After releasing some projects with the ESP32-CAM, some readers reported issues when trying to use the ESP32-CAM. This guide is a compilation with the most common errors when using the ESP32-CAM and how to fix them.
We’ve released the following projects with the ESP32-CAM:
Note: some of our readers reported errors when trying to follow the ESP32-CAM project with Home Assistant. We’ve modified some lines on the code, so most of the problems related with that project should be fixed.
Please note that we couldn’t reproduce some of the errors on our end. However, we’ve gathered all the information given by our readers to get answers to the most common issues.
If you have a different problem or a different solution to these issues, you can share your tips by writing a comment below.
Most common errors:
This error means that the ESP32-CAM is not in flashing mode or it is not connected properly to the FTDI programmer.
Double-check the steps to upload code
Double-check that you’ve followed the exact steps to put your ESP32-CAM in flashing mode. Failing to complete one of the steps may result in that error. Here’s the steps you need to follow:
Connect the ESP32-CAM board to your computer using an FTDI programmer. Follow the next schematic diagram:
Important: GPIO 0 needs to be connected to GND so that you’re able to upload code.
Many FTDI programmers have a jumper that allows you to select 3.3V or 5V. Make sure the jumper is in the right place to select 5V.
Important: GPIO 0 needs to be connected to GND so that you’re able to upload code.
ESP32-CAMFTDI ProgrammerGNDGND5VVCC (5V)U0RTXU0TRXGPIO 0GNDTo upload the code, follow the next steps:
1) Go to Tools > Board and select AI-Thinker ESP32-CAM.
2) Go to Tools > Port and select the COM port the ESP32 is connected to.
3) Then, click the upload button to upload the code.
4) When you start to see these dots on the debugging window as shown below, press the ESP32-CAM on-board RST button.
After a few seconds, the code should be successfully uploaded to your board.
GPIO 0 must be connected to GND
Important: if you can’t upload the code, double-check that GPIO 0 is connected to GND and that you selected the right settings in the Tools menu. You should also press the on-board Reset button to restart your ESP32 in flashing mode. Also, check that you have the FTDI programmer jumper cap set to 5V.
Check the FTDI programmer you are using
One of our readers reported the following: “found out that you can program the board with a USB-to-TTL module model CP2102 and that the CH340 model does NOT work“. This is the FTDI programmer we’re using.
Power the ESP32-CAM with 5V
Some of our readers reported that they could only upload code when the ESP32 was powered with 5V. So, power the ESP32-CAM with 5V.
FTDI Programmer 5V
Measure the output voltage of your FTDI programmer (VCC and GND) using a Multimeter to ensure it’s providing 5V to your ESP32-CAM.
If you get this exact error, it means that your camera OVX is not connected properly to your ESP32 board or you have the wrong pin assignment in the code.
Sometimes, unplugging and plugging the FTDI programmer multiple times or restart the board multiple times, might solve the issue.
Camera not connected properly
The camera has a tiny connector and you must ensure it’s connected in the the right away and with a secure fit, otherwise it will fail to establish a connection.
Wrong pin assignment in the code
When you get this error, it might also mean that you didn’t select the right board in the define section or the pin definition is wrong for your board.
Make sure you select the right camera module in your projects. You just need to uncomment the right camera module and comment all the others:
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_WROVER_KIT
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_PSRAM
#define CAMERA_MODEL_AI_THINKERIn this example, we’re using the CAMERA_MODEL_AI_THINKER, so it’s the one that is enabled. Otherwise, it will fail the pin assignment and the camera will fail to init.
There are many esp32-cam boards being released (“fake boards”) that the wiring between the ESP32 and the OV camera might be different, so selecting the camera module, might not be enough. You might need to check each gpio declaration with your board pinout.
For example, M5Stack board without PSRAM has a different pin assignment than the M5STACK with PSRAM (defined on the code by default). So, you need to change the pin definition in the code accordingly to the board pinout.
Not enough power through USB source
If you’re powering your ESP32 through a USB port on your computer, it might not be supplying enough power.
Faulty FTDI programmer
Some readers also reported this problem was solved by replacing their actual FTDI programmer with this one.
The camera/connector is broken
If you get this error, it might also mean that your camera or the camera ribbon is broken. If that is the case, you may get a new OV2640 camera probe.
When you open your Arduino IDE Serial monitor and the error message “Brownout detector was triggered” is constantly being printed over and over again. It means that there’s some sort of hardware problem.
It’s often related to one of the following issues:
Solution:
Also, follow the suggestions described in issue 2.
When you get the following error:
Sketch too big; see http://www.arduino.cc/en/Guide/Troubleshooting#size for tips on reducing it.
Error compiling for board ESP32 Dev Module.It means that you haven’t selected the right partition scheme. Make sure you select the right partition scheme. In your Arduino IDE, go to Tools > Partition Scheme, select “Huge APP (3MB No OTA)“.
If you get the following error or similar:
serial.serialutil.SerialException: could not open port 'COM8': WindowsError(2, 'The system cannot find the file specified.')
Failed to execute script esptool
the selected serial port Failed to execute script esptool
does not exist or your board is not connected
Board at COM8 is not availableIt means that you haven’t selected the COM port in the Tools menu. In your Arduino IDE, go to Tools > Port and select the COM port the ESP32 is connected to.
It might also mean that the ESP32-CAM is not establishing a serial connection with your computer or it is not properly connected to the USB connector.
You are using a board without PSRAM and you get the following error or similar:
E (161) gpio: gpio_isr_handler_remove(380): GPIO isr service is not installed, call gpio_install_isr_service() first
Camera init failed with error 0x101when the board was initialized with the following settings:
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_UXGA;
config.jpeg_quality = 10;
config.fb_count = 2;Adding the following fixes the issues (it lowers the image resolution so it won’t need so much space to store images. However, as a result, you cannot get some high resolution formats due to the limited memory):
if(psramFound()){
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_UXGA;
config.jpeg_quality = 10;
config.fb_count = 2;
} else {
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_SVGA;
config.jpeg_quality = 12;
config.fb_count = 1;
}Note: face recognition and detection doesn’t work with boards without PSRAM. However, you can still use all the other functionalities of the board. For example, although you can’t use the face recognition and detection features of this project (ESP32-CAM Video Streaming and Face Recognition with Arduino IDE), you can still play with the example and explore the board features as long as you have the right pin assignment in the code.
Some readers reported that after powering the ESP32-CAM with 5V, they’ve gotten a more stable Wi-Fi signal. You can read this dedicated guide to learn how to connect an external antenna to the ESP32-CAM and extend Wi-Fi coverage.
The ESP32-CAM has the option to use either the built-in antenna or an external antenna. If your ESP32-CAM AI-Thinker has no Wi-Fi connection or poor connection, it might have the external antenna enabled. If you connect an external antenna to the connector, it should work fine.
Check if the jumper 0K resistor by the antenna connector is in the proper position for the desired antenna. There are 3 little white squares laid out like a “<” with the middle position being common.
Photo courtesy of Helmut SchoenbornThe following photo shows a closer look at that area. You can clearly see a small 0K resistor connecting to the built-in antenna.
Photo courtesy of Helmut SchoenbornWith board turned so the the PCB antenna is up:
So, to enable the on-board antenna:
f you just see dots printed in the serial monitor (……), it means that your ESP32-CAM is not establishing a Wi-Fi connection with your router.
Double-check your network credentials
You need to make sure that you’ve typed your exact network credentials (SSID and password) in the following variables:
const char* ssid = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD";Select the right baud rate in the Arduino IDE Serial Monitor
If you don’t select the right baud rate in the Arduino IDE Serial Monitor, you won’t get your board IP address or you’ll just get garbage on the screen.
Make sure you select the right baud rate. In our examples with the ESP32-CAM, we use 115200 baud rate.
Reset the board multiple times
You might also need to press the ESP32-CAM on-board RESET button multiple times to restart your ESP and print the IP address during boot.
RX and TX swapped
Double-check the connections between your ESP32 board and the FTDI programmer. RX goes to TX and TX goes to RX. If these connections are swapped, the ESP32-CAM is not able to establish a serial communication with your computer.
Wi-Fi Range
If the router is far away from your ESP32 board, it might not be able to catch the Wi-Fi signal. Ensure that your ESP32-CAM is fairly close to your router.
If the ESP32-CAM is printing the IP address in your Arduino IDE Serial Monitor, but when you try to open the web server in your web browser you see a blank screen, it usually means that you are trying to access the ESP32-CAM web server with multiple web browser tabs.
At the moment, these ESP32-CAM sketches only work with one client connected at a time.
Having some latency is normal for such a small and cheap camera. Some readers have suggested the following to reduce latency:
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_SVGA
orconfig.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_VGA
We’ve personally never faced this issue. However, many readers are getting this error with their ESP32-CAM boards.
One of our readers (Fibula) suggested the following to solve this issue:
“Im using the ESP32-CAM Module 2MP OV2640 Camera sensor Module Type-C USB module from Aliexpress. Although not mentioned, It doesn’t have the extra PSRAM the other M5 models do, and the camera has one changed IO pin.
See here: https://github.com/m5stack/m5stack-cam-psram/blob/master/README.md and scroll down to Interface Comparison.
The CameraWebServer Arduino example we’re probably all using doesn’t have this ESP32-CAM model defined.
You need to add it yourself in the main tab add:
#define CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_NO_PSRAMAnd in the camera_pins.h tab add the following:
#elif defined(CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_NO_PSRAM)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM -1
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM 15
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 27
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 25
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 23
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 5
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 17
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 22
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 26
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 21And you’re good to go.
Also note that the max resolution of the bare ESP32-CAM Module is XGA 1024×768, I assume also because of the lack of PSRAM. “
We hope this suggestion solves your issue. Let us know in the comments section.
According to he datasheet, the ESP32-CAM should only supports 4GB microSD cards.
However, we’ve tested with 16GB microSD card and it works well.
You might not be able to store more than 4GB, even though you have 16GB. We haven’t tested storing more than 4GB, so we’re not sure about this.
Yes, the M5Stack ESP32 board is compatible with out projects. However, you must check your camera pinout to ensure you have the right assignment in the code.
You can check the M5Stack camera connections here.
To set a static/fixed IP address, you can follow the next tutorial:
You can set your ESP32-CAM as an Access Point (AP). This means you are able to connect to your ESP32-CAM directly without having to connect to your router. You can use the following code to set your video streaming web server as an Access Point:
/*********
Rui Santos
Complete project details at https://RandomNerdTutorials.com/esp32-cam-video-streaming-web-server-camera-home-assistant/
IMPORTANT!!!
- Select Board "AI Thinker ESP32-CAM"
- GPIO 0 must be connected to GND to upload a sketch
- After connecting GPIO 0 to GND, press the ESP32-CAM on-board RESET button to put your board in flashing mode
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
of this software and associated documentation files.
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*********/
#include "esp_camera.h"
#include <WiFi.h>
#include "esp_timer.h"
#include "img_converters.h"
#include "Arduino.h"
#include "fb_gfx.h"
#include "soc/soc.h" //disable brownout problems
#include "soc/rtc_cntl_reg.h" //disable brownout problems
#include "esp_http_server.h"
// Replace with your network credentials
const char* ssid = "ESP32-Access-Point";
const char* password = "123456789";
#define PART_BOUNDARY "123456789000000000000987654321"
// This project was tested with the AI Thinker Model, M5STACK PSRAM Model and M5STACK WITHOUT PSRAM
#define CAMERA_MODEL_AI_THINKER
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_PSRAM
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_WITHOUT_PSRAM
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_WIDE
// Not tested with this model
//#define CAMERA_MODEL_WROVER_KIT
#if defined(CAMERA_MODEL_WROVER_KIT)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM -1
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM -1
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 21
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 26
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 27
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 5
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 4
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 25
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 23
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 22
#elif defined(CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_WIDE)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM -1
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM 15
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 27
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 22
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 23
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 5
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 32
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 25
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 26
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 21
#elif defined(CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_PSRAM)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM -1
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM 15
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 27
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 25
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 23
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 5
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 32
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 22
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 26
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 21
#elif defined(CAMERA_MODEL_M5STACK_WITHOUT_PSRAM)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM -1
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM 15
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 27
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 25
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 23
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 5
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 17
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 22
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 26
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 21
#elif defined(CAMERA_MODEL_AI_THINKER)
#define PWDN_GPIO_NUM 32
#define RESET_GPIO_NUM -1
#define XCLK_GPIO_NUM 0
#define SIOD_GPIO_NUM 26
#define SIOC_GPIO_NUM 27
#define Y9_GPIO_NUM 35
#define Y8_GPIO_NUM 34
#define Y7_GPIO_NUM 39
#define Y6_GPIO_NUM 36
#define Y5_GPIO_NUM 21
#define Y4_GPIO_NUM 19
#define Y3_GPIO_NUM 18
#define Y2_GPIO_NUM 5
#define VSYNC_GPIO_NUM 25
#define HREF_GPIO_NUM 23
#define PCLK_GPIO_NUM 22
#else
#error "Camera model not selected"
#endif
static const char* _STREAM_CONTENT_TYPE = "multipart/x-mixed-replace;boundary=" PART_BOUNDARY;
static const char* _STREAM_BOUNDARY = "\r\n--" PART_BOUNDARY "\r\n";
static const char* _STREAM_PART = "Content-Type: image/jpeg\r\nContent-Length: %u\r\n\r\n";
httpd_handle_t stream_httpd = NULL;
static esp_err_t stream_handler(httpd_req_t *req){
camera_fb_t * fb = NULL;
esp_err_t res = ESP_OK;
size_t _jpg_buf_len = 0;
uint8_t * _jpg_buf = NULL;
char * part_buf[64];
res = httpd_resp_set_type(req, _STREAM_CONTENT_TYPE);
if(res != ESP_OK){
return res;
}
while(true){
fb = esp_camera_fb_get();
if (!fb) {
Serial.println("Camera capture failed");
res = ESP_FAIL;
} else {
if(fb->width > 400){
if(fb->format != PIXFORMAT_JPEG){
bool jpeg_converted = frame2jpg(fb, 80, &_jpg_buf, &_jpg_buf_len);
esp_camera_fb_return(fb);
fb = NULL;
if(!jpeg_converted){
Serial.println("JPEG compression failed");
res = ESP_FAIL;
}
} else {
_jpg_buf_len = fb->len;
_jpg_buf = fb->buf;
}
}
}
if(res == ESP_OK){
size_t hlen = snprintf((char *)part_buf, 64, _STREAM_PART, _jpg_buf_len);
res = httpd_resp_send_chunk(req, (const char *)part_buf, hlen);
}
if(res == ESP_OK){
res = httpd_resp_send_chunk(req, (const char *)_jpg_buf, _jpg_buf_len);
}
if(res == ESP_OK){
res = httpd_resp_send_chunk(req, _STREAM_BOUNDARY, strlen(_STREAM_BOUNDARY));
}
if(fb){
esp_camera_fb_return(fb);
fb = NULL;
_jpg_buf = NULL;
} else if(_jpg_buf){
free(_jpg_buf);
_jpg_buf = NULL;
}
if(res != ESP_OK){
break;
}
//Serial.printf("MJPG: %uB\n",(uint32_t)(_jpg_buf_len));
}
return res;
}
void startCameraServer(){
httpd_config_t config = HTTPD_DEFAULT_CONFIG();
config.server_port = 80;
httpd_uri_t index_uri = {
.uri = "/",
.method = HTTP_GET,
.handler = stream_handler,
.user_ctx = NULL
};
//Serial.printf("Starting web server on port: '%d'\n", config.server_port);
if (httpd_start(&stream_httpd, &config) == ESP_OK) {
httpd_register_uri_handler(stream_httpd, &index_uri);
}
}
void setup() {
WRITE_PERI_REG(RTC_CNTL_BROWN_OUT_REG, 0); //disable brownout detector
Serial.begin(115200);
Serial.setDebugOutput(false);
camera_config_t config;
config.ledc_channel = LEDC_CHANNEL_0;
config.ledc_timer = LEDC_TIMER_0;
config.pin_d0 = Y2_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d1 = Y3_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d2 = Y4_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d3 = Y5_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d4 = Y6_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d5 = Y7_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d6 = Y8_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_d7 = Y9_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_xclk = XCLK_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_pclk = PCLK_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_vsync = VSYNC_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_href = HREF_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_sscb_sda = SIOD_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_sscb_scl = SIOC_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_pwdn = PWDN_GPIO_NUM;
config.pin_reset = RESET_GPIO_NUM;
config.xclk_freq_hz = 20000000;
config.pixel_format = PIXFORMAT_JPEG;
if(psramFound()){
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_UXGA;
config.jpeg_quality = 10;
config.fb_count = 2;
} else {
config.frame_size = FRAMESIZE_SVGA;
config.jpeg_quality = 12;
config.fb_count = 1;
}
// Camera init
esp_err_t err = esp_camera_init(&config);
if (err != ESP_OK) {
Serial.printf("Camera init failed with error 0x%x", err);
return;
}
// Connect to Wi-Fi network with SSID and password
Serial.print("Setting AP (Access Point)…");
// Remove the password parameter, if you want the AP (Access Point) to be open
WiFi.softAP(ssid, password);
IPAddress IP = WiFi.softAPIP();
Serial.print("Camera Stream Ready! Connect to the ESP32 AP and go to: http://");
Serial.println(IP);
// Start streaming web server
startCameraServer();
}
void loop() {
delay(1);
}
View raw code
To better understand how it works, you can read the next tutorial:
We hope you’ve found this troubleshooting guide useful and you were able to make your ESP32-CAM work with our projects.
If you have any other issues or suggestions on how to fix them, please post a comment below.
If you like this project, you may also like other projects with the ESP32-CAM:
Thank you for reading.
P.S. It is very difficult to understand what’s wrong with your project when we can’t reproduce the error on our end. However, if you post the error, there might be other readers with the same issue/solution, so we encourage you to interact in the comment’s section.