SecuritySpy 4.1 beta - please test if you can
Hello!
We have been working hard on the next SecuritySpy update. There have been a lot of changes to various parts of the code to increase performance and add features, so it would be useful to get as much feedback as possible from users before we release the update officially, to make sure we haven't broken anything. If you are able to test the new beta version of SecuritySpy and report back, it would be very useful. Here are a few things to look for:
We have been working hard on the next SecuritySpy update. There have been a lot of changes to various parts of the code to increase performance and add features, so it would be useful to get as much feedback as possible from users before we release the update officially, to make sure we haven't broken anything. If you are able to test the new beta version of SecuritySpy and report back, it would be very useful. Here are a few things to look for:
- New PTZ controls - please check they work as expected.
- The way the movie files are initiated and completed has changed in order to minimise frame loss between the end of one file and the start of another, so please check that files are created as expected.
- Improved network performance and processing of incoming data from network devices: there should now be fewer warnings about packet loss and decompression errors.
- We have set up a new relay service that allows SecuritySpy to send emails without requiring an SMTP server. If you would like to test this then select "SecuritySpy email relay service" for the "Sending method" option under Preferences -> Email. Any feedback would be appreciated.
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"There was an error while recording audio data for camera "Backyard". 4.1b4,7460,50885 Failed to record audio chunk. Audio codec mismatch." - just checked, this camera doesn't even have audio, but for some reason I had it enabled, so maybe that will prevent this error in the future.
PTZ controls overall seem to work fine - not sure if it's a bug with my camera or not - It's a Foscam 8910E. First press on a preset - nothing seems to happen.
It seems to be tied to app restart - quit SS, and start it up again, first preset request does nothing. Second press triggers properly.
I'm pretty sure this isn't new to 4.1b - I know for sure it was happening in 4.0.x, but never seemed to have time to test it fully. Can't remember if it was an issue with 3.x
I'm pretty sure the network connection to cameras is more stable, but will know for sure after a full week.
First I would like to say thank you for all your hard work on SecuritySpy. It is just great software. And I look forward to installing more instances of SecuritySpy.
After installing 4.1b4, I needed to look at a video and found that it was not recording correctly. All the cameras on the server were only recording 1 frame every 2 seconds. So I started to troubleshoot the issue and found that if no motion detection is on this happens. Also if the "Decompress incoming video frames only when required" is checked this occurs. So for now to use "Continuous Capture" with no motion detection I must uncheck "Decompress incoming video frames only when required"
Then started to check all my servers and come to find out that this happening from version 4.0.10 all the way to 4.1b4.
For my Mac Pros this is not much of a problem but for the Mac minis this can be brutal.
Again thanks for all your hard work.
https://www.dropbox.com/sc/6rmvwmo4qfiob8l/AADu5Flr-U_Ur0Wccz-uWknCa
https://www.dropbox.com/sc/n5ae5tz22n2s7na/AACDcu69L7d0I8mb5Fi2XUnoa
@reddog1987 - is this "decompression failed" error reproducible? If you switch between 4.0.10 and 4.1b5, do you definitely see a significant difference?
This isn't a new bug. I reported it fairly soon after 4.0 was released. Exactly the same issue. Eventually I found the same work around - "decompress only when required" doesn't work properly. I suspect the difference might be that it may be turned on by default in 4.1?
[https://www.bensoftware.com/forum/discussion/comment/4410#Comment_4410]
Ian
I assume you have continuous-capture enabled, and it is these captures that have a low frame rate? Can you tell me what frame rate is displayed for the camera in question in the "All Cameras" window? Also what frame rate have you specified for the "Capture rate" under Preferences -> Cameras -> Continuous Capture? Finally, is the "Recompress video data" option turned off or on, under Preferences -> Cameras -> Device?
I just tried the PTZ controls - presets- again - first attempt crashed SS (sent report) - started up again without any problem. Tried PTZ controls again - didn't crash this time, but same as before, first press doesn't seem to go to camera, second press on a preset works fine.
When "All Camera's" live feed is open I'm getting around 10-12fps as expected from the settings on the cameras, and (barring a few network glitches) the feed is generally stable.
Continous capture rate is set to 2fps, but recompress video data is off (so 2fps should be ignored). I think when I was testing this I did try tweaking this setting and it had no effect.
Ian
To get to the Library folder, hold the alt key while clicking the Finder's Go menu, and select the Library item that will appear in this menu.
thanks
I am testing 4.1b8 and I still have a codec mismatch error.
I've seen this error lot's of times before (not only with this beta).
This is a D-Link 5222L PTZ camera.
The strange thing is that the error is always occuring at exact time intervals :
13/02/2017 13:29:18: There was an error while recording audio data for camera "Tuin - Verdiep". 4.1b8,7460,50885 Failed to record audio chunk. Audio codec mismatch.
13/02/2017 13:39:18: There was an error while recording audio data for camera "Tuin - Verdiep". 4.1b8,7460,50885 Failed to record audio chunk. Audio codec mismatch.
13/02/2017 13:49:18: There was an error while recording audio data for camera "Tuin - Verdiep". 4.1b8,7460,50885 Failed to record audio chunk. Audio codec mismatch.
13/02/2017 13:59:18: There was an error while recording audio data for camera "Tuin - Verdiep". 4.1b8,7460,50885 Failed to record audio chunk. Audio codec mismatch.
I'll see if power cycling the camera helps...
PTZ controls work as expected for D-Link DCS-5020L.
I'm using the new email relay for one of my cameras. Seems to work great!
Connection / frame rate from cameras seems to be more stable, but that might also be due to the better signal from the new router (two cams are wireless, two wired).
I'll let you know if I find anything else. As always, thank you very much for everything you do!
This error is generated when the audio codec of the movie being captured is different from the format of incoming audio. It's possible that this is happening because the file is being created before the audio input is fully initialised, and if this is the case the changes should fix this. The error will be generated for every incoming audio chunk, but SecuritySpy doesn't report the same message twice within 10 minutes in order to avoid bombardment with the same message over and over again, which is why you see the repetition every 10 minutes exactly.
If you are still getting this problem with b9, please let me know what type of camera you are using (i.e. network camera or USB camera etc.)
Thanks!