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Remote connection to WiFi Camera with 4G LTE ?

With my previous Verizon 3G modem and Cradlepoint wireless router (MBR900), I was able to access my WiFi camera from anywhere using a smart phone or computer. I used dyndns.org to set up a static IP. Now I upgraded to 4G (Pantech UML290) with the same router and now the remote access to the camera no longer works. After many wasted hours trying to figure out why, it appears that the problem is the way the Verizon 4G works. The IP address is private instead of public, so incoming access is blocked. Is this correct? Is there a work around available or planned to correct it? The ability to check the camera video from anywhere is important to me. Is the only solution to drop 4G?

I have seen discussion of solutions (like bridges) that work for allowing remote access to computers, but that doesn't help me with access to this camera (Foscam) that has an internal server.

Thanks,

Terry

Comments

John_Getzke

Yes, you are correct. The Verizon 4G LTE network sits behind a NAT firewall which blocks all users from displaying a public IP address. Your webcam will not work on the LTE network unless you pay Verizon several hundered dollars for a static IP address.

The only other viable work around is to purchase a cloudcam. Cloudcam works around Verizons LTE network so you can still access it over the internet. You can buy cloudcam online from a few places such as 3Gstore.com. They tend to be a little more expensive then the basic web cams but atleast they will work.

Webcams are not the only devices to feel the pain of the LTE network's NAT. Home webservers, game consoles and VoIP telephones also tend to have limitations. Sometimes the newer devices come with a feature called NAT-Traverse which appears to be helpful for some users. Not sure if there are any webcams other than CloudCam which can provide that functionality though. The problem is that NAT is not a standard technology, it is different in every enviornment so there is no universal solution to working around it once you discover it is being used. I am not aware of any better solutions for VZW's NAT, but perhaps one will present itself over time.

More info on NAT-Traversal:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NAT_traversal

TerryS

John,

Thanks for the detailed reply. Very much appreciated. It looks like the Cloudcam is the answer. I read the link you provided on NAT transversal, and must confess that I didn't understand much of it, but I get the gist of the problem. I'm a bit annoyed that I spent several hours trying to make my old IP camera work on the Verizon 4G network before I got around to searching the web for answers.

Terry

John_Getzke

The NAT issue is one that catches many by surprise. Sales reps tend to not mention it because its not an issue for most users and VZW support tends to overlook the obvious answers. It was not an issue on the old 3G network, but will continue to be on the LTE network. LTE is not going away, its only a matter of time before hardware vendors adapt to the new enviornment, or VZW backs down and opens up thier NAT.

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