Dahua Smart Player - adding folder recursively?

[mroek 0]

I've tested the Dahua Smart Player software, but it has one major flaw, as far as I can tell:

 

You have to navigate to each folder that contains video (.dav) files to add them to the view list. This is a major PITA, if you are trying to access the folder structure that the Dahua cameras create when they store events. The structure has many levels, here's an example from my camera (stored to my NAS via FTP from the camera):

 

\\NAS\ftpserver\TZC2LV0xxxxxxx\2013-02-24\001\dav\22

 

In this folder the events that occured between 22:00 and 22:59 on the 24th of Feb is stored. Fine, and it makes it easy to actually find a specific recording if you know when it happened. However, that's not what I typically want, what I want is to point the player application to a folder and have it traverse all the subfolders to add all the videos it can find, so that I can quickly play them (sequentially) to look for events.

 

The Dahua Smart Player actually looks like a fine piece of software, but it is still useless for what I want. Is there some way of making it do what I want? I think not, but I have been wrong before.

 

I've also looked at PSS, but that software doesn't even seem to have an interface for loading files from folders, it problably only works with files that it has written itself, and in my case that defeats the purpose, since the cameras store directly to my NAS.

[Hugo 0]

I have the same trouble (recursively browsing files stored via FTP).

Is there an alternative to Dahua Smart Player?

[Euly 1]

The destination folders are of the more annoying choices Dahua forces on the user. I emailed them with a request to allow users to control the FTP/NAS destination for the videos and images more precisely and they responded with:

 

Hello,

We are very glad you like our products and I will forward your suggestion to our R&D guys to let them develop better devices.

Thank you!

Best Regards!

Colin Wang

 

As for dealing with the videos and images on my Windows 7 machine, I use a program called Advanced Renamer, which is a light-weight batch file processor that runs via a GUI or command prompt and organizes the videos (moves them out of those individual folders and into consolidated folders, such as by-day). You can run the .bat file per instance or create a Windows task to have it done automatically to your preference.

 

Go get Advanced Renamer and install it http://www.advancedrenamer.com (the portable version works too)

 

Once AR is installed, run the program and create a preset (create a method) with these settings in the "New Name" field:

<Hour Created>-<Min Created>-<Sec Created>

This pattern will be how the files are named (for example, 02-15-59.dav), but you don't have to follow my preferences, you can play around in AR and have it name the files however you want, just keep in mind that AR will rename the files based on the time of file creation, so that example above might actually be a recording from 2:15am and 50 seconds, because the camera took 9 seconds to upload the video.

 

Now, save the method list (click the floppy disk button on the top right of method list section) to AR's root directory (the main folder for Advanced Renamer, where the aren.exe is)

 

Next, create a batch file/text document anywhere (such as on your desktop) and name it whatever you want (make a simple text doc and rename its extension from .txt to .bat)

 

Edit the batch file and add this line of code (but modify it to reflect your configuration)

CD C:\AR\arenc -e MethodList1.aren -p "C:\SecurityCameras\Cam1\" -s -m move -d "C:\OrganizedVideos\Cam1\<Month Created>.<Day Created>.<Year Created>"

 

Change "C:\AR\" to the root directory of Advanced Renamer.

Change "MethodList1.aren" to the name of your method list.aren.

Change "C:\SecurityCameras\Cam1\" to the directory your videos or images are saved. I'm not sure if AR will work over a network drive, but you can try it, such as "\\MyNas\SecurityCamVids\"

Change "C:\OrganizedVideos\Cam1\" to the location you want your videos or images moved.

 

Now save and close the batch file. If everything is correct, you can double-click and run the batch file which will rapidly move the files while a command prompt pops up and closes when it finishes.

As I said earlier, I set this up in a Windows Task event to run the batch file every half hour and I don't even see the command prompt window, it just works in the background.

 

After you run the batch file, AR will move the files, but leave the folders, which you can delete later. All your videos will be organized and easy to find and open in the Smart Player.

 

Hope this helps.

[Hugo 0]

Thank you very much Euly! I'll try to do the same on my Mac with Automator or other batch software.

 

The destination folders are of the more annoying choices Dahua forces on the user