Rgeezer

Hi all, I'm new here and new to security camera systems. We recently bought a house with an existing security camera system, with no instructions, and obviously missing important components. Here's what we have: several Color IR CCD dome cameras installed and wired (model AD-A2000VIR), which I think are wired to two Ethernet jacks (marked "M" and "R" if that makes any sense), with the Ethernet jacks connected to two Ubiquiti Carrier POE adapters (model UBI-POE-15- "power" output, with the adapters also having a "LAN" output jack. From reading around, it sounds as if the cameras are powered via the Ethernet cable, and I'm guessing the LAN output carries the signal from the cameras? However, it seems as if those LAN outs were to connected something, perhaps either an NVR or DVR from what I've read, but no such receiver/recorded was included with the house. I tried connecting the LAN output to an old laptop computer, but it didn't recognize any network activity. Anyone have any suggestions on any inexpensive ways I could proceed to see if this existing equipment does anything? I've seen some fairly cheap NVRs...if I hooked up that LAN output to an NVR, should I be able to see something, or does it require something more? Any guidance or helpful links would be greatly appreciated!

So why did the previous owner have these two Ubiquiti carrier POE adapters hooked up (and they were plugged in to power outlets when we moved in)? What else would they be used for other than powering security cameras? Again, I see no coax/balun cable ends anywhere, only cat5. You won’t see any coax .... baluns run on cat5 Your camera link is for analog. Until you provide pictures of where all cables end in your home then it’s all guess work. For all you know last owner had ip cameras but removed them and replaced with analog. But it looks as tho you have analog with baluns Success! As you suggested, I tried to follow the camera cables, climbing into the attic and locating some wiring that eventually came together into a bundle of 8 (there are 8 cameras), so I figured those must be the camera cables. I followed them along until they went into a wall that had a study, so I went into the study but there was no sign of any bundle of 8 wires anywhere. Doing some back and forth, I figured out that the wires seemed to go into the end of the room where there is a built in desk (those 2 aforementioned ethernet ports are on the opposite wall by that desk), but nothing was in that desk except two empty drawers. However, I thought I saw something under the bottom drawer, and after fumbling around trying to get the drawer to release, voila! Inside that false bottom was a battery backup power supply (which seems to be dead), another box that seemed to provide power leads for the 8 cameras, and a Digimerge DH208000+ 8 channel network DVR with 8 coax-like cables going into it, and one ethernet cable plugged into a "LAN" port coming out of it, but the ethernet cable was not connected to anything on the other end. Anyhow, I disconnected the battery backup, plugged the DVR and camera power unit into a live power strip, and dug out a VGA monitor to connect to the Digimerge VGA port. And lo and behold, I have 8 functioning cameras, and had even recorded myself looking for that VGA monitor! I still have no clue what those POE adapters were for, but it seems clear that the previous owner had mainly accessed this system through that LAN connection, because all of that stuff was so difficult to access. Anyhow, I need to read up on this DVR to figure out how to use it, but I seem to be in business; thanks Tomcctv for the help!

So why did the previous owner have these two Ubiquiti carrier POE adapters hooked up (and they were plugged in to power outlets when we moved in)? What else would they be used for other than powering security cameras? Again, I see no coax/balun cable ends anywhere, only cat5.

The cameras are mounted pretty high up and I don't think I can easily remove them to look at the back of the camera, which is where the cable would begin. What I *think* is the other end is simply two ethernet jacks in the wall, to which the POE adapters are attached with standard cat5 ethernet cable. I certainly am confused since I know almost nothing about this stuff, but my best guess is that something like this is being used somewhere between the cameras and the wall jack: Is that possible?

Not much to show, there are just those cameras mounted outside, and the two POE adapters inside. Searching on those cameras does show that they have a coax-type output, but as far as I know there is no place in the house where multiple coax wires are coming out of the wall, and I can't think of anything else that runs using POE, so they have to be for those cameras. Might there be adapters somewhere behind the cameras that convert the power and video out to ethernet cable, or is there no such thing?