Setting for minimal network use

PinkRose

PinkRose

n3wb
Oct 4, 2020
13
0
Milwaukie, OR USA
I have Six security cameras to monitor my house. To keep an eye on high-needs children.
what settings should I be setting so as to not use up all of my bandwidth in my house so that my computer internet doesn't come to a crawl.
Things like Frames Per Second and Audio seem like things I could do to lower traffic.
Would changing any of that actually help?
What other suggestions do you have?
 
What kind of cameras, WiFi, wired, make, model, and a basic network diagram might make this an easier question to answer.
 
Ok, WiFi cameras are a recipe for a bad time, but there are things you can do to mitigate the problems. Any cameras where it is possible, plug then in with a network cable and disable their wifi. Every camera you can do this for is a camera where you don't have to worry about bandwidth usage being too high.

For those that must remain on WiFi, the main setting of importance is the bit rate. Try setting them to 2 Mbps (about 2000 Kbps). If you don't get good network performance, then reduce the bit rates starting with the cameras that have the worst wifi signal. A camera with a poor signal will use more air time for transmitting the same amount of data.

If the quality of the video ends up too low, then reduce the frame rate (by a LOT). The video won't be as smooth, but it should gain back some of the quality that was lost by reducing the bit rate. Be aware that changing the frame rate may automatically change the bit rate setting, so you might have to change the bit rate again manually after every other settings change.

You didn't mention how the Blue Iris PC is connected. That PC should absolutely be connected by a network cable, not WiFi.
 
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Six cameras on one WiFi channel and router are going to bog down any system. It's like having ten CBers in your driveway all talking on channel 19 at the same time. Simplest way around that is to use wired cameras. Video streams are different in terms of how they work. They are constantly transmitting while your PC only talks occasionally while you're surfing the internet, for example. Throw in the tablet your using to monitor with, another full time stream, and you're at or past bandwidth saturation.

I'm guessing here, but another problem is that you're using your ISP router as the main switch of your network. Those routers are notorious for not being able to handle heavy network traffic loads, which is why they usually have only four ports. Getting the cameras, and your PC, off that router would help as well. That's why I mentioned a basic network diagram.
 
The WIFI cameras if configured correctly should not bring the internet to a crawl. Please note the WIFI cameras are fine for monitoring the kids, but they are not for security. Blocking WIFI is very simple to do.

I would place the cameras on two separate networks three cameras on each network. Most cameras are on the 2.4GHz wifi network. The best channels to use on the network is 1,6,11. Use your main router to support your normal home network. Add two access points with different SIDDs and channels to support the cameras.

the main router connected to a switch, the switch connected to BI, and the two access points.

Access points can be older repurposed routers. I use asus RT-N12D1
 
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