried 8 characters too. Shouldn't Luci tell me, that the PW is too short? Pretty sure I didn't modify the PW with an editor.
Here you see the configuration page with a Reolink E1 Zoom. No UTF-8 with any SSID. The Pro used the same SSIDs, all 23.05.2
Note the FW-version in the browser header. The FW for the Pro is a lot newer, for the Zoom, which works with Openwrt is older.
Tried another Reolink Outdoor camera. Works fine with 23.05.2 including WPA2/3-mix. Nothing about UTF-8 in the configuration
So we have now 3 different Reolink firmwares:
1,0,266 works with 23.05.2
1.0.274 works with 23.05.2
1.0.285 does NOT work with 23.05.2
The current firmware for the E1 outdoor pro that is available on reolink's website is: v3.1.0.2838_23102510 (dated November 14, 2023). So... unless you were using the latest firmware, chances are you really won't know if the problem persists until you get the camera back into your hands.
But I would also suggest that this is becoming more clear that it is not an OpenWrt related issue -- it is the camera and/or its firmware.
Looks like, what I see in the browser is something different. I also expected to see a note, that there is a newer firmware, which I did not.
Already ordered.
Yes, but the questions remains what was the change with Openwrt, so it doesn't work anymore.
When I have the camera. I will flash the newest camera firmware. Then I will try again. If this doesn't help. I will go back to Openwrt year for year. I have an Archer C7 which i can flash with any Openwrt. And of course I will contact Reolink, if it doesn't work, but I fear it will take a long time to get a new firmware from them.
The new camera is here and it is more worse than the one I sent back. I can connect with my android phone only, but not with a webbrowser on a pc.
Installed firmware is: v3.1.0.2709_23101210
Possible Download: E1_Outdoor_Pro_2838_23102510.zip
So there is 2 week difference between the firmware. The android app, says, the latest firmware is installed.
I can ping the camera. Looks like Web-Port 80 is blocked, did not see an option to allow it.
Active DHCP Leases in Luci shows the camera.
Wifi-SSIDs with UTF-8 cannot connect as before. I tried 2.4 and 5GHz.
SSID without "UTF8" can connect.
Sounds like terrible firmware implementation on the Reolink devices. Personally, I think it's time to either contact the manufacturer's support or give up on these cameras.
Already done. So strange that I cannot open the camera in firefox, last times I could.
Any suggestion for ONVIF, which works with every browser? I am not interested in devices which send data to China.
Personally, I use Unifi Protect. There are some shortcomings with the system, but it has worked well for my purposes. There are many different camera systems out there, though, so you might want to seek out a site/forum that focuses on camera + NVR systems.
Thanks I will check Unifi. Searched a lot at Amazon, other cameras looked more worse than Reolink. To be compatible as much as possible, I want ONVIF.
To be clear, the Unifi Protect ecosystem doesn't work with any other vendors' products. The Protect NVRs (there are several models) will only record from Unifi cameras. The cameras themselves do have RTSP streams, but some of the more recent cameras cannot operate without a Protect NVR.
