Problem binding Argus 2 to cloud after replacing camera unit

chaswe75

I wanted to add this information as Reolink's sub-tier 1 support could not address. I'm not going into the flaws with their firmware. I have two Argus 2 with a standard cloud account. One of the cameras was defective. I replaced it, but even though removing it from the android-based mobile app and trying to remove it from the cloud dashboard association, the device remained as "inactive" in the cloud dashboard. Big deal right, you can add 5 cameras to the account? Wrong. That locked device that remained would prevent any other new Argus 2 units from being added to the account. I tried multiple cameras. Here is what Reolink can't tell about how to fix this. I couldn't find similar issues relative to any of their guides or on this forum. This is what it took for me and I tried several methods before ultimately succumbing to what we refer to in IT as you have to break it sometimes in order to fix it:
1. Cancel your cloud subscription
2. Cancel your cloud account
3. Re-subscribe/re-register to a cloud account/cloud subscription (NO discrepancy or blanket error for "account is already in use or exists" All of your personal data for the account is purged, including the email address.
4. Delete all cameras from whichever mobile OS you have
5. Uninstall/reinstall the mobile app
6. Factory reset camera and re-initiate
7. Check the devices they may be already be bound to the cloud account. If not follow the binding procedure (My cameras automatically were bound after initiating them via UID scan.
Hope this helps if someone encounters this issue as I spent countless hours trying to resolve.

Carl

The red inactive means you've unbound the device on the cloud account and delete it from the device list. The gray inactive means you've bound this device to your account but not yet bound it to the cloud. The status of inactive will not affect the use. You can bind other cameras to your cloud account and this device does not occupy the binding quota as long as you've unbound it. Sorry for any inconvenience caused to you. Thank you for your understanding.

chaswe75

Carl,

I'm sorry but you couldn't be more wrong about this situation. The inactive camera prevented any binding of cameras, period. Your explanation is not feasible and would not have resolved my issue. This instance needs to generate what is called a knowledge base record. The product has an undocumented problem. Reolink needs to document and study this problem so they can correct it.

Carl

Thank you for your update. Please do not worry about that, I will help you solve this problem. Here are some questions I need to confirm with you:
1. Have you switched the cloud plan within 7 days? What is the plan you subscribed to before subscribing the current standard plan?
2. You fail to bind the second new Argus 2 to your cloud account, right? What is the error message? Please provide the screenshot of the error message to us for a check.
3. How many cameras do you have? And how many cameras are you bind to your cloud account now?
4. If you still have other cameras, please bind it to this cloud account and see if you can bind it successfully.
Please answer the question listed above, we will collect the information to confirm your problem. If the problem really exists on cloud binding, we will fix it as soon as possible. Sorry for any inconvenience caused to you. Thank you for your cooperation.

chaswe75

Carl,

There was no error message. Any initiated Argus 2 did not have a binding selection in the configuration. I've followed all of the Reolink documentation word for word. There is no remediation methods for the issues I encountered. Some of the questions you are asking have been answered by the steps I outlined. I solved the issue by performing the steps below. Case closed. I fixed the issue when Reolink did not have a solution.

Carl

Thank you for your feedback. Glad to hear your problem has been solved by yourself. If you have other problems during operation, you can leave the message here or contact our support team: support@reolink.com for further assistance. Thanks.