Very high CPU usage

[TWallace]

I have 12 1080p cameras. 8 are recording 24x7 and have motion detection. To accomplish this I cloned the 8 cameras so that 8 record constantly, and the other 8 do motion detection. The remaining 4 are not recording and do not have motion detection. They're PTZ and just used for getting a better view of things live.

Computer has an i7-4790K processor and 16GB of RAM. My CPU usage is generally at 80% or higher, often over 95%. The 24x7 recordings go to a WD Purple 4TB drive, while the motion detection recordings to a WD Purple 1TB drive.

I am already recording direct to disc, which I know should drastically reduce CPU usage. I record in BVR format, not MP4. Not sure if changing to MP4 would alter the CPU usage.

I checked each cam's max fps and found most were at 20, some as high as 60. I don't think I set them that high, so I set them all to 10 fps max. However, now if I go into each cam's properties, that number has climbed higher on its own to 11 or 12 fps.

All the cameras had Hardware Decoding set to "Yes (no VPP)". I tried switching those all to "No", but it doesn't seem to have made any difference in CPU usage.

I've also turned off the web server, no effect on CPU. As a test, I turned off the motion sensor on all 8 cameras to see if that had any effect on CPU. It did not. I've tried compacting the DB, and Repair/Regenerate the DB as well. No effect. I've just now turned off recording on all 8 24x7 cameras, but still CPU usage is over 90% right now. So currently I have web server off, no motion detection, no cameras recording, but yet still around 90% CPU usage. I've confirmed in Task Manager that the bulk of the CPU usage is from Blue Iris (76-83% generally).

The system wasn't always using this much CPU. When I initially got my cameras configured, it was typically 30-60% CPU usage. I don't know why it has creeped up so much over the months. It's become a problem that occasionally crashes Blue Iris. I use Blue Iris Tools as well for the Watchdog monitor to automatically reopen Blue Iris if it crashes, and to overlay weather information on the cams.

I've tried to share as much relevant info about my setup as I can. Please let me know if additional info is needed.

 

[PSPCommOp]

Did you check that each camera is D2D?

Also, is the OS and BI on the WD Purple or do you have an SSD for them?

Also, for the FPS, did you alter that with each camera or just thru BI? You didn't specify the brand of cameras but I know my Hik's, I need to log into each one to change those settings. BI goes off of what the cameras settings on, you can't set or change them thru BI, it must be each camera directly.

 

[fenderman]

@TWallace Your setup should be using under 20 percent cpu.
1) are you using a licensed version of BI? Direct to disk will not work in demo mode.
2) Blue iris auto adjusts the frame rate to whatever the camera is sending..you need to set the fps in the camera itself.
3) make sure EACH camera is set to direct to disk...even the non recording cameras. I have seen folks think the set every camera and when I log in to their system, the miss a few. Go through each camera.
4) cloning should not effect cpu, but you dont have to clone the cameras to do 24/7 and motion. You can record 24/7 and maintain motion alerts on the same camera...
5) BVR is most efficient.
6) enable hardware acceleration and no vpp. Restart the pc. Are you using intel HD graphics? or did you add a card?
If none of this helps, backup the config file and reinstall.

 

[TWallace]

Yes, each cam is recording D2D. OS and BI are installed on an SSD.

I only altered FPS through BI, not in each cam's webpage. All 8 cameras are Hikvision, 3 domes, 5 bullets. I will log into the cameras and adjust fps as needed.

However, as Fenderman recommended, there's no need to clone the cams to accomplish motion and 24x7 recording. I found that disabling the 24x7 cams alone drastically reduced CPU usages down to about 28-31%. I've modified the motion detection cam settings to also record 24x7.

 

[TWallace]

I've verified that all cams are recording direct to disc. Deleting the cloned cameras alone got me down to around 30% CPU usage, so I don't think I'll need to alter each cam's fps now. I'm happy with 30%.

Thanks for the tips both of you.

Fenderman I thought I had responded to each of your bullet points, but I don't see it now. So here goes:

1) Yes it is licensed
2) Noted, I may alter this in the cams themselves, but right now CPU usage is under control so there may be no need.
3) Done, they are all D2D
4) Deleted clones, altered original cams to do motion and record. Huge change in CPU usage.
5) Noted, no change.
6) I've reverted this back to Yes (no VPP). I'm not using a video card, but I do have an old ATI 6870 I can put in the machine if you think that would help.

 

[fenderman]

No the video card would make it worse...you want Intel HD...it's strange that cloned cameras cause a cpu increase.. that has not been my experience as well as others here...I'm guessing a setting issue...