CCTV_Tech

What size of camera do you need? Most analog security cameras are based on a circuit board approx 1.5" square with a lens affixed to the board. Therefore the smallest 'normal' cameras tend to be around 2" diameter and 2" deep, since there is often space left open for internal cabling, the IR illumination, etc. The cheap 'board' analog cameras just add a bracket or a little square case to the circuit board and that's it. You're asking for one with a ethernet connection, which typically makes the camera huge, as there is a lot of circuitry in there to make the network connection work. Your best bet is to do a google search for 'industrial machine vision cameras', as i cannot think of a single security camera that fit your needs. In general, it might make sense to use analog video for this type of application, since it is simpler and cheaper. Ethernet is great for many things, but in terms of life-safety, I would trust analog much more.

Personally, I load UltraVNC on my Geovision DVR and run a VNC client on my iPhone (Mocha VNC). I have been using this solution for several years for both GeoVision v6 and v8, and even on my old Netrome DVR. VNC works fine, except it does not do audio. Since UltraVNC runs on any PC as well, for years my security monitor on the kitchen counter was an old laptop running UltraVNC.

Those white vertical lines were spider webs. Blowing fog will look like snow because the DVR is processing the video with a little lag. If the unit has an external power supply the fan is mainly to make the hard drives last longer. A larger fan would be quieter, of course. Keep in mind that they size the fan for worst possible scenario...three hard drives installed and when ambient temperature is very high. One way to quiet it down would be to add a fan speed controller like the type used for PCs. PCs commonly use variable speed fans with temp sensors so they are quieter. There may be several processors on the main system board that get warm, but the main issue is that a cool-running hard drive will last much longer.

And don't forget a DUMMY DVR. Go on eBay and buy the cheapest POS DVR you can find for ten bucks. Put a sign on it that says security DVR with cables connected to it. For a laugh, fill the case with a block of solid lead.

There's a free app called MediaInfo which can read the Tag info that is in the AVI files, assuming the backup process does not wipe that out. Maybe once you discover it you can add a little text file to go with the footage somehow? http://www.eden-foundation.org/products/code/film_date_stamp/index.html

First of all, what you describe is a very simple problem, the ethernet card in the DVR won't connect to your uVerse router. If you have tried multiple cables and also multiple ports on your uVerse device, then the problem is this: the uVerse Ethernet port settings need to be adjusted to a different link speed/duplex setting, or you need to plug a little ethernet switch in between the DVR and uVerse device. Without going into all the details, you need to log into the web interface of your uverse RG, and go into Settings > LAN > Wired Interfaces. There you will see four Ethernet ports listed, with a pull down that says 'Auto Detect'. Change port 2 (or where you have your DVR plugged in) to 100BaseTX Full Duplex and Click save. If that does not work, then buy a simple four port ethernet switch with a short 6" patch cable, and plug that in-between the uVerse RG and your DVR. That will work, period.

The 802.3 af or newer 802.3at POE standards specify a voltage range for the PD (powered device) of 37-57 volts for AF and 42.5 -57 volts for the newer AT standard. The PD typically has a set resistance value that calls for a set voltage it needs. You don't have to set anything...as long as everything is standards-compliant, it just works, assuming your cabling is correct.

The newer high-efficiency Gallium Aluminum Arsenide (Ga1A) IR LEDs are tinted blue. The blue tinting is to shift the color and tinting also widens the viewing angle a bit. 950 nm IR LEDs are invisible to the human eye, while 850 nm is that red glow you sometimes see. GA1A falls around 880-900nm, which is only faintly visible red for most people. Without the tint they would look a bit more red.

I can think of a dozen ways to make a camera in a window hidden in plain sight. For starters, just a miniblind may be sufficient. Keep in mind that for somebody to see the camera, they need to be looking for it, and the lighting has to be enough so they can see it. Of course some sort of window tint film, though it may look ugly, would make the camera invisible. You could get a decorative fake hanging potted plant with a dark colored pot, and mount the camera inside.

Most likely DNS is not the issue. You can rule that out by accessing your site via it's current IP address. Four minutes is too slow for a line rated at 1MBs. I would question whether perhaps something is misconfigured or malfunctioning before spending money for more bandwidth. The first question would be how fast is the office internet connection there for those surfing the web and so forth? It would be best to run a connection test from the office to make sure you are getting the bandwidth you are paying for.

Couple of words of advice: First of all, I would not consider an all-in-one DVR built into the LCD display. My thought is when one of the two parts breaks, you're stuck until you fix it. Buy a separate DVR. In terms of DVR specs, a lot depends on what you are trying to accomplish. The HUGE difference in terms of usability, is how well remote viewing and remote playback works. Some DVRs, for example, only allow you to use Internet Explorer (ActiveX controls) and have mobile-phone clients that simply do not work. (Hint: read reviews on Amazon dot com) Note that the two options you talked about for cameras are totally different....the CNB is a color fixed dome, and the Samsung is a bullet night-vision camera.....totally different. Remember, that dome has no infrared LEDs, so at night you will see nothing at all. Domes are great for places that are lit all the time, but can be tricky outdoors since things like the direct sun of sunrise/sunset will 'blowout' the video due to glare and direct light. For most low-cost residential installs, what you want is a good-quality color CCD bullet camera...one with infrared night-vision capability, a sun-shade, and a metal (not plastic) housing.

While not familiar with that hardware, I know networks well. I assume you can ping other things from your test machine? Can other things ping your test machine? Many embedded devices need to be hard powered-down to clear the cached network info and also clear the ethernet switch mac address table. What's between the two devices, hub, switch, crossover cable? Assuming default gateway and subnet mask are correct.

This is a fairly complex issue, but for starters: What make/model of DVR are you accessing? What method do you use to view it (e.g. web browser, application, remote control) What ports are used to view the video and control it (these are the ports open on the firewall). What sort of ping times do you get to/from the site from each country? What type of error are you getting? Do other applications or services run?

This is what's so strange. I have tried it on both my desk top and lap top with the same results. and stranger still, I cant access my user control panel on my laptop, only the desk top. I use Firefox as my main browser but, the DVR instructions say this software only works with IE as it is. there is a way to use it with FF or Chrome but the instructions are in translated Chinese and don't make any sense. I'm not sure what you mean by not using activex, isn't that the only way I can accsess my cameras when I'm away from home, like say at work? I called Verizon support and they would be happy to help me with a 30min tech call for a one time fee of $40 or a monthly fee of $10 for a minimum of 10 months. Gee, how's that for service?! I'm thinking I'm going to start looking for a good deal on another modem that isn't so screwed up it takes a 4 year degree to figure it out. anyway, I do appreciate your help. Not a lot of guys would take the time. Thank you, John If the DVR says it uses ActiveX, it cannot be used with anything except IE, period. ActiveX is a browser add-in technology that is exclusive, proprietary, and all Microsoft (and it sucks). I have been working with PCs for more than 20 years and have configured dozens of DVRs to work with ActiveX and it's not pretty. The way I make this work (seriously) is to have a VMware ESX server at home, and I have an instance of Windows XP running as a guest OS, with an instance of IE 6 running on that PC. That virtual OS runs the ActiveX control required by my Everfocus DVR. I connect remotely to that virtual PC via the UltraVNC app on the PC and via the MochaVNC app on my iPhone. Any PC, whether it's local or remote (like at work) would need to have those same ActiveX controls installed in IE, and also every single one of the security settings configured in IE (which basically turn off all security in the web browser so the ActiveX control can work).

Hi please make more sense it is commonly for equip in appartment to view the status via your TV. A lot of rich and verteran is proficient this products. Yes, there are devices that can coexist with CATV. UVerse is not CATV, it's IPTV. Most commonly the STBs are connected via Ethernet, but since 90% of the uVerse customers probably already have a coax cable running to their TV, using HPNA over coax saves the uVerse installer from having to pull a new Ethernet cable for each STB.

My experience with LAN cabling tells me that CAT5 and a Balun simply will not work at that distance. There are some amplified video-senders like the Lynx Bobcat that can send composite upto 600 feet over cat5. www.lynxbroadband.com

I am not familiar with your system but typically the admin password is stored in the OS of the unit. Resetting the BIOS of the DVR will typically not affect the OS. I know how to reset passwords on many systems, but these DVRs are tricky because they are very 'closed' systems. These run Linux, typically, and some units may have a boot-process that can be interrupted, which can cause it to crash to a system prompt visible from an attached serial terminal. This is how mods are made to things like CATV boxes or Tivo that run embedded Linux. Often, too, passwords are embedded in system firmware updates, viewable with a hex editor. Note that many security DVRs use only digits 1-9 as part of their password, so that the front panel or remote can be used. That limits the number of possible passwords considerably. Not sure this helps, but this is how it works.

Not being a troll here, but personally I have a love-hate relationship with PC-based DVRs. I know PCs...I have been working with PCs for 20+ years. I have setup tons of GeoVision stuff. But I have been burned many times by having things bork when they should be recording, or spending 20 hours troubleshooting why the PC goes blue-screen ten minutes after I look away. Call me crazy, but hardware is cheap and 'almost' recording a crime does not cut it. To get the best of both worlds, get a pro-grade DVR with loop-through inputs to front-end the PC-based DVR. That's what I have at home. A 16 channel Everfocus that feeds each channel thru to my Geovision. Geovision works fairly well, but in terms of reliability, it can be hit or miss. Just my opinion.....

I personally have setup wireless LANs for many years in enterprise warehouse and point-to-point solutions such as when there are remote buildings, on-site trailers, and even a link crossing a busy street. Wireless can work fine for many things, but to be honest, I've never seen a wireless camera that's anything more than a toy. In a demanding environment, and a race track would be just that, I have not seen a commercial-grade product that would work. Now in terms of using wireless to send video, there are solutions, similar to the solutions used to extend a data network, but be forewarned, these can get costly. http://www.cocom.com/index.htm When it comes to long distance, it's all about cost. Wireless can have it's place, but also consider either buried or aerial fiber, and there are even solutions where the CCTV camera is using a cellular 3G connection. www.ironsky.com

As a general rule, firmware updates always check to see what they are updating, therefore in 99% of the cases, a firmware update that's 'close', will not work, nor will it make things worse. Note too, that one of two things will happen: either it will error-out with something like 'no compatible hardware found' or, if I am totally wrong, it will work 100% perfectly.

Sorry, you can't get there from here. Uverse uses the coax in an unusual way; they are running HPNA, which is basically Ethernet over coax from the RG (residential gateway) to the set top box (STB). While HPNA will coexist with analog or digital broadcast (RF) TV signals, I am 99.9% sure that a standard 1 Volt CCTV video signal on the same coax would, at best, kill the uVerse connection, and at worst, kill the uVerse STB and/or RG.

In most places you need your low-voltage contractor license to run cables...not sure about PA.

Look into using fiber optics. With the type of distances you're talking about, I would think it would be much less problematic, and might even be cheaper. You can run 8 video and two audio channels over one single mode fiber. There's a company called Aventura, for example, that makes video-fiber multiplexors. If you upgrade to IP cameras, you can use the same fiber. With fiber you could go more than two miles with zero loss, zero interference. While you'd probably spend $40K on fiber muxes, 500 feet of six-strand fiber costs like $150 and is less than 3/8" diameter. I'm not a fiber-salesman, but I've been working with computer networks for +20 years. Using fiber means an outdoor camera could take a direct lightning strike and not hurt your DVR. I would look at what fiber is already being run for the building LAN. It's not hard to run some extra fiber strands for video...they might even have unused cable in place.

Typically the web server of a DVR uses port 80 to download browser plug-ins. What make/model DVR? Sometimes a DVR-maker will have a demo-page on the web site, and your web browser will download/install pkug ins that way.