Guide
Free IP camera software for your computer
Litmus NVR connects IP cameras from different brands to one computer, records them, and lets you find people and vehicles in the footage. It is free with no camera limit.
What it does
- Different brands in one place. Hikvision, Dahua, Reolink, Tapo, Axis and other cameras that support RTSP or ONVIF, plus USB cameras.
- Records on your computer. Around the clock or on detection. Recordings stay on your disk.
- Every person and vehicle becomes a card. Litmus detects people and vehicles as it records and turns each one into a card, so you browse who was there instead of scrubbing a timeline.
- Follow someone across cameras. Open a card to play that person’s scenes from every camera in time order.
- Four ways to search. By appearance (clothing and build), by face with no enrollment, by a description such as “a person in a yellow shirt”, or by attributes like clothing color, bag, hat and age group. Vehicles can be searched by license plate, and a partial plate works.
- Works locally, no sign-up. On your network, open it in a browser without a Litmus account.
- Remote viewing without port forwarding. Add the device to your Litmus account, and the phone app and browser connect over an encrypted peer-to-peer connection, which works on most home and office routers.
- Video stays on your hardware. Recordings and analysis are stored on the computer running Litmus, not in the cloud.
Which cameras work
Cameras that support RTSP or ONVIF, and USB cameras.
Some home cameras have no RTSP: most Tapo and Reolink battery cameras, Reolink 4G cameras and EZVIZ video doorbells. Igloocam, Hejhome, Xiaomi and Imou do not officially document RTSP support.
Connect your cameras
- Download the installer from the download page and run it. Litmus starts when installation finishes.
- Open Litmus in a browser on any device on the same network and create a local account. No Litmus account is needed on your network.
- Add your cameras. Litmus finds cameras on the same network. Select a camera under Found cameras, enter its username and password, and click Check connection to see a picture from the camera. If your camera is not listed, click Add manually and enter its IP address and manufacturer.
- To watch from anywhere, connect your Litmus account and use the phone app or app.litmusnvr.com.
Supported computers
| Version | Processor | |
|---|---|---|
| Windows | 10 version 1903 or later | x64 |
| macOS | 14.4 (Sonoma) or later | Apple Silicon, Intel |
| Linux | Raspberry Pi OS, Ubuntu and Debian-based Linux | ARM64, x64 |
Questions
Can I record cameras from different brands together?
Yes. Litmus NVR connects any camera that supports RTSP or ONVIF, so you can mix brands on one computer and search them together.
Can I keep using the camera brand’s app?
Usually yes. Litmus connects as one more viewer, as long as the camera accepts another connection.
Is Litmus NVR really free?
Yes. Every feature is free with no camera limit. Live View over a direct connection is unlimited.