Need help picking out Equipment for remote Location- Needs to boot back up easily

[CaliGirl]

@logbuilder static I set for the Dell, good idea!

@looney2ns I have the Asus router set up track the ip address with a premium no ip account, I just have not implemented this to blue iris bc I thought BI does this on its own. Guess it does not after the connection issue.

@BillG thanks, def waiting until I am onsite before upgrading firmware, but thanks for teaching me what that means!

Interesting waveforms @Fastb reminds me of voltage sag on lips batteries when flying drones.I can see what you mean. I got lucky and the Asus router full reboot allowed all items and I mean ALL items to reconnect. Including a wifi switch that is even on a wifi rang extender. I am very impressed. So basically if this is repeatable, I just need to reboot the router after a power failure and I should be back in business remotely? we will see ~

@tangent yes def getting a UPS, must need to find one that will last a few years. When the power goes out it is usually a few hours to a few days in the winter. So I guess it is better to put everything on it if that is the case. No way a UPS will last more then a few hours. The one this summer was a utility company fixing a pole down the street and it cycled a few times quickly while I was there.

I have Team viewer to start each time the Dell is started. I will look for service option. Not sure how a router reboot cause teamviwer to work even though I had good ethernet internet connection to Del before that. Weird if you ask me.

Z wave looks awesome until I saw the $10 a month subscription. I am much more of a pay once and move on person. None of this rent an iPhone business, just pay and not get locked into subscriptions. Call me frugal but it is a great way to waste money.

This is really fun and true
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AFTER ALL OF THIS, I have remember I am in to 20x better time place then when I was running just the Dahua NVR. The Blue Iris system is amazing I am so happy with it!!!!!

 

[tangent]

Z wave looks awesome until I saw the $10 a month subscription. I am much more of a pay once and move on person. None of this rent an iPhone business, just pay and not get locked into subscriptions. Call me frugal but it is a great way to waste money.

There are companies that offer subscription services, but z-wave doesn't need to have any recurring cost. I wouldn't go anywhere near the subscription services either. You just add zwave devices like light switches and thermostats and then use the device of your choice to control them, like domoticz on your pc, an elk or HAI alarm system, or a samsung smart things hub.

 

[CaliGirl]

Quick update. It is summer and the spiders are in full swing. A thick layer of Vaseline around the camera housing ans Mount has kept them at bay. I have also used inspect spray around the tree in area to keep them from wanting to head out to the camera. Prior to that the spiders were everywhere. And they can really mess up your your motion detection and IVS.

Also, I used the foam insulation spray in any crevices on the junction box to keep them from going in the house. That stuff works amazingly well.

All in all I am extremely happy with blue Iris. It does all the hard work for me and presents me the highlights of the day. It is not buggy and it works amazing. 7 cameras, 1 switch, dell computer, wifi router, cable modem and wemo switch= 101watys day and 130watts at night. Computer server room runs at 87F with USB fans running at high.

Another lesson learned. Do not mount your cameras higher than you are willing to service them. Luckily I can reach my cameras with a pretty tall ladder.

Really surprised at the lack of diy guides and YouTube videos walking people through blue iris. Even the company blue iris YouTube page is super lacking. Might need to make a guide but I think the rest of you with more know how should!!

 

[CaliGirl]

Hey guys, my cable internet connection dropped off a few days ago. I called the internet company, they said they can't communicate with my modem. The neighbor said no power outages and their internet works fine.

I can't do anything to reset the power to the cable modem remotely. And I can't trouble shoot it with the internet company without being there. That will be 2 more weeks.

Any ideas on why this would happen and what I can do to prevent it? Feeling deflated....

 

[bp2008]

Hard to say why. It could just need rebooted, or the modem could have failed outright.

A device like this could be used to automatically power cycle the modem (and your router, just for good measure) if internet connectivity is lost. http://a.co/cjwttZ8

 

[spencnor]

I can't do anything to reset the power to the cable modem remotely. And I can't trouble shoot it with the internet company without being there. That will be 2 more weeks.

If you are on good terms with your neighbor, maybe the neighbor could reset power to your router by turning your main electrical power switch off and then back on. Of course, I'm assuming the main electrical panel is accessible outside.

 

[CaliGirl]

Thanks guys!

1. I have a digital light timer set to power cycle the router and a few other devices once a week. But it is downstream of the cable modem. I've never had a cable modem locking up but now, I need to change this obviously. I was concerned with the digital timer power cycling the modem once a week. But I'd be happy to have that happening right now.

2. The cable modem we have is very small, I've never seen anything like it, but it was provided by Sudden Link cable a number of years ago. I feel like I need to upgrade it! I will call them about this, maybe the modem is getting tired. It has to be 3.5 years old. Any reason to not replace it with something like this?

3. I'm def going to get one of those net booster remote power cycle boxes. $70 seems like a lot because I keep throwing money at this system but currently it is down with out it so.....

4. LTE reset would be awesome but I really do try to steer away from the monthly plan. $120 a year for the pan plus the equipment really adds up. I could upgrade a few cameras for that price.

5. I talked to neighbor into cycling the power. Just hope they unlug the right device and not power crash the dell computer. Hard to explain to non technical crowd when they open the server rack and see wires everywhere


Love how you can go to your IP's website and check on the status of your modem and it says OK and connected and then you call them and they confirm it is not connected. So basically it is just a faster reassurance page

 

[tangent]

This one's only $59, but it's wifi only
ResetPlug - A smart plug to monitor your WiFi router/modem and reset power if WiFi fails.

You could also setup some home automation scripts and zwave outlets to power cycle the modem and router if internet is lost.

Skype or face time with neighbor

 

[CaliGirl]

Reading about the reset plug, unclear if it resets just bc wifi signal is lost or if the internet goes down (cable modem) but wifi router remains working? Get what I mean? It needs to sense a loss of connection to the www even if it is connected to the wifi router. Sometimes the wifi stays up but the cable modem has a hiccup.

Reading about z-wave and wifi plug alexa style devices too. Need to know I programmed it to turn off for 1 min every few days, would that programming still work if the wifi went out and the internet disconnected. So basically do they have their own built in memory and keep working when the internet goes down?

Good idea, face time neighbor!

 

[looney2ns]

Reading about the reset plug, unclear if it resets just bc wifi signal is lost or if the internet goes down (cable modem) but wifi router remains working? Get what I mean? It needs to sense a loss of connection to the www even if it is connected to the wifi router. Sometimes the wifi stays up but the cable modem has a hiccup.

Reading about z-wave and wifi plug alexa style devices too. Need to know I programmed it to turn off for 1 min every few days, would that programming still work if the wifi went out and the internet disconnected. So basically do they have their own built in memory and keep working when the internet goes down?

Good idea, face time neighbor!

From the Reset site:
Plug your WiFi router/modem into the ResetPlug. The smart plug will act as a WiFi client to test the Internet connection. If the Internet fails to work, the ResetPlug will cycle power to the WiFi equipment to reset the Internet connection.

Works with any WiFi router, any WiFi access point, and any broadband modem.

Also works with any all-in-one combination device (Router/Modem/AP).

Use a power strip to monitor three separate devices (Router/Modem/AP) with one ResetPlug.

So, for any reason the internet can't be reached, the plug will cycle whatever is plugged into it.

 

[bp2008]

I wouldn't pick a power switch that only connects with wifi but that is just me

 

[CaliGirl]

I wouldn't pick a power switch that only connects with wifi but that is just me

That was a concern of mine too bp2008.

I got the neighbor to power cycle the modem today and everything is back. Amazing how something so simple can take a system down. Why couldn't the modem designers just make it reboot once it doesnt have an internet connection? Cable modems and wifi routers certainly don't seem to be very smart. Someone needs to design a smart box that handles all of this inside.

The easy fix for now, I will install a digital timer that power cycles the cable modem once a day. SO if this happens again (which is will) it will be back within a day or two hopefully. Think this is a good idea?

Bigger project will be a dual wan wifi router with LTE modem for backup. But that will have to wait for now.

 

[bp2008]

I'm not sure if there will be long-term effects to the modem from having the power cut once a day, but it is a better solution than having to call up the neighbor I think.

I was on vacation in July and my home internet went offline a few days before I was to return, and it turned out the relays in my old Web Power Switch had gone bad, so both the modem and the router had no power. Even the backup plans sometimes fail!

 

[CaliGirl]

Ya, I was wondering the long term effects of constant power cycles??? I took the gamble. Sorry, your backup failed!!

I can handle the occasional internet outage, but when you don't live there, it's a big pain if someone can't reboot.

I put a digital timer on Cable Modem, Nothing on wifi router, then wifi remote switches for POE switch and Dell Computer. I figured it was a bad idea to power cycle the wifi router, as the Nest thermostat likes to loose connection and not reconnect on its own well. And the wifi extender to the other house may drop offline. Hopefully, the Asus router is robust and at least I can reboot it remotely via the UI as long as I have an internet connection to it.

 

[smoothie]

Network appliances, such as the cable modem, can be susceptible to power fluctuations and brown-out (drop in power but not a power cut).

A good quality UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) is able to send a consistent sine wave on the power output even during brown-outs and black-outs for as long as the battery holds out. But true sine wave output UPS units are very expensive and likely overkill for this application.

I would suggest that if the modem isn't already connected to a basic UPS it should be, that may help with events like this in the future to a certain degree. Something like this unit from Amazon would work quite well.

 

[CaliGirl]

Well, I am back. It's been a year. I learned a lot and implemented a lot of changes to try to mitigate issues with power outages and lost internet. But here I am again, the Sudden Link cable internet has been out for 4 days. I got a friend to head over to the cabin and power cycle the modem. Then called the cable company to reset it remotely, they did and said they have a connection to it and everything is working again on their end. BUT, I am no longer able to communicate to my Asus router, Dell computer through Team Viewer or other items. Most likely because the dynamic IP address has changed.

So I log into my No IP account and the last time it updated the IP was Nov 12, 6 days ago. That is the same IP address I'm trying to use to talk to my Asus router and blue iris, but it does not work. So obviously I can't do anything remotely without the current IP address. So I call the cable company and ask them for my current IP address. Surely they know what it is, but they claim they don't have access to it. Ahhhhh...any other solutions I am not thinking about? You really think they don't know my IP address? Last address was: http://47.208.187.189

Things I have done to prevent this issue. Installed a UPS battery backup for the system to handle power fluctuations and short power outages. I installed a physical timer switch that reboots the modem every other day on its' own. I also have one for the modem. All of this has been working flawlessly for 3 months until the first real storm and power outage. Now entire system is rendered useless until I can get my current IP address and see if I can log in remotely and establish a connection.

 

[fenderman]

Well, I am back. It's been a year. I learned a lot and implemented a lot of changes to try to mitigate issues with power outages and lost internet. But here I am again, the Sudden Link cable internet has been out for 4 days. I got a friend to head over to the cabin and power cycle the modem. Then called the cable company to reset it remotely, they did and said they have a connection to it and everything is working again on their end. BUT, I am no longer able to communicate to my Asus router, Dell computer through Team Viewer or other items. Most likely because the dynamic IP address has changed.

So I log into my No IP account and the last time it updated the IP was Nov 12, 6 days ago. That is the same IP address I'm trying to use to talk to my Asus router and blue iris, but it does not work. So obviously I can't do anything remotely without the current IP address. So I call the cable company and ask them for my current IP address. Surely they know what it is, but they claim they don't have access to it. Ahhhhh...any other solutions I am not thinking about? You really think they don't know my IP address? Last address was: http://47.208.187.189

Things I have done to prevent this issue. Installed a UPS battery backup for the system to handle power fluctuations and short power outages. I installed a physical timer switch that reboots the modem every other day on its' own. I also have one for the modem. All of this has been working flawlessly for 3 months until the first real storm and power outage. Now entire system is rendered useless until I can get my current IP address and see if I can log in remotely and establish a connection.

teamviewer does not rely on your ip address...there is something else going on...do you have a vpn setup for the router? can you establish a vpn connection? have your friend pull the plug on the pc and router.

 

[Q™]

I experienced a similar connectivity issue recently. In my situation it turned out to be as simple as an ethernet cable which went bad. One minute it was good...the next it was bad.

 

[CaliGirl]

Thanks guys. Both good points. Nothing I can do I guess. Can't control what you can't control.

 

[tangent]

Well, I am back. It's been a year. I learned a lot and implemented a lot of changes to try to mitigate issues with power outages and lost internet. But here I am again, the Sudden Link cable internet has been out for 4 days. I got a friend to head over to the cabin and power cycle the modem. Then called the cable company to reset it remotely, they did and said they have a connection to it and everything is working again on their end. BUT, I am no longer able to communicate to my Asus router, Dell computer through Team Viewer or other items. Most likely because the dynamic IP address has changed.

So I log into my No IP account and the last time it updated the IP was Nov 12, 6 days ago. That is the same IP address I'm trying to use to talk to my Asus router and blue iris, but it does not work. So obviously I can't do anything remotely without the current IP address. So I call the cable company and ask them for my current IP address. Surely they know what it is, but they claim they don't have access to it. Ahhhhh...any other solutions I am not thinking about? You really think they don't know my IP address? Last address was: http://47.208.187.189

Things I have done to prevent this issue. Installed a UPS battery backup for the system to handle power fluctuations and short power outages. I installed a physical timer switch that reboots the modem every other day on its' own. I also have one for the modem. All of this has been working flawlessly for 3 months until the first real storm and power outage. Now entire system is rendered useless until I can get my current IP address and see if I can log in remotely and establish a connection.

Can you tell if your nest thermostat has internet or not?

Is the noip client running on your router or on your computer?