Setup for Multiple Properties

A_Hat_4u
A_Hat_4u
in SecuritySpy

Hi all. I've done some basic searching on the forum and main website and can't find a clear answer to this question. Hoping someone can help or point me to a resource on the website where I can learn more.

I'm currently running the trial version of Security Spy to determine what my total investment will need to be to do all the things I want to do. One important ability is viewing cameras that exist in multiple separate properties. For simplicity, think of it as primary home in one state and a rental property in a second state. The server is running on a computer at the primary house. I want to be able to view cameras at both the primary and secondary houses through a single computer located at the primary house.

Is this possible with a single server running on a single machine? Or will I need to purchase two licenses, run a local server at both properties, and somehow "feed" server data from the secondary to the primary location for viewing and image capture?

Please ask any clarifying questions. I'm not completely tech illiterate (I've built servers from scratch in the past), but I tend to quickly "use and lose" the knowledge, and I'm pretty new to most of the video camera technology.

Thanks in advance for any help you may provide.

Comments

  • Ben
    Ben

    Almost always, the ideal setup is to have one Mac per location, each managing its local cameras. Then, when you need to, you connect to each system (e.g. via web browser or using our iOS app) to view live video or captured footage. I would advise using this setup wherever possible.

    If, instead, you want one Mac at one location to record from all cameras at both locations, this is possible, but it would require a fast Internet connection at both locations, because video from the remote cameras will have to be constantly streamed over the Internet to the Mac. So this uses significant Internet bandwidth and may impose limits on the frame rate/resolutions you can achieve for these remote cameras.

    Also, setup is significantly more difficult. Here's what you would need to do for the remote cameras:

    • Set them all to fixed IP addresses on their local network.
    • Give them all strong passwords, because you are making them available over the Internet.
    • Configure port forwarding in the router at the remote location, to give access to LAN ports 80 (for HTTP) and 554 (for RTSP) for each camera. For multiple cameras, you will have to use different WAN ports for each one (e.g. for camera 1, forward WAN port 80 to LAN port 80, for camera 2, forward WAN port 81 to LAN port 80, for camera 3 forward WAN port 83 to LAN port 80 etc.).
    • Assuming the Internet connection at the remote location has a dynamic public IP address (rather than a static one, which typically incurs an extra cost by the ISP), set up a DDNS address at the remote location. Many routers and many cameras have this feature built in, though there may be an ongoing cost for this depending on the provider. You only need to set up one of these on any device, and you can then use it for all devices at this location (as they all share the same Internet connection and therefore the same public IP address).

    Then, at the location with the Mac, you add the cameras, using the DDNS address you created above, and using the WAN ports that you specified in the port forwarding rules.

    Please let me know if you have any further questions.

  • caseyd
    caseyd

    I do this via the 2-macs solution, and running an always-up VPN between the sites.

    the VPN sidesteps the requirement of placing the cameras on the open web.

    The sites have Untangle running on Protectli Vaults. worth the effort.

  • TSI
    TSI

    I have an installation that is exactly how Ben describes. So far, it has worked perfectly, but both connections are fiber optic and on the same ISP. However, due to security concerns, I have started using Cisco RV345 routers and setting up a Router to Router (Site to Site) VPN. I chose this particular line of routers because they are inexpensive, and most importantly, they can process around 650Mbps of encrypted VPN data. Many inexpensive routers fall short in this area and may only pass around 50Mbps through the VPN tunnel. The setup is moderately difficult. But once the VPN is up, the far end cameras become available on the home end LAN. This avoids exposing the cameras to the internet as the VPN tunnel is encrypted and invisible.

Categories