Modes and rules let you tell your Arlo system what to do in different situations. For example, you can set your Arlo system to record a 30-second video when the motion sensor is activated on a specific camera and alert you via email.

What are modes?

Modes let you tell your Arlo cameras to respond differently at different times. For example, you probably don't want to receive an alert about motion in the living room while you're doing yoga in the living room. You might want to turn on a different mode when you're away on vacation than when you're just out at the store for an hour. Arlo modes give you complete control over how your cameras respond to motion or sound.

You can create your own modes, but certain modes are available automatically:

• Armed. All cameras are set to trigger on motion (and sound, if you are using Arlo Q, Arlo Q Plus, Arlo Pro Wire-Free, or Arlo Go cameras). Cameras record video for 10 seconds by default, and you receive email alerts and push notifications whenever cameras are triggered.
• Disarmed. Cameras do not trigger on sound or motion. No videos are recorded, and you receive no notifications.
• Schedule. Schedule mode lets you tell your Arlo system to enter a mode or modes at the same time every week. For example, you can turn your indoor cameras off at night, but leave your outdoor cameras on all the time. Or you can turn your cameras on from 8 am to 5 pm every weekday.
• Geofencing (Beta). Geofencing mode, like schedule mode, lets you tell your Arlo system when to switch to another mode. Geofencing works based on the location of your GPS-enabled mobile device. Whenever your mobile phone is more than a certain distance from the location you choose, your Arlo system switches modes. You can have your system switch to armed mode every time you leave your house, for example, and automatically switch to disarmed when you get home.

If you choose to create your own modes, you can do so by creating a rule or rules that tell your cameras what to do while that mode is active. You can also choose to edit an existing mode.

What are rules?

Each mode consists of one or more rules that provide detailed instructions for your Arlo system. For each mode, you can set the following options:

• Trigger device. The trigger device is the camera that detects motion or sound.
• Trigger. Triggers can be motion detection, sound detection (on Arlo Q, Arlo Q Plus, Arlo Pro Wire-Free, or Arlo Go cameras), or both. You can adjust the camera's sensitivity to motion and sound to minimize false alarms. With Arlo Q and Arlo Q Plus cameras, you can also specify up to three activity zones for your camera to monitor.
• Devices. With Arlo Wire-Free or Arlo Pro Wire-Free systems, motion or sound detection on one camera can trigger another camera to record video. For example, you might want to have your back yard camera or your driveway camera trigger your door camera to start recording.
• Action. Each device that responds to motion or sound can record video, take a snapshot (on Arlo Q and Arlo Q Plus only), or do nothing. You can adjust the length of the video recording from a minimum of ten seconds to a maximum of two minutes. If you are using an Arlo Pro base station, you can also tell your Arlo Pro base station to turn on the siren in response to a trigger. The siren has four duration options and three loudness options. If you are using an Arlo Go camera, you can also tell your Arlo Go camera to turn on the alarm in response to a trigger. The alarm has three duration options.
• Notifications. When a trigger is detected, Arlo can send you push notifications, email alerts, or both. You can also choose to send email alerts to friends, family members, pet sitters, or anyone who might need to respond when a camera is triggered.

The Arlo mobile and web apps guide you through the process of setting up your Arlo system and telling it what you want it to do, but the Arlo knowledge base also has detailed instructions to help you get the most out of your Arlo Camera System.