I could use some help on a very BIG project...

[Tonyms2249]

Hello everyone I could use some help on a very BIG project.

Iv setup a few wireless Foscams in my house but never done anything as BIG as I'm about to do.

Now for the BIG help!!

I need to run about 100 different camera's throughout about 100 different stores I over see. What would be the best way to go about that?

**1 camera per store location x 100 locations.
What kind of camera's would you get? I was looking at the foscam r2, because I cant run cat5 in some locations and will need the wifi. Also you can move the camera around. What do you think?

**1 computer to view ALL cameras.
Could I buy just 1 powerful enough computer to use? new gen I7 with 16+ gb ram?? more??
How much HD space should I buy if all data would be deleted every 7 days or so? ...TB?
Foscam also has Premium plan for $50 per month, which allows for unlimited cameras to be monitored and a month of video backed up in the cloud. Should I just do that and not worry bout the Hard drives?

**Software - Blue Iris?
Blue Iris states it can only handle 64 cameras at once.
Can I download 2 Blue Iris programs somehow to use on 1 computer and go back and forth?
What program would you use to handle 100 cameras?


Thanks so much for the help!!

 

[mat200]

wow, that's a big project.

Only one camera per store? Is it a really tiny store?

Normally I see at least one camera over watching the cash handler - to keep them honest I guess, as well as catch any holdup.
Also I typically see a camera to catch those walking into the store to help with IDing.

So, I would think 2 cameras per store minimum.

 

[Tonyms2249]

I might run 2 cams per store but then I would be around 200 cams. I still need someone to chime in and help

 

[looney2ns]

If you want them to be reliable, stay away from using Wifi, that's asking for headaches.
Portable cam? Someone will walk off with it in short order.
Stick with Hikvision or Dahua. Properly mount them.
If you plan on viewing all the cams at the same time, that will take some serious internet bandwidth.

There is always a way to run cable to a cam. Use POE cams, and then you only have to run one cable to each cam.

 

[tangent]

Roughly what is the square footage of each store?

If you're trying to manage / record all the cams off site, your network bandwidth / architecture becomes very important. Stores handle credit card information so you need to be careful how you connect to the cameras and isolate them from the rest of the network.

 

[zero-degrees]

This isn't exactly a DIY type project. You have PCI data compliance to worry about on your payment network and adding devices with security concerns like Foscam is going to fail those monthly tests that your business should be running or that your credit card processor is running. Also you are going to need to setup a VPN/Tunnel as port forwarding will not work as that will cause your PCI tests to fail and thus your location would not be covered in the event of a data breach.

Honestly - Seek professional guidance on this. I understand wanting to save money or attempt to do this yourself but your skill level based on the above shows this isn't something you should take on. You will be risking your employers business security and network reliability if something goes wrong.

 

[mat200]

This isn't exactly a DIY type project. You have PCI data compliance to worry about on your payment network and adding devices with security concerns like Foscam is going to fail those monthly tests that your business should be running or that your credit card processor is running. Also you are going to need to setup a VPN/Tunnel as port forwarding will not work as that will cause your PCI tests to fail and thus your location would not be covered in the event of a data breach.

Honestly - Seek professional guidance on this. I understand wanting to save money or attempt to do this yourself but your skill level based on the above shows this isn't something you should take on. You will be risking your employers business security and network reliability if something goes wrong.

Indeed! Security Cameras are IT breaches waiting to happen. 100-200 cameras is a lot of cameras to keep secure.

Questions:

A) Is this your own or family business?

If so, you may be willing to take more risks and manage your own security cameras with help from an expert or 2.

or
B) Is this a large business which is very risk adverse. ( recall Target, Home Depot, Sony, .. )

In this particular case you will want to CYA - with so many systems it's really just a question of time before your IT / security cameras get breached...