mDNS Auto-Discovery

Discovery uses mDNS, also called Bonjour or Zeroconf, to find Channels DVR advertisements on the local network. It fills in an address; it does not prove the DVR API is reachable or that authentication is correct.

Choose the right setup path

Deployment	What to expect	What to choose
Linux host networking, same LAN	Discovery can receive local multicast advertisements. Firewalls and VLANs can still block them.	Try discovery, then check the connection.
Docker bridge networking	LAN multicast commonly does not reach the container. An empty result is normal.	Add the DVR manually using its LAN address.
Remote DVR over Tailscale or another VPN	Normal routed VPN connections do not carry the local mDNS broadcast.	Use the reachable VPN hostname or IP.
Kubernetes pod networking	Discovery depends on multicast support in the cluster network.	Plan on manual entry or environment bootstrap.

Host networking improves discovery access but does not guarantee a result. You can keep bridge mode and use manual entry; changing network mode is not required to monitor a reachable DVR.

Discover during first-run setup

1. Choose Discover on Network in the welcome screen.
2. Wait for the scan to finish.
3. Select a discovered DVR to open Ready to connect.
4. Review the address and choose Save & Get Started.

Discovery or manual entryThe welcome screen keeps manual entry available when the DVR is not discoverable from this network. Captured from ChannelWatch v1.6.0 with safe demo data.View full-size screenshot

If no DVR appears, choose Add Manually Instead. The manual form includes Test Connection and an optional API key. Use that path when the discovered DVR requires authentication. See First-Run Configuration.

Discover after setup

1. Open Settings > General > DVR & App > DVR Servers.
2. Choose Discover.
3. Choose Add beside a result, review its Name, Host, and Port, then Save Settings.

The scan runs only when requested. Settings excludes already-configured host and port pairs, so no new results can also mean the advertised DVR is already in your list.

No results or an unexpected address

What you see	What to check
No servers found	Confirm the DVR is running, then check network mode, VLAN isolation, and multicast firewall rules. Manual entry is still available.
An address on the wrong interface	Use manual entry and supply the IP or hostname reachable from ChannelWatch.
A discovered DVR does not connect	Check its API port, credentials, and routing. Discovery and API connectivity are separate checks.
A result is missing from Settings	Check whether the same host and port already appears in the DVR list.

Note

The discovery API can return a host-network hint when a container scan is empty. That hint is not a reliable diagnosis of your Docker mode; the shipped UI may simply report no servers found. Use your compose or platform network setting to confirm the actual mode.

Related pages

• Adding DVR Servers
• DVR Connection
• Environment Bootstrap Config
• Remote Access via Tailscale