Cameras dropping out problem

[LarryL]

I’m having trouble with 2 cameras on my system dropping out and BlueIris displaying a “no signal” message. They are easily restored by just unplugging from the Foscam POE switch and replugging, but that’s hardly a solution when you expect, and count on, continuous coverage.

Here’s what the system consist of:
Dual Xeon rack mount server, 8 Gb RAM, feeding an external storage array. Running Windows 7 and BlueIris.
2 X Foscam 8 port POE switches
2 X IPC-HDB3200C 2MP cameras
1 X 1080P 2MP camera with IR night vison
2 X HooToo HT-IP006 PTZ cameras

Two switches are used because of distance and wiring issues. Switch 1 has the 2 HooToo cameras plugged directly into it and that switch connects to the computer. Switch 2 is the remote (50 feet). It has the 3 remaining cameras plugged into it and Switch 2 is cabled to Switch 1 to a non-POE port. All of the cameras are running at 10 FPS. CPU utilization is around 40%.
The two HooToo cameras are the ones that drop out.

Does anyone have a similar problem, or, even better, a solution?

Thanks.

 

[nayr]

can you ping the cameras when they go to 'no signal'? Are they in a location they may be overheating?

My first instinct is to say that HooToo camera is a piece of junk and the software reflects this by locking up and crashing on you... might play with configuration settings; restore it to defaults and see if that helps.

 

[digger11]

First step should be to confirm whether it is a camera/network problem, or a Blue Iris problem. During the time that Blue Iris is showing "no signal", see whether the live stream from a camera is available from the camera's user interface.

 

[LarryL]

can you ping the cameras when they go to 'no signal'? Are they in a location they may be overheating?

My first instinct is to say that HooToo camera is a piece of junk and the software reflects this by locking up and crashing on you... might play with configuration settings; restore it to defaults and see if that helps.

The cameras are located outside and the dropout doesn't seem to be weather related, but I'll keep that thought in mind and see if I notice anything that might suggest overheating. Will also try pinging the next time I get a drop out.

thanks for the suggestions.

 

[LarryL]

First step should be to confirm whether it is a camera/network problem, or a Blue Iris problem. During the time that Blue Iris is showing "no signal", see whether the live stream from a camera is available from the camera's user interface.

Haven't specifically checked the stream but a very quick way to detect that there has been a drop is just by looking at the signal lights on the switch. When a drop occurs there is clearly no traffic. However, I will also check to see if I can ping and log onto the camera the next time there is a drop. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[LarryL]

It looks like the cameras

can you ping the cameras when they go to 'no signal'? Are they in a location they may be overheating?

My first instinct is to say that HooToo camera is a piece of junk and the software reflects this by locking up and crashing on you... might play with configuration settings; restore it to defaults and see if that helps.

The problem appears to be in the cameras. Once "dropped" they can't be pinged or accessed directly.

- - - Updated - - -

First step should be to confirm whether it is a camera/network problem, or a Blue Iris problem. During the time that Blue Iris is showing "no signal", see whether the live stream from a camera is available from the camera's user interface.

The problem appears to be in the cameras. Once "dropped" they can't be pinged or accessed directly.

 

[nayr]

ok next step is to make sure its not a power loss or cabling issue... Take one of your cameras down and "bench test" it; ie plug it into your switch/power with the shortest cables you have, perhaps start a continuous ping on the device and wait to see if it happens again.

If the camera does not encounter any problems after plenty of bench time then its a cabling issue; perhaps the runs are too long and the voltage drop is too great.. an underpowered camera is likely to lockup/crash.

If the camera does still drop off on the bench your cables are fine and its definitely the cameras; reset them to defaults, make sure your on the latest firmware and ensure its not a configuration problem.. Sometimes if you have too many quality settings cranked up the camera's processing skyrockets and eventually it overheats or it cant keep up and everything locks hard.. if that does not help its time to find new cameras because I doubt you'll get them stable.

 

[Bayhuntr]

I had an issue with all of my Foscam's locking up as you describe. Problem started when I moved from using Blue Iris to access the cameras from my desk PC and my notebook, to using it as a server on a standalone PC. What finally fixed the problem was deinstalling the software from my desk PC, although I was never using it, it appears to be running something when the PC is running. I found that whenever I went out of town on business no cameras locked up (my desktop PCs never turned on when I'm traveling). Since removing the Blue Iris software the lockup problem has gone away. I don't know if this would fix your problem, or if it describes what you've done. I hope it helps.

Note - All my standard Foscams locked up; outdoor and indoor, but my two Panasonic's did not and my one Foscam HD did not.

 

[fenderman]

Welcome to the forum Bayhuntr! Interesting observation, i cant explain why it would matter, but it seems to have helped...maybe this info will help someone else...