Cortian2

That would be a wireless bridge, not a repeater.

Here ya go: All you need to know about PoE: http://www.veracityglobal.com/resources/articles-and-white-papers/poe-explained-part-2.aspx

Be careful you might see a lawsuit coming your way

Tom, it's clear you were wasting your time with this one from the start. He already knows everything there is to know about everything. Just ask him, he'll tell you so

Against whom? And for what? If by some chance you're referring to this forum, you're barking up the wrong tree. The people on this forum are here voluntarily. Nobody gets any remuneration for answering questions here and helping people out. Nobody here is obligated to you for anything. IANAL, nor do I play one on TV, but my guess is participation here is protected under common "good Samaritan" law. If you mean this web site, itself, think again: Online Forums, Chat Rooms and Hosted Content: Risks and Liabilities If you mean the manufacturer or seller of the surveillance system you bought: Whatever blows your skirts up. Good luck collecting.

That'll certainly get you the help you want

Measure twice, cut once (Test before deploying in this context.)

In fact: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=poe+splitter+12v&sprefix=PoE+splitter%2Caps%2C170&crid=2M9XKQYQ1BU1M

collapse, You're essentially doing what I plan to to eventually. I'd originally acquired our Synology DS218+ to support a DVR app for our whole-house networked TV and DVR solution. Poking-around in the Package Manager, one day, I noticed the Surveillance Station. Did some more poking around and found the DS Cam app for our phones and tablets. Right now I have it working with the sole Reolink C1 Pro we have, more for eval purposes than anything else. It seems to work fine. (Other than a short while when they bollixed something up and DS Cam did not work on wireless [cellular] networks.) For cameras I plan to go with Dahua IPC-HDW5231R-ZE Starlight cameras outdoors, and perhaps in the garage, and Dahua IPC-HDBW4231F-AS Mini Dome Starlight cameras indoors. I expect to have four-five, total. I'll use a NetGear PoE switch to power them and Monoprice stranded Cat6 Ethernet cable to wire them. (I already have the connectors, boots and ratcheting termination tool.) I'll keep the Reolink around as a "roamer." FoxSTI, Those WD Reds, at 144-210MB/s (depending on size), should be more than fast enough. All going to 7200 RPM will accomplish is to consume more power, generate more heat and noise, and probably reduce life expectancy. All of you: If you port-forward to your NAS for off-site access to your surveillance system, be certain to choose strong passwords/pass-phrases, and configure carefully Control Panel -> Security -> Account. Ours has been up only a month or so and somebody's taken a shot at the admin account already.

There are PoE-powered switches: NETGEAR 5-Port Gigabit Smart Managed Plus Switch, PD Powered, Pass-through, ProSAFE Lifetime Protection (GS105PE) You'll need an adequate PoE injector, as well.

Hi. Would be best just using a switch Agreed. To the OP: What's the point in trying to do this? Cat5e or Cat6 cable isn't all that expensive. But, if it's an existing cable and you either can't or don't want to run another, a small switch would be preferable.

I've pretty much written-off wireless IP cameras. First of all: The common consumer stuff, Arlo, Reolink, etc.: As you've discovered they all have their annoyances. The NetGear stuff is probably the best, but that base station is a show-stopper for me, too. Plus, with most of them, you're locked into whatever they wish to provide for recording. Ideally: They want to sell you recurring-fee cloud services. The "affordable" professional/prosumer stuff, Dahua/Hikvision: Wireless communications, but still require a wall wart for power. Maybe ok inside. Not so much outside. So I'm just going to bite the bullet, install PoE IP cameras, and be done with all that nonsense. That solution also gives me the flexibility to use what I want for an NVR: Dedicated product, BlueIris, ZoneMinder, one of the NAS'. It also gives me the flexibility to swap-out cameras in the future, as I see fit.

Perhaps I was mistaken in assuming these were IP cameras?

No. You can put an inexpensive PoE switch in the garage and put the two cameras on that, however, then backhaul the switch on one of the Cat6 cables. Something like a NetGear GS305P. When you say "Cat5," do you really mean Cat5, or is it Cat5e? If the latter: You can backhaul the switch on that, as well.

Very well. Thanks for the info. Colour me unsurprised. There's a bunch of China-sourced IoT devices with spyware in them. That what is supposed to be security product from China has spyware in it comes as no surprise. I'd actually have to see the User's Manual to know for sure what you're talking about, but it looks like you're saying they come pre-configured to talk to a VPN server somewhere? If it's outgoing connection configuration: It wouldn't be. That doesn't mean it cannot be defeated at your border router. In fact: Today I'm going to allocate a LAN address block just for IP cameras, block that netblock at the router, and move my Reolink C1 Pro into it. I'd do the same with the Reolink Argus watching the front porch, but I still need to use Reolink's app to access that one. I think it's about time to fire-up an IDS on my LAN server, too. I'm not worried about intrusions from the Internet. My firewall router stops those. But all this IoT stuff I now have on my LAN is becoming a concern. Re: The "old tech" cameras: Not interested in that tech, but thanks for the info.