Less Bandwidth?

CastleSurveillance

CastleSurveillance

Getting the hang of it
Aug 11, 2019
313
83
Detroit, MI
Is there anyway I can track how much bandwidth my IP cams are using? I have 10 4MP cams, 1 5MP cam, and 2MP Dahua PTZ.

My internet is getting bogged down - any ideas on how to go about reducing bandwidth used? I've purchasing some ubiquti Pro's to put inside my home to hopefully boost my wifi speed - but quite honestly, I don't think it'll do much - I have good coverage, coverage is not the issue - it's the speed.

For reference: my Internet is kicking at 175MB when I plug straight into the back of the modem - once I put into my Meshforce Router and the NVR is plugged into it - the meshforce wifi signal is about 25MB. I know to expect some loss due to the IP cams - but by my calculations - I should only being using about 40MB bandwidth with these cameras... soooo I should still be around 100-120 when accounting for some loss in the WIFI. Am I miscalculating?
 
Are any of them wifi cameras? Wifi cameras typically operate on older wifi standards and are positioned poorly (e.g. through an exterior wall) which may require lots of data to be retransmitted and slower speeds to be negotiated. The combined effect of this is they use a lot of air time to transmit their video and not a lot is left over for other things that want to use wifi.

The 2 keys to good network performance with IP cameras are:

1) Don't connect the cameras with wifi
2) Make sure the traffic doesn't pass through your internet router unnecessarily because some routers don't have properly hardware-accelerated packet switching. It is best to connect everything through gigabit switches and have no more than one uplink from the router to one of the switches.
 
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As for actually tracking the bandwidth being used, that would need to be done either at the recording device if it offers such capabilities, or through the network devices themselves. Most routers, wifi access points, and managed switches offer some kind of throughput readout. Unmanaged switches do not.
 
bp2008 said:
Are any of them wifi cameras? Wifi cameras typically operate on older wifi standards and are positioned poorly (e.g. through an exterior wall) which may require lots of data to be retransmitted and slower speeds to be negotiated. The combined effect of this is they use a lot of air time to transmit their video and not a lot is left over for other things that want to use wifi.

The 2 keys to good network performance with IP cameras are:

1) Don't connect the cameras with wifi
2) Make sure the traffic doesn't pass through your internet router unnecessarily because some routers don't have properly hardware-accelerated packet switching. It is best to connect everything through gigabit switches and have no more than one uplink from the router to one of the switches.
Click to expand...

nope. All hardwired dahua OEM.

Currently going to the back of the router.

- soon to be going to a switch that will power the following: 3 ubiquitis & the NVR.
 
bp2008 said:
As for actually tracking the bandwidth being used, that would need to be done either at the recording device if it offers such capabilities, or through the network devices themselves. Most routers, wifi access points, and managed switches offer some kind of throughput readout. Unmanaged switches do not.
Click to expand...

Do Dahua NVR's have this ability? Unfortunately, I can pull up the NVR on this meshforce router - but it shows that its downloading no data... which obviously isn't right.
 
If you are pulling LAN video traffic through the Ethernet ports on your router, that can have a big performance impact on internet download and upload performance.
Even if none of the traffic is going over the internet.
The effect varies with router models, some really struggle with doing the primary routing task when also coping with heavy switch traffic.

Suggestion :
Move the traffic to a switch and leave the router to do routing.
 
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So are you using a Mesh/Wireless device to bridge your cameras back to your LAN? If so, that is your problem and the reason your wifi speed is poor.
 
biggen said:
So are you using a Mesh/Wireless device to bridge your cameras back to your LAN? If so, that is your problem and the reason your wifi speed is poor.
Click to expand...

that is correct. I’m going to throw this over to a switch I have around and see what the result is.
 
CastleSurveillance said:
that is correct. I’m going to throw this over to a switch I have around and see what the result is.
Click to expand...

You will get full wirespeed with a switch for each port. You won't have an internet slow down that way at all unless you are streaming video out of the WAN port on your internet router/modem.

Going with Unifi APs is a great choice for any home. If you can ceiling mount them, your wifi coverage in your home will be fantastic. I have two of them at my house and a couple more at my business. Make sure you give them different NON-OVERLAPPING channels and turn their radio power output levels down so that you can "roam" easily between them.

I still wouldn't run cameras over WiFi unless you dedicated a WiFi system just for them.
 
CastleSurveillance said:
Do Dahua NVR's have this ability? Unfortunately, I can pull up the NVR on this meshforce router - but it shows that its downloading no data... which obviously isn't right.
Click to expand...

I don't know about any NVRs specifically, as I use Blue Iris on a PC instead (which does have excellent bandwidth usage stats).

In your router you are probably only seeing internet <-> LAN traffic, not LAN <-> LAN traffic.
 
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Before I got wise from information on this site, I too had all my cams ultimately connected to my wifi router. Once I completely separated the cameras from everything, my internet speed increased by 40-50MB/s.

Even if the cams are not accessing the internet, just running through the router slows it down.

If you have wifi cams, I would suggest having another wifi router not connected to internet to bring wifi cameras into. Put that router on the IP range of your cams.
 
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biggen said:
You will get full wirespeed with a switch for each port. You won't have an internet slow down that way at all unless you are streaming video out of the WAN port on your internet router/modem.

Going with Unifi APs is a great choice for any home. If you can ceiling mount them, your wifi coverage in your home will be fantastic. I have two of them at my house and a couple more at my business. Make sure you give them different NON-OVERLAPPING channels and turn their radio power output levels down so that you can "roam" easily between them.

I still wouldn't run cameras over WiFi unless you dedicated a WiFi system just for them.
Click to expand...

My home is 2 stories + a finished basement.

I planned on putting a pro on the top level in one corner of the house. I plan on putting another pro on the middle level at the opposite side of the house.

additionally, I plan to put a UniFi mesh in the backyard for outside the house (which is a normal size residential lot in a suburb neighborhood)

1. Do you think this is sufficient for this size home?

2. Is there any issue with me mounting the UniFi mesh close to a dahua wired cam?
 
Its impossible to determine WiFi ability at any site without actually doing a site survey (e.g. plugging in a AP at the proposed location and then walking around the site with a wifi analyzer app on your phone checking signal levels throughout). With that said, I'd imagine that would be fine unless you had poured concrete walls or some other silly building materials that was not "normal" sheet rock and studs. My home is only about 1800sqft single story and a single AP covers it easily. I installed another on our back patio to get better coverage out in the backyard for my telescope system. If I didn't need it for that, a single AP would have been fine for me.

Basement coverage may be poor if you aren't installing an AP down there (its under the 1st floor right?).

Never used any of their mesh products. I prefer to run APs.
 
biggen said:
Its impossible to determine WiFi ability at any site without actually doing a site survey (e.g. plugging in a AP at the proposed location and then walking around the site with a wifi analyzer app on your phone checking signal levels throughout). With that said, I'd imagine that would be fine unless you had poured concrete walls or some other silly building materials that was not "normal" sheet rock and studs. My home is only about 1800sqft single story and a single AP covers it easily. I installed another on our back patio to get better coverage out in the backyard for my telescope system. If I didn't need it for that, a single AP would have been fine for me.

Basement coverage may be poor if you aren't installing an AP down there (its under the 1st floor right?).

Never used any of their mesh products. I prefer to run APs.
Click to expand...

yes, basement is beneath first floor - but I guess I can always add a Lite down there if necessary.

Bad news - added a switch - no noticeable change in wifi speed. There's no way 12 cam's are eatting up 150MB of internet, right?
 
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They aren't eating up any internet usage unless you are streaming out of your internet connection.

Its that Mesh network more than likely. Does it have a dedicated backhaul channel back to the other side of device? The better Mesh devices have a dedicated radio to backhaul traffic to the other end. That way you aren't eating up airtime on your primary wifi channel.

This is the reason I don't run them. I'd rather home run full blown APs where I need coverage. Troubleshooting is much simplier and you aren't limited by the Mesh device themselves.
 
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I can't tell from their sales "propaganda" if it has dedicated backhaul.

What you need to do is turn off/disconnect all your cameras, connect with a computer to your wifi mesh, and then run a speed test on said computer. If you speed is till garbage with the cams turned off you know its the mesh.

Wireless isn't as plug and play as you would believe.
 
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if not already, make sure none of your cams are connecting to cloud-based services... if your router supports it, even block your cam's IP's from making any connections out to the internet (except maybe for NTP on port 123)...
 
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biggen said:
I can't tell from their sales "propaganda" if it has dedicated backhaul.

What you need to do is turn off/disconnect all your cameras, connect with a computer to your wifi mesh, and then run a speed test on said computer. If you speed is till garbage with the cams turned off you know its the mesh.

Wireless isn't as plug and play as you would believe.
Click to expand...

Plugged computer directly into back of router - 190MB

Speed test on cell phone to test Wifi w/ computer still plugged in - 140MB

Replugged switch + NVR into switch, Switch into router & tested WIFI - 26MB

Back to the original question - is there anyway 12 IP cameras can be eating up 120 MB? (speed test prior to this one with the NVR plugged into router was 20MB on wifi)
 
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CastleSurveillance said:
Plugged computer directly into back of router - 190MB

Speed test on cell phone to test Wifi w/ computer still plugged in - 140MB

Back to the original question - is there anyway 12 IP cameras can be eating up 120 MB? (speed test prior to this one with the NVR plugged into router was 20MB on wifi)
Click to expand...
Ok, so you are getting 140Mbps on your cellphone connected to your mesh wifi? This is with cameras not on wifi network at all?
 
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