Troubleshoot Display Loss on a DVR or NVR
Hey everyone, Joe here from SCK with another article and video; today we are helping you Troubleshoot Display Loss on a DVR or NVR! It can be fairly shocking to come home, or into work, and attempt to access your CCTV system only to find that such a task has been made impossible due to loss of display. Having a local monitor connected to your recorder that is working properly is an important tool. While many access their recorders more often from Computers or smartphones, only the local display showing the actual recorder interface gives you access to every single option and setting available within your system.
Many times initial setups or complex tasks, or even troubleshooting other issues like networking problems are best handled from the local display. It’s important to understand then how you would troubleshoot display loss on your local monitor. We’ve got a short video that walks through the steps below, so feel free to watch and read on as we help you troubleshoot display loss on a DVR or NVR. If your Recorder I also beeping repeatedly while you have no video, please see our other video guide on “what to do if my recorder won’t stop beeping“. Likely the display problem in cases where there is repeated beeping/buzzing is related to what’s causing the beeping. If there’s no beeping, read and watch on!
- Check if the DVR/NVR is on –
The first thing you should do is ensure the Recorder is actually powered on. Power outages, accidental unplugs, Power strips that have gone bad, or even simply the actual switch being clicked the wrong way can cause your recorder not to be on when you expect it to be. Inspect the power switch, power cable, and outlet as well as listen for the fans and look for lights indicating the recorder is on. - Check if Monitor is on –
It’s difficult to see an image on your monitor if it’s turned off 🙂 Just like with the recorder itself, ensure your monitor is plugged in firmly at both ends of the power cable (monitor and outlet end). Additionally makes sure your Monitor’s power switch is tested and look for signs of LEDs for power indication. - Check Inputs –
Many monitors have more than one input, and even some recorders have more than one Monitor output. Make sure if using HDMI you have your cable plugged into the proper port. The settings within the recorder with 2x HDMI ports on them will be set to 1, or 2 being the default. Try swapping ports. If that doesn’t work, make sure that the monitor your using is set to the correct input. Often, you’ll have to navigate your monitors’ display menu to find out settings, refer to your monitors manual for how to do this. - Restart Recorder –
If all has failed thus far try a good ole fashioned “turn it off and on again”. The recorder may have frozen due to being bumped too hard or encounter some kind of error. Often restarts fix these kinds of issues, and it’s worth giving it a shot! - Test monitor and cable for functionality on a computer –
Your Monitors cable might be malfunctioning, as well as the monitor itself. Using a Device you know is getting display, like a computer, connect the monitor to this computer and see if you get video on it. If you connect the monitor, and the cable, to a PC and get video both are good and you can move on to step six. If nothing happens, swap the cable out. If still nothing you probably have a broken monitor and it’s time to swap it out. - Check Resolution Settings on web interface –
If your display is good and you still aren’t getting anything it could be that your recorder’s resolution settings are too high for the display, causing it not to show anything. Using a PC on the same network as the recorder, log into its IP address from internet explorer and access its web interfaces. Enter the display settings and drop the resolution lower to see if the display comes back. While in these settings, double-check which port the recorder is expecting the display to be on. - Call Tech support –
If all else fails our incredible tech support team is available Monday – Friday, 9 AM EST to 6 PM EST. There might be a genuine issue with your recorder or a step that’s been overlooked in the troubleshooting process. sometimes simply having an experienced set of eyes take a look can make a world of difference, and our tech team really knows their stuff!
That about covers it for Troubleshooting display Loss on A DVR or NVR. for Tech support, or any other questions please call 561-288-5258.
Related Media: What is Resolution, and why does it matter?
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