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I am new to CCTV/surveillance. I want to build a home system for myself, here in the UK. I already have two IP cameras on my home network and an obsolescent NAS. I had pretty much settled on Synology Surveillance - from reviews, Youtubes, etc. - and was on the very point of ordering an up-to-date Synology NAS when, almost accidentally, I discovered that there is an on-going cost, per camera, of around 50 pounds annually to be able to use the system, which I find astonishing. I assume this applies worldwide? I have heard about licences in the US, but thought this is a national/legal constraint, which doesn't apply in the UK. But I understand now that most manufacturers have ongoing proprietary licences/subscriptions in order to use their hardware and camera monitoring software. I have been told (I had to ask ChatGPT! as I cannot find an alternative source of info. for a newbie like me) that Synology, QNAP. Asustor, WD, Thecus and Buffalo all follow a subscription scheme. ZoneMinder and iSpy (is the latter now superceded?) were suggested as open source alternatives. What home surveillance systems (using 4,5 cameras) and an NAS on a home network (the NAS would be used for general network storage, too) have UK readers set up which are free for ongoing use? (I am not concerned about cloud storage or other centralised services - I want a self-contained home system.) Please, can someone out there offer me some help and clarity? Furthermore, I'm not at all confident about reyling on a chatbot as being authoritative: can someone suggest better sources for a beginner, like me? E.g. websites, forums(and good old-fashiioned printed books), etc. that can educate me on the topic of home surveillance? I am really floundering in this subject, as a beginner. Many thanks.

Hello, I am in the UK and new to CCTV. I have a couple of Tapo cameras and they work fine with the Tapo app on my mobile phone. I am reluctant to subscribe to a cloud system which seems to be an open-ended deal. So I would like to use a NAS on my home network to make and keep recordings. Currently I'm "diddlin' around" on the internet to learn about how it all works, but I'm confused by the references to the need for licence for each home CCTV camera to record to a home NAS. I assume that most of what I read refers to the situation in the US. Is this applicable in the UK, too? I would be very please to hear of a CCTV user group (not affiliated to any manufacturer) in the UK? Are there any such forums or useful Facebook groups? Thanks for any help. Regards, Malcolm.

Thanks so much for your post. I have a lot to learn. I'm relieved to read that the licence thing is not an issue here in the UK. RE. "smart" vs CCTV I'm a bit confused. Tapo have a webpage suggesting ways to get their camera parameters for use with NASs, etc. They refer to "ONVIF" and "RTSP" protocols, which mean nothing to me at the moment, but I'll continue to dig around and see it I can eventually get to grips with all this stuff. I will also look into NVR in comparison to NAS, thanks for the suggestion. I definitely qualify as a "newbie"! Thanks.