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exacqVision Server Linux x64 Support exacqVision Hardware

Some Exacq Ubuntu images may disable Unattended-Upgrades package features by default

Ubuntu’s unattended-upgrades commands and package features may not work as expected when using an Exacq Ubuntu image on ExacqVision hardware. By default on Ubuntu Exacq images, unattended-upgrades package features are purposely disabled from running due to the potential of losing video – and how the use of this feature cannot guarantee uptime of the ExacqVision Server software host.

This unattended-upgrades package is usually intended to install security updates automatically, by default, so that machines that are not proactively maintained do not become a liability.

For more information regarding ExacqVision’s stance on updating or upgrading operating systems on ExacqVision NVRs please see:
https://support.exacq.com/#/knowledge-base/article/5144

Product 

  • ExacqVision Server Hardware
  • ExacqVision Server Software
    Ubuntu Operating Systems only.

Step to Reproduce 

Schedule unattended-upgrades package features as listed by Ubuntu documentation.
See: https://ubuntu.com/blog/3-ways-to-apply-security-patches-in-linux

Notes:
The unattended-upgrades package is over a decade old, and is enabled by default on all currently supported versions of Ubuntu offered directly from Ubuntu. The ExacqVision image is configured differently, with this disabled as to prevent loss of video.

Expected Results 

Unattended-upgrades package features should work as expected when scheduled.

Actual Results 

Unattended-upgrades package features fail without dialogue.

Solution

1) Run the terminal commands below:

sudo apt-get -y install unattended-upgrades

sudo apt-get install apt-listchanges

sudo dpkg-reconfigure –priority=low unattended-upgrades

2) Create and/or edit the file at /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/10periodic and /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/20auto-upgrades with the following:

APT::Periodic::Enable “1”;

APT::Periodic::Update-Package-Lists “1”;

APT::Periodic::Download-Upgradeable-Packages “1”;

APT::Periodic::AutocleanInterval “1”;

APT::Periodic::Unattended-Upgrade “1”;

3) Run the following terminal commands:

systemctl unmask apt-daily.service

systemctl unmask apt-daily-upgrade.service

systemctl enable apt-daily.service

systemctl enable apt-daily-upgrade.service

4) sudo systemctl edit apt-daily-upgrade.service

Edit and Comment out “ExceStartPre=” line,

repeat this action for:

sudo systemctl edit apt-daily-upgrade.service

5) Run the following terminal command:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

6) Run all of the following terminal commands in order listed:

systemctl enable apt-daily.timer

systemctl enable apt-daily-upgrade.timer

systemctl start apt-daily.timer

systemctl start apt-daily-upgrade.timer

systemctl start apt-daily.service

systemctl start apt-daily-upgrade.service

7) systemctl list-timers to see if the timers are active and when they run next

8) tail -n 100 /var/log/unattended-upgrades/unattended-upgrades.log to see if it ran at the time start service was ran

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Categories
Knowledge Support Support Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

Adjustments for Loud Fan Complaints

Description

Some users with newer exacqVision server hardware have complained of their systems having louder than expected system fans.

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Product

  • A-Series 2A
  • A-Series 2A Hybrid
  • A-Series FA
  • A-Series FAR
  • Q-Series Desktop
  • Q-Series Desktop Hybrid

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Steps to Reproduce

No specific steps are needed to reproduce since this was a factory setting.

  1. Enter BIOS by rebooting the system and pressing F2 prior to booting. The default BIOS password is ‘admin256’.
  2. Use the arrow keys to navigate to the ‘H/W Monitor‘ screen. The default settings are displayed below.

A-Series 2A & Q-Series Models

A-Series FA & FAR Models

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Solution

  1. If you have not already done so, enter BIOS by rebooting the system and pressing F2 prior to booting. The default BIOS password is ‘admin256’.
  2. Use the arrow keys to navigate to the ‘H/W Monitor‘ screen.
  3. Use the arrow keys to highlight each of the fan settings according to your server model, pressing Enter to change them, to match those illustrated below.
  4. When settings changes have been completed, use the keyboard arrows to navigate to the Exit screen, then select ‘Save Changes and Exit‘ to reboot the system with these changes in effect.

A-Series 2A & Q-Series Models

A-Series FA & FAR Models

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Categories
Knowledge Support Support Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

Ruling out interfering software in Windows

Description

When troubleshooting exacqVision software in a Windows environment, it is likely that the customer has installed various monitoring or protection software which could be interfering with our communication or processes. The most common culprit is Anti-virus software.

However, there are many different methods of determining what software is running on a machine. There are several that actively hide themselves from the task tray or the Programs list. Below is an effective way of quickly determining what else is running on a system.

Utility – msconfig

The Microsoft System Configuration Utility can be used to see what services are running running with the ability to quickly rule out all Microsoft necessary services.

Open the msconfig utility by clicking on the “Start” button and typing msconfig – select the ‘System Configuration’ result.

You can also launch msconfig.exe from the “Run” dialog.

Once it loads, select the “Services’ tab.

Click on the ‘Service’ heading to sort them by name (useful for the next step).

Rule Out Windows Defender

Scroll down and look for anything that begins with Windows Defender…

There are several different names for Defender Anti-virus. On my machine it’s ‘Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection Service’ and its status is ‘Stopped’ This tells me that it is not a concern for our software. However, the Firewall is enabled. This may be configured in a way that interferes with our communication.

In other situations, you’ll see Defender Anti-virus running. Normally Defender does not cause much of an issue for us, but it can be locked down and more aggressive in scenarios where they have attached the system to a Domain. It would be worth asking how the customer has configured Defender and trying setting exclusions for our software. See KB 853.

Ruling Out Other Services

Now that you’ve ruled out Microsoft’s own Anti-virus, you can check the box ‘Hide all Microsoft services’

The resulting list will be everything that has been installed on the machine since the time the Operating System was installed. These items may need to be researched if there is something unfamiliar. Discuss with the on-site technician or customer items that may be related to Anti-virus, security software, threat protection, anti-malware, heuristics, etc… It may be possible to set exclusions for our processes, but this is the responsibility of the customer to apply the changes..

Sometimes it is helpful to create a report of all the installed Services to supply to a customer or IT department. This can be accomplished in PowerShell with the “GetService” cmdlet. To see a list of all services, in PowerShell type:
Get-Service | Sort-Object status | Out-Gridview

This will open a window with all Services sorted by their Status. You can then use ‘Ctl-A’ to highlight all, and ‘Ctl-C’ to copy this data to the Clipboard. This can then be pasted into a spreadsheet or text file.

Ruling Out Other Processes

Now that you’ve seen all of the services running on the system, it’s time to see if any executables are running at startup that aren’t registered as Windows Services.

Right-click on the taskbar and select ‘Task Manager’. Then click on the ‘Startup’ tab.

Again, discuss with the technician or customer if these items are expected to be running on the machine. Utilize search engines and forums to research any that you are unfamiliar with.

Categories
Knowledge Support Support Categories exacqVision Hardware Products

Analog video freezing on tDVR 8016e capture boards – Linux

Description 

Some Exacq hybrid systems built since 7/23/2024 and running Ubuntu 22.04 have exhibited a freeze of the analog video after running for some period of time. This is likely a result of a false-positive error state in the PCIe ASPM (Active-state Power Management).

This can be confirmed using a Terminal with the following command:

cat /var/log/kern.log | grep pcieport

The result will include lines similar to the following:

pcieport 0000:00:01.0: PCIe Bus Error: severity=Corrected, type=Physical Layer, (Receiver ID)
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: device [8086:460d] error status/mask=00000041/00002000
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: [ 0] RxErr (First)
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: [ 6] BadTLP
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: AER: Error of this Agent is reported first
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: AER: Multiple Corrected error received: 0000:00:01.0
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: AER: can't find device of ID0008
pcieport 0000:00:01.0: AER: Multiple Corrected error received: 0000:01:00.0

Steps to Resolve

The resolution is to disable the power management mode for the PCI slots by adding a kernel boot parameter. This can be accomplished either by editing a file, or by downloading and running a script .

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Method 1: Editing the /boot/refind_linux.conf file

  1. In a Terminal open the file in a text editor with sudo privileges with:
    sudo gedit /boot/refind_linux.conf

2. Edit the the highlighted lines to add “pcie_aspm=off” prior to the parentheses (“) so it matches the following:

3. Save the file and reboot the machine with:

sudo reboot

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Method 2: Run the tdvrfix.sh file

  1. After logging in to the Support Portal (support.exacq.com), download the tdvrfix.sh file to the Linux Desktop.
  2. Open a Terminal and change directory to the Desktop with:
    cd Desktop
  3. Set the tdvrfix.sh file to be executable with:
    sudo chmod +x tdvrfix.sh
  4. Run the script with:
    sudo ./tdvrfix.sh
  5. Reboot the machine with:
    sudo reboot
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Confirmation

After a reboot, you can confirm the fix was applied successfully by opening a Terminal and running the following command:
cat /proc/cmdline

Confirm that “pcie_aspm=off” is in the results.

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Categories
Knowledge Support Support exacqVision Enterprise exacqVision Client exacqVision Server exacqVision Mobile exacqVision Webservice Categories exacqVision Hardware Products

2024-09 September Quarterly Release Training

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exacqVision Server

  • Bug Fix – Fixed insertion of objects lacking metadata or bounding box
    (AESW-9440)
  • Bug Fix – Improvements to event size estimates for bookmarks
    (AESW-11010)
  • Bug Fix – illustra3 and illustramultipi fixed issue where Alarm 2 status would not change after being canceled
    (AESW-10146)
  • Bug Fix – illustra3 and illustramultipi fixed issue causing edgestor backfill to hang
    (AESW-9581)
  • Bug Fix – Onvif, fixed issue preventing simultaneous PTZ
  • Big Fix – Onvif, fixed excessive pullpoint logs on errors
    (AESW-10727)
  • Bug Fix – Onivf, fixed potential PTZ disconnects
    (AESW-11469)
  • Bug Fix – psfpi, fixed potential hang when evAPI attempts to cancel search
    (AESW-10961)
  • Bug Fix – Samsungpi, fixed crash on disabled device during connection
  • Bug Fix – Samsungpi, fixed potential crash when connecting to newer devices
  • Enhancement – Support Area Zoom on Axis M5000-G PTZ camera
    (AESW-10568)
  • Enhancement – eventpi, new event indicates thinning occurred, includes event linking sources
    (AESW-7651)
  • Enhancement – Installer adds firewall rules added for failover and failback
  • Enhancement – Improved analytic parsing
  • Enhancement – Provide the analytic type to core
  • Enhancement – Improved handling of transport errors
    (AESW-10120)
  • Enhancement – New SOAP calls for Onvif Profile M and S conformance
  • Enhancement – remotepi, move connection to production switchboard service
    (AESW-9771)
  • Enhancement – Additional logging around LDAP reauth queries
    (AESW-9769)
  • Enhancement – Improved performance by reducing amount of analytics sent from server to client
    (AESW-7715)
  • Feature – Support for Wasabi S3 as archiving target
    (AESW-5814, AESW-10924)
  • Feature – Support added for Axis Thermometry
    (AESW-8816, AESW-8918)
  • Feature – Illustra LPR Support
    (AESW-6504)

exacqVision Client

  • Bug Fix – Manage the preferred MAC address in License panel
    (AESW-11267)
  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue where exacqReply controls did not appear until window was resized
    (AESW-9992)
  • Bug Fix – Clear grid dropdown, to fix issue where drop-down menus duplicate entries
    (AESW-10923)
  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue with Oldest Desired Content of Cloud Drive
    (AESW-8097)
  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue of event forward button being disabled when skipping ahead
    (AESW-8958)
  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue of client crash when selecting Find Camera when creating a new View
    (AESW-10038)
  • Bug Fix – Fixed client crash when selecting audio in Add Video panel
  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue of auto play not working in Timeline search
    (AESW-8529)
  • Enhancement – Remote Connections, found on navigation tree
  • Enhancement – Added Mobile Optimized Streaming panel for Remote Connections
  • Enhancement – New toast message indicating event thinning has occurred
    (AESW-9871)
  • Enhancement – Client improvements to amount of analytic data passed between server/client
    (AESW-7716)
  • Enhancement – Support “horizontal flip” for Storage page to accommodate storage layout for new Avnet systems
    (AESW-10562)
  • Enhancement – Apply our security standards to Bodyworn password fields
    (AESW-1575)
  • Feature – Support for Wasabi S3 as archiving target
    (AESW-11025)

exacqVision Web Service

  • Bug Fix – Fixed 24.03 issue where iPAD experienced video buffering and timeout errors
    (AESW-10945, AES-839, AES-863, AES-909)
  • Bug Fix – Web client supports session timeout detection, respects the login token
    (AESW-9753, AES-774)

exacqVision Enterprise Manager

  • Bug Fix – Add missing pagination endpoints
  • (AESW-11414)

Exacq Mobile 3

  • Bug Fix – Fixed issue with video failing to play after one hour
  • Enhancement – Added notification to point users to new exacqVision Mobile app
    (AESW-9166)

exacqVision Mobile

  • exacqVision Mobile requires Server version 24.09 or higher
  • Remote Connectivity requires Client 24.09 or higher as the Client is needed to connect to the cloud switchboard and generate access codes
  • If SSA expiration or OS requirements prevent updating to Server 24.03, users will need to continue using Exacq Mobile 3, with the exacqVision Web Service

Exacq Hardware

Hardware Revisions

  • C-Series 16S & 32S
  • G-Series Micro
  • G-Series PoE 8ch & 16ch
  • Q-Series Desktop & Desktop Hybrid
  • A-Series 2A & 2A Hybrid  (no RAID)
  • A-Series FA & FAR  (RAID)
  • X-Series 1U & 2U  (RAID)

exacqVision Advantage

  • Provides free exacqVision licensing on BBE hardware for most models of Illustra Flex and Pro cameras (Gen3, Gen4, and future generations).
  • Does not apply to the Flex Gen3 Multisensor, which is ONVIF only, does not have the Illustra API

Illustra

  • New Pro camera models providing LPR on the edge
    • Bullet IPS05-B12-LPR4
    • Dome IPS05-D12-LPR4

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Categories
Video Library Documentation Quick Start Guides Installation Highlighted Video Guides Youtube Video Library Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

exacqVision G-Series PoE Quick Start Video

The G-Series PoE NVRs provide affordable exacqVision recorders with built-in power over ethernet capability. Follow along to step through setup and adding your PoE powered cameras to the system.<br><br> Chapters:<br> 00:00 Intro<br> 00:17 Unboxing<br> 00:41 Specifications<br> 01:10 Hardware Ports<br> 03:03 Setup & Network Addressing<br> 04:31 Licensing<br> 05:18 Adding PoE Powered Cameras<br> <br>
Categories
Video Library Documentation Quick Start Guides Installation Highlighted Video Guides Youtube Video Library Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

exacqVision G-Series Micro Quick Start Video

The G-Series Micro provides an exacqVision solution in an ultra-small form factor for customers who wish to leverage a smaller system design or in space-constrained locations such as retail shops, restaurants, banks, and small offices. Follow along for installation and setup.<br><br> Chapters:<br> 00:00 Intro<br> 00:22 Unboxing<br> 01:07 Specifications<br> 02:09 VESA Mount<br> 03:17 Setup<br> 04:30 Licensing<br>
Categories
Documentation Quick Start Guides Categories exacqVision Hardware Products

Installing A-Series Rails on Racks with Threaded Round Holes

The rack mount rails that ship with exacqVision A-Series NVRs are designed to be toolless when used with server racks that have square or unthreaded round mounting holes on the rack uprights. The following guide describes how to adapt these rails, using tools, for use with rack uprights with threaded round screw holes.

  1. Examine the each end of the rail and take note of the pegs, as indicated in the illustration below.
  1. Insert a Phillips-head screwdriver into the slot at the end of each peg and turn to remove the pegs. Repeat this on the opposite end of the rail. The rear end does not have a center peg.
  1. Each end of the rail should have all pegs removed.
  1. Depending on the spacing of the holes on your rack, the L-bracket on the end of the rail may fit around the upright, facing outward, or may need to be placed behind it, as pictured. Here, the screw threads through the rack and then into the threads on the end of the rail where the pegs you removed from previous steps were located. Use installer provided screws to secure the rail to the rack’s upright.

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Categories
Video Library Documentation Quick Start Guides Installation Highlighted Video Guides Youtube Video Library Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

exacqVision A-Series Quick Start Video

The A-Series Network Video Recorders from Exacq provide a versatile range of options and are some of the most popular choices for most users. Choosing the best model for your deployment will be largely based on your storage and configuration needs. This video compares features of A-Series NVR models and steps through unpacking and setup.<br><br>

Chapters:<br>
00:00 Intro<br>
00:15 Unboxing<br>
01:03 Model Comparison<br>
02:06 Port Identification<br>
03:30 Rack Installation<br>
05:18 Hard Drive Installation<br>
06:08 Setup<br>
07:09 Licensing<br>

Related Articles

Installing A-Series Rails on Racks with Threaded Round Holes

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Categories
User Guides Highlighted Documentation Categories Products exacqVision Hardware

The Importance of UPS Systems

What is a UPS?

Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) provide battery powered backups to critical systems in the event of a loss to the building’s power.

Why using UPS is critical

  • Data Integrity
    Systems that suddenly lose power leave data “in-flight” vulnerable to loss or corruption. This includes data currently held in memory, not-yet recorded to non-volatile storage such as hard drives and SSDs, as well as data being processed. Despite software functions designed to protect against corrupted or lost data, sudden losses of power can still lead to such issues.
  • Protect Hardware
    Frequent power drops and power loss can cause higher wear and tear on electronic components, particularly those with moving parts such as hard drives which utilize spinning platters and moving read/write heads. UPS systems aid delivering clean, stable power to your devices extending their usable lifespan.
  • Prevent Downtime
    Backup power keeps the systems powered by UPS available in the event of a loss or dip in power.
  • Event Response
    UPS systems give users time to gracefully shut-down systems in the event of a power disruption.
  • Regulatory Compliance
    Depending on the industry, local, state, or federal laws may dictate required system uptime and system accessibility.
  • Power Surges
    In addition to providing backup power, many UPS systems provide additional protection against power surges caused by fluctuations in mains voltage or lightning strikes.

The points listed above affect not just exacqVision systems, but can affect any computer system or modern electronic device. Consider placing all mission critical systems on UPS.

NOTE: Exacq is not responsible for data loss, data corruption, or hardware failure due to sudden power loss on systems that are not gracefully shutdown.

Intelligent UPS Systems

Exacq strongly encourages the utilization of intelligent UPS systems. A UPS can only provide power for a rated amount of time. In the event of an extended power loss that could exceed this time period the UPS will run out of power, which can still lead your devices to experiencing an unexpected sudden loss of power. This is an indispensable feature for systems without someone monitoring them at all times to perform a graceful shutdown.

Today’s advanced UPS systems provide USB or networked communication solutions capable of communicating with the machines they are protecting. When the UPS reaches a low level of remaining power it is able to gracefully shut down protected systems to prevent an immediate power loss, safeguarding your systems and data.

  • APC offers PowerChute for Windows systems
  • Tripp-Lite provides PowerAlert software for Windows systems
  • CyberPower provides PowerPanel software for Windows and Ubuntu/Debian
  • Network UPS Tools is an open source tool providing Ubuntu Linux support for a wide variety of brands/models of UPS systems.

Sizing & Run Time

Refer to the datasheets provided at Exacq.com for your product’s power draw.

Most UPS manufacturers provide tools to help you find an appropriately sized UPS. When in doubt, consult electrical professionals.

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