Setup Instructions

1. You require an IP camera (wireless or wired) or supported video server (DVR / NVR) and a broadband or mobile Internet connection. Please note that many ISPs don't track or charge for uploads, however before setting up Mangocam you should always check with your provider to avoid unexpected excess data charges - especially with mobile / cell providers.
2. Create a free user account. This will also immediately activate a 7 day Gold plan trial - from here you can choose your options for plan or payment or proceed with the trial for now.
3. Configure your camera. Mangocam offers three different configuration modes:
   • Direct stream mode: Mangocam is accessing your camera via HTTP or HTTPS (JPG, MJPEG), RTSP (H.264, MPEG4), Onvif or
   • FTP upload mode: your camera is pushing jpeg images to Mangocam via FTP
   • Mangocam Connect: This is a proprietary cloud service operated by Mangocam, which works with compatible software IP camera apps

   The FTP mode is easier to configure and is compatible with all IP cameras that support jpeg FTP upload, but the frame rate is usually lower than in Direct stream mode. Also Direct stream offers you more control via Mangocam in terms of setting frame rate, camera monitoring, remote pan and tilt etc.

   The Mangocam Connect protocol is currently implemented in the Mangocam Connect Android app [currently limited Alpha version]. An iOS version will be provided in the near future. Main advantages of this mode / protocol / application are:

   • no port forwarding or dynamic DNS required, works within NAT environments
   • works anywhere, even if you don't have router access like in hotels, cafes, airplanes
   • can utilize free (unused) hardware like old tablets or mobile phones
   • provides an ad-hoc camera to be downloaded / installed and deleted again when required

4. For Direct stream mode, you need to configure your Internet router to allow Mangocam access to your camera(s) via the Internet. This is sometimes called NAT, PAT, Virtual server, address / IP forwarding. Almost all routers support this feature and you can find an easy to follow guide for your router and camera here. You can also check if your port is open and if you have correctly configured your port forwarding here.
5. If your ISP can only supply a dynamic IP address (an IP address that changes every time your router connects to the Internet), you may need to setup a free Dynamic DNS account. This allows Mangocam to always connect to the current IP address of your camera using the host name provided by the dynamic DNS provider. Some cameras have a free DNS service pre-configured. Most likely your Internet router / modem supports dynamic DNS updates.
6. The next step is to configure your camera in Mangocam. Go to Config / Cameras and add a new camera - configuration steps are provided on the page.
7. Once the camera has been configured, please go to the Dashboard page and start live streaming. You are able to check under View / Event log for error messages if you can't see a picture.
8. Once live streaming works, you can add a recording schedule (to record video at certain times - or to only record motion events at other times) and alerts (to get notified by email or SMS if motion has been detected). More information regarding different schedule types below.

Recommended H.264 / MPEG4 / Onvif settings

RTSP (real time streaming protocol) requires a minimum Internet upload speed per camera to function correctly. If there is insufficient bandwidth (even for a very short period of time), video frames will be dropped, resulting in corrupt streams and images. In order to create JPEG still images from the stream, it is required to wait until the next keyframe has been sent by the camera - with some cameras only sending key (full / complete) frames every 15-30 seconds. We are recommending the following stream settings to use with Mangocam:

• Resolution: set to 480p or 720p
• Bandwidth: 250-500 kbps, up to 1 Mbps for 1080p
• Frame rate: 8-15 frames per second
• I-Frame (key frame) interval: 2-3 seconds

The key frame interval describes the number of differential frames between full frames and is dependent on the camera frame rate. At 8 fps and a key frame interval of 16 there is a full / complete image every 2 seconds.

You will see the current video encoder, resolution, bandwidth, frame rate and key frame interval for each camera in the stream info column on your dashboard page.

Scheduling Information

For recording and other actions, you need to configure one or more schedules. The different schedule types are described in more detail below:

Recording

• This schedule defines the times when Mangocam is accessing your camera and recording video
• No motion detection is being performed
• If your camera is not available due to network problems or other issues, Mangocam will re-try every few minutes during the scheduled recording time

Recording and Motion Detection

• Similar to the Recording action, this action is recording everything during the time period specified and also includes motion detection over this set period
• You are able to configure the sensitivity for each camera in the camera configuration menu. Premium plans also allow to set masking to disable detection for specified movement in high traffic regions that you would like to exclude such as a window, tree or busy road etc.
• Once motion has been detected, a motion event is being stored in the system and this is visible in the motion events graph and on the motion events page
• To receive email or SMS alerts, a corresponding alert entry is required as well

Recording Motion Events Only

• Recording only when motion has been detected
• Mangocam still needs to constantly access or receive images via FTP from your camera but only records video to disk if motion has been detected
• After 30 seconds (default time, configurable per camera) without additional motion events the recording will stop until the next event has been detected

Camera Monitoring

• This schedule will monitor the network connection to your camera and will alert you (requires an alert entry on your behalf in the configuration) if your camera is not available (network timeout etc.) during the times specified

Exports

• If you decide to create an external viewing export page for your camera (to share the stream with a select group or the world), a corresponding export schedule is required to define the times the camera should be online / externally available

Sub Account Permissions

Depending on your plan, Mangocam may include one or more sub accounts. Sub Accounts allow you to delegate certain tasks to friends, family members or employees without giving them full access to your main Mangocam account. Sub user accounts can't create, edit or view other sub accounts and also can't view or change main user settings including plan changes.

Permissions for cameras, schedules and alerts can be set independently to the following values:

View Only (default setting)

• Permisson to view only. No rights to disable, enable, record, edit or add new configurations. This is the default setting for new Mangocam sub accounts.

View, Enable and Disable

• View, enable, disable, start manual recording (for cameras). No rights to edit existing or add new configurations.

View and Edit

• View, enable, disable, start manual recording and edit existing configurations.

View, Edit and Add

• All permissions to view, edit and add. However, no rights to view and add other sub accounts or main account settings.

None

• No permission to view, disable, enable, record, edit or add new configurations. This includes cameras, schedules and alerts as well as live viewing and viewing recordings as well as motion events (camera permissions).