How to find the RTSP URL for a Lorex camera

This applies to Lorex DVRs, NVRs and wired IP cameras, and Lorex's own support pages document the format for exactly this use, feeding a third-party system over RTSP. The battery and Wi-Fi smart-home lines (the Smart Home Security Center and Lorex Hub cameras) are app-only products with no RTSP at all, so if that's your kit, this page isn't the one.

Why the Dahua pattern works

Lorex has changed hands more than once over the years, and one of those owners was Dahua, so a lot of Lorex hardware shares Dahua's underlying platform. That's why the URL format on a Lorex is usually the realmonitor one from the Dahua guide, unchanged down to the port. It's a strong first try rather than a law, though: some newer Lorex units run different firmware, and on those a Hikvision-style path such as /Streaming/Channels/101 is the other candidate worth a go. If neither connects, your model's manual settles it in a page.

Through the recorder or straight to a camera

On an NVR or DVR system, connect to the recorder, not the cameras. Cameras plugged into an NVR's PoE ports usually sit on the recorder's own internal network, so your computer can't reach them directly, and the recorder republishes every camera at its one address anyway: channel=1 is the first camera, channel=2 the second, and so on. A standalone wired IP camera added straight to your network is simply channel=1 at its own IP. Subtype works the same in both cases, 0 for the full-quality main stream and 1 for the lighter sub stream.

Finding the IP, the port and the credentials

The recorder shows its own IP address under the Network menu or the System Information screen, and your router's connected-device list gives the same answer from the other end. The RTSP port is 554 unless someone changed it, and it's listed in the same network settings. The credentials are the recorder's own login, the username and password you use on its screen (the manual lists the factory default, which with any luck you changed on day one). Test the finished URL in VLC, under Media > Open Network Stream, before pointing anything else at it; a picture in VLC means the URL is right and any later problem lives elsewhere.

1. 01

   Find the recorder's IP address

   Check the recorder's Network menu or System Information screen, or your router's connected-device list.

2. 02

   Note the RTSP port

   554 unless it's been changed; the recorder's network settings list it.

3. 03

   Build the URL

   Use rtsp://username:password@ip:554/cam/realmonitor?channel=1&subtype=0 with the recorder's login details.

4. 04

   Test it in VLC

   Open the URL as a network stream. If it refuses, try subtype=1, then the /Streaming/Channels/ form, then the manual.

5. 05

   Repeat per camera

   Every other camera on the recorder is the same URL with a different channel number, so one working address gives you all of them.

Using it with Svid

Once the URL connects, adding it to Svid is the same as for any brand: Svid captures the stream server-side, so there's no new hardware and no separate viewer to run. Each channel becomes a live feed like any other input, described frame by frame, and searchable and checkable the same way footage from a phone or an upload would be. The general RTSP connection guide covers the account setup and what happens once the stream is added.

What are the default Lorex RTSP credentials?

The recorder's own login, the same username and password you'd type on its screen or in the Lorex app. Your model's manual lists the factory default, but setup forces most people to change it, and the URL wants whatever the login is now, not the factory one.

Should I connect through the NVR or straight to the camera?

Through the recorder, usually. Cameras on an NVR's PoE ports sit on the recorder's internal network where your computer often can't reach them, while the recorder republishes every camera at one address with the channel number picking between them.

My Lorex camera rejects the realmonitor URL. What now?

Not every Lorex is Dahua-based. The battery and Wi-Fi smart-home lines have no RTSP at all, and some newer units run different firmware with a different path. Try the /Streaming/Channels/ form next, and if neither works, the manual for your exact model is the authority.

Do I need to port forward for RTSP?

Not to test it. On your own network, VLC reaches the recorder directly. Forwarding the RTSP port only comes into it when something outside the network needs the stream, and it makes the recorder reachable from the internet, so strong credentials stop being optional at that point.