Logitech Alert Transition

roadfun
roadfun
edited March 2015 in SecuritySpy
I've had three of the 700 series cameras installed for a couple of years and like many was plagued by frequent camera failures. Now that they have formally announced these are discontinued I'm starting to look for a replacement. I'm sure it won't be long before my next camera failure. In searching I found the SecuritySpy software and it looks like the best alternative from a software standpoint since I use a Mac. In the theory there are experts here and maybe even someone who already made this shift I thought I would look for input.

* I assume the SecuritySpy software records normal format files to the computers hard drive? E.g. files that can be found in the Finder and played in Quicktime or another standard video viewer?
* Can I point the SS file storage to a Dropbox folder and hence have the files uploaded to the cloud automatically (I do this now with the Logitech)
* Can the cameras/software send an email alert when motion is detected at certain times of day (e.g. after midnight)?
* Can I run the Logitech Alert Commander software at the same time as SS during the transition? I.e. as I replace cameras I put them on the SS software but use Logitech's software for the existing cameras? Or have SS instead take over my existing Logitech cameras?
* This isn't a software question but I'm hoping somewhere knows. I'm not that clear on Powerline and PoE so I'm not sure what the Alert cameras use. Can I simply plug a PoE camera like one of the Dahua's into the same adapter the Logitech plugs into?

Thanks!

Comments

  • Ben
    Ben
    Hi roadfun, to answer your questions:

    SecuritySpy records standard QuickTime movie files and/or .m4v files, which can be found in the Finder and played by other video software such as QuickTime Player.

    You can point SecuritySpy to record it footage to your Dropbox folder, so that the files are automatically uploaded to the cloud.

    SecuritySpy can send an email alert (and start recording) if motion is detected in a camera. This happens whenever the camera is in "Active"mode, which can be set on all the time, or on at certain times based on a schedule.

    Most cameras can provide two streams to two different clients, so it is likely you can run SecuritySpy at the same time as a different software to receive the same stream from your Alert cameras. However, not all cameras can do this and we haven't specifically tested two streams with the Alert ourselves so I can't say for certain.

    Powerline is different from PoE. Powerline is for transmitting an ethernet signal over your home power wiring, to avoid the need to use WiFi or long ethernet cables. PoE, on the other hand, is a protocol for transmitting power to devices over an ethernet cable. For a new PoE camera (e.g. Dahua) to work with your existing setup without a separate power adaptor, your existing setup would have to provide standard PoE power.

    Hope this helps - let us know if you have any further questions.
  • roadfun
    roadfun
    Thanks Ben. I found a couple of posts which indicate some people had some luck simply plugging non-Alert PoE cameras into the Alert 'backbone'. I'll probably order one and see what happens. It is easier than using PoE from what I can tell.

    I'll grab a demo copy of SS to try it. One other question, I think I saw a FAQ which talked about using SS on one computer to record the videos and SS on a second computer to enable remote viewing. Assuming I understood correctly, does that require 2 licenses?
  • Ben
    Ben
    edited March 2015
    Great, let us know how you get on. If you can post back to clarify this PoE situation with the Alert devices, that might be useful for other users.

    As for using SecuritySpy for the purposes of viewing only, you can use an unregistered copy of SecuritySpy free of charge for this. Simply leave all cameras in Passive mode in this viewing-only instance of SecuritySpy.
  • roadfun
    roadfun
    I downloaded SS and was able to pretty quickly set up my 3 Logitech cameras and run through the program settings. One thing I noticed is the CPU utilization for SS is much higher than Alert Commander. AC was generally <5% of the CPU where as SS is >40% for the same 3 cameras. Is this as expected, or have I got something set up wrong?
  • Ben
    Ben
    Glad to hear you were able to set up everything easily. The CPU usage could be down to a number of factors - primarily the resolution and frame rate of the cameras. You can adjust this in the Video Device Settings window in SecuritySpy. I would recommend frame rates of 5-10 fps and this should keep the CPU usage in check. Also check what compression format you have specified in the Compression Settings window in SecuritySpy - MPEG-4 usually gives the best balance between efficient captured files and reasonable CPU usage.
  • roadfun
    roadfun
    It looks like just hiding the app (i.e. not having it display video on screen) drops the CPU use by about a half. And (presumably) motion detection, recording etc will continue in the background. So when not watching live video on the iMac the cpu usage is lower.

    I've ordered a Hikvision 2032-I-4MM (found a local approved seller) and should be able to try it with the Logitech backbone this week (i.e. plugging it in to replace one of the Alert cameras).

    Also, I just purchased a 4 camera license :)
  • roadfun
    roadfun
    Well, I ordered the Hikvision yesterday and it was delivered today. Very happy with the seller's customer service, obviously.

    Ben, you asked me to report back on compatibility with the Logitech backbone. I'm happy to report it is compatible. I simply plugged the Hikvision into the Logitech wall-wart and the Hikvision was on-line (well, after dealing with the crappy pre-allocated IP address).

    Bottom line: I think general PoE cameras can plug into Logitech's backbone saving the cost of replacing that. And SS seems to cover features I expected (except I can't find a way to set a schedule window for email alerts). Pretty happy with the transition so far.
  • Ben
    Ben
    Thanks for reporting back, it's good news that your existing Logitech network infrastructure provides PoE power. I'm sure this will be helpful for other users coming across this thread.

    As for email alerts, I've responded to your other forum post on this topic.

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