Very few products add as much security as a surveillance system. Installing cameras on your property can both help you solve any crime that may happen and even deter criminal activity at the same time. A network-connected surveillance system gives you the ability to view your cameras live at any time. Additionally, the presence of cameras alone often encourages thieves to choose a new target instead of your own home or business. Furthermore, adding recording capabilities to your surveillance system also allows you to review footage of suspicious activity after the fact. This can help you catch crime before it occurs if someone is casing your property. Of course, if unwanted activity does take place, you can view your recorded footage to see what happened, and when. Today, we’ll show you some of the recording options for your cameras that can provide this security feature for you.
Installing security cameras on your property can help you solve crime, and even deter it from occurring at all.
First, we’ll focus on a couple hardwired recorders that we install with surveillance systems. These recorders work with both older analog cameras as well as new camera technology that transmits video over a computer network. Then, we’ll review a couple cloud-based recording options for your cameras. Some cameras solely rely on cloud storage for later review of your video clips. On the other hand, you also have the option of having a hardwired recorder and cloud-based backup in case your recorder gets stolen or goes missing as well. Now, let’s dive in with a look at hardwired surveillance recording technology.
Hardwired Recorders
Most of our camera installations involve running wiring from a physical recorder to each camera location. In this section, we’ll discuss the difference between the two most common types of surveillance recorders. Furthermore, we’ll also look at how we can create additional video storage capacity even after installing your entire surveillance system. With that said, let’s begin with a look at our analog and network-based video recorders.
Digital and Network Video Recorders
When installing hardwired camera systems, we generally choose between a couple different types of technology. Traditionally, security providers would install analog cameras. These cameras require running two separate types of wire to each camera. One of these wires powers the camera, and the other one transmits the video feed. However, we often run thick “Siamese” wiring that contains both types of wire in one convenient sheath. Then, we connect these cameras to a dedicated power supply and recorder. Generally, this recorder is called a Digital Video Recorder, or “DVR.”
On the other hand, newer Internet Protocol (or “IP”) cameras require a slightly different installation. For starters, we run “category” (or “CAT”) ethernet cable when installing IP cameras that both transmit video and power the cameras with one wire. We wire IP cameras directly to a Network Video Recorder, or “NVR.” Unlike their analog counterparts, IP cameras do not need a power source separate from the recorder itself. Both DVR’s and NVR’s house servers that store video for later viewing.
As you can imagine, older analog recorders cannot take in CAT wiring for new IP cameras. Similarly, IP-based NVR’s cannot utilize older Siamese wiring. However, camera manufacturers do create recorders that take in both analog and IP surveillance wiring! These recorders, known as “hybrid” recorders, provide the perfect way to upgrade your surveillance. Whether you upgrade your analog cameras or keep them in place, we can install a hybrid recorder that works with older cameras while also creating a place to install newer IP wiring. As any older analog cameras fail, you can install new IP cameras in their place. This allows you to create a complete system of high-quality cameras over time, without ever having to deal with two separate recorders! Now, let’s see how we can add more stored video to any one of these recording options for your cameras.
We can add storage capacity to your recorder by installing an additional hard drive, such as this one by Seagate.
Boosting Your Storage Capacity
As we mentioned above, our recorders contain servers that store surveillance footage. The larger the server’s capacity, the more recorded video it will store. We measure the storage space for these recorders in terabytes. Those familiar with computer or smartphone storage usually see storage space measured in megabytes, often designated as “MB,” or gigabytes, shortened to “GB.” One terabyte equals one thousand gigabytes, or one million megabytes.
So what does this mean in terms of video storage? In simple terms, the more video you wish to maintain, the more terabytes your recorder should hold. However, we still face certain variables. For example, cameras with very high resolution create footage that takes up more space than their lower-resolution counterparts. Additionally, storage space gets used up more quickly as we connect more and more cameras to a recorder.
Fortunately, camera manufacturers can calculate exactly how much video a recorder stores before sending it out. In fact, customers often tell us exactly how many weeks’ worth of storage they desire. From there, we give our camera providers that information, along with the number of cameras we are installing and the video quality of the cameras. Using this information, surveillance companies can provide a recorder that does exactly what you need it to do! As a final option, customers can also buy secondary hard drives to attach to their recorders. These hard drives boost the capacity of the existing recorder and easily add storage space. Next, let’s look at a couple of non-physical recording options for your cameras.
Cloud-Based Video Storage
The majority of our customers store their video on site using one of the recorder options described above. However, we do have a couple exceptions to this rule. In this post, we share the methods that we use to create cloud-based storage for our surveillance customers who require it. Additionally, we’ll look at why we set this type of storage up for some of our customers. First, we’ll take a look at smart camera video storage in the cloud. Then, we’ll see how some of our customers store video both on their recorders and in the cloud! Now, let’s dive in with a focus on our smart camera-based video storage.
Storing Smart Camera-Based Video Clips
As we’ve pointed out, we usually run wiring from a network or digital video recorder to every camera location when installing a surveillance system. However, we do have a less expensive, slightly more versatile option available for certain applications that does not require the presence of any recorder at all. Smart camera products, such as our own powered by Alarm.com, do not require us to run wiring from cameras back to a recorder. Instead, these cameras use a property’s existing Wi-fi connection to communicate directly to surveillance customers. Furthermore, this connection also allows cameras to communicate to the cloud to store motion-activated video clips.
Smart cameras, such as the Alarm.com cameras that we install, store motion-based video clips to a cloud-based subscription service for future viewing.
This setup accomplishes a couple important goals. For starters, it creates a much quicker, and therefore less expensive, camera installation. This allows customers on a budget to experience some of the security offered by our surveillance systems. Unlike their hardwired counterparts, these cameras only record footage upon sensing motion. Therefore, an event might fail to get recorded if it happens at the edge of a camera’s field of vision. Occasionally, this type of event fails to register with the camera and, therefore, it goes unrecorded. However, having smart cameras still certainly beats having no security at all.
Moreover, the advent of smart cameras has allowed us to install cameras in applications where wiring every camera back to the same point may prove impossible. Certain homes and businesses simply do not have the attic or open basement space required for running wire. In these instances, installing smart cameras allows customers in these properties the opportunity to experience the security of video surveillance. Our smart camera customers make up the majority of our cloud-based recording subscribers. Next, let’s look at a less popular, but incredibly useful, video storage method involving storing video both on site and in the cloud.
Subscription-Based Storage for Traditional Camera Systems
Even when installing a surveillance system utilizing a physical video recording device, customers still have the option to store video in the cloud as well. This option provides a backup for stored footage for customers worried about someone stealing their recorder. After all, without the use of cloud backup, losing your recorder also means losing any stored footage. Therefore, a select few of our customers subscribe to a monthly subscription-based cloud storage service. The cost of these services often proves somewhat prohibitive. However, customers who may require this service for either insurance-related purposes or due to specific security threats are still more than happy to foot the bill and receive this additional security.
Choosing the Right Recording Options for Your Cameras
We hope that this post helps you find the recording options for your cameras that work best for you. As always, we encourage you to contact us with any questions this post may raise. We will happily answer any and all of your security-related inquiries. Moreover, we also invite you to take advantage of our free site survey program. We offer complimentary security audits and equipment quotes to both new and existing customers alike. We’d love to help you take advantage of the tips in this post! Additionally, we can address any other security concerns you may have as well. Together, we can create a complete security plan to keep your property, and everyone on it, as safe and secure as possible.