recommendation? book size pc to run Hikvision's ivms lite CCTV software, 4 cameras

[spirch]

i'm looking to buy a book size / mini / very low powered pc to run ivms lite with 4 cameras up to 4k each to act like a viewer only, no recording

any recommendation on which processor can handle that kind of load?

right now when i'm looking at my "options" the processors that i see are; intel N3450, N4100, Z8350, J4105, and the like
so mostly, what i am seeing is atom or celeron processor with low wattage. are these "ok" to handle what i want to do?

 

[Phil]

Hi, Unfortunately, we don't yet have any experience with these solutions.
However, I did begin looking at the topic a few weeks ago and here's my two penn'orth:

These small PCs are commonly known as NUCs - which stands for Next Unit of Computing.
Some manufacturers, such as Intel, have spotted the market opportunity in IP CCTV / surveillance software and have covered the topic at their website:
Intel® NUC Digital Security and Video Surveillance Solutions

Likewise, some specialist NUC resellers:
Go Small, get Big
(Actually, when you click through on either of those search results you get a 404 error page at the moment, but they may be worth calling for a chat on their experience with NUCs for this application).

A general IT reseller such as Scan or eBuyer might offer lower product purchase costs?
https://www.scan.co.uk/search?q=nuc
Cheap Barebones PCs Low Prices UK Deals | Ebuyer.com

Finally, I began my search due to dissatisfaction recently with NVR developments and performance.
I suspect that software on a suitable PC could deliver a more satisfying solution.
However, my quick conclusion was that, due to the relatively high cost of these NUCs, most people would still prefer a more cost-effective and dedicated NVR box.
NUCs are typically provided with the Windows Operating System.
Adding FREE surveillance software is probably key to keeping costs at a level where it's worthy of consideration.
Hikvision's iVMS is probably THE most obvious.
But, Vivotek's VAST 2 software used with their IP cameras is definitely worth consideration, as many customers have praised that software.
Perhaps GeoVision's cameras and software are worth considering too.

A minimal cost solution may be possible by loading Linux onto an NUC and then using ZoneMinder as the VMS software.

Footnote - most people will also want to be able to see home from their mobile phone, if you need that capability then make sure that a suitable App can be added.

 

[spirch]

thanks for the information.

i will try a mini pc (not a NUC brand) that use a J4125 processor (4 cores) and 6 gig of ram with hdmi output. gpu is embedded and there is hardware decoding for video in it and it's "recent" from 2019 (you can look intel Ark for the specs)

i will post the result here in case anyone are interested, i'm not going to name the manufacturer of that mini pc, there is many out there, you can find which one interest you, i will focus on the processors itself.

hopefully, it will be able to handle what i want to do. i should have it in about a week or less.


for context, this is to replace a virtual machine that have 4 cores and 4 gig of ram running under windows 10, running ivms lite, ftp server (cameras are uploading image there when an event is triggered) and google backup and sync monitoring the ftp folder (one way from pc to cloud) using the unlimited free option

(host pc of that VM is a beast but i want to remove that VM from it, freeing resources)

 

[spirch]

I just got the mini pc, it seem the cpu/gpu can handle it but i will return this one, the heat / fan noise are wayyy too much. like way too much.

I will try another brand hoping this wont be an issue. (a little bit more expensive but not that much)

so. cpu usage turn around 5% on the ivms lite process and about 25-30% gpu usage, 4 cameras, 2x 6M, 1x 4M and 1x 3M resolution

the video seem a little bit "choppy" (not too much) but it might be because the brand that i'm using doesn't properly have a proper implementation. or maybe because i would need to update some driver but since i will return this one, i wont bother doing it.

since the cpu and gpu usage is "low" i would expect it to be fine.


time to remove all and any information on that disk... that is the fun part!

 

[Phil]

Interesting / ironic that the first replacement you try for an NVR is way too noisy!

Please let us know how you get on - I'm confident that there is interest in this as an alternative, thanks.

 

[spirch]

the first one, idle cpu temp was around 65c and the fan is blower style with a very high pitch sound that start when the cpu reach 70c, so it's a yo yo game of start / stop / start / stop

next one, in theory, i should receive it tomorrow if lucky, if not in 2 days. the new one have a better heatsink (and overall better specification)

the first one, i went to the lowest price, this was my first mistake

when i get the new one, i will let you know how it goes

 

[spirch]

i just installed the new one, i will keep it. (if anyone want to know which one i am now using and which one i returned, look at my profile post)

fan is always on, a kind of a white noise so for me it's better than the other one but it is not silent. temperature is now between 35c et 45c, way better too.
i might try to do a mod to reduce the fan speed if at some point it bother me too much.

i found the "choppy" issue, in ivms the play video is set to balanced, it seem the encoder is sometime dropping frames. if i set it to fluent, the encore doesnt process it so no issue there. i will try to see if there is a fix somewhere for this.

i'm using ivms lite 1.0.0.5 (old version) maybe the full blow ivms (newer) doesnt have this issue, i might try it but i really don't need the full feature set.

under fluent play setting, cpu is at 20-30% usage and gpu at 50-60% display so i assume the maximum i could run with maybe 6 or 7 cameras with this J4125 cpu.

under balanced play setting, cpu is under 5% and gpu is at ~15% displaying and at ~25% encoding(choppy issue happen there i think), i could run way more cameras, maybe up to 12-16.

 

[spirch]

so i have been using this mini pc for sometime already.

i can say that i'm pretty happy, this cpu(J4125) is strong enough for my use.

1. ftp server
2. google sync to upload to the cloud image uploaded from the camera to the ftp
3. team viewer to remote manage it
4. viewing 4 cameras, from ivms under balanced play performance
5. camera setup 2x 6m, 1x 4m and 1x 3m
6. it is more "choppy" than my previous virtual machine but that VM was a beast
7. there is enough room to add a few cameras, i would say i could maybe add 8-10 mores but that would be the max
8. low power was what i wanted, the monitor itself draw more than the mini pc!
9. wifi is nice, i can move the "package" anywhere easily
10. compatible with the software speedfan, so i can reduce the fan / noise

this should be my final post about this unless people ask any questions about my setup

 

[Phil]

Thanks for sharing, I'm sure others will find this helpful