Sweet success thanks to my HA system (with video link)

Sat Feb 13 10:30:02 EST 2016

Tom,

I had to figure out the format myself. Loren is pretty short on that kind of documentation. It took me at least an hour on the net to find that information. Then the cameras come with a default password and that was not easy to find either. All they referenced was the user and password for the NVR, not the cameras. I just tried that default information and it worked.

I cannot record on the Lorex NVR. It has to be plugged into the uint directly as I only have the 8 port unit and all of the cameras have to be plugged into the unit directly. If I had the 16 port unit then I assume that I could add that camera since 8 pf the 16 ports are not PoE.

I can record to any HD I want to through Video Pitcher. I just have to show the path to that HD.

Thanks for the tip on the LAN scanner. I am really surprised that Apple down’t have that built into the OS. Then again Apple is really letting me down lately and some of the shine is worn off most Apple products these days.

Chuck

> On Feb 13, 2016, at 5:50 AM, Thomas Henry <tjhjr at mac.com> wrote:
> 
> Chuck,
> 
> Thanks for the report, good to know it works with Video Pitcher. 
> 
> A few questions:
> 
> 1. Did the Lorex docs mention RTSP or MJPEG, or did you have to figure that out too?
> 2. Are you strictly using the DVR to record, or can you also trigger XTension to do it as well?
> 
> I found a pretty great app for finding IP devices (wired and wireless), works on desktop and iOS devices. It’s called iNet Network Scanner, and it's about $10, but it’s my goto for that kind of stuff. The only downside I’ve seen is that Apple dropped support for SNMP in their new routers, so some of the functionality is gone for that in the scanner
> 
> http://www.inetapp.de/en/inetx.html <http://www.inetapp.de/en/inetx.html> or you can find it on the App Store.
> 
> Now, looking forward to Raspberry Pi cams on VP ;)
> 
> Tom
> 
> 
>> On Feb 12, 2016, at 22:17, Chuck <xtension4osx at mac.com <mailto:xtension4osx at mac.com>> wrote:
>> 
>> Today I got my injector for my PoE Lorex camera. I got the PoE+ so that I can use a PTZ camera if needed which require more wattage.
>> 
>> Lorex uses RTSP and I have successfully got it running with Video Pitcher. Finding the IP address of the cameras was not easy. I had to use terminal to get a list of Ethernet connected devices and it didn’t show up on several scans of the network. Since there is no MAC address on the camera I just had to guess and try the IP’s that looked like they might be the right one.
>> 
>> It’s impressive and very sharp. I don’t have a large HD to store HD video on and have no idea if I can link it to X4X to only record if there is motion.
>> 
>> But it does work. I am guessing any RTSP camera will work and the list of companies that use that format it is very long (includes Swann that I have experience with).
>> 
>> Chuck
>> 
>> 
>>> On Feb 4, 2016, at 3:57 AM, Thomas Henry <tjhjr at mac.com <mailto:tjhjr at mac.com>> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Chuck,
>>> 
>>> Well, I monitor my Raspberry Pi’s cameras daily, and only keep what I might need. Fortunately, The ability to check motion in specific areas of the camera view helps cut down on the false positives, so the 64GB SDs are sufficient for now. That being said, if I had to leave for a few day, that could become an issue. I work out of the house, so I’m here more often than not.
>>> 
>>> My DVR cams and X10 Airsight cams are analog, and work well, especially at night. But the detail is nothing like the 5MP on the Raspberry Pi cams. And they only cost $30! So I will need to swap them out at some point for something better, but I continually look here for cams that our group have working with XTension.
>>> 
>>> I’ll be watching here for updates on your progress with the injectors and what not.
>>> 
>>> Appreciate the input, thanks!
>>> 
>>> Tom
>>> 
>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 16:31, Chuck <xtension4osx at mac.com <mailto:xtension4osx at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Tom,
>>>> 
>>>> I am going to try out the spare camera soon. My SO is on me to get my wires sorted out and that is a high priority this spring. The system comes with 100 feet of Cat5e per camera and I only need 30-40 feet for the longest ones. The rest of the wire is coiled up in a pile.
>>>> 
>>>> Today I put an injector on order with some other stuff (I wait till I get enough for the free shipping). Once I get that I will give it a try.
>>>> 
>>>> 64GB??? That wouldn’t last me a week with one camera. I like my system as I can just forget about it and it will record for a month easily. My wife and I take extended vacations and we are gone for 3-4 weeks fairly often and I like not having to worry about running out of memory.
>>>> 
>>>> I am assuming that your DVR cameras are analog. Even the lowest rated IP cameras are far superior to the best analog cameras. This is why I spent the extra money to get the IP cameras. Analog cameras are nice for very close up shots like someone at the front door or in a small room. I had some of those and they did okay but nothing like the 1080p IP cameras I have now.
>>>> 
>>>> Last month I installed a system for my buddy who has 24 IP 3MP cameras and 24TB of storage for the food pods on his lot. He has been having a huge problem with the homeless camps on the other side of his fence. They are constantly probing the permitter and steal stuff often. If he presses charges they trash the place if they think they can get away with it. I wonder how the cameras will deter them or at the very least catch them in the act.
>>>> 
>>>> I am going to set him up with a Mac Mini/Vera/XTension for his lights and doors.
>>>> 
>>>> Chuck
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 12:10 PM, Thomas Henry <tjhjr at mac.com <mailto:tjhjr at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>> Chuck,
>>>>> 
>>>>> I have a similar setup. 
>>>>> 
>>>>> A. 2 Airsight Cameras  run to XTension (through VP). I need to get those Airsights hooked up via PoE, just haven’t done it yet. 
>>>>> B. I also have 2 Raspberry Pi 2’s with 5MP cameras. The software for it is excellent, and allows for regions and vectors to help minimize false positives. But when it’s raining or windy, all bets are off. I have 64Gig DC cards for each one, and they can fill up quickly if I don’t keep an eye on things.
>>>>> C. 2 hardwired to a DVR, (much like yours, but I can get up to 8). The cameras attached are pretty lo-rez, so it’s not great.
>>>>> 
>>>>> I ask because of my option C. The hardwired cams are just that, but there is an Ethernet port that goes to my router from the DVR unit, where I can see stuff though the built in web interface.
>>>>> If I understand you correctly, perhaps there’s a way to take the Ethernet port to a switch, and have VP read it. 
>>>>> 
>>>>> If you try that (and it works), let me know how you did it ;)
>>>>> 
>>>>> Ultimately, it would be nice to have all my cameras running through XTension. Even with MJPEG streams, I never could get the Raspberry Pi streams to work with XTension. Not XTension’s fault, I’m just not able to figure it out.
>>>>> 
>>>>> Tom
>>>>> 
>>>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 14:44, Chuck <xtension4osx at mac.com <mailto:xtension4osx at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Thomas,
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> I have not been able to do that. These cameras go directly to the NVR and once they get there they are not accessible. I might be able to get these to Video Pitcher if I were to connect them to an Ethernet switch and then into the NVR. The problem with that is that all the images would travel from the switch through one Ethernet cable and that is a lot of data from 8 different 3MP HD cameras to go over one line.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> They are also PoE and I would have to get injectors for each camera or get a PoE switch.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> I am going to get a PoE injector for an extra camera I have and route it through my network before going to the NVR.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> The other big problem is that these cameras take up a lot of storage space. I have 8TB and the will only get me 6 weeks of storage. If it’s raining it will drop down to less than a month. They are set for record on motion and if it’s raining they record all night long and will record in the daytime if it is raining hard.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Chuck
>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 9:39 AM, Thomas Henry <tjhjr at mac.com <mailto:tjhjr at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> Chuck,
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> So have you been able to interface the cameras with Video Pitcher and Web Remote through XTension?
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>> Tom
>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 11:29, Chuck <xtension4osx at mac.com <mailto:xtension4osx at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> Mike,
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> I have door and window sensors on all my structures. I also have motion detectors, both X10 wireless and X10 security sensors. They are all X10 and seem to work just fine most of the time.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> He entered the back yard which the security cameras caught. It was over a 6 foot fence with some very thick arborvitaes up agains the fence. He entered the garden shop which was caught by the motion sensor. Then he moved on to my workshop and the backyard motion sensor caught that. When he opened the door to the shop the door sensor was activated and it turned on the lights AND the stereo (he got to listen to some music while he was stealing my stuff, I aim to please). The motion sensors showed him moving around in there.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> The security cameras caught him entering the shop and coming out which is where I confronted him. The door was unlocked as I was helping my neighbor fix his RV and was actively using the shop for my tools.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> As for the time stamps the security cameras are set for record on motion only so the time stamps change if there is no motion for a while. The police and the DA had no problem with that. I caught the guy on 7 different cameras and I showed the progression of events which coincided with the X4X log time stamps. It was a prima facia case with that kind of evidence. The only issue was that he left the scene but myself and my neighbors chased him 4 blocks and never lost site of him so we had the right guy.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> The cameras shows him picking up the stick but not him taking a swing at me. It doesn’t show me picking up a much bigger stick and dealing out some pain.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> My neighbors are pretty pumped about the event. We have had a rash of thefts from the folks at the large homeless camps that the city allows to grow uncontested. Package thieves are the worst and I have caught 5 of them on cameras. There is a direct correlation between the homeless camp growth and the increase in crime. Once the city removes the homeless camps the crime rate drops considerably. After we have a theft that I have captured on video I just go down to the homeless camp with police and identify the guy and he is arrested. This guy was homeless and lived in the camp that has now been removed by the city.
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> Here is the video link of the event. Keep in mind that I am close to 70 and this guy is 28.
>>>>>>>> https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0a59UlCq9rh06 <https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0a59UlCq9rh06>
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>> Chuck
>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> On Feb 3, 2016, at 5:16 AM, Mike Andrews <mikea0 at gmail.com <mailto:mikea0 at gmail.com>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> Chuck,
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> Great story.   You also motivated me to get my flaky (wireless)  Foscam cameras working again.
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> I'm curious what you're logging in Xtension.   You mean door and motion sensors?
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> I knew in the old days that the courts wanted the videos to have the onscreen time stamps as evidence that the recording wasn't edited.
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> --Mike
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> On Feb 2, 2016 1:42 PM, "Thomas Henry" <tjhjr at mac.com <mailto:tjhjr at mac.com>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>> Chuck,
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> Excellent story. Thanks for sharing that. I hope to get my HA to that point.
>>>>>>>>> 
>>>>>>>>> Tom
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