Notes from the install side

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A row of a network switch's ports with two blue patch cables connected, inside an equipment rack.

PoE power budget for security cameras

Most commercial cameras take power and data down one cable. That is Power over Ethernet, and it is the reason a straightforward four-camera addition to a system that works perfectly well sometimes turns into a new switch. The constraint is not the ports. It is the budget shared across them.
A row of a network switch's ports with two blue patch cables connected, inside an equipment rack.

PoE power budget for security cameras

Two dome security cameras mounted on a building’s exterior corner, with one positioned on the wall and the other beneath the overhang to monitor different areas.

Fisheye or multi-sensor: choosing by what the view has to prove

Hard drive bays inside an open video recorder chassis, with data and power leads run to each drive.

NVR, VMS or DVR: what is actually recording your cameras

Two outdoor bullet security cameras mounted in opposite directions on a metal pole, with protective brackets, conduit, cabling, and a central junction box for wide-area surveillance.

What ONVIF does and does not guarantee

An open video surveillance recorder showing multiple hard drives installed in drive bays, with SATA data cables and multicolored power cables connected inside the storage system.

How long do security cameras keep footage?