Getting started

This tutorial takes you from nothing to a working nn home: a hub that runs everything, a media server for your cameras, cameras that stream, record events and update themselves, a Thread gateway, and sensors that talk to each other through automations.

Follow the pages in order. Each one ends with a check that tells you it worked before you move on.

        flowchart LR
    subgraph home["Your home network"]
      HUB["Hub<br/>web app · catalog · provisioning · automations"]
      MS["Media server<br/>video · HLS · detection · events"]
      GW["Thread gateway<br/>border router"]
      PHONE["Browser / phone<br/>at home"]
    end
    CAM1["FreeRTOS camera<br/>e.g. ESP32-P4"] -- Wi-Fi --> MS
    CAM2["Linux camera<br/>e.g. BeagleY-AI"] -- Wi-Fi --> MS
    MS -- registers cameras --> HUB
    GW -- USB / LAN --> HUB
    S1["Sensor"] -. Thread mesh .- GW
    S2["Sensor"] -. Thread mesh .- GW
    S3["Sensor"] -. Thread mesh .- CAM2
    CAM2 -. "camera as gateway (optional)" .-> HUB
    PHONE -- LAN --> HUB
    AWAY["Browser / phone<br/>away from home"] -. HTTPS .-> RP["Reverse proxy<br/>e.g. Cloudflare Tunnel"]
    RP -. "tunnel (optional)" .-> HUB
    

At home you open the web app directly. To reach it from anywhere else, you can put a reverse proxy in front of the hub, for example a Cloudflare Tunnel. This is optional; see 6. Optional: reach the web app from outside your home.

A Linux camera can also be a Thread gateway: plug an ESP32-C6 radio into it, and sensors near the camera join the mesh through it. See Enable the Thread gateway.

Step	Page	You end with
1	Plan your installation	a list of what runs where, and the parts to buy
2	Install the hub	the nn web app open in your browser
3	Enable the media server	the media server healthy and known to the hub
4	Set up cameras	a camera streaming live video in the web app
5	Update cameras over the air	a camera updated to a new firmware from the catalog
6	Enable the Thread gateway	a Thread network with a border router
7	Set up the sensors	sensors registered and reporting
8	Automations	a button on one sensor switching the others
9	Update sensors over the air	the sensors updated over the air

Tip

Everything in nn is managed from the hub’s web app. You will use a terminal only to install the hub and the media server; flashing, provisioning, automations and updates are all buttons.