100% HDD Usage

rfj

Pulling my weight
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Messages
392
Reaction score
115
I only have 10 cameras and each one is set to direct to disc recording. I have a dedicated HDD just for footage of the security cameras. When I look at Task Manager the disc is always at 100%. Average response time various from 0ms to 10,000ms. Write speed various from 0MB/s to 15MB/s. In BI I configured settings so no more than 90% of the HDD is being used (on a 8TB drive). What causes this 100% HDD usage despite the write speed being relatively low?
 

Attachments

TonyR

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Jul 15, 2014
Messages
16,451
Reaction score
38,164
Location
Alabama
I only have 10 cameras and each one is set to direct to disc recording. I have a dedicated HDD just for footage of the security cameras. When I look at Task Manager the disc is always at 100%. Average response time various from 0ms to 10,000ms. Write speed various from 0MB/s to 15MB/s. In BI I configured settings so no more than 90% of the HDD is being used (on a 8TB drive). What causes this 100% HDD usage despite the write speed being relatively low?
I've seen this a lot lately if it's Win 10 and there was recent update..... what is the disk usage % in Task Manager when BI is NOT running?
 

wittaj

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Apr 28, 2019
Messages
24,448
Reaction score
47,572
Location
USA
It could be anything.

Is it a laptop?

What are the specs of the computer you are using - i number and processor number and RAM

Who makes the HDD

Are the cameras going thru the router or dual NIC or VLAN?

Is it a USB HDD?

Are you using the stored folder and moving things around on the same drive?
 
Last edited:

IAmATeaf

Known around here
Joined
Jan 13, 2019
Messages
3,287
Reaction score
3,252
Location
United Kingdom
Looks like it’s a Seagate Barracuda drive.

As above need more info, what res are your 10 cams, what framerate/bitrate etc.

Also have you set the size to 90% of 7.3Tb or 90% of 8Tb?
 

giomania

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Jun 1, 2017
Messages
780
Reaction score
538
If this changed on its own, meaning it was working for some period of time and then suddenly the problem started, check your cameras to ensure they are still set to Direct to disc. This happened to me; three of my 15 cams had that setting changed without any user intervention, and caused intermittent 100% CPU usage. This issue happened to coincide with a Windows update. I checked the Direct to disc settings on a whim, when someone had advised a new user to use this setting.

Mark
 

rfj

Pulling my weight
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Messages
392
Reaction score
115
I did shut down BI and then started it again. Attached is the activity I see on the HDD after starting BI. When I checked later on it was back to 100%. The computer is

CPU: i7-9700K @3.6GHz
RAM: 32GB
Windows: Win10 Pro 21H1 build 19043.2130

Other comments/answers:
  • I checked all cams and they are still all on direct to disc recording.
  • HDD space is limited to 6700GB (see attachment).
  • HDD is an Seagate Barracuda ST8000DM004
  • Cameras are on a 16 port PoE switch connected directly to my router. Another 48 port switch is connected to the router, too. Then the router is connected to the computer that records the video.
  • BI uses about 10-15% of CPU time and about 7GB of memory (I have seen it higher)
  • According to task manager BI uses about 70Mbps network and very fluctuating disc usage from some 1MB/s (mostly) to spikes of 30MB/s. In all cases the disc usage is still 100% even with just 1MB/s disk usage.
 

Attachments

Joined
Aug 8, 2018
Messages
7,386
Reaction score
25,889
Location
Spring, Texas
Cameras are on a 16 port PoE switch connected directly to my router. Another 48 port switch is connected to the router, too. Then the router is connected to the computer that records the video.
This is likely the issue. No reason to have your video go through the router. Connect the BI PC directly to the cam's POE switch.
 

Flintstone61

Known around here
Joined
Feb 4, 2020
Messages
6,587
Reaction score
10,894
Location
Minnesota USA
I only have 10 cameras and each one is set to direct to disc recording. I have a dedicated HDD just for footage of the security cameras. When I look at Task Manager the disc is always at 100%. Average response time various from 0ms to 10,000ms. Write speed various from 0MB/s to 15MB/s. In BI I configured settings so no more than 90% of the HDD is being used (on a 8TB drive). What causes this 100% HDD usage despite the write speed being relatively low?
It could be an SMR drive.....( shingled Magnetic Recording)
Surveillance drives use CMR ( Conventional Magnetic Recording)

 

Flintstone61

Known around here
Joined
Feb 4, 2020
Messages
6,587
Reaction score
10,894
Location
Minnesota USA
I have a 6TB WD Blue SMR drive that will slow down any system I put it in...100% of the time....Mostly when it comes to seeking existing folders.
The Seagate drive you have on Google shows it as a " standard 'Compute" model
which mean it could likely be an SMR drive.
I could be wrong and your system may have another issue, but I would definitely investigate this.
 

rfj

Pulling my weight
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Messages
392
Reaction score
115
I read about the SMR issue but from memory this was related to using such drives in a RAID system (actually when mixing SMR and CMR drives). I will definitely look into this, though. That would be a bummer having a "bad" drive and having to buy a new one. HDDs aren't exactly cheap these days.
 

The Automation Guy

Known around here
Joined
Feb 7, 2019
Messages
1,377
Reaction score
2,738
Location
USA
This is likely the issue. No reason to have your video go through the router. Connect the BI PC directly to the cam's POE switch.
I don't follow how sending data through your router (or not) is going to cause your hard drive to show 100% usage (or not).

Now if the router is showing 100% usage (CPU or drive usage), then I would agree this could be the issue for the router. But I don't see a link between router performance and an individual computer's drive performance being maxed out.
 

Flintstone61

Known around here
Joined
Feb 4, 2020
Messages
6,587
Reaction score
10,894
Location
Minnesota USA
he could have a bi setting fucked up...
I recall doing a live upgrade of the DVD version of Amcrest BLue Iris 5.0 to Kens version of 5.1.x.x it took all my cameras that had ".jpgs on Trigger"enabled and rewrote it to ".jpgs continuous"
when she came back up She was pegged....100%
 

wittaj

IPCT Contributor
Joined
Apr 28, 2019
Messages
24,448
Reaction score
47,572
Location
USA
Have you excluded BI and associated folders (video folders) from the antivirus as that will max out a CPU real quick.

And if you have, then check because a windows update could have changed it.
 

Flintstone61

Known around here
Joined
Feb 4, 2020
Messages
6,587
Reaction score
10,894
Location
Minnesota USA
I personally don't have drive indexing disabled at the moment. I played with it a little bit, before I finally figured out it was this questionable 6TB WD Blue that was hosing things up,,,,
 

tech_junkie

Getting comfortable
Joined
Sep 2, 2022
Messages
412
Reaction score
417
Location
South Dakota
I only have 10 cameras and each one is set to direct to disc recording. I have a dedicated HDD just for footage of the security cameras. When I look at Task Manager the disc is always at 100%. Average response time various from 0ms to 10,000ms. Write speed various from 0MB/s to 15MB/s. In BI I configured settings so no more than 90% of the HDD is being used (on a 8TB drive). What causes this 100% HDD usage despite the write speed being relatively low?
Because its writing all the time, hence 100% active.
If it wasn't writing to the disk, I would be worried.

But windows needs to not use that graph unless the user wants to see "up time" and label it weird.
 

rfj

Pulling my weight
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Messages
392
Reaction score
115
It could be an SMR drive.....( shingled Magnetic Recording)
Surveillance drives use CMR ( Conventional Magnetic Recording)

I think you are right that it's the drive that I specifically bought for BI. I redirected recording to an old and empty 2TB drive that I had in the system. I waited until it filled up to 90% to see if maybe the 90% was an issue. The computer still works fine and doesn't slow down. The active time also doesn't go up to 100%. The highest peaks to to maybe 50% but in average it's probably a bit more than 10%. Wasted my money on that drive and have to buy a new one. This time a CMR... Thanks for all the help.
 

IAmATeaf

Known around here
Joined
Jan 13, 2019
Messages
3,287
Reaction score
3,252
Location
United Kingdom
Sounds more like a faulty drive no? Have you run the manufacturer’s long test in the drive and checked drive health?
 
Top