Fixing the `user is locked` Error in Hikvision & Correct RTSP Path Setup

Background

I was trying to set the Custom 1 protocol source path so I could play the camera video on my PC. By mistake, I changed the protocol from Hikvision to Custom 1 for the D1, D2, and D3 cameras. After switching their protocol back to Hikvision, the status showed “Offline (user is locked)”. All other settings remained unchanged.

Quick fix

This is a classic Hikvision account lock, nothing to do with “custom protocol broke it” thing. Switching to the wrong protocol caused the NVR to repeatedly attempt invalid logins, which triggered the camera’s lockout mechanism.

To fix:

1. Stop the hammering: on the NVR go to Channel/IP Camera and disable or delete D1-D3 (or unplug their PoE for a minute).
2. Clear the lock: wait ~30 minutes or just power-cycle each camera (PoE off/on).
3. Re-add with Hikvision protocol: set Protocol = HIKVISION, Mgmt port = 8000, correct admin/password, Or just use the quick add, then Add/Modify → status should flip to online.
4. Test RTSP from your PC with the right path (below). If that plays, the NVR will too.

RTSP Playback on Linux (Totem, mpv, ffplay)

• Hikvision RTSP (main stream ch1):

   rtsp://admin:<password>@<cam_ip>:554/Streaming/Channels/101
  

• Substream: replace 101 → 102.

• If Totem is picky, try:

   mpv rtsp://admin:<password>@<cam_ip>:554/Streaming/Channels/101
   # or, very robust:
   ffplay -rtsp_transport tcp rtsp://admin:<password>@<cam_ip>:554/Streaming/Channels/101
  

If “User is Locked” Persists

• Confirm no other client is still hitting the cam with the old password.
• Power-cycle again, then try adding it manually with the settings above.
• Worst-case: factory reset.