Network/IP Camera & NVR Advice

Z

Zef Pomp

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Aug 15, 2009
Messages
1,032
I plan on putting together a surveillance system for my home.

What I want:
Outdoor cameras
PoE, for the single cable installation
3MP+/1080P+
~100ft IR
8 channel NVR leaving the potential to expand
Motorized/Zoom lens(maybe)

Camera I have chosen so far:
Hikvision DS-2CD2632F-I (~$170ea) (not motorized)
Hikvision DS-2CD4232FWD-IZ ($$$$, but motorized)
GeoVision GV-BL3410 ($$$$, but motorized)


NVR I have chosen so far:
Hikvision DS-7608NI-E2/8P - WITHOUT HDDs (I plan to buy a 4TB Western Digital Purple or Se) (~$300 for NVR, ~$200 for HDD)

Questions:
1) Cameras -> NVR -> Router -> Switch -> Computers ..The system will be setup like this correct(I have a switch)?
2) How much would 4 cameras at 1080P hinder my network/internet when viewed on my computer?
3) Is buying an NVR the best option?, do I have other options other than a DVR? ..or am I stuck with an NVR because I need the software?

Please let me know if you recommend any other hardware/software, thanks!
 
Last edited:
Hikvision is a solid value oriented brand that I sometimes spec at work, or at least their cameras.

An NVR is just a computer appliance with a built in PoE switch that runs a VMS. If you happen to have a capable server you could just get a PoE switch and run the VMS on it.

I've never used the Hikvision VMS because the systems we install at work are more robust using VMS software from Exacq or Avigilon which are high end systems not really needed in your residential situation.

The other value oriented yet decent quality brand I would recommend is Speco Tech. They offer what they call a "Zip Kit" which bundles an NVR with some cameras for a decent price. They have a fairly decent free/no licensing VMS called SecureGuard Plus that anyone with their NVR/cameras can use.
 
Mmmmm. Love me some Avigilon!

Ditto what Ultima99 said. Keep in mind, that if you haven't played with IP Cams before, the clarity is MUCH better than the older analog cams. You might find that 720p is plenty of resolution for the field of view the cam has. That being said, you'll never notice the traffic from those viewing the NVR on your network.
 
Avigilon seems way out of my price range, its hard even finding their pricing..haha

Alright guys, if I wanted to add to this project and do my own NAS as NVR..

I would buy a PoE Switch -> plug it into NAS -> plug NAS into my current router/switch? ..then I would install surveillance software onto the NAS?

What CPU speed/how much ram do I need in a NAS system? I am looking at no more than 2-bay systems.
 
Yes Avigilon is a mid/upper tier surveillance solution, not priced for home use and only their registered partner/dealers can sell it and those are geographically limited. My company is the only one where I live.

Have you tried pricing a Speco Zip kit? That might be easiest for you.

If you want to go with a server as NVR then yes plug a PoE switch into it to power the cameras and install a VMS on it.
 
I did look at the Speco zip kit, however, for the price and specs of the cameras included I would just rather piece together exactly what I want from Hikvision or some other company.

I would love something that has a motorized lens/zoom, since it is the next best thing from PTZ and the price tag it carries..

Do you recommend a certain amount of ram/processing power for the NAS?
 
You don't need an extravagant amount of RAM. Will this be dedicated to video or multipurpose? 4GB is plenty for video only, if you have other things in mind maybe 8GB is warranted. How many cameras do you plan on hooking up? If 8 is your maximum then most anything like an i3 will be fine unless again you're doing other things with it.

http://www.razberi.net/ - Here is a product we sometimes use as a solid NVR for video. It has integrated PoE and works well.
 
Question answers if you go hikvision (my experence with DS-2CD2032-I cameras):
1) Cameras -> POE Switch -> Computers/Router
2) Around 7-12mbit each
3) With Hikvision, all you need is a NAS (or a share drive on your computer)

Have a look at these 2 threads:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1860862
http://www.cam-it.org/index.php?topic=7192.0

Here is my latest screenshot from one of my cams:
http://www.quickesthosting.com/~spirit/snip.png
*Screenshot from the web app, my monitor isn't 4k, but have 2 side by side so was able to get the full width, just not height.... I'm just being lazy. Good luck with your project.
 
Don't the Hikvision cameras have a built in web interface that can be used to record to a network share??

I'm in a similar situation, I just purchased a DS-2CD2032-I and am in the process of setting it up. I'm not sure if the Hikvision software would work for multiple cameras, but I'm planning on starting with Hikvision's software and if it doesn't quite work like I want it to, then I'll look into 3rd party options.
 
Yeah Hikvision has their own web interface

If my PoE switch has only 8 ports and I use all 8 for cameras how would I connect it to my NAS?...the same thing applies to my NAS, if it only has 1 LAN port how would I connect it to my router..
 
Does your router only have 2 ports?

If you don't have enough ports then you will need to get another switch.

The NAS does not have to be on the same switch in order to communicate with the cameras.

All the cameras will have an IP address which is how it is able to communicate with your NAS.
 
Here is my current setup:
Cable Modem -> Router(3 open ports) -> 24-port non-PoE switch(3 open ports - #1-20 are drops, #24 is the connection to the router)

If the NAS does not need to be on the same switch as the cameras, the new PoE switch still has to have a connection to the router?

would something like the HP J9774A work?..since it has 2 extra dual personality ports?
 
MiLk said:
Here is my current setup:
Cable Modem -> Router(3 open ports) -> 24-port non-PoE switch(3 open ports - #1-20 are drops, #24 is the connection to the router)

If the NAS does not need to be on the same switch as the cameras, the new PoE switch still has to have a connection to the router?

would something like the HP J9774A work?..since it has 2 extra dual personality ports?
Click to expand...

Just plug the new POE switch into any of the 3 open ports you have.

it will just uplink to the switch. You don't have to be directly connected to the router unless you are using VLAN's.

Ports are not specific unless you are running in a manage switch environment with multiple VLANs.

http://www.amazon.com/TP-LINK-TL-SF1008P-100Mbps-8-Port-802-3af/dp/B003CFATT2

this is the poe switch that I got. Please note that only the 1st 4 ports are POE.

since you have 8 cameras you will need 2 of these.

I didn't bother getting the gigabyte poe switch because the hikvision cameras that I have can only connect at 10/100Mbits

heres another poe switch with all POE

http://www.amazon.com/TP-LINK-TL-SG...ts=p_n_feature_keywords_browse-bin:2885863011
 
Last edited:
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
The only concern I'd raise on a DIY recorder is will you have enough CPU to record up to 8 cameras at 3Mpix/20FPS? I remember when I was setting up my home security system that I tried Blue Iris on an older Q9550 (still pretty quick) box and it was entirely unable to handle that level of recording.

Granted if you're using the Hikvision's built-in ability to record to a SMB share or such, that's kinda a moot point.

Personally I'd still recommend a dedicated NVR, it's just easier overall and uses less power typically. I have a Hikvision 7608NI-E2 8P that works great, set and forget and if you need to review footage, it's all in one location and can be easily searched.
 
Damn if a Q9550 cannot handle it, how does the 7609NI..haha

what kind of CPU power would you recommend?
 
Hi Milk... if you are planning on re-encoding your streams with a NVR software then yes you will need a beefy CPU.

Otherwise as long as your just recoding video from your hikvision cameras you don't need CPU. All you need is a NAS that has NFS support and hard drive space.
 
Alright, a few questions..

Can the HP J9774A's dual personality ports be used to connect it to a router so that it can join the network? ..that will allow me to use ALL 8 PoE ports..

I can record many cameras @ 3MP(1536p) and view it on a computer with no CPU on the NAS?...a CPU is only required if I want to go from say 1536p to 1080p?
 
Last edited:
dar124 said:
Don't the Hikvision cameras have a built in web interface that can be used to record to a network share??

I'm in a similar situation, I just purchased a DS-2CD2032-I and am in the process of setting it up. I'm not sure if the Hikvision software would work for multiple cameras, but I'm planning on starting with Hikvision's software and if it doesn't quite work like I want it to, then I'll look into 3rd party options.
Click to expand...

If the camera supports onvif then you'll likely be able to use a 3rd party software without issue.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top