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exacqVision Edge Time Zone Configuration

exacqVision Edge is a version of exacqVision Server that runs directly on supported camera models and only connects to, and records video from, the camera it is hosted on. Cameras running the exacqVision Edge, or Edge+, application must be configured for the GMT+0 time zone.

Because the server application runs directly on the camera, the Time Zone field cannot be configured from a connected exacqVision Client, but will need to be configured through the camera’s web browser interface.

However, the Time and Date fields can be configured from within the exacqVision Client and should be configured to GMT+0 rather than the current time where the camera is located.

Because the server application is running directly on the camera, the application tells the camera to use the loopback address of 127.0.0.1 as its time source, effectively telling the camera to look to itself for its time. Enabling the Time Server setting will not correct this. But you may override this behavior by selecting the Enable Override option and entering the URL or IP address of an NTP source of your choice. This will override the localhost setting, forcing the camera to use a trusted network time source. For more information on NTP sources, refer to Explaining NTP.

The below example, from an Illustra camera, illustrates that the Time Zone will be set to GMT+0 in the camera. You will need to restart the Edge Server application on the camera if changing this after it has started.

When connecting the exacqVision Client to an exacqVision Edge Server instance, the Client will display the time of the client workstation in the OSD unless you configure the OSD to display Timezone information, in which case it will display the camera’s time of GMT+0.

The two example images below illustrate this effect. With the Timezone checked, the client time shown in the bottom-right of the window’s status bar is reflected in the camera OSD time. When the Timezone field is unchecked, the camera OSD time will match GMT+0 rather than the local client time.

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VideoPush Timeouts

If your client has never been configured as a VideoPush receiver, you will receive a timeout whenever you try to send a VideoPush. As a workaround, select Enable Receiving Display on the Client page on the sending client. You can then disable the option again, if desired. After enabling it at least once, any VideoPush timeouts will be caused by other reasons. This issue will be resolved in a future release.

A VideoPush could also occur if the receiver fails to respond within five seconds. For example, this could happen if the VideoPush receiver has modified a setting on the Config page. In this case, the receiver is prompted to save or discard the changes before accepting the VideoPush request, and the sender will receive a timeout message if the receiver does not respond to the prompt within five seconds.

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LDAP Server Signing Requirements

If your domain environment has the GPO “Domain controller: LDAP server signing requirements” enabled, you must connect to Active Directory or LDAP using SSL.

In Windows, follow the steps in Article 2160.

A similar Linux procedure is pending and will be posted here when available.

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RS-485-to-USB Adapter Compatibility with ExacqVision

Two RS-485-to-USB adapters have been tested for compatibility with exacqVision: B&B Electronics, model 485USB9F-4W and VSCom, model USB-COMi-TB. The tests used the drivers supplied with the devices, and data has successfully been transmitted and received to and from each adapter. They were also tested in a loopback configuration with the RS-485 port built into an exacqVision server equipped with an analog capture board.


B&B Electronics, model 485USB9F-4W

VSCom, model USB-COMi-TB


Installation

  1. Install the adapter driver (included with the device or downloaded).
  2. Plug the device in to the USB port of the exacqVision server.
  3. Ensure that Windows discovers and configures the device properly. (Use Device Manager, found in Control Panel.)
  4. Restart the exacqVision Server service.
  5. In exacqVision Client, open the Serial Ports page.
  6. Verify that a new COM port exists in the UART section of the Serial Ports page.
  7. Configure the port as you normally would for PTZ control output or POS data input.

Notes

  1. The B&B adapter is equipped with a standard D-sub, 9-pin, female connector on the RS-485 side. A pinout diagram is included with this device.
  2. The VSCom adapter has terminal blocks on the RS-485 side, allowing easy connection of bare wires. The dip switches and jumpers were left in their default settings for testing.

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Enabling Automount in Linux

This procedure is useful if you cannot export to a non-optical USB drive using the operating system’s user account.


Requirements

Non-bootable USB drive with at least 2GB of available space.
USBMount.tar.gz file copied to USB drive (file attached below).
An exacqVision Server running Ubuntu version 10.04.


Notes

Only one USB drive can be auto-mounted at a time. This means that only one USB drive can be seen by the OS user, while the OS admin can see multiple drives as normal.
Performance while exporting video is affected by usbmount because cache is not used.


Step 1: Use the Auto-mount script to install needed packages

  1. Log out of user account and log in to admin account on the exacqVision server:
    a.) Press Alt-F4 to close exacqVision Client.
    b.) Click the Power icon in the bottom-left corner.
    c.) Select OK and then select admin.
    d.) Type the password for admin (default: admin256)
  2. Insert the USB drive into the exacqVision server.
  3. Press Alt-F4 to close exacqVision Client.
  4. Click Places and then the USB drive name.
  5. Navigate to and right-click USBMount.tar.gz, and then Copy to, and then Desktop.
  6. Double-click USBMount.tar.gz and then select Extract.
  1. Confirm that the extracted USBMount folder is going to the Desktop and select Extract.
  2. Select Show the Files and then open the USBMount folder.
  3. Double-click Automount.sh and then select Run in Terminal. Type the admin password.
  1. Close all open windows. Select the Power icon in the upper-right corner and select Restart.
    NOTE: Leave the USB drive in the system.

Step 2: Export to the USB Drive

  1. After the server restarts, exacqVision Client will be open. Navigate to the Search Page. Select a camera and enter a short search range (no more than 15 minutes). Click Search.
  1. When the results are returned, scrub to the start of the export and right-click the timeline to mark the start point. Then scrub to the end of the export and right-click to mark the stop point. Then right-click and select Download and Export Video.
  1. A /media/usb0 option should now be available in the Download and Export Video window.
  1. Double-click /media/usb0, then give the video a name, and select Save.

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exacqVision Windows XP Support

Microsoft has informed consumers that Windows XP is no longer supported as of April 8, 2014. This means that Microsoft no longer supplies security updates for Windows XP. Note the following information about how this affects exacqVision products.


Can I upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 on my Exacq-built exacqVision system?

Any system built by Exacq with Windows XP installed contains hardware that is more than three years old. This means that much of the hardware does not have proper drivers for use with Windows 7. Therefore, it is not recommended that you upgrade those systems from Windows XP. Exacq explicitly will not support such upgraded systems; if you try to perform the upgrade on your own, you will be responsible for ensuring that the operating system and drivers are properly installed and running on the system.


Will Exacq software still continue to function correctly if I do not upgrade the operating system?

exacqVision features will continue to function as they do currently. However, it is possible that some new features introduced may not be compatible with Windows XP.

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RAID Setup Using 3ware Controller (RAID 5 or RAID 6)

Part One: Enter the 3ware BIOS

  1. Restart the operating system.
  2. When prompted, press Alt+3 to enter the 3ware RAID BIOS.
  3. Type admin256 as the password.
  4. Press any key to acknowledge the warning.

Part Two: Remove the Failed Array

  1. Select the failed RAID array by highlighting the array (Exportable Unit) and pressing the spacebar.
  2. Press Tab to enter the lower menu.
  3. Select Delete Unit and press Enter.
  4. Press Enter to confirm.

Part Three: Create the New Array

  1. Press Tab to navigate to the top of the list of drives listed as Exportable Unit. Highlight Direct Attached and press Enter. Each drive should have asterisk (*) next to it.
  2. Press Tab to enter the lower menu.
  3. Navigate to Create Array and press Enter.
  4. Select the following sections (Enter) and use the following settings:
    1. Array Name should be Exacq.
    2. RAID Configuration is 5 (if you have 3 to 8 drives) or 6 (if you have more than 8 drives).
    3. Stripe Size should be 256KB.
    4. Write Cache Setting should be Enabled.
    5. Read Cache Setting should be Intelligent.
    6. StorSave Profile should be Performance.
    7. Auto-Verify should be Enabled.
    8. Rapid RAID Recovery should be Fast Rebuild/Shutdown.
  5. Select Advanced, press Enter, and use the following settings:
    1. Boot Volume Size should be blank.
    2. If you DO NOT have a separate device for the OS, Boot Volume Size should be 57.
    3. Drive Querying Mode should be Enabled.
    4. Continue on Error When Rebuild should be Disabled.
    5. Initialize Method should be Background.
    6. Navigate to OK and press Enter.
    7. Press Y to confirm cache settings.
    8. Confirm values are correct and press Enter.
    9. Press F8 to lock in settings.
    10. Press Y to save configuration and exit.
  6. You can now load the operating system per the OS Recovery Instructions (if needed).
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Migrating from HDVR to ExacqVision (Legacy)

Features gained by upgrading from HDVR to exacqVision:

  • 2-way audio added for certain cameras (see camera database to determine which cameras support this feature).
  • Remote server update is now accessible.
  • Archiving features available on Windows 7 systems (not supported in Windows XP).

The Exacq 6.0 Bundle installer consists of three components:

  • Server
  • Client
  • Web Service

This HDVR replacement bundle installer requires user intervention to complete the process. This document includes procedures for each component’s installer. After the HDVR installers are replaced with the exacqVision installers, use exacqVision versions for all future installations.


NOTE: After the migration, you will see the exacqvision “V” logo instead of the HDVR logo in all icons and shortcuts.

exacqVision Server

If the installer detects a previous HDVR server installation, a licensing message appears.

Click OK to install exacqVision Server over the existing HDVR server installation. This will install to C:\Program Files\HDVR, and video will be saved to existing directories.


exacqVision Client

If the installer detects a previous HDVR client installation, a warning message appears:

Click OK to install exacqVision Client over the existing HDVR client installation. This will install to C:\Program Files\HDVR, and all configuration XML files will be saved and applied to exacqVision Client.


exacqVision Web Service

If the installer detects a previous HDVR web service installation, a warning message appears:

Click ‘Yes’ to uninstall LightTPD and install Apache for better performance. You will lose configuration settings. See https://exacq.com/support/specsheets.php?perma=exacqVision+User+Manuals for configuration instructions.

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Enabling iSCSI Support on exacqVision Systems with Windows Embedded

Early versions of exacqVision systems with the Windows Embedded operating system did not have support for iSCSI. These systems were manufactured in in January and early February 2014.


To determine whether a system supports iSCSI, complete the following steps:

  1. Open the Start menu.
  2. Right-click Computer.
  3. Select Manage from the pop-up menu.
  4. Double-click Services and Applications.
  5. Double-click Services.
  6. If Microsoft iSCSI Initiator Service is not running, start it.
  7. Click Device Manager.
  8. Expand the Storage Controllers node if necessary.
  9. If you do not see Unknown Device, your system supports iSCSI.
  1. If you do see Unknown Device, right-click it, select Properties, select Details, and select Hardware IDs. If the value is ROOT\ISCSIPRT, your system does not support iSCSI.

To enable iSCSI support on the system, complete the following steps:

  1. Download iSCSIPack.zip from https://exacq.com/files and unzip it to a flash drive or directly to the exacqVision system.
  2. On the exacqVision system, navigate to the directory containing the unzipped installation files.
  3. Double-click the install.bat file.
  4. The installer prompts for administrator rights, installs the files, and restarts the system.
Enabling-iSCSI-Support-on-exacqVision-Systems-with-Windows-Embedded.pdf
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Auto Export to Windows Network Share from Windows-based Exacq Server

On a Windows system, exacqVision Server runs as a service. This is desirable because the service starts recording video without user interaction when the system is started. However, this creates an issue with the management of credentials for access to network storage, as the exacqVision Server does not run from a normal user account that requires credentials, but runs from the System account.

If you would like to use the Auto Export feature to export video to a network share in Windows, please follow the steps below. (Linux instructions here):

  1. On the Exacq NVR, log into the Windows operating system as an admin user.<br><br>
  2. Download PsTools and extract PsExec.exe from the zip file.<br><br>
  3. From the Start menu, select All Programs and then Accessories. Right-click on Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator.<br><br>
  4. Change the directory to the location where you extracted PSExec.exe.<br><br>
  5. At the prompt enter: psexec -i -s cmd.exe
    If necessary, agree to the SysInternals license agreement.<br><br>
  6. In the new command window, type
    net use z: \\192.168.1.23\SHARE /persistent:yes
    The mapped drive letter (z: in this example) and the network share location (192.168.1.23\SHARE) can vary as desired your installation. Replace SHARE with your own directory path.<br><br>
    • If the above should fail, you may need to provide credentials to connect to this share directory, these may be added to the command, like so:
      net use z: \\192.168.1.23\SHARE /persistent:yes /user:"USERNAME" "PASSWORD"
    • Additionally, in some environments you may need to provide the domain name:
      net use z: \\192.168.1.23\SHARE /persistent:yes /user:"DOMAIN\USERNAME" "PASSWORD"
      or in the case of a local user account:
      net use z: \\192.168.1.23\SHARE /persistent:yes /user:"local\USERNAME" "PASSWORD"<br><br>
  7. If credentials are required to access this network share, you should be prompted. Enter the username and password.
  8. Once the command completes successfully, close both command prompt windows.
  9. In exacqVision Client, open the Auto Export page under Config. Click Refresh Status to display the newly configured drive in the Export Path drop-down list.<br><br>

The network share mapped to the Z:\ drive is now available for use in an export profile for event-driven exports or for user-initiated Auto Export.

If you desire to remove this share from the machine in the future, use CMD run as Administrator to run PsTools again:
psexec -i -s cmd.exe

At the new prompt, enter:
net use DRIVE: /delete
where DRIVE is replaced with the letter of the mapped drive to remove.<br>