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How to view Dahua FTP footage without a NAS

Your Dahua camera (IPC-HDW2849H, IPC-HFW2849S, IPC-HDW3849H and others) uploads videos and images to an FTP folder. That folder fills up with timestamped files and there's no good way to browse them: no thumbnails, no search, no alerts. You end up logging into an FTP client every time you want to check what happened.

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What Lunetta does

A beautiful dashboard

Every recording shows up as a thumbnail. Scroll through your footage instantly. No FTP client needed.

Instant alerts

Get a Telegram message with a photo or video clip the moment new footage is detected.

How Dahua names its files

Dahua uses the YYYYMMDDHHMMSS format. Lunetta reads this format natively and uses it to set the correct event timestamp. The timestamp in the filename always takes priority over the file modification time, so footage transferred in bulk still gets the correct time.

# Example FTP folder structure

dahua/2026-06-04/

└── 20260604143022.mp4

Imou cameras (Dahua's consumer brand) use the same filename format.

Up and running in minutes

1

Point your Dahua FTP setting to your server

In your Dahua app, go to FTP settings and enter your server's hostname, credentials, and the target folder.

2

Install Lunetta on that server

Download the zip, upload it to your server, and visit the URL. The installer guides you through the rest in about 5 minutes.

3

Watch footage appear automatically

Lunetta scans the FTP folder on a schedule. New events automatically show up. Telegram alerts fire as soon as footage is detected.

$29

One-time payment, no subscription.

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  • Unlimited cameras

  • Unlimited users

  • 100% self-hosted

  • Easy installation

  • Works with Dahua FTP cameras

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