Remote SS web server no longer up

asfafa
asfafa
in SecuritySpy

I have a single camera setup at my parents’ place. The iMac is old, but running the latest Mac OS it can (10.11.6 - El Capitain), and running SS 4.2.14.

In my own local setup, I connect via SS to my parents' SS and it's been fine until the early hours of this morning, when I started receiving 'connection timeout' messages.

I've rebooted the local and remote iMacs and still getting the error.

I have gone through the remote SS preferences, and noticed in the Web tab, that the Dynamic DNS name indicator is red, and when I press 'Test', I get:

Unable to set the DDNS name. Error 87054 SSL host name mismatch

How do I fix this please, and why has it started happening?

Thanks, Paul

Comments

  • Ben
    Ben

    Hi Paul,

    Due to security updates on our servers, there seems to be an issue with the older v4 version of SecuritySpy connecting to our DDNS server. We'll see if there is anything we can do about this, but it's possible that this is a permanent situation - SecuritySpy v4 has been discontinued for some time now, and we can no longer spend development effort supporting it.

    The best solution is to upgrade to SecuritySpy v5, which is a major upgrade with many new features and improvements, however it does require macOS 10.13 or later, so it won't run on your current hardware. If you want to upgrade your hardware, but don't want to spend too much, Macs from 2011 and onwards support macOS 10.13, so you will have a good choice of second-hand machines available at low prices.

    One solution you could go for that allows you to keep running your current system is to use an alternative DDNS provider, such as no-ip. Or, you could ask your ISP to allocate you a static IP address (usually for a small monthly cost), so that DDNS is not necessary.

  • asfafa
    asfafa

    Thanks Ben for clarifying the issue.

    As my parents' place is quite some distance away, and I do have a no-ip account anyway, I will look to configure that for the time being.

  • Ben
    Ben

    Yes, if you have a no-ip account anyway, then this is probably the best solution for you as it will allow you continue to use the current system otherwise unchanged.

  • wcolumbus1492
    wcolumbus1492

    Hi,

    Can you explain how to use a no-ip address with SecuritySpy v4?

    Thank you.

  • Ben
    Ben

    The procedure would be to open an account with no-ip, and then install and set up their Mac DDNS client software.

    This will give you a public hostname such as yourname.ddns.net. You can then use this to access SecuritySpy over the Internet at http://yourname.ddns.net:8000 or https://yourname.ddns.net:8001, assuming that SecuritySpy is set up for Internet access via its standard ports. The former URL is for unencrypted HTTP access while the latter URL is for encrypted HTTPS access - you will get a warning in your web browser when accessing the HTTPS page, because the server certificate won't match the hostname that you are using to connect with, however you can ignore this warning and still take advantage of the secure HTTPS connection.

  • wcolumbus1492
    wcolumbus1492

    Thank you very much!

  • martyestrada
    martyestrada

    Good morning. This finally caught up with me yesterday. It is a naked feeling to not have access to the server anymore. Will there be a commitment to restore this functionality to v4? I otherwise would opt for new hardware rather than a static IP, if my mid 2011 mac mini is compatible with 10.13 OS. I would then need to upgrade to SSpy v5. Is that process easy, or does it require a fresh install after copying files to a new HD?

  • Ben
    Ben

    Hi @martyestrada unfortunately this looks like it will be a permanent situation. We can't support v4 without compromising the security and reliability of our servers, which is not something that we want to do.

    You can indeed install macOS 10.13.6 onto your mid-2011 Mac mini, and then you can upgrade to SecuritySpy v5. Upgrading should be as simple as downloading the new software and installing it by dragging it to your Applications folder, replacing the old version, and then entering your new SecuritySpy license details, which you can obtain from our upgrade store. All current settings should be retained.

  • martyestrada
    martyestrada

    I think I have a license for 6 or 8 cameras. I will look at it. I'm glad to know I don't need new hardware but worry v5 will also become obsolete, sooner rather than later. It looks like 10.13 is the end of the line for my mini. Thanks for the help

  • Ben
    Ben

    Yes, 10.13 is the highest system version that you can install on your Mac mini.

    I can tell you that we are still very much actively working on SecuritySpy v5 – we are not gearing up for a v6 release in the near future. Also, anytime you buy from us, you get a 6-month guarantee of free updates and support (in reality it's usually far longer than this - the lifespan of SecuritySpy v4 was 4 years, during which time we provided free updates to all v4 users). And, if you want to keep us in business and developing great software, upgrading is the main way you can support us in this mission!

  • martyestrada
    martyestrada

    Thanks, Ben! I think it's time for an upgrade

Categories