UniFi Protect Camera Management

UniFi Protect Camera Management

You can manage the full UniFi Protect camera system via the unifi-protect MCP tools — cameras, motion events, smart detections, recordings, snapshots, viewers, and NVR status.

Tools Overview

System

• protect_bootstrap — Full system state: NVR info, all cameras, viewers. Start here for an overview.
• protect_nvr_info — NVR hardware, storage stats, software version

Cameras

• protect_list_cameras — All cameras with status, recording mode, connection state, last motion
• protect_get_camera — Full config and status for one camera
• protect_update_camera — Update camera settings (name, recording mode, motion sensitivity, smart detections, status LED)
• protect_reboot_camera — Reboot a camera (brief offline period)

Events

• protect_list_events — Recent events filtered by type, camera, and time range
  • Event types: motion, ring, smartDetectZone, disconnected, connected
• protect_get_snapshot — Get snapshot URL from a camera (current or historical)
• protect_get_recording_url — Get URL to stream/download a recording clip

Viewers & Liveviews

• protect_list_viewers — UniFi Protect display monitors
• protect_list_liveviews — Configured liveview layouts
• protect_set_viewer_liveview — Change what a display monitor shows

Workflows

Check what's happening right now

protect_list_cameras → see all camera states
protect_list_events (start: <1h ago>) → recent activity

Check motion events on a specific camera

protect_list_cameras → find camera_id
→ protect_list_events (camera_id: "...", type: "motion", start: <timestamp>)

Enable smart detection for people and vehicles

protect_list_cameras → find camera_id
→ protect_update_camera (
    camera_id: "...",
    smartDetectTypes: ["person", "vehicle"],
    recordingMode: "smart"
  )

Get a live snapshot

protect_get_snapshot (camera_id: "...", width: 1920)
→ returns snapshot_url — open in browser to view

Get a recording clip

protect_get_recording_url (
  camera_id: "...",
  start: <start_ms>,
  end: <end_ms>
)
→ returns recording_url — stream or download in browser

Change what a display monitor shows

protect_list_viewers → find viewer_id
protect_list_liveviews → find liveview_id
→ protect_set_viewer_liveview (viewer_id: "...", liveview_id: "...")

Recording Modes

Mode	Description
always	Record continuously
motion	Record on motion only
smart	Record on smart detections only
never	Do not record

Smart Detection Types

person, vehicle, package, face, license_plate, animal

Notes

• Timestamps are in milliseconds (Unix ms). Use Date.now() for current time.
• Snapshot and recording URLs require an authenticated browser session to view.
• Smart detection requires a Protect-compatible camera (G4 series or newer).
• Rebooting a camera causes it to go offline for ~30 seconds.
• NVR storage stats are in the protect_nvr_info response under storageStats.