Hi
@MickPB ,
I chose to do this "separate subnet" via secondary NIC as well. I wanted a completely separated network with the cameras having no path to the internet, and as well I didn't want camera bandwidth to impact file transfers around the house.
Getting it set up was remarkably easy. I plugged the second NIC into the computer, and configured it so that it would use the subnet 192.168.254.x. I set the properties for the IP and mask like this:
That was about it.
Into the NIC I configured this way, I plugged a cable that went to a plain old gigabit switch. Into that switch, I've connected a POE switch that feeds a bunch of cameras kinda nearby, as well as a couple of runs that go to OTHER places in the house where there are POE switches that feed cameras.
Other things to think about:
I had to reprogram existing cameras that were set to be on a different subnet (from my original NVR, before I Went to
Blue Iris) to work on this subnet: I used a laptop that I configured manually to be on whatever subnet those cameras were originally on. That way, the laptop could talk to the cameras, reprogram them to be the IP address I wanted them to be, then have them reboot. After rebooting the cameras wouldn't see the laptop any more (since they are on another subnet now) but as soon as I hooked them up to my BI PC, they connected fine to BI.
Also, I set the BI PC to serve as a time server so the cameras could pull time periodically to stay synced. I used the built in time server function of Windows 10, and configured which port it uses, and pointed the cameras there. Good luck! Let us know how it goes.