What happens if I update? Support maintenance plan expired

[protivakid]

My support & maintenance plan has expired and Blue Iris wants me to update. It doesn't let me pick any of the latest versions (which is expected) but in the "Another previous update" dropdown, is BI smart enough to only select versions that were out while my plan was still active?

Or is there the potential to update and then have Blue Iris request I purchase a new key?

Thanks!

 

[The Automation Guy]

You can certainly upgrade to a version that is "outside" of your "support" period. The updater is not smart enough to know better. (Actually many people post here when this happens). I think you will just have to manually look at the updates and find the last one that was released during your support period. As long as you install a version that was released during your paid support period, you should be fine.

If you happen to install a version that was released after your support period ended, your software will switch to "evaluation" or "demo" mode and you have 15 days to correct it (which is to be expected since you are using an unlicensed version - just like someone who is trying BI out for the first time). Don't worry, it's not the end of the world if this happens. You can either downgrade to a version that was released in your support period (by simply installing the older version through the update process), or you can pay another annual fee and restart your support period which will validate that version and allow you to install the latest versions as well.

If your version is old enough that it doesn't support "substreams" like the new versions do, I highly recommend that you pay the annual support fee and update to the newer versions.

 

[protivakid]

You can certainly upgrade to a version that is "outside" of your "support" period. The updater is not smart enough to know better. (Actually many people post here when this happens). I think you will just have to manually look at the updates and find the last one that was released during your support period. As long as you install a version that was released during your paid support period, you should be fine.

If you happen to install a version that was released after your support period ended, your software will switch to "evaluation" or "demo" mode and you have 15 days to correct it (which is to be expected since you are using an unlicensed version - just like someone who is trying BI out for the first time). Don't worry, it's not the end of the world if this happens. You can either downgrade to a version that was released in your support period (by simply installing the older version through the update process), or you can pay another annual fee and restart your support period which will validate that version and allow you to install the latest versions as well.

If your version is old enough that it doesn't support "substreams" like the new versions do, I highly recommend that you pay the annual support fee and update to the newer versions.

What's the advantage to using substreams from the cameras? Thanks for the upgrade info. Is the annual support fee cheaper than the initial license fee?

 

[The Automation Guy]

What's the advantage to using substreams from the cameras? Thanks for the upgrade info. Is the annual support fee cheaper than the initial license fee?

The new substream functionality allows the system to use and display substreams when not in full screen mode. It records both (if that's how you set it up) so you aren't "missing" anything, but it allows the system to greatly reduce the amount of resources it uses. For example, if you have the main overlay with multiple cameras on it, it is using the substream feed for that display. As soon as you choose one of the cameras to look at in full screen mode, it will display the main stream. Likewise it will show the main feed upon motion, etc. It's been a huge help to make these systems run more efficiently. In the past, the system was using main streams for everything, even when displaying small windows, which taxed the system's resources more.

The support fee is less than the original license. It's $35 for a "one time fee" or you can get it for $30 if you sign up for automatic annual renewals (which you can cancel in the future). Also, the 12 month support date starts the day you make the purchase, even if you have been "without support" for a period of time. (The system does not try to look back and make you pay for time when you were not previously paying for support). So if you bought the 12 months of support today (3-3-2022), it would cover you until 3-2-2023.