Lorex DVR Password Reset: How to Regain Access
Locked out of your Lorex DVR? A forgotten password does not lock the footage on the drive, only the menu on the screen. Here is how to reset the password with security questions, the Lorex app or a factory reset, and how to reach your video even if none of those work.
To reset a Lorex DVR password, right-click the live view, open the login prompt and click Forgot Password. Answer the security questions you set during setup, or switch to app verification and scan the QR code with the Lorex Home app to get a code by email. If neither works, a hard reset with the button on the board returns the unit to factory settings. Lorex support cannot reset it for you, so these are your routes.
Getting locked out of a Lorex recorder is stressful, especially when you need footage now. The good news is that Lorex builds several ways back in, and most of them do not touch your recordings. The method that works depends on how the unit was set up and how old it is.
This guide walks through each reset method in order, from the ones that keep your settings to the last-resort factory reset. It also covers the one option most guides skip, which is reaching the footage on the drive directly when the password is gone for good.
First, the important part. A forgotten login seals the menu on the screen, not the recordings on the disk. Even if the password is gone for good, the footage can still be pulled off the drive on a computer. There is a section on that near the end.
Before you start
Two things decide which method will work for you, so check them first.
- Did you set security questions? If you set them during the Lorex Setup Wizard, you can reset the password on the recorder itself with no internet or phone needed. This is the easiest route.
- Is the unit linked to the Lorex app? If the recorder is connected to the network and paired with the Lorex Home or Lorex Connect app, you can reset through app verification even without the security questions.
If you have neither the security questions nor an app link, your only reset option is a factory reset, which wipes your settings. Keep that in mind before you start.
If you cannot answer the security questions and the unit is not linked to the app, you can permanently lose access to the settings. A factory reset then becomes the only way back in, and it clears your cameras, schedules and stored configuration. The recordings on the drive are separate and can still be recovered, but the system setup is gone.
Method 1: Reset with security questions
This is the fastest way in and the only one that needs no internet or phone. It works if you set security questions when you first configured the recorder.
- Open the login prompt. Right-click the live view on the monitor and select Main Menu, or click the screen to bring up the login prompt.
- Click Forgot Password. Look for the Forgot Password link at the bottom of the login prompt and click it to open the recovery screen.
- Answer a security question. Choose the security question option and answer the first question you set up. If the first answer is wrong, the system offers the next question.
- Set a new password. Enter and confirm a new password, then click OK. It must be 8 to 32 characters and mix at least two types, such as letters and numbers. The new password applies to the recorder and all connected cameras.
Cannot remember the answers? The recorder moves through each question you set. If you fail them all and the unit is linked to the Lorex app, move to Method 2. If not, you are looking at a factory reset in Method 4.
Method 2: Reset with the Lorex app
Newer Lorex recorders let you reset through the Lorex Home app, or the older Lorex Connect and Lorex Cloud apps, using your account email. This is the main route for recorders made after 2021, such as the N841, N842, N843, N861 and D841 series. The recorder needs to be online and paired to your account for it to work.
- Start recovery on the recorder. On the monitor, open the login screen and click Forgot Password, then change the reset method to account verification through the Lorex app. A QR code appears on the screen.
- Scan the QR code. Open the Lorex Home app on your phone, go to the device settings, then Device Password and Forgot Device Password, and scan the QR code shown on the monitor.
- Get the code by email. Lorex sends a six digit verification code to the email registered to your account. Check your inbox and spam folder.
- Enter the code and reset. Type the code into the recorder to open the new password screen, then set and confirm a new password of 8 to 32 characters.
Only the device owner can do this. Shared app users cannot reset the recorder password. You also need access to the email address the account was registered with, since the code goes there.
Method 3: Try the default password
If you never changed the password from the factory setting, an older Lorex unit may still accept a default login. This only works on older recorders that shipped with a set password, since newer units force you to create one during setup.
The common Lorex defaults are the username admin with the password 000000 (six zeros) or admin with 123456. Newer Lorex recorders have no default at all, because the Setup Wizard makes you choose a password the first time you power the unit on. If the defaults do not work, the password was changed at some point and you need one of the other methods.
Older Lorex units share Dahua roots. Many older Lorex recorders run on Dahua hardware, so tricks that work on Dahua units sometimes work here too. If the clock has been reset to 01/01/2000, for example after the board battery was removed, some units accept a date based recovery login. Treat these as last resorts before a factory reset.
Method 4: Factory reset without the password
When nothing else works, a hard reset returns the recorder to factory settings. This is how you factory reset a Lorex DVR without the password, but it comes at a cost. It clears your settings, so you have to add the cameras again and set up recording schedules from scratch.
- Power the unit down. Unplug the power cable from the back of the DVR or NVR so the board has no power.
- Find the reset button. Open the case and look for the small reset button on the circuit board, usually near a corner. On some models it is a pinhole rather than a button.
- Hold and power on. Press and hold the reset button, plug the power back in and keep holding for 10 to 30 seconds, until you hear a beep or see the Lorex logo.
- Set up again. The unit restarts into the setup wizard. Create a new admin password of 8 to 32 characters, then re-add your cameras and recording schedule.
A factory reset wipes the configuration, not always the footage. Cameras, schedules and settings are cleared and must be set up again. The recordings on the hard drive usually stay in place, but a reset that offers to format or initialize the disk during setup would erase them. If your footage matters, do not let the wizard format the drive.
Reach your footage without the password
Here is the part most guides leave out. When the video is all you are after, the recorder login stops mattering. That login gates the on-screen menu only. The footage itself sits unencrypted on the hard drive, waiting to be read.
Remove the disk from the Lorex box and connect it to a Windows machine through a write blocker, then load it into software built to read the Lorex format. Since you are working off the platters rather than signing into the unit, the login is never checked. Older Lorex recorders sit on the Dahua DHFS format, so a Dahua-aware tool handles them as well. Our Lorex DVR recovery guide walks through the whole read-only process. When you need one clip in a hurry and cannot wait on a reset or a wipe, this is usually the quickest way there.
What a reset does and does not clear
Not every reset is the same, and it helps to know what each one touches.
- A password reset keeps everything. Security questions and app verification only change the login. Your cameras, schedules and footage stay exactly as they were.
- A factory reset clears the setup. The hard reset button wipes cameras, schedules and settings, then makes you start over with the wizard.
- Neither should erase the drive by default. The recordings usually survive a factory reset, unless you let the setup format or initialize the disk.
- Reading the drive changes nothing. Pulling the disk and scanning it read only leaves both the footage and the recorder untouched.
How to avoid this next time
Once you are back in, a few minutes of setup saves you this whole process again.
- Set the security questions. If you skipped them at setup, add them now under the account settings. They are the only reset that works with no internet or phone.
- Check the recovery email. Make sure the email on the account is current, since app verification sends the reset code there. Update it under system maintenance if it has changed.
- Link the recorder to the app. Pairing the unit with the Lorex Home app gives you the QR code reset as a backup even if you forget the security answers.
- Store the password safely. Keep it in a password manager. Some installers also tape it inside the cabinet or panel where the recorder lives.
- Consider a pattern login. Some Lorex units let you set a pattern instead of a typed password, which many people find easier to remember.
Common questions
How do I reset my Lorex DVR password?
Right-click the live view, open the login prompt and click Forgot Password. Answer the security questions you set during setup, or switch to app verification and scan the QR code with the Lorex Home app to get a code by email. If neither works, a factory reset with the button on the board returns the unit to defaults so you can set a new password.
What is the default password for a Lorex DVR?
Older Lorex units that shipped with a set password commonly use the username admin with 000000 (six zeros) or admin with 123456. Newer Lorex recorders have no default, because the Setup Wizard makes you create a password the first time you turn the unit on.
How do I factory reset a Lorex DVR without the password?
Power the unit down, open the case and find the small reset button on the circuit board, usually in a corner. Hold the button, plug the power back in and keep holding for 10 to 30 seconds until it beeps or shows the Lorex logo. The unit restarts into the setup wizard so you can set a new password, but your cameras and schedules are cleared and must be set up again.
Can Lorex support reset my password for me?
No. For security, Lorex technical support cannot reset, recover or bypass your recorder password. Your options are the security questions, app verification or a factory reset. On some older units bought directly from Lorex, support could once issue a temporary code from the serial number, but current policy is that they cannot open it for you.
Will resetting the password delete my footage?
Resetting the password by security question or by app leaves your recordings alone. A factory reset clears your settings but usually leaves the footage on the drive, unless you let the setup format the disk. Reading the drive on a PC does not change anything at all.
Can I get my footage if I cannot reset the password?
Yes. The login guards the on-screen menu only, while the video stays readable on the disk. Remove the drive, connect it to a computer through a write blocker and load it into software that reads the Lorex format. Older Lorex recorders use Dahua DHFS, so a Dahua-aware tool handles them and can export the clips you want.
How do I change the password on a Lorex DVR?
Log in with your current password, right-click the live view and open Main Menu, then go to Account and the User tab. Select the admin account, check modify password, enter the old password and set a new one of 8 to 32 characters with at least two character types. This is a change, not a reset, so you need the current password first.
Where do I find my Lorex device password or Device ID?
The Device ID is printed on a label on the top or side of the recorder, next to the QR code, and it is not the same as the serial number. You can also see it in the app under Settings then Device Info. There is no hidden master password, so if you forgot the one you set, use the reset methods above.
Locked out but need the footage?
DVRXaminer reads a Lorex drive read only, with no recorder password needed, rebuilds the filesystem and exports playable clips with the timestamps intact. Run the free trial to see what survives before you buy.
Sources
- Lorex Support, how to reset your NVR or DVR password, lorex.com
- Lorex Home and Lorex Connect app password recovery guides
- Lorex Setup Wizard security question and account verification documentation