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openlens-fw

openlens-fw

openlens-fw

Hardened, open-source replacement firmware for the Anpviz IPC-D240W-S IP camera.

It keeps the camera’s stock kernel and replaces the root filesystem (the rootfs flash partition) with our own small userland. You build the image yourself, sign it with your own key, and install it on a camera you own. openlens-fw on mlaify.io explains why it exists and how it works.

Supported hardware#

CameraAnpviz IPC-D240W-S (board type MCA40E)
SoCSigmaStar Ifado (one Cortex-A7 core)
SensorSmartSens SC4336P, 2560x1440
Flash16 MiB SPI NOR (PUYA P25Q128, 3.3 V)
RAM64 MiB

No other camera is supported. This is not OpenIPC: OpenIPC doesn’t support this SoC, and its images for other SigmaStar chips must never be booted on this camera.

What works#

  • Video: H.264 (or H.265) main stream up to 2560x1440 and a sub-stream up to 1280x720, 30 fps by default.
  • RTSP on port 554 (Digest login, RTP over TCP) and RTSPS on port 322.
  • ONVIF Profile S on port 80 (and 443): device, media, imaging, events and motion area. Tested with Synology Surveillance Station.
  • Web UI over HTTPS on port 443. Port 80 redirects browsers there. Each camera makes its own certificate authority.
  • Day/night: automatic switching, IR-cut filter and IR LEDs.
  • Image controls: brightness, contrast, saturation, sharpness, exposure, mirror and flip, shutter limits, anti-flicker, noise reduction, WDR and backlight compensation.
  • On-screen display: date and time, and a title.
  • Motion detection, sent as ONVIF events.
  • Microphone: G.711 audio on the RTSP streams.
  • JPEG snapshots at /snapshot.jpg.
  • Time: NTP and a time zone with daylight saving rules.
  • Signed firmware updates from the web UI or over SSH.
  • SSH (Dropbear, keys only, post-quantum key exchange).
  • No shared credentials: an image has no accounts or keys. You claim each camera after you flash it.

What doesn’t#

  • Two-way talk. This camera doesn’t support it.
  • Network settings. The camera gets its address by DHCP. Setting a static address is planned, not built. Use a DHCP reservation on your router.
  • 90° rotation. Mirror and flip (180°) work; 90° is planned.
  • RTP over UDP. RTSP clients must use TCP.
  • HTTPS on one subnet. The camera’s certificate authority is limited to the subnet the image was built for (CAM_NET, a required build setting). See HTTPS and the camera CA.

Status#

The firmware runs from flash on the developer’s cameras every day and records to Surveillance Station. Three code reviews and most of the planned security acceptance tests are done. Some live tests (a full port scan, network fuzzing and a 24-hour soak) are still to run. Known limits are listed in the Security model.

Installing replacement firmware can leave a camera unusable. Take a full flash backup first and make sure you can restore it. Use this at your own risk.

Where to start#

Read the pages in this order the first time:

  1. Building from source
  2. Signing and update keys
  3. Installing
  4. Claiming the camera
  5. HTTPS and the camera CA
  6. Updating firmware
  7. NVR setup
  8. Settings reference
  9. Security model
  10. Troubleshooting

License#

The source is under the MIT license. A built image also contains third-party parts and proprietary vendor files from your own camera. Read THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md before you share an image. In short: don’t share images that contain vendor files.

Help and contributing#

Edit this page on GitHub Report a problem