How to Manually add newer Hikvision IP camera to an Older Hikvision NVR (v3.x) Leave a comment

What You’ll Need

• Hikvision NVR (older firmware, e.g. 3.3.x or 4.x.x)

• Hikvision IP camera (unactivated)

• Windows PC with SADP Tool installed

• Ethernet cables

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⚙️ Step 1 — Physical Connections

1. Disconnect the LAN cable from the NVR’s LAN port (the one going to your modem/router).

2. Plug that LAN cable into one of the PoE ports on the NVR.

3. Connect your PC to another PoE port on the NVR.

4. Connect the new camera to any remaining PoE port.

At this stage:

• The NVR PoE ports form an isolated subnet (e.g. 192.168.254.x).

• The PC and camera are on that same subnet.

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Step 2 — Launch and Use SADP Tool

1. Open SADP Tool on your PC.

2. It will automatically discover the NVR and the unactivated camera.

3. Select the unactivated camera.

4. Enter a password — use the same password as your NVR.

5. Click Activate → it should now show as Activated.

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Step 3 — Assign the Correct IP Address

1. After activation, note the camera’s default IP (usually 192.0.0.64).

2. Match it to your NVR’s existing PoE subnet.

   • Example:

     Existing cameras:
192.168.254.2
192.168.254.3
192.168.254.4


     → Assign new camera 192.168.254.5.

3. In SADP:

   • Tick Enable DHCP (optional) or enter manually:

     • IP Address: 192.168.254.5

     • Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

     • Gateway: 192.168.254.1

   • Enter the camera password and click Modify.

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️ Step 4 — Add the Camera Manually in the NVR

1. On the NVR monitor, go to Menu → Camera → Camera Management.

2. Select an empty channel and click Add or Manual Add.

3. Enter:

   • IP Address: 192.168.254.5

   • Protocol: Hikvision

   • Management Port: 8000

   • Username: admin

   • Password: (same as NVR)

4. Click OK / Add — the camera should change from Offline → Online.

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✅ Step 5 — Test Live View

1. Go to Main Menu → Live View on the NVR.

2. Confirm the camera image appears.

3. If it’s offline, recheck:

   • IP in same subnet (e.g. 192.168.254.x)

   • Username/password match

   • Camera shows Active in SADP

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Step 6 — Reconnect the NVR to the Network

1. Unplug the modem/router cable from the PoE port.

2. Reconnect it to the NVR’s LAN port.

3. The NVR now has Internet again while keeping the PoE subnet for cameras.

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Example IP Layout