Scaling Up Your Surveillance System - Axis IP-Surveillance system Design Manual

8.

Scaling up your surveillance system

AXIS Camera Station enables you to easily add more cameras to the system, while the client application
allows you to work with multiple AXIS Camera Station servers.
8.1.
Adding more cameras
AXIS Camera Station allows you to easily add cameras to the system simply by using the Add function.
You can add as many cameras to the system as the purchased license allows. If the number of cameras
exceeds the number allowed under license, simply purchase an add-on license.
8.2.
Network considerations
When implementing 10 cameras or more, try to estimate the load on the network using a few rules of
thumb:
> A camera will use approx. 2 to 3 megabits of bandwidth when configured to deliver high-quality
images at high frame rates. The bandwidth usage will be significantly lowered using H.264 or MPEG-4
streaming compared with Motion JPEG.
> In a system with more than 12-15 cameras, consider using a switch with a gigabit backbone. If a
gigabit-supporting switch is used, the server that runs the video management software should have
a gigabit network adapter installed.
Consider also using Quality of Service (QoS) on your network. Quality of Service enables reservation of
network capacity and prioritization of mission-critical surveillance. Some Axis network video products
support QoS.
PC 3
100 Mbit
Switch 1
Camera 1
100 Mbit
Camera 2
Figure 8.2.a. The above is an example of a QoS aware network, where Router 1 has been configured to devote a certain amount of
maximum bandwidth usage to streaming video, FTP traffic, and HTTP and all other traffic. The maximum usage applies only when
there is congestion on the network. If there is unused bandwidth available, any type of traffic can take advantage of it. (In an ordi-
nary or non-QoS network, there is no reserved bandwidth usage for different types of traffic, so when there is network congestion,
there is no guarantee that video streams will be able to maintain the desired frame rate.)
8.3.
Server considerations
If you are adding more cameras, you should monitor the server's CPU usage so that it does not exceed
its limitations. One hard disk is suitable for storing recordings from six to eight cameras. With more than
12-15 cameras, at least two hard disks should be used to split the load. For 50 or more cameras, the use
of a second server is recommended. The AXIS Camera Station Client will be able to switch between dif-
ferent AXIS Camera Station servers.
Number of cameras
1 to 15
15 to 30
30 to 40
40 to 50
50+
For more information, please refer to the hardware recommendation sheet on page 31.
Router 1
FTP
HTTP
Video
Considerations
1 disk
2 disks
3 disks
4 disks
2 servers
Router 2
2
3
Switch 2
10 Mbit
5
PC 1
100 Mbit
PC 2
45