And so it begins... (darn you ipcamtalk.com members!)

[Revlus]

After lurking here for awhile... after signing up... after reading 100's of pages of discussions... I'm starting the build-out of a network that will support the next 25+ years of my life I hope, including home security, IP Cams of course, Home automation (smartthings, already well into it), and pool automation and safety, etc.

So far, I have:

12u wall mount network rack. Don't need this big, but allows for future projects
Tripplite 1500 battery backup
TP-Link Poe+ switch
Couple 1u patch cord organizers
2000' Monoprice Cat6 UTP (two boxes of 1000')
Lots of Monoprice Cat6 patch cords of different colors for different things on the network.
Cable Matters: Keystone jack plates for network rack
Cable Matters: Lots more RJ-45 jacks, keystones, and low voltage supplies for wiring up the house and cameras.

Dahua Cameras I'm testing with, due to most need at night:
Quantity 1 of IPC-HFW8232E-Z (for wider angle, close range)
Quantity 1 of IPC-HFW5231E-Z12 (for figuring out everything else!)

Blue Iris Server Win10, running on old i5-3570k. Good enough for now with my 2 Dahuas and some wireless foscams that are inside. Bought a WD Purple drive for storage, and using a spare 1TB drive for clips. We'll see if/when I have to upgrade as I get more cameras.

OpenVPN server running on the Blue Iris Win10 machine. (Comcast Netgear router doesn't support VPN Server). Allows my iOS Blue Iris app secure remote access. Works great!

So thanks to these forums.. as I make progress I'll try to give back with my experiences and camera performance.

 

[bp2008]

If you port forward Blue Iris without strict source-IP filtering, then anyone in the world can connect to your server and attempt any number of methods to break in to the system. If a VPN is the only thing exposed on your public IP address, then it is a lot more secure.

 

[Revlus]

Yea, just to give a little more info... exactly what bp2008 said for when you are remote, and not connected to your own home network, you need a secure way into your home network to view the cams from anywhere in the world (except Russia and whoever else bans encrypted traffic on their portion of the Internet!) While on your own home network, no VPN is needed of course, provided you have an up to date firewall of some sort.... perhaps that being your all-in-one router/firewall/wifi device from your internet provider.

 

[Revlus]

Just a couple updates.. to give back a little. I have a couple cameras permanently installed, though I still need to properly wire both. They are waterproofed at least.
I was contemplating painting them.... but I'm not so sure I will. I tend to like the deterrence factor.

Front of house, angled to get walkway to front door entrance, but will also get side of folks standing at front door. When they are at the front door, camera is about the 5 1/2 foot height. It's about 9 foot high where its installed. Planning on putting another cam right near the door bell.. the IPC-HDBW4231F-AS

I tend to think I should NOT paint it so it'll deter. For mounting onto the brick... I was able to get three holes in the mortar, but one was in the brick itself. I used these Toggler branded anchors.. called "Alligator AF8" and they call for a 5/16" drill bit. Insert the plastic insert, and the screw inside that. It's solid as a rock. I feel this was a good choice for my install. Actually.. the screws that come with the Dahua PFA121 waterproof box... were exactly the same as what came with the Toggler.. except for one thing... The Dahua screws are stainless steel! The ones in the bag I got were not. So I used the Dahua screws.

I have Dutch Lap siding. This block is made specifically for it... and wow, this camera DOES NOT BUDGE. That block is way stronger than it looks, and is barely compressing my siding anywhere. The block is:
Builders Edge 130110008123 Surface Block for Dutch Lap 123, White

Since camera is so close to this sliding door, it's mounted at just under 6 feet. Thankfully I used a test rig and noticed that 8 feet was way too high to get a good ID.... 6 feet was so much better. 8 feet was fine for the other door not in the picture that is down the same wall as the sliding glass door.. but that one is 30+ feet away.

 

[Travieso]

what Network switch is that?

 

[Revlus]

I'm using the TP-Link T1600G-52PS JetStream 48-Port Gigabit Smart PoE+ Switch with 4 SFP Slots

Before anyone asks, my justification:

I've recently seen it selling for $429. For the cameras I am/will be using there are a few POE+, PTZ, etc., and I'll have some IR floods, wifi access points, etc. so I needed something with some more power for all those devices. It does 384W total for POE. Plus it'll network most rooms in the house, hence having more than 24 port. So far, its been fantastic, and the baseline overhead that was measured by my UPS is right around what the specs say... 47 Watts with no POE active, so just to have it I pay ~$50/year for the privilege.... lol. I can live with that. Gives me the features/functions I want now... and may want later as I continue to wire up the house for cameras, networking, home automation, etc. and as new 'threats' happen... I can lock my network down further if necessary.