# NeuroWatch > NeuroWatch is a self-hosted security camera recorder for Linux and Windows that keeps recording offline, with NeuroWatch Cloud, a browser portal for live view, playback and recorder health that needs no open ports and does not store your recordings. The full text, with every feature, the guides and how to install: [llms-full.txt](https://neurowatch.app/llms-full.txt). ## Why NeuroWatch runs fast and light Decoding video is usually the most expensive work a camera recorder does, so NeuroWatch is built to do as little of it as it can. Its recording engine is written in Rust, stores video exactly as the camera sent it, and decodes a camera only while someone is looking at it on the recorder's own screen. - Recording never decodes video - Only what is on screen is decoded - Smaller streams on the wall - Preview rates that fit the view - Hardware decoding when it is available - One connection per camera stream - Browser viewing without transcoding - Clip export without re-encoding - Analysis runs in its own process - A native engine in Rust - The window is separate from the recorder We publish no benchmark figures: the load depends on how many cameras you have, their resolution and codec, your graphics hardware and how many are on screen. Diagnostics shows the real numbers for your own recorder. ## What it does - Records IP cameras (RTSP, RTSPS, RTMP, MJPEG), USB cameras (V4L2) and video files to the recorder's own disks - Keeps capturing, recording and playing back locally when the internet is down - Camera wall with paged grids, drag-and-drop placement, solo view and per-cell zoom - Playback of several cameras on one timeline, with recording gaps shown as gaps - Records without decoding video: each camera's compressed video goes to disk as it arrives - Decodes a camera only while it is on screen, using the recorder's Rust engine and the graphics card where possible - Hardware video decoding through VA-API, NVIDIA NVDEC, Direct3D 11 and 12, Intel Quick Sync or V4L2, with a software fallback - Links to NeuroWatch Cloud with a one-time code; the recorder connects out and no ports are opened - Live view in the browser, started on demand and authorised by grants that last at most 60 seconds - Recording review in the browser: pick a day, click a moment, skip 30 seconds, play from 0.5× to 4× - Add and search for ONVIF cameras from the portal, with addresses and passwords sealed for the recorder - Recorder diagnostics: CPU, memory, GPU decoding, disk space and per-camera frame rate, drops and latency - Recorders and cameras pinned on an OpenStreetMap map - Owner, admin and viewer roles - Motion detection by an included plugin, ONVIF camera events, and alerts to ntfy, Telegram or a webhook - Headless mode and Docker images for computers with no display ## At a glance - What it is: A self-hosted camera recorder (NVR software) plus a cloud web portal - Recorder runs on: Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit), Ubuntu 22.04+ and Debian 12+, Fedora 43+, Arch Linux, Raspberry Pi OS 64-bit (untested) - Camera sources: RTSP and RTSPS, RTMP, MJPEG over HTTP(S), V4L2 (USB cameras), local video files - Camera discovery: ONVIF search on the recorder's network, or add by IP address - Recording format: Segmented MKV files with a local index, with quotas and retention - Where recordings are kept: Only on the recorder's own disks - Recording engine: Written in Rust, using GStreamer for media formats - Decoding: None to record or to view in a browser; only cameras on the recorder's own screen are decoded - Hardware decoding: VA-API, NVIDIA NVDEC, Direct3D 11, Direct3D 12, Intel Quick Sync, V4L2, or software - Without internet: Capture, recording and local playback carry on - Remote access: Outbound connections only; no ports opened, no VPN - Linking: One-time code, shown once and valid for five minutes - Live-view grants: Signed, at most 60 seconds, checked by the recorder - Camera credential sealing: X25519, HKDF-SHA256 and AES-256-GCM, in the browser - Team roles: Owner, admin and viewer - Licence: Apache License 2.0 ## Compared with the usual options - Where recordings are kept: NeuroWatch: On your recorder's own disks. Typical cloud camera service: On the provider's servers. Recorder with a forwarded port: On the recorder. - Video sent over your internet connection: NeuroWatch: Only while someone is watching. Typical cloud camera service: Every recorded camera, around the clock. Recorder with a forwarded port: Only while someone is watching. - Ports opened on your network: NeuroWatch: None: the recorder connects out. Typical cloud camera service: Usually none. Recorder with a forwarded port: At least one, or a VPN. - When the internet goes down: NeuroWatch: Recording carries on; the portal shows the recorder offline. Typical cloud camera service: Cloud recording stops until it is back. Recorder with a forwarded port: Recording carries on; remote access stops. - Who can read camera passwords: NeuroWatch: Only your recorder; the portal relays them sealed. Typical cloud camera service: Usually the provider. Recorder with a forwarded port: The recorder, reachable through that port. The two other columns describe typical setups; individual products vary. ## What it does not do - NeuroWatch Cloud keeps no backup of your recordings. If the recorder's disks fail, footage on them is lost, so plan disk redundancy on the recorder. - Live view and playback from the portal need the recorder to be online. - Alerts cannot be sent by email yet: they go to the desktop, ntfy, Telegram or a webhook. - NeuroWatch itself has no AI object detection: analysis comes from plugins, and the included plugin detects motion. - There are no macOS or 32-bit builds. - NeuroWatch is in beta: release checks install it and play generated video on each supported system, but they do not qualify physical cameras, graphics cards or displays. ## Questions ### Is NeuroWatch free? NeuroWatch is free for up to 16 cameras, with no account required for local use. NeuroWatch Unlimited is now USD 0 (normally USD 50), with sign-up required before downloading and no software camera limit; capacity depends on your hardware. Unlimited includes a support response within 24 hours at hello@neurowatch.app. Download either edition from the downloads page. Optional NeuroWatch Cloud plans are separate. ### What is NeuroWatch? NeuroWatch is a self-hosted video recorder for security cameras. It records IP, ONVIF and USB cameras on a Linux or Windows machine at your site and keeps working without internet. NeuroWatch Cloud is its web portal: once a recorder is linked, your team can watch live, review recordings and check the recorder's health from a browser. ### Is NeuroWatch a cloud NVR? No. Recording happens on your own machine and footage stays on its disks. NeuroWatch Cloud lets people watch and manage linked recorders from a browser, but it does not store your recordings. Clips you export from the portal are kept in the cloud for 7 days so you can download them, and some plugins may save data in the cloud: check the plugin's information for details. ### Does the recorder keep recording if the internet goes down? Yes. Capture, recording and playback all run on the recorder, so they carry on without internet. The portal shows the recorder as offline until it reconnects. ### Are my recordings uploaded to the cloud? No. Recordings stay on the recorder's own disks. NeuroWatch Cloud only knows when recordings exist, to draw the timeline. When someone plays footage, the recorder streams it while they watch and the portal does not store it. Clips you export from the portal are kept in the cloud for 7 days so you can download them, and some plugins may save data in the cloud: check the plugin's information for details. ### Do I need to open ports or set up a VPN? No. The recorder makes outbound connections only, so nothing on the internet connects into your network. ### Which cameras work with NeuroWatch? Network cameras over RTSP or RTSPS, RTMP and MJPEG over HTTP(S), V4L2 devices such as USB cameras, and local video files. ONVIF cameras can be found by searching the recorder's network and added by IP address. ### What does the recorder run on? Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit), Ubuntu 22.04 or newer, Debian 12 or newer, Fedora 43 or newer and Arch Linux, plus ARM64 on recent Ubuntu, Debian and Fedora. A package for 64-bit Raspberry Pi OS is available but has not been tested on Raspberry Pi hardware yet. It can also run headless or in Docker. Either way, a linked recorder can be set up from the portal while it is online. ### Can NeuroWatch Cloud see my camera passwords? No. When you add a camera from the portal, its address and password are encrypted in your browser for that one recorder. The cloud relays ciphertext it cannot read, holds it for at most a minute and never writes it to its database. ### Who on my team can change settings? Owners and admins can link recorders, change settings and open diagnostics. Viewers can watch live and review recordings, but cannot change anything. ### How do I link a recorder? On the Recorders page, create a one-time enrollment code; it is shown once and is valid for five minutes. On the recorder, open Settings → Cloud Link, paste the code and press Link. Its cameras appear in the portal within a minute. ### What can't NeuroWatch do yet? NeuroWatch Cloud keeps no backup of your recordings. If the recorder's disks fail, footage on them is lost, so plan disk redundancy on the recorder. Live view and playback from the portal need the recorder to be online. Alerts cannot be sent by email yet: they go to the desktop, ntfy, Telegram or a webhook. NeuroWatch itself has no AI object detection: analysis comes from plugins, and the included plugin detects motion. There are no macOS or 32-bit builds. NeuroWatch is in beta: release checks install it and play generated video on each supported system, but they do not qualify physical cameras, graphics cards or displays. ## Pages - [Home](https://neurowatch.app/): what NeuroWatch and NeuroWatch Cloud do - [Features](https://neurowatch.app/features): every feature, why it runs light, and hardware decoding - [Download NeuroWatch](https://neurowatch.app/downloads): Free for up to 16 cameras; Unlimited for USD 0 (normally USD 50), with sign-up required before downloading - [Getting started guides](https://neurowatch.app/guides): install NeuroWatch, add cameras and link a recorder to NeuroWatch Cloud, with screenshots - [Create account](https://neurowatch.app/create-account): create an organization, then link a recorder with a one-time code - [Sign in](https://neurowatch.app/sign-in): the NeuroWatch Cloud portal - [Source code on GitHub](https://github.com/ttheekw/Neurowatch): the recorder, open source under Apache-2.0, with release notes and issues ## Optional - [Full text](https://neurowatch.app/llms-full.txt): this summary with every feature, the guides and the installation steps - [Terms and Conditions](https://neurowatch.app/terms) - [Privacy Policy](https://neurowatch.app/privacy) - [Cookie Policy](https://neurowatch.app/cookies)