Motion Detection Snapshots WHILE recording 24x7?

[tonydi 0]

I have a Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I recording 24x7 to my NAS. While I haven't needed this yet, it occurred to me that it might be advantageous to have it create a snapshot triggered by motion so it's easier to find a certain event without having to scan though hours of video.

 

But it seems like this is an either/or deal....either motion detection snapshots or full time recording. Is that right?

[tonydi 0]

Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

[cglaeser 0]

I don't know about Hikvision, but I do this with Avigilon. For example, I can record a snapshot once every five seconds (appears as blue on the timeline) and 7 frames per second during motion (appears as red on the timeline).

 

Best,

Christopher

[tonydi 0]

Thanks, Christopher. I see that company makes cameras and software. Is that something you're doing in the software rather than "in" the camera itself?

 

Since I'm dumping my Hikvision recording directly to a NAS, all of the configuration is done in the camera itself. Even though I enable motion detection, set up the detection area and tell it what action to take, nothing happens when there's motion.

[cglaeser 0]

Thanks, Christopher. I see that company makes cameras and software. Is that something you're doing in the software rather than "in" the camera itself?

 

In the Avigilon software.

 

Since I'm dumping my Hikvision recording directly to a NAS, all of the configuration is done in the camera itself.

 

I can relate. My first system was a DIY with Axis cameras writing directly to the NAS. I soon realized that writing directly to the NAS would not meet my requirements, so I switched to Avigilon. YMMV.

 

Even though I enable motion detection, set up the detection area and tell it what action to take, nothing happens when there's motion.

 

Even if you get motion to work, I expect you will eventually discover that writing directly to the NAS has many limitations. Then again, your requirements may be very modest.

[dexterash 0]

I have a Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I recording 24x7 to my NAS. While I haven't needed this yet, it occurred to me that it might be advantageous to have it create a snapshot triggered by motion so it's easier to find a certain event without having to scan though hours of video.

As a side note, this is one of the reasons why it's recommended to use a NVR rather then a NAS for video storage.

NVRs (usually) offer all sorts of functions to get to the right recording, at the right time.

[ssnapier 0]

I have not used any Hik IP cameras, but I know you can do that on Mobotix cameras directly. It would seem to me like this is a logical thing to have as an option.

[cglaeser 0]

I have not used any Hik IP cameras, but I know you can do that on Mobotix cameras directly. It would seem to me like this is a logical thing to have as an option.

 

Hik may have the feature, don't know, but Mobotix was designed with a number of unique features including better standalone support than typical surveillance cameras. It's also at a higher price point which often means more features compared to compares at a lower price point.

[tonydi 0]

Ok, I've got it so that it can EMAIL the pictures captured when there's a motion detect, so I now know it can do "two things at once". But I really don't want a bunch of emails, I just want the snapshots saved to the NAS so I can access them if I want.

 

The NAS, when formatted, has placeholders for "pictures", allocating 25% of the total disk space by default. I just can't find the setting to make it use that space.

[milkisbad 0]

Hikvision has that function too (or maybe just our custom firmware?)

 

 

 

Configuration->Advanced->Storage->Snapshot

 

I THINK that's what you want...haha enable the event triggered snapshot..

[cglaeser 0]

Does Hik automatically create new folders based on date? When I first attached Axis cameras to a NAS the cameras did not have this feature. When the number of files (images) in one folder became large, the file system was so slow it was virtually unusable. Later Axis added this feature to the firmware and it was possible to create new folders on the fly based on date and time so that each folder had a manageable number of files.

 

Best,

Christopher

[milkisbad 0]

Hmm it makes the folder automatically for each date when I take a snapshot manually...I don't have a NAS to try though sorry.

[cglaeser 0]

Hmm it makes the folder automatically for each date when I take a snapshot manually...I don't have a NAS to try though sorry.

 

In that case I'm guessing that Hik is aware of the potential problem of too many files in a single folder and have implemented the solution.

[tonydi 0]

When you set up the NAS, the camera "formats" the hard drive. It doesn't really do a format in the traditional sense of the term, it essentially builds a series of folders and does some space allocation. Inside the 32 folders on my NAS are 232 pre-named 0-byte files for video and 56 0-byte files for pictures, placeholders I guess. I presume the number of folders and placeholders is dependent on available space.

 

What some of you are talking about is the feature built into the live view where you can start a recording or take a snapshot. By default these go onto two folders on the computer's hard drive, under the User's folder. They get created on the fly and do indeed have dates for the name.

 

For some reason my reply to milkisbad's post concerning the timing snapshot function has disappeared. I also have that function in the stock firmware, but setting it doesn't seem to do anything. I can't find any evidence of files being created after motion event.

[tonydi 0]

Ok, another baby step forward. The camera does record the snapshots to the NAS when using the Enable Timing Snapshot function. I concluded that they weren't going to the NAS because I was looking in the folder where the current video was recording.

 

But Hikvision was smart about how they handle this. Since it created all those folders with placeholders for pictures and videos, they decided it was best to use them in order. So when I enabled the Timing Snapshots yesterday, the camera started dumping them to the very first folder, the one that was filled up with video files over a week ago.

 

Alas, I still can't find a way to make it save a snapshot based on motion unless I enable the Email function. The log shows motion detection is being activated and deactivated but nothing is saved to the NAS. Now that I know the "secret", I'm able to pull a listing of all files on the NAS by time stamp, regardless of the folder location. So I'm now sure there's nothing being saved.

[KENSTV 0]

I'm looking into this also Tony, read my post on sending alarm video to a drive, so to understand, your NAS drive, just connecting the RJ45 to it, the camera it's self just writes folders to it and then dumps live and alarm video to it ?

I think the reason the alarm video is put where it is being put is the scheme they use to write to the drive is sequential from track one of the drive, this is to save wear and tear on the drive, from what I can tell so far the alarm video is handled by the DSP processor and it only has limited headroom to do things beyond the main process of converting the analog video off the ccd and digitizing and encoding it, so it's just able to send alarm "clips" in the bit stream, these are just laid right down with the main stream, now one possibility I see is it also triggers an email alert so possibly there is a way to push this video (although it would be in the lower resolution) directly to your NAS drive in a separate folder

[tonydi 0]

Well, the NAS is hung on the network as is the camera, but essentially yeah, the Hikvision camera has the ability to address the NAS directly, without any computer/software help.

 

At this point in time, I'm successful in getting everything pushed to the NAS except the ability to save a Snapshot triggered by motion WITHOUT also sending that snapshot attached to an email. If I tell the camera to email me motion-triggered snapshots, it all works.

 

I guess I still don't understand what the "alarm" function is for. When doing the scheduling for capturing snapshots, there's a distinction between "motion" and "alarm".

 

Anyway, if I can't find a way for it to just save the snapshots to the NAS without emailing them, then I'll probably turn that option back on and just nuke the incoming emails at my domain's email server. That way I'll have the snapshots on the NAS and won't have an inbox full of snapshot mail and attachments.

[shockwave199 0]

Either that or just make a gmail account for only that purpose. But it sucks you can't disable email and still have it push to NAS. Alarm trigger is just that- an event triggered by a wired-in alarm system such as a window sensor or a wall module for a whole home security system. It's probably a software option regardless if your camera doesn't have alarm-in hookup.

 

If you can't disable email snapshots while still getting them pushed to NAS, that's something to bring to someones attention to do something about it- whoever that might be at Hik. Maybe that could be solved with a next rev firmware.

[tonydi 0]

I still want the other email notifications, like for HD failure or illegal logins, so it seemed like it would just be best to have one account and just block the snapshot emails.

 

I will contact Hikvision about this but I was first trying to be certain it wasn't just me being stupid and not figuring out how to configure something that was staring me in the face.

 

Thanks for the info on alarms, makes perfect sense now.

[tonydi 0]

Ok, here's the deal and it does make sense. Hikvision support says the only time they actually save the snapshot in my situation (24x7 recording) is when you specify the email or ftp option. That's because they need the snapshot saved in order to perform those tasks.

 

Since I just wanted the snapshots to narrow down the time frame when an event occurs so that I didn't have to wander through hours of recorded video, they said just enable the motion detection. Then look through the LOG to find the Motion Detection events.

 

So I'll definitely be re-"formatting" my NAS since there's no reason to devote all that space to pictures now.