Halve your camera storage with Protect 7.3

Protect 7.3, released in early October 2026, lets the same drives hold more footage. You choose how long to keep high-quality footage, and older footage is kept at lower quality. Super Encoding, which Ubiquiti's release notes say gives up to 50% better storage efficiency, stretches it further.

You'll need

• A UniFi OS console running Protect 7.3.70 or later.
• A fresh console backup. It saves your settings, not your video.
• Your current estimated retention, written down so you can compare afterwards.

Steps

1. Back up, then update Protect to 7.3.70 or later. If 7.3 isn't offered yet, wait for it to reach the Official channel, especially if you use Home Assistant (see our Home Assistant guide).
2. Pick your high-quality window. Choose how many days you'd realistically need full detail. Cover at least your longest routine time away from home.
3. Open Storage Budgeting. In Protect, go to Settings and open the storage options (labelled On-Site Retention). Ubiquiti hasn't published the exact path, so look for Storage Budgeting there.
4. Set the split. First export any older clips you need at full quality, because footage moved to the lower tier can't be restored. Then enter how long continuous recordings stay at high quality; anything older is kept at lower quality.
5. Turn on Super Encoding. It sits with the Storage Budgeting options.
6. Compare the estimate. Check the new estimated retention now, then again after 24–48 hours of real recording.

More ways to save space

Since Protect 7.2, recording settings live in Recording Manager rather than in each camera's own settings.

• Record on detections only for cameras watching quiet areas, and keep continuous recording for entrances.
• Use recording schedules so cameras don't record when footage isn't needed.
• Shorten pre- and post-event buffers where a few seconds is enough.
• Lower resolution, frame rate or quality on cameras that don't need fine detail.

To estimate how long your drives will last, use Ubiquiti's Capacity Calculator: enter your cameras by resolution and your drive size, and it shows the number of days of recording.

Check it worked

• The estimated retention has gone up.
• Recorded footage (not live view) from both tiers still shows what you need: faces, number plates, night scenes.
• Playback works everywhere you watch: browser, phone app and Home Assistant.

Watch out for

• "Up to 50%" is a best case. Ubiquiti's release notes promise up to 50% better storage efficiency, so your savings may be smaller.
• Test before you commit. Compare recorded footage from each camera model before and after turning it on.
• The low-quality tier is for context, not evidence. It keeps less detail, so number plates and faces may not be clear. Flag or export important clips before they leave the high-quality window.
• Check playback everywhere. Some browsers and players can't handle Protect's newer encoding, so test every browser and app you watch from.
• Home Assistant skips pre-release builds. Its Protect integration doesn't support Early Access or Release Candidate versions.

Australian rules for cameras

This is general information, not legal advice, so check your state's rules before you mount cameras.

• Cabling. Running Ethernet to cameras through walls, floors or ceilings needs an ACMA-registered cabler. You can plug in pre-made leads yourself, as long as no part is hidden in a cavity.
• Audio. Recording a private conversation you're not part of needs consent everywhere in Australia. In NSW, WA, SA, Tasmania and the ACT you generally need everyone's consent even when you're taking part, unless recording is reasonably necessary to protect your lawful interests. Victoria, Queensland and the NT let a participant record, but limit publishing it. The simplest approach is to switch off camera microphones wherever they could pick up visitors, staff or neighbours.
• Neighbours and the street. The Privacy Act doesn't cover cameras run by individuals for private purposes, but state laws can. Victoria Police suggests covering only your own property (the street out front is fine), avoiding angles into neighbours' properties and keeping cameras visible. Protect's privacy zones black out areas, such as a neighbour's windows or yard, so they aren't recorded (Devices › [camera] › Recording Mode › Detection & Privacy Zones). Never record where people expect privacy, such as bedrooms or bathrooms; in Queensland that's a criminal offence. Since 2025, people can also sue for serious invasions of privacy.
• Businesses. In NSW and the ACT, give workers written notice at least 14 days before surveillance starts, keep cameras clearly visible and put signs at workplace entrances; the ACT also requires consulting workers. Cameras are banned in workplace toilets, change rooms and showers in NSW and the ACT, and in toilets, washrooms, change rooms and lactation rooms in Victoria.
• Privacy Act. Businesses it covers (generally those turning over more than $3 million, plus some smaller ones such as health providers) must tell people they may be recorded, keep footage secure, and delete or de-identify it when it's no longer needed.

Also new in 7.3: one NVR can record cameras at a second site over Teleport (G6 cameras except Edge models, AI series and Doorbell Lite, on camera firmware 5.5.29+). Dashboard video walls also gain a Time Machine view that scrubs every tile together.

Sources: Protect 7.3 announcement · Protect release notes · Storage and retention · Recording modes · Teleport adoption · Camera zones and privacy zones · Capacity Calculator · Home Assistant UniFi Protect integration · ACMA: cabling your home or office · Types of Cabling Work Declaration 2024 · OAIC: security cameras · Victoria Police: installing CCTV · Queensland OIC: cameras and audio · NSW Surveillance Devices Act explainer · WA Surveillance Devices Act · SA Surveillance Devices Act · Tasmania Listening Devices Act · ACT Listening Devices Act · Queensland Invasion of Privacy Act · NT Surveillance Devices Act · ALRC: participant monitoring · Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2024 · NSW Education: CCTV bulletin · ACT Workplace Privacy Act · Victorian workplace surveillance inquiry · OAIC: small business · Privacy reform consultation

Disclaimer: This guide reflects UniFi software and official documentation as of 22 October 2026. Menus, features, plans and policies change, so check each step on your own equipment and back up first. It's general information, not legal advice, and you use it at your own risk. UniFi is a trademark of Ubiquiti Inc., and other names belong to their owners.