A DVR Security System That Isn't Based on Windows? 383
Brady J. Frey asks: "For months, I've had a client that has been looking for a Linux or Mac alternative for their DVR Security systems. They are a large Real Estate company with 200+ cameras world wide, and their Pelco PC DVR's are hubs for viruses. These systems cannot run anti-virus software at the same time they record -- but require internet inbound/outbound traffic through specific ports that leave some nice holes in the firewall for viruses to find their way in as needed. Yes, we could put up a server in front of each, or a router that has anti-virus built in, however this is not a cost effective method for a number of their locations. Therefore we are looking for alternatives. Any suggestions?"
"We've tried looking at Ben's Security Spy for Mac, and running a Quicktime server, but it was not industrial enough for us and the developer has been elusive. We're looking at Endura by Pelco, but there's some questions unanswered for it.
What I want is a high end, professional DVR system for a large business that does not run Windows. Budget isn't really an issue at this point, since we are just looking for options.
To note, I'm hearing I could possibly do IP cameras, and host any ol' web server I want to download those files, but I have no clue as to how to control the cameras, or if this is really a possibility. Any advice or information is appreciated. If you are an expert in this industry, we may have a need for your services and would welcome that too!"
zoneminder (Score:1, Informative)
Try Speco DVRs or KALATEL (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Seconded (Score:2, Informative)
firstly, IIS has only recently (in the last couple of years) become stable enough to reasonably get 20% market share. and that's still only 20%.
secondly, Slashdot has always been more interested in Linux and other UNIX-like operating systems than in Windows systems, so it's the perfect platform to ask a question about a UNIX/Linux/other solution to a particular problem. if you don't like it, shift off somewhere else.
thirdly, unix/linux/etc setups are perfect for set-and-forget remote site installations. they've been stable, remote-administerable, and scriptable for decades. set them up properly and they'll run themselves. decent remote administration for windows is only a recent development. scripting and automation on windows is still very immature.
UNIX/Linux/etc is a superior choice for this type of installation. Set it up right and it'll run itself.
Stick w/ Pelco (Score:3, Informative)
And get a decent f/w system and rules in place in front of the central server and at each location (internet connection) to which you have IP cameras installed.
Deny all traffic to the server except for the IP addresses and ports of the remote cameras.
We have been using a Pelco system in this manner with remote cameras on 2 continents for 3 years without incident of virus or trojan or crash.
The thing you should be worried about with Pelco cameras is the bandwidth usage at night with minimal lighting combined with lower bandwidth video settings. The compression method used can leave artifacts and this compression appears to be done before the "movement comparison" stage where the camera decides to send a new frame. At night with low light levels this causes black level banding and other dotting artifacts to appear. The movement comparison routines see this as... you guessed it MOVEMENT. This result in higher bandwidth usage at night. Our solution? Turn on the lights.
Stick with Pelco.