Blue Iris Screen Flashing

[MrSurly]

I'm hoping someone has the fix for this. A couple of days ago, various elements of the BI screen have started flashing and I can't determine where I went wrong. The time window during review, all camera settings windows (in BI) Status/Connections, even the About window.
I've had BI auto-updating (now running 5.8.3.3).
I downgraded to 5.8.1.5. and no luck.
Apologies for the iPhone video but here's a short clip.
I was viewing RDP in Teamviewer, but when viewed on the local screen it is doing the same.

I recently added a few new cams and have been dicking with settings on the PTZ...not sure if I broke something in the process, (I am a bit ham-handed about this stuff.)

 

[looney2ns]

Have you rebooted the Blue Iris Pc?

 

[fergenheimer]

Does it do the same thing if blue iris is not running? It looks like a popup is persistently coming up and a popup blocker is shutting it down. Some programs are allowed to display on top of other running programs. Maybe BI then says "Not on my watch!" Like @looney2ns said above. Reboot and it might straighten out whatever is misbehaving.

 

[MrSurly]

Have you rebooted the Blue Iris Pc?

Yes, to no apparent effect.
The flashing exhibited only in BI, Running a browser or running nothing but notepad, there are no flashes or weirdness.
Rebooting BI and rebooting the PC made no difference.
This PC is dedicated to BI and about the only other thing it sees is an old IE install that somehow still works plus Firefox.
I had downgraded BI to 5.8.1.5 and It didn't fix it.

And THEN, this morning... I see that it's NOT FLASHING NOW,
I have NO IDEA what made the change, but it is NOW FIXED(?)
Still running 5.8.1.5

Such weird!

 

[MrSurly]

Probably unrelated:
After a heavy storm event (actually twelve hours later) the new ptz5a4m stopped connecting.
Problem is... To install it I had to rent a man-lift... so now to troubleshoot it, I'll have to use a really tall ladder... after the new Winter temps subside.

REALLY not looking forward to this.





























90

 

[CCTVCam]

Check your keyboard. I had this recently whilst accidentally putting an elbow on the space bar. It could be a key is stuck / sticking.

Good way to check is open a Word document or Note Pad if you don't have word. If a key is stuck you'll either get a string of letters printed or the cursor running along the page if it's the space bar. Not saying it is this, but simply a possibility.

 

[fergenheimer]

Your camera is pretty high up. Be careful with the ladder! There are things you can do from the ground before you head up. You can plug into a different POE port, use a different POE power supply, use the config tool to see if it defaulted back to the original IP address, use binoculars to inspect the cable near sharp spots on the tower. It would be a shame to be move that tall of a ladder just to find a simple solution on the ground.

 

[MrSurly]

Yes, it's around 24' with the mast collapsed. I jacked the mast another ten feet or so to improve the view. Of course, I believed that I was super-careful with the cable termination and install because I wanted to avoid this situation. The aerial hookup was intended to be permanent. The other end, however, is actually 'temporary' as I haven't yet routed it through the short conduit and into the crawlspace.
It is possible that something happened to the cable where it is currently exposed from the antenna mast then about ten feet on the ground before passing through a door.
The cable is outdoor cat5e in a spool sitting on the dining room floor for now. I fished the tail out of the spool box and installed a pass through connector. From there a "splice connector" (a female/female plastic housing cable joiner) and then a patch cable to the stack of three 8-port switches in the closet. None of this end of the hookup is intended to stay, of course, and is most likely the cause of the comm fail. Despite the non-ideal setup, it's been running great for a couple weeks until the other afternoon.
So far, I have swapped the patch cable, the poe port, the poe switch, (and all of these work with other cameras just fine). Replaced the pass-through connector. Replaced the "splicer".

A next step will be to closely inspect the exposed cable for damage. Then pull out the proper length of cable and get rid of the burden of the extra cable length on the spool.
Then go straight to the switch without the patch/splice.
I REALLY don't want to get up on that ladder(!)

 

[MrSurly]

I hadn't tried ConFigTool or trying the default address. I actually got a little excited, there, thinking that yeah! THAT'S THE FIX!


But alas.... no joy

Can't see it anywhere.

 

[fergenheimer]

How long is the cable in the spool? A Cat5e signal degrades after 300ft. If you have a 1000 ft spool, I would go ahead and finish the run so you eliminate the excess cable length. Also, we use POE switch generically but that camera has a peak power usage of 21w. It calls for POE+. Make sure your switch can supply that power.

I re-looked at your setup and it's impressive! I know we talk about minimizing the number of connections and thus failure points but on something that tall, consider a small waterproof junction box at the roof level. You could sit comfortably on your roof and disconnect the cable for testing. You could use it for the rg6 to your antenna as well. Good spot for a ground block and lightning suppressor. It would help troubleshoot without climbing so high.

 

[MrSurly]

All good points.
I have now jacked the mast to full height in order to determine cable length.
I have cut it at 115' and relieved it of 385' of burden. Yes, it IS all copper solid conductor 24AWG.
What I would like to ask someone who has this or a similar PTZ and ALSO has one of these cable testers....

would be to briefly unplug from your switch and do a quick length and continuity test on your cable and camera.
I hoping that the resulting readouts compared might help me determine if there's a cable issue without actually climbing up there.
Yes I'm aware that it doesn't provide a proper test since the receiver unit isn't utilized but it could shed some light on this?

At full height (camera at about 60').... man what a view(!) if the camera worked! I can't leave it jacked up except in good weather. Until the camera install I never jack it up as it gets TV OTA just fine.

 

[MrSurly]

The switches are these:
I THINK they are suited for this duty but not certain.
I've been having some aggravation with the cable termination and this tester.
The tester cont tests were showing open or crossed lines (again i'm only testing from one end) so I got the Fluke and ohmed everything old school
and each pair has 7ohm while the green pair appears to be loading a cap, which shows as the resistance start in the thousands but rapidly falling.
Anyway, the pairs tested with the Fluke look solid.... but I guess the cable or connectors or the crimper or the person doing the work.... are NOT getting it done as they should. After several redos, the tester now shows a proper connection graphic.

earlier I was getting this weirdness:


It looks like I should make it a point to have this tester in hand every time I need to install one of these terminals.

The next question.... is did that FIX it?
Ummmmm

No.
Not yet anyway

 

[fenderman]

Without the remote end for the cable tester, it tells you nothing...
Did you terminate to 568b on both ends?
Unplug every other camera from the switch while testing...the switch has a 61w total max limit.

 

[MrSurly]

Without the remote end for the cable tester, it tells you nothing...
Did you terminate to 568b on both ends?
Unplug every other camera from the switch while testing...the switch has a 61w total max limit.

Yessir, 568b everywhere.
I've made a point to watch the Max POE indicator LED on the switch and it doesn't even blink. Also neither the data stream nor the PoE light on the individual port will illuminate at all.
Various ports, all three switches.
Switching any other cam to the same port (any port) works fine.
To clarify, I have removed all poe loads from a switch and hooked only the PTZ.
But the connection does not light any lights.... nothing happens.

Earlier when testing, the tester indicated nonsensical connections as pictured above... and also when tested for length... it showed only one pair with a correct number and the other three pairs at zero.
After this most recent connector replacement, the length test now shows the proper 117' on all four, so SOMETHING was fixed with the connector.

 

[MrSurly]

I wish I understood the mechanism, but I'm NOT Complaining! The PTZ, after having replaced/tested/everything I could from the ground and getting rid of the temporary connections, the spool, 385' of cable and going straight to the switch....
Still didn't work. I went to bed frustrated and trying to decide if I was going to again rent the manlift.

This morning, without fanfare or warning...the PTZ resumed working!
What the heck?
Very happy but Oh! so confused.

Anyone have this sort of history with these? Any idea why? I'm wondering if the camera's firmware has a way of 'timing out' on comm loss and resetting itself or similar.
Is this a known procedure "let it sit for a day to repair itself"?

 

[fenderman]

More than likely you have an issue with the cable or termination that is intermittent depending on how the wind blows....

 

[MrSurly]

More than likely you have an issue with the cable or termination that is intermittent depending on how the wind blows....

Could be. We've been having high winds for a week or more, now it has calmed as the cold air settles in. Hopefully it will remain working at least until warmer weather.

 

[fergenheimer]

Next couple of days are going to be frigid! Not good man lift weather! Looking at your other thread, you did a good job of wire tying the cable up the tower. Note that wire ties UV degrade over several years. It is hard to tell what the backside of the camera looks like. I prefer unistrut to the perforated angle you used mainly due to the rounded corners. Replacing it now probably is not warranted but you might consider some edge guard (or trim) for the sharp edges. You could put a loom around the cable near the camera to protect it. A length of old garden hose would also work to protect the cable.

I do not have that cable tester but the amazon listing says it has a TDR function. A true TDR would show you where a fault is in the line. I am skeptical at it's price point. If it does show a fault at what you know is the cable length it would suggest the termination. If it shows some other distance, you should look there before you go for the expense of a man lift.

If you have no choice but the lift, over plan! It will be much easier to change or improve anything you can think of when you have the lift.

Good Luck!

 

[MrSurly]

As would be expected, the PTZ has quit again. So, it looks like it will be intermittent until warmer temps prevail.