NVR 24 IP Cams with 1 Cat 5 Trunk Line

[inzomnyac]

Hey everyone, I am working on a project that I designed for BI, but havent been too happy with their product. I am looking for a NVR that can work without having to physically plug every camera into it. The setup is: 8 bldgs, each with its own POE switch and 2 to 4 cams, using a lite beam from each bldg and sending signal to 1 Airmax Lite AP, from there one cat 5 to the router and then either to a PC with BI or hopefully a robust NVR that can handle all 24 cameras on one cat 5e....does this animal exist? I reached out to several NVR vendors and they say "oh yeah, NP" But I havent had any luck.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[wittaj]

What issues are you having with BI?

But yes, purchase an NVR without POE ports and you can do just that. You could purchase one with POE ports, but then you are paying for something you don't need.

Now you do have what sounds like a complex setup - 8 buildings, lite beam, Airmax AP, routers, etc., so having the network topology work correctly is a must.

If the issue you are having with BI is network related (ie you cannot find all the cameras or they are dropping frequently), then that will exist trying to get the cameras into an NVR as well.

Further, it is best to match camera brand with NVR brand to ensure full functionality and compatibility. That isn't an issue with BI (except for the propriety systems like Ring, Arlo, etc.).

 

[mat200]

Hey everyone, I am working on a project that I designed for BI, but havent been too happy with their product. I am looking for a NVR that can work without having to physically plug every camera into it. The setup is: 8 bldgs, each with its own POE switch and 2 to 4 cams, using a lite beam from each bldg and sending signal to 1 Airmax Lite AP, from there one cat 5 to the router and then either to a PC with BI or hopefully a robust NVR that can handle all 24 cameras on one cat 5e....does this animal exist? I reached out to several NVR vendors and they say "oh yeah, NP" But I havent had any luck.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Hi @inzomnyac

Definitely share what are the current issues.

How are the network links? bandwidth? utilization? what is the network load? latency?

imho the first place to look right now is the network load, then the load on your BI machine.

 

[inzomnyac]

Network links are good, all below -50. Throughput is around 350mbps average, i do not recall latency and I dont have the network load due to not all cameras are installedMy biggest issue with BI is that when it crashes, or windows crashes its 50/50 it will auto run after reboot, I need something that will be back online. Not fond of the app either. I have a setup at my house that only runs BI with 20 cameras and it crashes at least once a week. Machine:

SYSTEM MM5.03.727 AMD RYZEN 9 3900X 32GB RAM nVidia GT 710

 

[wittaj]

I suspect you are not using the substreams or maybe not enough optimizations.

Do EVERY optimization in the wiki and you will see a major drop in the CPU. Substreams are a must, especially once you get over 4MP cameras.

A member here runs 50 cameras on a 4th generation CPU at 30%.

Many of us here have more cameras than that and run without an issue.

And by EVERY, I mean EVERY. Too many people come here complaining of high CPU usage and claim they have done every optimization in the wiki and once they post screenshots, we see they are not using the substreams and that is probably one of the biggest CPU savers. Do not skip one because you think it isn't important or won't make that big of a deal. Even dropping frame rate a few FPS can make a big difference. No reason to run more than 15FPS, and many us have cams running at 10 to 12 FPS.

If you do not understand what something does in BI, then ask. Too many people also change a setting not realizing what it does and actually makes their performance worse.

Please post a screenshot of your BI camera status page that shows FPS, MP/s, etc.

Also turn off Windows updates, set up in the BIOS to have the computer restart if power goes off, and run BI as a service and you will have no issues.

Optimizing Blue Iris's CPU Usage

Blue Iris uses a lot of CPU time. In most Blue Iris installations, your CPU is the limiting factor which determines how many cameras you can have. As such, it is extremely important to optimize your configuration to ensure you can get the most out of your system while consuming the least...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[fenderman]

Network links are good, all below -50. Throughput is around 350mbps average, i do not recall latency and I dont have the network load due to not all cameras are installedMy biggest issue with BI is that when it crashes, or windows crashes its 50/50 it will auto run after reboot, I need something that will be back online. Not fond of the app either. I have a setup at my house that only runs BI with 20 cameras and it crashes at least once a week. Machine:
SYSTEM MM5.03.727 AMD RYZEN 9 3900X 32GB RAM nVidia GT 710

I have over 20 systems running BI. They dont crash. This is 100 percent user error. You need to install windows CLEAN with the media creation tool and dont run other unrelated crap on the system.
Blue iris can be run as a service it will ALWAYS restart not 50/50. Alternatively, if you want the interface to start on reboot, you can auto start with the task scheduler (there are instructions on the forum on how to do this) which will eliminate the UAC popup. The fact that you say its 50/50 on the auto start tells me you have configured this incorrectly.

How to get Blue Iris to automatically start when restarting PC w/Windows 8.1

How can I get Blue Iris to automatically start when restarting PC w/Windows 8.1. I used to use it with XP and could get it to auto start after the PC restated. Haven't been able to figure it out as both Windows 8.1 and BI4 is new to me.

ipcamtalk.com

If you think NVR's run trouble free, take a peak at the man issues folks on this forum have with their units.

That said, I encourage you to buy the NVR, only then you will truly appreciate BI.
Finally, there are 100 other VMS options that will run on the pc you already have if you dont like BI. That wont solve your underlying issues with a poor windows install or hardware failing.