Do you employ a closed-circuit television or CCTV camera in your home? Are you familiar with the accompanying devices of these kinds of security equipment?
If you answered “yes” to these two questions, you might be aware of how significant these devices are in today’s households and business establishments.
Moreover, you may understand that CCTV cameras cannot operate on their own. Other supporting devices are necessary in order to record and store information for later retrieval.
You may wonder what this adjunct equipment is. In this discussion, we will focus on the network video recorder.[wpsm_titlebox title=”” style=”3″]
Network Video Recorder: A Sophisticated Program for Keeping Data
A network video recorder (NVR) is a kind of software program. It records video footage in a digital format to a secondary memory.
You may find NVRs employed by the security departments of huge facilities like corporate buildings.
The decision of companies to employ this kind of high-end system can be explained by its capability to fulfill protection requirements quite well.
NVRs are used in sensitive locations where security and constant monitoring are mandatory. Some NVRs also enables plenty of other features like audio recording.
Related Topic: What Is Anti Dither – Understanding the Concept of Digital Video Recorders
Differentiating the Network and the Digital Video Recorders
Another device that supports CCTV cameras is the digital video recorder (DVR). You may be familiar with this gadget if you employ a pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) camera at home.
When you are purchasing a security system, you will have to select between an NVR or a DVR. They perform a similar function which is to record videos necessary in order to secure a specific location.
However, you have to understand the key aspects that tell them apart. You need to learn and evaluate these security systems.
In this manner, you can make an informed choice of which recorder to purchase. An NVR is different from a DVR through the following points of difference:
The NVR…
1) Is the successor of the DVR. This security camera system is more advanced than the latter. The NVR incorporates the latest technology to give a feature-rich and enhanced protective system.
The NVR is the core of today’s sophisticated surveillance systems. It is also known as the Power over Ethernet (POE) security camera system.
More flexible and can be more easily installed than the DVR, the NVR consists of many feeds from wireless cameras that are strategically mounted around a home or any other facility.
2) Has a video encoded and directly processed at the camera. Afterward, the recorded video is streamed to the NVR for remote viewing or storage.
Conversely, videos recorded on a DVR are encoded and processed at the point of the recorder.
3) Are used for searching, storing, retrieving, and viewing videos.
4) Is not restricted in its location. It can be placed everywhere. An NVR merely needs to be on a similar local area network (LAN) with the Internet Protocol (IP)-based cameras that you are employing in your CCTV surveillance system.
5) Produces crystal-clear, high-resolution images. You will be able to view video footage in real time.
Thanks to the NVR’s frame rates of up to 30 frames per second, your video feed would normally appear flawless and genuine. The NVR has certainly made unclear and grainy black and white videos obsolete.
6) Is a system that can be a wireless or a wired security system. On the other hand, the DVR-based system is just a wired system.
7) Requires a different kind of camera. This is called the Internet Protocol (IP) camera.
You will find that this camera used in the NVR system is much stronger and more developed than their DVR counterparts.
8) Employ standard Ethernet cables to transmit information. You will need to familiarize yourself with these cables like the cat5e and the cat6.
9) Are more flexible because it does not have to be physically and directly connected to the recorder.
IP cameras merely have to be on a similar network. Hence, you can possibly have cameras around the world on the same network that link to your NVR.
10) Yields better video quality because it receives an unadulterated digital signal from the cameras.
Moreover, the NVR can capture audio from cameras with microphones because of the audio-carrying Ethernet cables.
Internet-Protocol (IP) Camera: The Wondrous Feature of the NVR
As an important component of the NVR security system, IP cameras are…
- Independent image-capturing gadgets.
- Contain a chipset which can process videos, and through network wiring, these videos are then relayed to the NVR.
- Offers more features like recording and sending both video and audio data, unlike analog cameras.
- With enhanced hardware, they can provide developed video analytics and smart functionalities like facial recognition.
- Come in diverse, high-definition resolutions that are unparalleled by their rivals. Some IP cameras possess more than 20 megapixels.
You can, indeed, have a wide array of advantages with IP cameras which you cannot avail with other technologies.
However, with IP cameras, you need to have network experience in order to understand and use its advanced features.
Otherwise, you will have to choose a more simplified security system. IP cameras also do not facilitate transmission farther than 330 feet.
In this situation, you will need a booster or a repeater to further the distance of the device, making you spend more money. Both the NVR and the DVR security systems of recording video data are dependable.
What basically tells them apart are the pricing, the manner of data transmission, and the kinds of cameras they use. Apparently, the NVR is more expensive because it is a top-of-the-line system.
Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up the Network Video Recorder
This section will help you understand how to set up the NVR system. There are three procedures involved here: setting up the IP camera, setting up the NVR, and using these devices.
A) Setting up the IP Camera
Step 1: You will need to thread the antenna above the access point that will be linked to your IP camera.
Step 2: Connect a network wire to the access point. Then, snap on the enclosure to safeguard the network connection from the water.
Step 3: From the access point, connect the other end of the network cable to the PoE section of its power injector.
Step 4: Connect the IP camera using a network cable via the power injector’s LAN port.
Step 5: Link a power supply to the PoE adapter with a female power jack if you are employing a group of passive PoE adapters.
The power jack is linked to the power injector’s LAN port.
Step 6: Connect the male power plug of the second PoE adapter to the female power jack of the IP camera.
A network cable facilitates the bridging of the two passive PoE adapters. It would transmit power, video, PTZ functions, and date.
Plug a power supply directly into a camera’s female power jack if you are not using PoE adapters.
Step 7: Plug the power cord of the PoE power injector into a 110-volt AC wall outlet.
Step 8: Finally, plug the camera power supply into a 110-volt AC wall outlet.
You will see that the access point will light up if you were able to correctly make all the connections.
B) Setting Up the NVR
Step 1: Connect the PoE side of the power injector to a network cable. The power injector is that one you will employ for the access point that is linked to your NVR.
Step 2: Connect the network cable’s other end to the PoE section of the power injector of the access point.
Step 3: Using either the network port situated behind the NVR or a PoE port, connect the LAN section of the PoE projector of the access point to the NVR with a network cable.
Step 4: Connect the power cord of an access point to a 110-volt AC wall outlet.
Step 5: By linking the NVR’s power cord to a 110-volt AC wall outlet, you can now power the NVR with the power supply specific to the recorder.
C) Using the NVR to View the Wireless IP Camera
Step 1: Connect the computer monitor and computer mouse to your NVR system.
Your camera would automatically appear on the NVR if you have pre-configured the access points, there are no obstructions between the wireless radios, and you have correctly made all connections
Step 2: Using the computer mouse, right click and choose “Registration” on the camera grid screen in the NVR.
You should be able to view your IP camera and its IP address. Moreover, you are expected to see a green light, signaling that the camera has been correctly networked.
Using the wireless NVR<span style=”font-weight: 400;”>, you will be able to remotely control the IP camera if it has motorized zoom or PTZ capabilities.
If the IP camera is still not viewable through the NVR, you may need to perform the following extra steps:
Step 3: Log on to your NVR.
Step 4: Choose “Camera” on the Main Menu screen. This can be found on the bottom-right section.
Step 5. Choose “Registration.”
Select the “Device Search” button to find your device. You should successfully locate your gadget, depending on your NVR’s model.
Step 6: Choose “Manual Add” if “Device Search” did not work.
Step 7: Input the correct credentials of the IP camera like the username and password, the IP address, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) port.
Step 8: Choose “Connect,” “Apply,” and then, “OK.”
Following the three simplified procedures about should help you set up your NVR surveillance system.
You should always have your user manual with you. In addition, you may contact the manufacturer of your devices for further information.
If you feel like you gained useful and significant information from this article, feel free to share it with your friends and to the world.
This will help others understand the advantages of employing the NVR security system and properly protecting their homes and other places relevant to them.[/wpsm_titlebox]