What you need to know
ONVIF will end Profile S support on March 31, 2027, but deployed systems do not simply stop on that date. Inventory authentication and codec dependencies before testing Profile T.
Potentially affected
Organizations operating or procuring ONVIF Profile S cameras, encoders, recorders, video management systems, or integrations, especially those using username-token authentication.
DSE recommendation
Identify Profile-S-only dependencies, verify exact product and firmware conformance, and test stronger authentication and Profile T workflows before making production changes.
What ONVIF has announced
Source fact: ONVIF states that support for Profile S will end on March 31, 2027. After that date, manufacturers will not be able to submit new products, or older products with new firmware or software versions, for Profile S conformance. The June 2026 release of ONVIF’s conformance test tools is the last release that permits Profile S claims during its validity period.
The date is a conformance-lifecycle milestone, not a remote shutdown. ONVIF says deployed Profile S devices and clients can continue basic video streaming. A specific registered firmware or software version remains conformant unless its manufacturer withdraws the Declaration of Conformance. ONVIF also notes that existing integrations can be affected later if a vendor removes an implementation or authentication method in newer software.
The security reason matters. Profile S mandates username-token authentication, which ONVIF now regards as too weak to protect against unauthorized access. ONVIF encourages users to discontinue that method where possible and use stronger mechanisms, including digest authentication in Profile T or TLS in HTTPS mode. Profile T contains virtually all Profile S features and adds capabilities such as H.264/H.265, imaging configuration, alarms, metadata, and conditional HTTPS media transport.
Compatibility boundaries
Profile T is not an exact feature-for-feature declaration. ONVIF’s Q&A says username-token authentication, IP-address filtering, MJPEG, and MPEG-4 are not covered by Profile T, even though an individual product might still support some of them natively. Conformance must also be checked against the exact model and firmware or software version. None of this authorizes a fleet-wide upgrade without the camera, VMS, recorder, analytics, and export paths being tested together.
DSE operational checklist
DSE recommendation: The following is DSE operational synthesis based on the ONVIF material, not an ONVIF-mandated migration sequence.
- Inventory devices and clients that are Profile S only, dual Profile S/Profile T, or not found in the official database.
- Record exact firmware, software, authentication method, codecs, and any IP-filter or legacy-stream dependency.
- Verify each exact version in the ONVIF Conformant Products database and retain its feature list.
- Ask manufacturers which supported release and authentication path they recommend after Profile S support ends.
- Bench-test digest authentication, HTTPS, live and recorded video, PTZ, audio, metadata, events, analytics, and export.
- Stage production changes in coverage-aware groups with a documented recovery path.
- Assign an owner and replacement date to any dependency that cannot move safely.
Official references
- Profile S Deprecation Q&A — the March 31, 2027 date, continuing-use boundary, authentication guidance, and feature comparison.
- ONVIF to End Support for Profile S; Recommends Profile T as Replacement — the October 9, 2025 announcement and conformance-tool timeline.
- Profile T — the current official Profile T capability summary.
Review the official source
ONVIF — Profile S Deprecation Q&A · Verified July 19, 2026
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