Category: Digital Recording

Seagate or Western digital

Seagate  or Western digital.

Hard drives! Anyone in the IPCCTV world will tell you these are the only two hard drives that are really used in most digital recorders today. They will also tell you that both are the same , there is no difference, it does not matter which one you use. This is especially true of installers who buy their DVR’s from the manufacturers and install their own hard drives .This can save a lot of money. Most manufacturers will advise against this but all in the know realize that on paper it makes little difference.

But……….

However we have come across a case where it seems some DVR’s really do need the hard drive installed that the product has been tested on. Below we carried out a series of test on a DVR that seemed to fail for no apparent reason the results were surprising and indeed could shed some light onto why DVR’s seem to fail for no apparent reason.

The test.

Below is the findings as described by the technician who carried out the testing…………………….

“I have been undertaking an extensive test on the DVR to emulate some of the issues we are seeing reported in the field”………..

The issues we were hearing were:-

  • Alarms locking up the units
  • Rebooting
  • HDD / recordings missing

I have set up a unit and  over the last 2 weeks, here are the results of my tests:-

Seagate 1Tb ST31000525SV – 2 of them to make 2Tb –  DVR 400ips unit

  • 5 cameras connected (1 camera looped to 4 other inputs)
  • CCTV Camera 1 is set up for motion and also I have turned on Sensor 1 and set to N/O – basically causing the alarm to be permanently on
  • Cameras 2-5 are set for motion
  • Recording schedule set for motion and continuous 24/7
  • Notify set to send alarm data to an internal IP address………….my laptop,……….so not always there (testing to see if a non-connection will cause lockup)

After 1-2 days of me not being present, the unit shows the ‘no HDD’ symbol with a red cross through the symbol………..looking at the System info, no HDD’s are present………reboot and they still do not appear……..when I do a full power recycle, both HDD’s appear again, the system continues recording and all video recording is still present (up to the point where the HDDs disappeared obviously)

last week, I observed the unit reboot after 3 hours, and when I checked the System info, one of the HDDs had disappeared……..a couple of hours later, both HDDs had gone after another reboot

So, I had taken delivery of 2 x Western Digital 1Tb HDDs Caviar AV 10EVDS and proceeded to put those into the  DVR in question

It is now Wednesday (5days later) and the exact same test has been performed with no reboot, lockup or HDD / Video recording loss……………….this leads me to suspect the following:-

  • The Seagate drives we were using were a faulty batch (possible but unlikely)
  • The Seagate drives we were using are actually not fully compatible with the DVR firmware, even though the manufacturer gave us the part number (possible)
  • The Seagate drives were not correctly inserted  by the client and my changing the drives to another unit is purely coincidental and corrected the fault – again  unlikely

Conclusion , it would seem that there is some subtle difference between the hard drives that has caused the DVR to crash although in practice this is not really possible the testing proves that somewhere within the firmware of the DVR a problem has occurred with the original hard drives.

When we at integrated CCTV asked the engineer if he thought there was a difference between the hard drives he replied.

“No same spec should make no difference, hard to understand, the Seagate is a good make so its not the Hard drive just the way it works with the DVR”

Feedback.

Has anyone else experienced hard drive failures on your own DVRs that may in fact be caused by a similar problem? If so we welcome your thoughts and feedback.

Emerging Video Technologies – Pt5 Storage on-board IP Cameras

Today, we take a look at On Board storage for IP cameras

Potential Benefits:-

Some camera locations have limited or unreliable bandwidth. In those lcoations, ensuring that video can be streamed and recorded remotely can be expensive (or simply not possible). Putting storage inside of an IP camera can eliminate this problem. Of course, some network connections will be needed to remotely view/download record video. However, this will only need to be done periodically.

Cost: While storgae costs drop continuously, today the cost of on-board storage is far higher than centrally storing video in hard drives. Moreover, for most video surveillance applications, it is simply not possible to solely store video on-board IP cameras as it is not technically possible (with the exception of  suppliers supporting hard drives inside or attached to their cameras)

  • End User Risks
    Using on board storage may force compromises in the length of storage or the quality of storage (because of limitations on how much video can be stored inside the camera). Additionally, most VMS systems do not support remote playback of video recorded on an IP camera. This could make it difficult to access and use this video.
  • Installer Risks
    If the on-board storage cannot be remotely accessed using the existing VMS playback, the installer may be called for additional service calls. Some systems will require a technician physically remove the on-board storage while others will require downloading raw video files.

Taken from the ‘Emerging Video Surveillance Guide 2010’ from http://ipvideomarket.info/

we at IntegratedCCTV agree in part with the report – however, we still think that a camera recording in a continuous loop, just enough to cover a 3 9’s network (99.9% allowable down time, 43 minutes per month) and then using technology such as March Networks’ Shadow Archive feature, means that the system can synchronise video lost during the network downtime, with little effect on the overall system…………this is new and probably not known at the time of the report, but it is worth noting when discussing the above!!!

Have you any opinions on this? leave a comment for us!

HD cameras – can they be the same?

An interesting demo came up recently…..

we took a few cameras, HD 1080p to be precise, from a very renowned IP Manufacturer,,,,,,,,,,,

a couple were mini dome based, the type you see in the analogue arena, you know, Vandal Resistant with varifocal lens, 3 axis, day night etc etc

the others were ‘boxed’ cameras……..the type where you fit the lens, usually (and recommended) a high quality lens designed for Megapixel use………

putting them side by side, adjusted to look at exactly the same picture………….both 1080p cameras from the same manufacturer………..

The Result

well, both were excellent pictures – it cannot be denied – but, they were not identical……….not by some margin………. the mini dome was ‘softer’, a little more ‘noise’ in the picture whereas the ‘boxed’ camera was sharper, more ‘vivid’ colours………….electronically zooming in revealed that actually, the mini dome, despite the ‘noise’ was actually a sharper picture, the ‘boxed’ camera had a degree of ‘pixelaion’ which detracted away from the initial sharpness………….

turning the lights off to test the day/night function highlighted the difference again………..the mini dome wiped the floor with the ‘boxed’ version camera!!! that puzzled us !

talking with the manufacturer, the mini dome is a smaller lens, smaller sensor, limited in optics to fit inside the dome………..that we can understand……….but how was it better under low light??

Lesson learnt

so, it is imperative that when specifying a system, particularly with IP MEgapixel, be aware that even with the same manufacturer, you will sometimes see a difference in picture rendition………..

what are your experiences?!

Emerging Video Surveillance Technologies – PIXC revolution! Pt1

An interesting guide has just been issued from http://ipvideomarket.info/ entitled ‘Emerging Video Surveillance Guide 2010’

it details ‘What to Look for and what to Look Out for’ so over the next few days we will detail some of their opinions – for the full guide, head over to their website and simply sign up to receive the free PDF!

Emerging Technologies

  • IP Cameras
  • Megapixel Cameras
  • IP Based Storage (NAS / SAN)
  • Storage on-Board IP Cameras
  • Mesh Wireless IP Networks
  • Panoramic Cameras
  • Video Analytics
  • Business Intelligence
  • Remote Video Monitoring
  • Managed Video / Hosted Video Surveillance
  • Physical Security Information Management

they are keen to point out that the directory is purely meant as a survey of key risks for the ‘non-expert’

we think it is a great discussion document in this emerging Security arena…………………more to follow…………….

Cathexis Hybrid DVR

Cathexis catSytems.

Cathexis are a well established manufacturer of digital surveillance equipment. The catSystem range offers both hardware and software products that boast a level of flexibility not seen in many products of this type.

Customised for every requirement.

The catSystems have the ability to to allow the customer to specify a custom built recording suite that allows hybrid integration of both new and existing cameras, both analogue and IP.

H.264

Using H.264 compression technology high performance is assured. Used extensively in the retail and mining sectors, a powerful database engine allows real-time recording and monitoring. This, synchronised with audio allows customers to build a system exactly suited to their needs. This solution means no over specified unit costing more than is actually required allowing more budget to be spent on quality cameras as well.

Hybrid DVR solution.

The Cathexis DVR has an application to meet every need it has been engineered for stability and reliability and the fault monitoring side of the product with full system logging is a godsend for installers. It is highly net-workable for hybrid options and remote monitoring and maintenance gives CCTV control staff high levels of functionality through advanced CCTV software.

Integrated CCTV.

Finally third party integration has been considered a must in the the design of this product allowing fire systems, access control and EPOS all to be seamlessly integrated. A robust product designed for blue chip companies can also be used by medium sized business as well. A visit to the website would not go amiss.