Connecting a POE IP camera

[Mweston 0]

This is kind of a basic question but I plan to setup my own home surveillance system and I'm wondering where the ethernet from the camera needs to connect to? I want to use a dedicated Mac as an NVR so is it possible to run all of the cameras via cat5 to a POE capable switch then another cat5 wire from the switch into any ethernet jack in the house? Or does the switch have to connect back to my router that the computer (nvr) will be connected to via wifi?

 

Planning to use Dahua dome cameras and a mac with VitaminD.

[buellwinkle 0]

Good to see VitaminD support Dahua cameras. You basically buy a PoE switch, plenty of them out there on Amazon, Buy.com or eBay. Had my TPE-S44 from Trendnet for 3 years, works well but there's plenty of others. The camera plugs into the switch using standard ethernet cable. Then you plug your switch into your router using ordinary ethernet cable if you want to access the camera from the internet. Then your Mac, if it's primarily used as an NVR, plug that into the same switch as the cameras. If you want ethernet cables with ends already on them, Monoprice is the least expensive place I know to buy from. 100' cat5 cables cost about $11 there and they come in many colors. I like different colors for cameras so I know which one belongs to which camera if I need to reset the camera.

 

Don't know if Dahua's cameras finder program works with Macs and their web interface to configure the camera requires IE browser. So you may need Windows at least to get it all working. Dahua's are odd that they have a set IP that you have to change it using their camera finder tool as it's not configured from the factory to get a dynamic IP like your Mac probably uses.

 

Let us know how it works out. VitaminD may be a resource hog, so check CPU utilization with the one camera and let us know.

[Dipol_CCTV 0]

You basicly have 2 options.

1. You use switch with PoE ports. You connect cameras to those ports, and You use regular one to connect it to PC/mac. You dont worry about PoE, as long as the distance is OK.

2. You use regular switch and add PoE power adaptors. You want to do it, if You already have some switch.

[NyCCTVTech 0]

my experience with ip HD cameras if you go over 10 cameras on your home network you better have a gig switch and a gig ethernet card in your mac. Ip cameras set at high resolutions and framerate will rob your network of broadband. ...just saying if they are HD cameras.