Blue Iris - locally remote in - best practice or preferred method

saltwater

saltwater

Getting comfortable
Oct 6, 2019
503
643
Melbourne, Australia
I've been using Blue Iris for about 18 months. The Blue Iris computer sits in my study where I have direct access to it. The POE switch sits in a network rack in my comms room (storeroom under the stairs). I had every intention of setting up BI and then moving it to my rack in the comms room. I can even move it to a not so obvious location that has power and ethernet points.

Whilst the BI computer is in my study, I like the fact that I have direct access to BI settings and being able to easily export clips of interest. If I put the BI computer in the rack (away from my study) what options do I have to easily access settings and export clips?

Is it possible to directly access the BI computer in one room (network rack - comms room) by having the keyboard/mouse/monitor in another room (study)? I have a heap of spare ethernet points in my study, and other rooms.

I have Team Viewer installed on the BI computer and my everyday computer. Would this be the preferred or easiest approach? Is there another way, other software, to remote in?

Is the Web based approach the preferred way, though to me it seems to be a little clunky? I see a lot of references to UI3, I assume that is the web approach.

I have a VPN setup and working through my UDM Pro, and accessing BI via my phone is simple enough (a pain at the phone - Samsung - as I have to always turn on the VPN before accessing BI - then turn it off after use - I can't get a quick VPN connection from the home screen). Yes, I know I don't need the VPN whilst accessing BI within my network.
 
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When accessing BI locally, the CPU idles around 10 - 12%. (11 cameras - most are 5442's)

When remoting in via Team Viewer the CPU idles around 20%. I assume this is normal.

I haven't tried tightVNC but will do so over the next couple of days.
 
There are a lot of ways to access Blue Iris over a local network. Each has pros and cons.

  • Mobile apps
  • UI3
  • Remote Desktop, Teamviewer, VNC, or any other remote desktop solution, honestly, there are tons of them
  • Another copy of Blue Iris can be installed on a Windows PC and used for remote management

Within the same local area, a dedicated remote viewing station can be created by using long HDMI and USB cables or a product like this which extends the range of both over a dedicated network cable. I use a similar setup with a Monoprice HDMI over cat5e extender in my office, and it is exactly like having the Blue Iris machine sitting next to me, except the computer is actually about 20 meters and one floor away. CPU usage is exactly the same and there is no added latency or dropped frames like you would get using a software-based solution. Note however that not all HDMI extenders work the same. Some compress the video and transmit it using IP packets, which means it can work through network switches and even have multiple viewing stations, but it will add some delay and quality loss similar to a software-based remote desktop.
 
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bp2008 said:
Within the same local area, a dedicated remote viewing station can be created by using long HDMI and USB cables or a product like this which extends the range of both over a dedicated network cable. I use a similar setup with a Monoprice HDMI over cat5e extender in my office, and it is exactly like having the Blue Iris machine sitting next to me, except the computer is actually about 20 meters and one floor away.
Click to expand...
I like this, it's exactly what I want. My only issue now is I have Cat 5e cabling and the model you linked me to is referencing Cat 6 & 7. I'll have to look up the Monoprice HDMI you referenced.

Not overly happy with the Team Viewer solution, there is quality reduction, is passable but annoying at the same time.
 
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I use remote desktop. It gives me all the access I need to manage the BI Server, but there is some CPU increases on the server while in use.
 
bp2008 said:
There are a lot of ways to access Blue Iris over a local network. Each has pros and cons.
  • Mobile apps
  • UI3
  • Remote Desktop, Teamviewer, VNC, or any other remote desktop solution, honestly, there are tons of them
  • Another copy of Blue Iris can be installed on a Windows PC and used for remote management
Click to expand...


I believe you need to pay for another copy of BI right?
 
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Windows 11 remote desktop connection here. It works exceedingly well, fast, no lag and so darn simple. I even have it set up for external use with a free ddns from google (with my domain sub) and open a port on my router remotely when I am out of town and want to use it. Then I close the port on my router when I'm done.
 
I also use RDP to remote into my BI server which sits in my network closet (also under a set of stairs). I feel that it is the simplest and most convenient method. It does use slightly more CPU than a local connection would, but I've never had trouble with it and it provides the exact same experience as I would by sitting at the BI server.

For remote connections, I use a RDP over a VPN connection to my house that my firewall appliance hosts. Again, it gives me the simplest, most convenient method of connecting.
 
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