Camera to Cloud FAQ

Camera to Cloud

Camera setup — common issues

Everything on this page is about the camera side of Camera to Cloud. Your server address, port, username, and one-time password all come from Settings → Keys → Camera to Cloud in the 5AM app — this page assumes you have them. Uploads always land in the one album the camera login is bound to.

Which protocol should I pick — SFTP, FTPS, or FTP?

SFTP, when both your camera and your Camera to Cloud settings screen offer it. SFTP uses a single connection on a single port, needs no certificate import, and keeps working on hotel/venue networks whose “security” gear breaks FTPS transfers. Canon EOS R bodies support SFTP natively; most Sony bodies are FTPS-only. If SFTP isn't available, use FTPS (Sony calls it “Secure protocol: ON”). Never use plain, unencrypted FTP — your camera would send the password in cleartext.

Certificates & trust

Sony: “root certificate error” on the connection test

With Secure protocol ON, the camera verifies the server's certificate against its onboard root store — and most Sony bodies don't ship the roots our certificate chains to. One-time fix:

1. Download the camera certificate (keep the exact filename cacert.pem — Sony requires it).
2. Copy it to the top level of a memory card and put the card in slot 1.
3. Camera: Menu → Network → Network Option → Import Root Certificate → confirm, then retry.

Canon: Err 48 — “Cannot verify the security of the server”

Fastest fix: in the FTP preset, set Trust target server: Enable. If you prefer a full certificate check instead, download the same certificate file, rename it to ROOT.PEM (all caps — Canon only accepts ROOT.CER/ROOT.CRT/ROOT.PEM), copy it to the top level of a memory card, and import it from the camera's network menu.

Nikon: certificate / server-verification error

Nikon Z bodies (Z 8 / Z 9 family) import a root certificate from a memory card through the network settings (in the FTP connection options, look for the root-certificate / manage-certificate entry). Use the same downloaded certificate file copied to the top level of the card. Menu naming varies by model and firmware — check your camera's reference guide under “Connect to FTP server”.

Should I just turn certificate checking off?

Import the certificate (or use Canon's Trust target server) rather than downgrading to plain FTP. Your camera login only reaches one album, but there's no reason to send it over an unverified connection. Note that SFTP needs no certificate at all — switching protocol is often the simplest way out of certificate trouble.

SFTP asks me to trust the server on first connect

That's SFTP's normal trust step (there is no certificate — the server has a host key instead). If your camera shows a fingerprint, compare it with the one on the Camera to Cloud settings screen, then accept. You'll only be asked once. If a camera that previously worked suddenly warns that the server's key changed, stop and contact [email protected] before accepting.

I imported the certificate and FTPS still fails

A few older camera TLS stacks can't negotiate with modern certificates at all. Email [email protected] with your camera model — there is a server-side compatibility fix we can apply, and we'd like to know which bodies need it.

Connection & passive mode

Login works, but every transfer fails (Canon Err 41)

First: make sure Passive mode is ON (Canon: “Passive mode: Enable”; Sony: “Passive mode: ON”) — the server does not accept active-mode FTP at all. If passive is already on and transfers still die, the network is almost certainly the problem, not your camera: hotel, venue, and some home-router “advanced security” features silently kill FTPS data connections. Two reliable ways out:

1. Switch the preset to SFTP (if your camera and settings screen offer it) — it's immune to this failure.
2. Use a phone hotspot for the shoot and take it up with whoever owns the network afterwards.

The camera can't connect at all

• Enter the server as the domain name shown in your settings (not an IP address) — the secure connection is verified against the name.
• Double-check the port: FTPS and SFTP use different ports (both are shown on the Camera to Cloud settings screen).
• Confirm the camera's Wi-Fi actually has internet access — captive-portal networks (hotels, airports) often need a browser sign-in the camera can't do.

Transfers stall mid-shoot, then catch up later

Normal. Cameras queue in the background and retry after connection drops — and 5AM de-duplicates re-sent files, so retries never create duplicates in your album.

Destination folder

What should I set as the destination directory?

Anything — the root folder is fine, and it's what we recommend. On Canon set Target folder: Root folder (avoid “Specific folder”, which some bodies fail on when the folder doesn't exist yet). Folder names on the server are organizational only: every upload lands in the one album your camera login is bound to, no matter what directory the camera writes into.

Can I upload into different albums by using different folders?

No — one camera login is permanently bound to one album (that's the security model: a password typed into a camera can never touch the rest of your library). To shoot into a different album, add a second camera in Settings bound to that album and save it as a second FTP preset on the camera.

Files & formats

Every file is rejected with a RAW error (or Canon Err 46)

Set the camera's FTP transfer target to JPEG/HEIF, not RAW. RAW files (.ARW, .CR3, .NEF, …) are rejected with a clear message rather than accepted and silently unusable. Canon HEIF stills (.HIF) are fully supported.

Transfers fail with a storage / insufficient-space error (552)

Your 5AM storage is full. Free up space or upgrade your plan in Settings — the camera will deliver the failed files on its next retry.

Login problems

Login is rejected (530, Canon Err 45 — “Cannot log in”)

• Re-type the password carefully. 5AM camera passwords never contain 0, O, 1, l, or i — if you typed one of those on the camera keyboard, that's the bug.
• The credential may have been revoked in Settings — check the camera list.
• If the album the camera was bound to was deleted, the login stops working permanently: remove the camera in Settings and add it again with a new album.
• The password is shown only once at creation. Lost it? Revoke the camera and add it again.

“Too many failed login attempts”

After repeated failures, logins from your network are paused briefly. Wait about ten minutes, fix the password (see above), and try again.