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Legal & Disclaimers

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^{IN NO EVENT SHALL VideoNext BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.}

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Chapter 1: Introduction

The videoNEXT team is proud to present STRATUS™ 3.9.0, the software solution that will improve and simplify the operation and management of your security systems.

• STRATUS allows you to build and grow your security system based on your existing IT infrastructure.

• STRATUS is an open, standards-based software solution that works with almost any IP, digital, or analog camera including HD and megapixel. It runs on any Intel or other compatible server, and uses your existing security and data infrastructure in new and powerful ways. With thousands of systems currently installed and a rock-solid reputation for zero downtime during critical installations, STRATUS is a proven security technology for today and beyond.

• STRATUS provides the easiest and most scalable Physical Security Information Management (PSIM) solution available today. This combined with full policy-level administration, flexible Storage Volume Management and the renowned Frame Rate Decimation feature gets you the most capable and scalable surveillance and security tool ever developed. Most importantly, the STRATUS software platform leverages a classical IT approach to video and sensor content management. With STRATUS, the user can:

  • CAPTURE data from an infinite quantity of cameras, access control sensors, ground based radar, point of sale, etc.

  • ORGANIZE data into a single, intelligent, workable database.

  • STORE data in commercially available storage arrays in accordance with enterprise archival policies.

  • DISPLAY video and sensor data in an intuitive graphical user interface to all credentialed users via web browser or wireless device.

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Chapter 2: Planning Your STRATUS System

This chapter will provide you with an introduction to the most common situations STRATUS Administrators face when installing, maintaining, or troubleshooting Security System software. After you read this chapter you will have a conceptual understanding of how to:

• Install and/or upgrade STRATUS software

• Plan your STRATUS installation

• Configure and maintain cameras and sensors

• Administer Users’ Access and Permissions

• Utilize other options and services within STRATUS

• Ensure optimal operation

Login

One of the most important things to keep in mind when planning your Security System deployment is that you have to plan your installation for future growth to make sure you are effectively utilizing your initial investment as your system expands.

Please review the simple STRATUS deployment schema below:

Simple Deployment

The setup is very simple. It interconnects media producers (cameras) with consumers (clients) through a network where a STRATUS Server provides the midpoint. The server manages cameras, provides video-recording and media analysis, and leverages multiple camera manufacturers’ specifications into a uniform user experience for Clients.

As the number of video feeds grows this setup will easily scale by extending the network infrastructure and a linear expansion of the number of STRATUS servers. The user experience will be kept uniform regardless of how many cameras and STRATUS servers your setup will have. The STRATUS software is specifically designed to span multiple servers with no need to require users to log in to individual servers.

The total number of Clients registered in the system is not limited, and STRATUS will be able to support up to hundreds of simultaneously connected and actively working users as long as your network infrastructure is properly sized to accommodate that level of traffic. Still, the “simple” setup has one important limiting factor: the number of video feeds that can be simultaneously viewed is limited by the power of the CPU and graphics card available on the client's computer.

In a more advanced setup as depicted in the schema below, you will see how STRATUS overcomes this limitation and grows beyond it.

Advanced Deployment

In this deployment, the “Video Wall” concept comes into use. The video wall allows for the creation of multi-monitor/multi-view viewing solutions with generic inexpensive video monitors and COTS (Common Off The Shelf) computers. Video Walls can be shared between Clients who use the extended User Interface features to control Video Walls while retaining their ability to work with video on their personal computers. This solution not only extends simultaneous video visualization capabilities; it even improves the reliability and survivability of the system for critical applications.

Another scenario that is depicted on the schema is an integration of STRATUS with Access Control Systems and Sensors. Here, STRATUS becomes a focal point of Signal Processing and Control by keeping the user experience uniform in receiving alerts and controlling such devices as Door Readers, Keypads, etc.

It is important to carefully examine the following areas of the Digital Security System design in order to determine how best to set up your system.

1. Data Acquisition Devices (Cameras/Sensors/Access Control Systems/etc..)

• If you are doing a new installation, investing in natively IP-enabled devices may be a little bit pricier initially, but it will benefit you in the long-term by achieving a faster, cheaper rollout using standard network infrastructures and less expensive maintenance on network-enabled devices down the road.

• If you are retrofitting an existing system, you might consider keeping legacy analog data acquisition devices (like cameras and sensors) while adding analog-to-digital converters; similar to the previous feature, these may give you a faster/cheaper roll out and less expensive maintenance in the long run.

2. Network Infrastructure

• Media streams (video and sound) are heavy on transmission and storage by definition, so your network should have sufficient capacity for proper bandwidth handling.

• Network designs should allow for growth as experience shows that Security Systems tend to expand over time.

• Reasonable consideration should be given to reliability and network security due to the nature of the data that will be transmitted and processed.

3. Data Storage

• Storage is the largest potential bottleneck for system performance. Just as the network needs to be able to handle the load of video streams you are planning on using, the storage must also be able to record them at the same speed at which they are transmitted while still maintaining enough additional resources for the archive to be viewed again.

• Internal storage may be used for systems where long retention time is not needed. • As demand for longer retention time grows, external storage should be considered for its scalability, reliability, and manageability.

• For both speed and reliability, a storage RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) configuration is strongly recommended.

4. Accurate Time

• An often-overlooked aspect is the necessity for accurate time.

• The STRATUS system uses its own time to know when to archive video. It is important that the system has an accurate source for time that will not drift - such a source should be external - either an accessible NTP server or some attached device (such as GPS) with an accurate clock.

• It is also mandatory that all nodes and clients are synced with the main STRATUS server. In 3.9, STRATUS now comes with NTP enabled (on Linux), so all nodes and clients can be synchronized with the main server.

5. Data Processing

• The primary constraint with STRATUS is the speed at which video archive can be written to a disk. After that, processing power is the next concern.

• There are two major components that rely on processing power: the number of cameras and the number of clients.

• Analytics provides a heavy data processing load for the system; as such, it is recommended that your system has a spare CPU-core per Analytics channel you are expecting to run, for instance, if you are trying to run Analytics on three cameras, you will need at least a four-core processor.

6. Server Hardware

• STRATUS processes data on Servers and Common-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) hardware from leading vendors.

• Consideration should be given to overall system reliability and maintainability. This aspect depends on the hardware provider and the set of management tools which will be installed.

• If the installation consists of multiple processing Nodes (Servers), you may consider rackmountable hardware to decrease the installation footprint.

7. Client Platforms

• Stratus cleint software requires a standard browser to acquire VMS Client application for the very first time. We are trying to get them away from using browsers. And the OS should be updated to Windows 7 or higher

• GEO - mapping capabilities

• The number of simultaneously visualized camera feeds depends mostly on client computer CPU power and on a reasonably powerful (mid-class) video adapter. • If simultaneous displays of more than 8-12 videos are expected, consideration should be given to either deploying a v-MX (Video-Wall) STRATUS option (preferred), or to boost the CPU on the viewing station above the average “office PC” class.

8. Scaling the System

• The STRATUS software automatically binds multiple Nodes to form the STRATUS Security Domain where resources are presented to the Administrators and End Users in one logical cluster.

• As your system grows, you can add more STRATUS Nodes to accommodate system expansion.

• Each STRATUS node will support a number of cameras (and other sensors) per node depending on the resolution. For instance, you can run up to 60 video streams with a 2 Mb/s bit rate each on a single server.

• The Storage System will have to grow as you expand your security system. Each new STRATUS node will require additional storage space, so as you scale the system and add additional nodes you will also need to expand the storage.

• The v-MX (Video Wall) STRATUS option should be seriously considered for installation with above-average requirements on the number of simultaneous video-feeds displayed.

Install and Upgrade Procedures Outline

STRATUS 3.9 software works under CentOS 7.6 and newer Linux systems. The software installation itself is a straightforward process (described in greater detail in Appendix D, Detailed Steps), while a careful look should be given to the preparation and planning that precedes it.

Before installation on any platform, the disk system has to be prepared to accept the software through the creation of a specified disk layout. On Linux, a number of dependency packages should be installed. videoNEXT provides a special “kick-start” scenario to simplify and automate the installation process.

Once the prerequisites are met the STRATUS software package will configure OS components (such as the database and web server) to have the proper settings. No additional configuration will be needed.

To upgrade from a previous version of STRATUS, a special set of upgrade scripts is embedded into the software package to facilitate the automated configuration and content migration. Please refer to the section called “Upgrade from STRATUS 3.9.X” inside this document for the upgrade procedure from the prior STRATUS 3.7 release.

Multi-Node STRATUS Installations

The STRATUS installation is easily scalable by adding additional Nodes (servers running STRATUS software). Once such nodes are added, the compound system will behave as a single set of resources which is called STRATUS Security Domain. The User will be unaware that the STRATUS installation is comprised of multiple nodes and no special actions will be needed for accessing the Resources.

STRATUS Nodes perform a “handshake” with each other in multi-node configurations and this process is fully automated. You will find more details in the section called “Multi-Node Configuration Management”

Storage System Planning and Configuration Outline

Storage configuration is one of the most important tasks to be executed when a STRATUS system gets installed. Reliable, properly sized hardware and properly configured options are the keys to success.

STRATUS automatically discovers and manages the storage for you, but it is still the Administrator's responsibility to assign the storage resources for management.

The newly installed STRATUS system will not have any storage pre-configured, so before you proceed any further, please consider the following:

• Internal server storage should be considered a good economical option for entry-level systems when the media archival rate is moderate. Such storage options tend to have good performance with relatively insignificant concurrency levels.

• As your number of simultaneously recorded media-streams grows, you need to consider using cache-controllers (with the “write-back” option and battery memory backup) and storage drives designed for high levels of concurrency (like SAS and enterprise class or SATA drives).

• Various RAID options (internal storage with RAID controller or external RAID solutions) should be strongly considered when media storage reliability is of concern.

• When deciding on RAID level, close attention should be given to RAID data write performance for massive concurrent write operations. It is important that the write performance is good enough when the RAID is degraded, not just when it is optimal. Once a non-fatal disk failure occurs, RAID may substantially degrade the write performance and disrupt media archival. This increased load makes secondary (fatal) disk failures very common for such situations with RAID-5.

• RAID-6 is one of the best options as it degrades gracefully when a drive failure occurs and allows up to two drives to fail before a fatal data loss will occur.

• Using “spare drives” with automated failover should be considered routine when working with RAID.

Time Considerations

The STRATUS server keeps track of data based on the time the data is generated. Without accurate time and synchronization between nodes and clients, discrepancies can occur.

For example: if a node is one hour behind the main STRATUS server, when the main server looks for video from the node, that video will be off by an hour. Worse, if the main server looks for archive from five seconds in the past, the node will be trying to access video from 59 minutes in the future (from its perspective). This can lead to a false conclusion that the node is not archiving video. To help prevent this scenario, STRATUS 3.9 has a built in Network Time Protocol (NTP) server that other nodes and clients can synchronize with. This should help prevent most major problems that can arise; however, it is still recommended to have this main server synchronized with a more accurate source.

An internal clock on a server or consumer-grade computer can “drift” several seconds over the course of a day. Synchronizing the system with an outside NTP server is recommended. If a WAN connection is available and NTP is not blocked, STRATUS 3.9 should automatically synchronize with the time servers. If STRATUS is on an isolated network, a local time server or GPS-based time server is recommended.

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Chapter 3: Quick Start- Initial System Configuration

Please refer to Appendix C, Detailed Steps, for details on the installation specifics for your particular OS.

This section will detail how to configure the different pieces needed to get a bare-minimum installation operational. Later sections will detail specific configuration steps.

We will cover how to:

• Log into the STRATUS system

• Configure the STRATUS Nodes (separate servers in cluster forming the STRATUS Security Domain) - see the section called “Multi-Node Configuration Management” • Configure the Storage (as cameras will not have a place to store video otherwise) - see the section called “Manage Storage and Storage Consumers”

• Configure the cameras - see the section called “Cameras”

• Configure the credentials (so that your Users will use the system) - see the section called “Users, Roles and Management”

When you finish the above steps you should be able to use STRATUS for the most basic scenarios.

Logging Into the Control Panel

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Once installed, the STRATUS system is accessible through a regular Internet browser. Specifically, the primary supported browser is Internet Explorer for Windows users, and Safari for Mac users. Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox browsers are also supported, but due to their rapid development cycle, they tend to be less stable. Only the first-time login is required to access Stratus server to download directly VMS Client application.

Please open it by pointing your browser to the STRATUS “master” domain name or IP address. You should see a login screen similar to the one shown in ​Figure 3.1​ “Login Screen”.

You have the option to choose Spanish, Russian or Arabic, as well as the default of English, as the system language.

The Administrator's default login name is “admin” and default password is “topse”. For security reasons, please make sure you change it when you finish with the system's initial configuration (see the section called “Users, Roles and Management”).

Download the VMS Client using the link below the web login page. After executing and installing the VMS Client input the STRATUS IP Figure 3.2 . Once successfully connected the client will act just like the web version, but with all features already built-in. After setting up the system from the first web login, you can switch to the VMS Client for further steps.

The next screen will show system warnings or errors. This will include messages about cameras being in a "broken" state, time synchronization, and storage being offline or critical. If this is the first time you are logging into the system, it will show warnings about the system license, the lack of storage, and the lack of cameras.

Since the “admin” user by default has access to any User Interface, the next screen will be the “Interface Selector,” where you are given the option between “Control Panel” or “Operator Matrix”. You will need to choose "Control Panel" to continue with the system administration.

You should now be logged into the system and in the Control Panel interface.

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After clicking the Login button, you will be taken to the Check Configuration screen, which will notify you of the system status. Any system warnings or errors will show up here, so that you are notified as soon as you enter STRATUS. Some of the messages you will see may include: necessary plugins not installed, cameras in a “broken” state, time synchronization, and storage offline or critical. If this is the first time you are logging in to the system, you will see warnings about the system license, the lack of storage, lack of cameras, and missing plugins. The web version of STRATUS may have messages about plugin errors. These should be ignored as the VMS Client has all these features built-in.

Once you are done with the VMS Client setup and have read the system warnings, click on the “Next” button in order to be taken to the interface selector.

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Accounts with the Administrator privilege are unique in that they have access to the Control Panel through which the entire system is controlled. This is what you see on the screen before you now. Choose “Control Panel” in order to continue with the system administration. The “Matrix” option is used in day-to-day operations and is covered in the Operator Manual.

With this, you are logged into the system and are ready to begin the process of configuration.

STRATUS License Installation

This section explains how to install a new license in the STRATUS system.

Online Activation:

1. Use the web-browser to log in as “Admin”

2. Open the ”Admin GUI”

3. Open the Licensing page (General>Licensing)

4. Here you can see if the system already has a license installed (and Serial Number). You can install/change the license by clicking on the “Change” button, which will ask you for the Serial Number and perform a new license activation automatically if you are connected to the Internet.

5. If the STRATUS software is not able to establish communications with the videoNEXT licensing server, it will prompt you to perform “offline activation.”

6. The most likely reason for you to be redirected to offline activation is that your system is installed on a network segregated from the Internet. In this case, you will have to perform a limited information transfer by other means than direct Internet connection in order to activate the license (see details below).

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Offline Activation:

1. You will be asked to download the “pcid.bin” file See the screenshot in ​Figure 3.6 (below)​ for details.

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Figure 3.6 PCID.bin

2. Click on the [link] (see Figure 3.6) in the offline license activation page: http://licenses.videonext.com/SLM/upload_pcid.php You might need to write down the URL and manually enter it on another computer with Internet access.

3. Once you have access to the offline license activation page, please upload your PCID file when prompted and you will be forwarded to the new page with the “download license” link. Save this file on a flash drive you can transfer to the location with access to the STRATUS system.

4. Return to the STRATUS offline license activation page and click on “Install license.”

5. Click on "Browse...", find your license file saved on Desktop (example: 37STR131825381312.lic), and upload the license into your STRATUS system.

6. Chose General/Licensing from the left menu and check the license details. At this time the system should report a valid license and show you what your license is useable for.

Multi-Node Configuration Management

The maximum number of devices STRATUS can operate is limited by the hardware performance of the server STRATUS is installed on. Usually, this limitation is caused by reaching the write-capacity of the storage volumes. For this reason, STRATUS is scalable to span multiple servers.

There are two states for a STRATUS server: a Master or a Node. There can be only one Master, and it is in charge of zero or more Nodes. Each node is responsible for the devices assigned to it and for communicating events, status, health, and other information back to the Master server. For this reason, the Master server will have a higher load than the Nodes. As a security system grows, you will want to have fewer cameras (proportionally) hosted on the Master server; if the security system grows large enough, you will even want to remove cameras from the Master server entirely.

After installing STRATUS on a server, you must activate the system. This activation menu will give you an option to make the server a [M]aster or a [N]ode. More information can be found in the section called “STRATUS software Installation.” Once you have chosen the role of a server (either Master or Node), you will have to reinstall that server to change its role from a Master to a Node or vise-versa.

STRATUS maintains a special “s_master” alias as a statically configured DNS entry (in/etc/hosts). This alias is managed through the "sos" account (see Chapter 5: Troubleshooting, the section called “Using an S.O.S. Account for system Administration/Recovery”). This DNS entry defines what the Master server is and provides a stable name for the “master server” in the STRATUS Security Domain. This alias is maintained on every node in the Domain and should be tightly monitored to point to the proper network IP address of the “master server”.

The “s_master” alias exists even in single-server STRATUS installations and must always point to the correct node IP address. This alias is managed through the “sos” account (the section called “Using S.O.S. Account for system administration/recovery ”) and STRATUS software should always be restarted if the “s_master” alias gets changed.

STRATUS automates the multi-node systems’ configuration with a special “handshake” procedure between “node” server and “master” server. This handshake is performed every time the STRATUS software is started, guaranteeing that the node always operates alongside its proper master.

Newly recognized nodes are placed into the “Nodes” list in the left side of Admin Interface Control Panel. The Node information provided here allows the user to review the Node's operational status (online/offline/broken) and to identify devices managed by this particular node. Normally, device management is performed outside of the Node context, but this “Node Content” screen allows the review of devices currently allocated to the node if needed.

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If the Node becomes non-operational, the “Node Information” screen will identify the node as broken. It can then be removed from the STRATUS Security Domain. As a safeguard against possible errors, the STRATUS Security Node will not allow an operational Node to be removed (accidentally or otherwise). If you must remove the STRATUS Node from the Master - the system must be powered down first; only then it can be removed from the “Node Information” screen. Node management in STRATUS is mostly automated and is performed in the background to minimize the potential for errors.

(Snapshot with a two-node system Admin Interface opened where the “master” node is automatically loaded into the right side of the screen for device management purposes.)

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From the “Control Panel” you can access the Nodes by clicking on the “Nodes” button in the leftside panel. To view information about the Nodes, click the Node name for the master, followed by “Node Content” and “Node Information.” Here is a snapshot of a two-node system in the Control Panel with one server expanded.

Manage Storage and Storage Consumers

The STRATUS Storage System is in constant motion and balance. Aspects of the system include:

• Cameras and audio devices record media to the Storage; they are the Consumers

• The Storage Manager constantly monitors Storage Providers (Volumes) to ensure Consumers always have accessible and healthy storage

• Policy enforcement tools monitor Storage for sufficient space reserve to store content and for “hard limits” such as “maximum time to store”

Storage volume limits and health monitoring are, for the most part, automated and provide the best operating conditions for this particular configuration.

Consumers are assigned to Storage Policies which prescribe the “hard” and “soft” limits, as well as retention policies. STRATUS comes with several predefined policies. The default allows for fully automated management based on the Storage Space available and (in the case of video) the presence of motion in video.

Of the next three subsections, it is mandatory to perform the procedure described in the section called “Manage Storage Volumes”. The other two procedures are optional and allow you to take greater control of the system, but they are not essential for normal operations.

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Storage Manager - Manage Storage Volumes

To use the “Storage Manager” screen, you will have to select “Settings/Storage Manager” in the left panel of the Admin Interface.

The “Storage Manager” screen will be loaded. This screen shows the Storage System configuration and status for all the Nodes in the STRATUS Security Domain. From here, you can manage the storage on any Node.

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The Size, Load, and Status columns in the above picture provide graphical summaries for the entire Storage System as well as summaries for individual Nodes.

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Double-clicking on the “Settings” icon results in the icon changing to the state:

• “ASSIGNED” (folder with green up-arrow).

Simply click on the Cogwheel icon to cycle through the available options:

• “ONLINE” (cogwheel with green up-arrow).

• “OFFLINE” (cogwheel with grey down-arrow).

• “SUSPENDED”

You will have to click on the selection icon to apply your storage state after selection.

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The Volume is also assigned for the automated management by STRATUS and is by default set to the “ONLINE” state.

STRATUS will automatically take the actions needed to healthfully maintain this volume and accept and store the media data.

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The scenario described above demonstrates how to recognize and add a new Volume to the Storage System. Other types of Storage Volume Management operations are similar in method and execution and include:

• Temporarily suspending “write” operations to particular Volume (useful when it needs to perform maintenance without unmounting the Volume)

• Taking a Volume OFFLINE for maintenance (with full unmount)

• Removing a Volume from the Storage System (it will have to be brought OFFLINE, DEMOTED, then REMOVED)

Manage Storage Consumers

Once your Storage system is configured and the Storage Policy is established, the Storage Consumers Management is the next step. In essence, you assign your Storage Consumers (cameras) to use a particular Storage Policy.

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One method is to load the individual camera configurations and assign the Storage Policy from the drop-down list. This method works best when you are dealing with relatively few cameras.

Another method is to load the “Cam Configuration Editor” page from the “System Sets - All Cameras” or “User Sets - Your Set Name” menus and load a matrix of camera settings. It is possible to select a Storage Policy in the first column and propagate it to all the cameras in the row by using the “>” to the right of the drop-down list.

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Alternatively, when using the same screen, you can work on a camera-by-camera basis, but apply all the changes in one place with one operation.

The utility described will work with the cameras of one Set, so you have the flexibility to manage a group of cameras through their logical groups exposed in that Set. See the section called “Users, Roles and Management”.

Configuring Cameras

Please make sure your network camera is accessible over the network and you can identify basic information such as the camera model, authentication (username/password), etc…

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To add a new camera, click on the box with plus sign (“+”) to the left of the “Camera” header. Options will appear. You will now be in the Add Camera Wizard.

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Here is a brief description of each option:

• Choose an action type - You can choose to either add a single camera or import multiple cameras from a CSV. The format of the CSV will be covered in the section called “Importing and Exporting CSV camera lists.”

• Choose a camera type:

  • Network - for a networked camera that is supported officially by STRATUS

  • URL - Cameras that are not officially supported can be added here if you have the RTSP-URL for the video stream

  • Unicast - Unicast Port to listen for an incoming MPEG2-TS connection

  • Multicast - the Multicast address and port to subscribe to for MPEG2-TS multicast

• If you are using a multi-node system, you can also choose which node to place the camera on. • Enter the Camera IP or Domain Name - Here you can choose the IP address or Domain Name for the IP camera (this assumes you have chosen to add a single network camera. This menu will change if you choose other options).

• If you have an AXIS camera, you can choose it from the list below; this list is generated automatically through a process called Zero-conf.

• Enter the Camera Username and Password - it’s mandatory to enter the username and password to access the camera. In most cases, you will want to use an account for the camera that has privileges to modify camera settings, but this is not required.

Network Camera

The Network-type camera will be the one most commonly used with the STRATUS system. It simply requires the device to be broadcasting its data over the network, and STRATUS is able to find it. If the device is located on the same network as the STRATUS server, it can do so automatically. But before you can begin identifying the device, you must decide which server it will be added to. Directly below to the right of the Camera Type selection box is Node selection. In the case of a system with multiple Nodes available, you will be able to dictate which Node the device should be added to. By default, STRATUS will select the Node with the least number of devices attached to it. However, this does not account for the resolutions of the cameras or any other settings, such as analytics usage and storage policies. Because of to this, you may need to take manual control of this parameter to ensure equal server load if the devices you are using are not uniform. The next step is to tell STRATUS how to locate the camera. As mentioned before, if the device is on the same network as the STRATUS server, it can do so automatically. Click on the “search Cameras” button located halfway down the page to scan for available cameras. After a few seconds, the list will be populated with available devices. From here, you just need to select the device you require in order to proceed. If the automatic search is unable to find the camera you are looking for, or the camera is not located on the same network, the IP address/Domain Name of the device can be entered manually.

Enter the IP address of the camera in the appropriate field. For the “Camera model name” field, you will need to specify the model of the camera being added. The default setting “auto” will attempt to automatically find it when the camera is accessed. However, you can also select the model name from the dropdown list.

vChain Camera

There is one special selection available in the “Camera model name” field. It is called “vChain” and is located at the bottom of the list. The vChain option allows you to use a camera registered to another STRATUS server. To do so, simply select the vChain option, and enter the IP address of the STRATUS

server where the camera is located rather than the IP address of the camera itself. Using this feature, you can have a camera that is only able to provide its video stream to a single recipient be registered on, and accessible from, multiple STRATUS servers.

URL Camera

If a camera is not among those officially supported by STRATUS, it can still be viewed through the system assuming you have the RTSP-URL of the video stream.

Selecting this option of camera type greatly simplifies the interface. In order to successfully register a camera using a URL, all you need to do is specify which Node the camera should be added to, and then provide the URL where the video stream is located. STRATUS will go to the specified address and pull the video stream for its own use.

You can then click the “Next” button.

The next screen will be a preview screen of the camera.

Preview

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Here you can give a name and location, as well as choose the resolution and media format to be used by the selected cameras.

A snapshot of the camera will be displayed. If the camera that you added has multiple video feeds available (such as with a multi-port encoder) each video feed will have a snapshot and you can choose which feed to use.

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If you are using a multi-node system, you can also choose which node to place the camera on. The system will attempt to place the camera on the system with the fewest cameras by round-robin.

Press Next.

Your system should now have minimal functionality. Please see Chapter 4, ​Advanced System Configuration for more configuration options.

Changing Your Password

The final step towards a complete basic setup of the system is to change the password for the “admin” account from the default to something a bit more secure. The passwords for every user in the system are managed through the STRATUS Control Panel interface. STRATUS offers two ways to modify a password: changing it or resetting it. Changing a password requires the user to provide the old password in addition to the new one. The reset option allows the user to set a temporary password that overrides the old one, but must be changed after first use. These procedures can be done by anyone who has access to an account with Administrative privileges, so it is important to keep your account information safe.

From the STRATUS Control Panel, navigate to Settings>Credentials>User Manager in the left-hand menu. This will open a screen similar to the one portrayed below.

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From this screen it is possible to add, delete, or modify user accounts for STRATUS. For now though, we will be focusing on changing the passwords. Select the “admin” account by clicking on it and hit the “Password” button. This will bring up a pop-up menu like the one seen in the image below.

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The two options visible here are the ones described in the opening paragraph of this section. Clicking on them expands a relevant menu, allowing you to enter the new password and provide the old one if necessary.

Since we know the current password for the “admin” account, click on the “Change Password” option. In the text boxes that appear, enter “topse” as the old password, and a new password that will satisfy the security requirements of STRATUS passwords.

In order to comply with security standards, STRATUS imposes the following requirements on any passwords being created:

• At least 6 characters long

• At least 1 uppercase letter

• At least 1 lowercase letter

• At least 1 number

• At least 1 symbol

Info

NOTE: Only one password change is allowed every 24 hours Sufficient diversity of the password (not one repeating letter) is required. Once you have entered a valid password, click “Save” to complete the action. If there is an issue with the password, a warning message will appear at the top-right corner. With these steps, the basic system setup is complete. The system can now be used to access the video being recorded by the camera, in both Live and Archive mode. In the next chapter we will cover the features and settings available in STRATUS which allow you to customize your system to suit your needs.

Chapter 4: Quick Start- Initial System Configuration Cameras

A camera's configuration page is divided into multiple tabs. On each tab there will be a box with a snapshot from the camera and a "Play" arrow to allow video to be played from that camera. The content of the tab is dependent on the make and model of the camera, but the most common attributes will be listed below.

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General Tab

Displays the state of the camera on the system. It includes information like name, model, and status. The Configuration Menu consists of a number of tabs; each one responsible for one area of configuration. The Menu will always open on the General Tab like the one in the image to the right.

Table 4.1​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

Source Tab

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The next tab in the list is the Source Tab. The settings found in this tab are primarily responsible for how the system will attempt to connect to the camera. As with the general tab, please refer to the table below for information about each setting found in this tab.

Table 4.2​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

Image Tab

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The Image Tab controls what type of video should be retrieved from the camera.

Table 4.3​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

PTZ Tab

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This tab will only contain the full set of options if the selected camera supports PTZ.

Table 4.4​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

If the camera is not PTZ-enabled, the PTZ Tab will look like the image below instead. Note that the two settings available also appear in the full list of settings.

¹Only used by Jemez analytics configuration.

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Now that we have covered all of the settings in this tab, lets take a closer look at the PTZ controls themselves. Click on the PTZ button to bring up the controls seen in the image below.

The first PTZ tab is where all of the controls for the camera position are located. At the very top is the Joystick that allows you to move the camera by dragging it in the direction you want the camera to go. This is great for moving the camera quickly into the general location that is needed. Use the arrows around the Joystick for more fine-tuned control. The arrows move the camera a single step in the directions they face. This is much more precise than the Joystick. Together, they allow you to utilize the camera's full range of motion.

Below are three further calibration options. The Iris control allows you to open or close the iris of the camera if the hardware allows for it. This controls how much light the camera receives, so it affects the brightness of the picture. If there is a glare from too much light in the picture, try closing the iris, and if the camera feed is too dark, open the iris more. As with the Joystick, the arrows offer an incremental increase or decrease and should be used for fine-tuning.

The Zoom control affects the zoom of the camera. Unlike the zoom option in the Workspace, this will affect the video stream that is archived as it physically changes the camera view. As with the Iris control, drag the drawn control or use the increment buttons to change this parameter.

Finally, there are two buttons that control the focus of the camera. If the video feed appears to be improperly focused, you can manually configure it from here.

Directly below these controls lies the Preset Position buttons. Each PTZ-enabled camera can have up to nine preset positions that it will remember. To activate one of them, all you need to do is click on the desired preset number, and the camera will move to that position. Additionally, these presets can also be used to order the camera to patrol the scene, shifting between the different presets every set number of seconds.

If you want to add a new Preset, simply face the camera in the desired position, then check the checkbox “Save Preset” below the Preset Position buttons. After this is done, click on one of the buttons to assign that position to that particular number. Note that the checkbox will become deselected to show that the command is complete.

The final button, at the bottom of this menu, allows you to create a list of presets for the camera to switch its views between. It also doubles as the selection point of which the PTZ tour is currently active if there are multiple cameras available.

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Click on the “PTZ tour” button. It will bring up the following menu.

If this is the first time you are accessing this menu for the camera, the dropdown will be empty, and the only option is the “NEW” button at the bottom of the panel. Click on it to bring up a PTZ Tour creation screen.

This menu allows you to create a new Tour by defining its name and the Presets through which it will cycle. In order to add a Preset into the Tour, select it from the list on the left and click on the right-arrow button. The Presets will maintain the order in which they were added as they appear on the right.

Each Preset will have a duration field which sets the time the camera will spend in the position of the Preset before moving on to the next one. Once the final Preset in the Tour is seen, the camera will cycle back to the beginning of the list, starting the Tour over. Once you have added all the Presets you want to include in this tour, hit the “Save Tour” button below.

The PTZ Tour is now saved and will appear in the dropdown list that was previously empty. Selecting it will change the PTZ Tour menu slightly.

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Note the previously empty box now displays the steps of the selected PTZ Tour. Additionally, there are two new options at the bottom of the panel. EDIT will return you to the same screen as NEW, allowing you to change the name of the Tour and the Presets within it. DELETE will remove the entire Tour.

Additionally, once a Tour is selected from the drop-down list, a “Play” icon appears directly to the right of it. This is how the PTZ Tour can be started. Once started, the icon will change to the “Pause” icon. Pressing it again will stop the tour, and the camera will remain on the last Preset viewed.

It is still possible to manually move the camera while a PTZ Tour is active. Simply click on the screen as before or use the PTZ controls. When there is no further input from the user, the camera will default back to the PTZ Tour settings.

Storage Tab

Next up is the Storage Tab.

Table 4.5​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

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The Storage Utilization Chart should look similar to the one seen above. As you can see, it displays the amount of drive space currently being taken up by the recordings from the device. There are two possible states for the data depending on the Storage Policy being currently used by the device. Yellow signifies that the data may be written over if the system suddenly needs more space. This means that the data will be available for as long as possible, but could be recycled at any moment. On the other hand, any data colored in green will be kept for as long as it retains that state. Please refer to the Storage Policies section for more information.

Schedule Tab

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The Schedule Tab allows you to set which schedule the camera should be subscribed to, if any.

Table 4.6 below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

The next tab on the list allows you to set a schedule for the operation of the device. You must have already configured a Schedule before you are able to assign it to a camera. To do so, simply select the desired Schedule from the dropdown list and hit Apply to save your changes. Please refer to the Schedule Manager section in the next Chapter for more information.

VAE Tab

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The VAE Tab, or Video Analytics Engine Tab, allows you to select and configure Analytics that will be used with the camera. By default, the tab will look exactly like the image above. Further options will be unavailable until you turn on the base functionality, which will then expand based on your choices. STRATUS offers a number of different Analytics Engines that could be used with your devices. Motion Detection comes with the STRATUS system, while the other features require separate licenses in order to use them. Motion Detection does not require a separate license to run, so this feature will be covered by a later section in this Manual. You can find the steps for activating and calibrating the other Analytics Engines in their respective Manuals.

Camera Motion Detection

STRATUS has multiple options for camera motion detection. They are all configured in the “Motion” tab of the camera editor under the “Motion Detection Engine” parameter.

Upon camera creation, the default value is set to “OFF” to limit unwanted event creation. Until calibrated, motion detection uses simple default settings that will not be tuned for the scene the camera is looking at.

If you want the camera to utilize some sort of Motion Detection, you will have to use one of the following Values:

• “ON” STRATUS internal (software) Motion Detector will be used (advantages: any camera may use it, very flexible configuration options; drawback: additional load on server CPU, which is fairly moderate).

• “External”- camera’s internal (“external to STRATUS”) motion detector will be used. This option works for Axis cameras only and allows the use of the camera's software motion detector.

• For STRATUS internal software Motion Detector, a special “Calibration” utility is provided, which is opened by clicking on the “Calibrate” button.

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Here, the real picture is presented to the Administrator, which receives an update every second with a fresh image and additional information transmitted directly from the Motion Detector. The algorithm is based on Background Subtraction and will detect changes in subsequent video frames with special provisions to ignore “normal” background changes.

The Calibrator screen shows partial detections as white dots on the top of the image, and you will notice that even perfectly still video will have these white dots around sharp edges or lines, which is attributed to the “Pixel Noise.” The Calibrator allows you to adjust the algorithm sensitivity to Pixel Noise based on a visual assessment in real time, which simplifies camera calibration to a particular scene and lighting condition. Normally, some Pixel Noise should be present (to make sure you did not set the threshold too high and ignore “real action”), but the amount of noise on the previous picture is slightly excessive.

The picture in the Calibrator is subdivided into Cells which analyze the number of pixels with detections to determine if a Cell has motion or not. The second control in the Calibrator (“Cell Noise”) is utilized to adjust Detector Sensitivity to reliably detect motions and disregard Pixel Noise. To facilitate the visual calibration process, cells will be painted green/yellow/red depending on the trigger threshold for the Cell Noise, where “red” depicts that “motion was detected in the cell condition, “yellow” is “very close”, and “green” is “some motion is present, but relatively low”. A Properly calibrated camera may show some “green” cells for non-moving areas, but should not have any “yellow” or “red”, while any small motion should reliably fire “red” detections.

The “Cell Noise” parameter is very important for the “STD Motions and Events” Storage Policy as it determines the “Cell Trigger” point which is used to decide if video should be recorded or discarded. Use “exclusion zones” to mask any areas of video where constant unwanted motion occurs (like waving trees in windows, water, etc..)

The “Object Size” parameter allows you to discriminate between targets based on their size in Cells. In ​Figure 4.15​, “Motion Detection Calibration,” a setting of 10 is sufficient to detect a person; even if they are only slightly in the frame, while disqualifying normal levels of "noise". When such a detection happens, a red border flashes around entire picture to display detection.

By default, the entire video area is INCLUDED, but the Administrator/Installer may elect to exclude any arbitrary number of Cells from the analysis to safeguard against unwanted detections (like trees waving in windows, drops of rain, etc..)

All the scenarios described above function as “what if?” controls. They do not introduce changes until you click on the “Save” button.

GEO Tab

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The STRATUS Operator Interface allows the use map to visualize cameras and Events as well as work with Live Video and PTZ operations. This functionality will be enabled automatically once the Administrator GEO calibrates one or more of the cameras.

This tab is responsible for calibrating the camera with the Map feature. By default, this will be disabled and the tab should look similar to the image above. Figure 4.16 The GEO Tab

There are two options to calibrate your camera on the map: Static and Dynamic.

Static calibration can be used to show the camera location on the map. Dynamic calibration is optional and can be used if you have your camera installed on a vehicle with STRATUS/Avatar. GPS communication is required to utilize this feature.

Geo Calibration Editor

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To calibrate a camera you must open the camera settings editor and go to the “GEO” tab:

Table 4.7​ below explains the significance of each individual setting found in this tab.

If the camera has already been calibrated you will see the map centered on the current camera position. Otherwise, you will have to switch the “GEO-calibration” parameter to “YES”, and select a camera position while navigating through the map. To place (or relocate) the camera, click on the camera icon in the legend and then click on the map in the location where the camera is to be placed. Click “Save” to accept the change.

The GEO-calibration procedure has a second (optional) part relevant to PTZ cameras, which allows users to calibrate the camera's pan and tilt offsets for “slew” operation when receiving targets from a radar (or other type of device) providing GEO-coordinates for the targets. This functionality is available for integration through API and needs to be mapped to a particular targeting device such as radar.

To perform PTZ calibration, click the target icon in the legend then place the target over some distinct marker in the surrounding area (such as a pole, building corner, etc.) Open the video either by clicking on the camera icon or on the “play” icon in the video snapshot in the camera settings section.

It will attempt to center the camera over your marker object, but it will most likely be significantly off the marker since the settings are not yet correct. Now you have to use the ruler and up/down arrows (displayed above the map) to visually center the camera on your marker's projection to the ground. The ruler allows you to pan the camera left or right on every click of the mouse the number of degrees shown at the position of the click.

Once you are satisfied with camera alignment over the marker, move the target to another marker and confirm calibration accuracy. You might need to do minor adjustments to get reasonable accuracy.

Click “Save” to accept changes.

The Administrator may also upload KMZ/KML models for multiple buildings and/or floors into Map3D and place cameras and Access Control objects into these models. Go to Settings>Identity>Mapping>Map Configuration in the STRATUS Control Panel menu to open the relevant management screen.

Map Configuration

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3D models are created using the popular Google SketchUp Pro software, which allows you to define your own 3-dimensional model[s] or to import AutoCAD drawings. To create multi-layer (multi floor) scenes, you need to export the model in a series of floors and upload them individually.

The device editor (see above) in the Control Panel allows the Administrator to associate camera/sensor/etc. to models uploaded and managed with “3D mapping scene and models setup”.

The Operator is able to visualize these model[s] and associated cameras and objects, while slicing building[s] for convenient scene visualization.

Camera GEO Placement Tool

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Figure 4.19 Camera GEO Placement Tool

Figure 4.19 Camera GEO Placement Tool You use this tool to help calibrate the cameras’ position on the map. Pressing the ‘place camera’ button, then clicking the map, will place that camera at the selected position (in terms of latitude/longitude).

For PTZ cameras, you can also use the ‘place marker’ button to create targets for the camera to attempt to look at. After placing a marker, you will need to use the ‘North Offset’ and ‘Tilt’ controls above the map until the camera is actually pointing at the marker you placed. This will calibrate the ‘north offset’ and ‘altitude’ parameters for the camera.

For non-PTZ cameras, you press the button to create a target, click on the video, then click on the map area corresponding to the location clicked in the video. You will need to create at least 4 of these calibration points. This will configure the camera’s north offset, altitude, tilt, and field of view parameters (FOV). This will allow the camera to generate map targets via video analytics.

Sets Tab

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The Set tab allows you to assign the camera to any number of user sets (or none). Check the box next to any set you want the camera to be in. You can find more information about Set management in the section called “Users, Roles, and Management.”

Audit Tab

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The Audit tab lists activity with regards to this particular camera. For more information about the Audit log, see the section called “The Audit Log”.

The option "Show User Activity" will show when a user requested live video, archive video (including the time period of the archive), or controlled the camera's PTZ. Most entries can be expanded to give more information. For example, if you expand any User entry, you will see what IP address the user connected from. As another example, if you expand a "camera health" update, you will see what state the camera was in before.

The log is broken into multiple pages. The first page will show the newest entries. If you need to view older entries than are shown on your page, you can enter an arbitrary page, or click "Next" or "Prev" until you find the correct page.

STRATUS System Maintenance

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Configuration Backups

The STRATUS system automatically creates backups every day and users can manually create a system backup as well.

You can also Upload your system backup and restore your original system configuration from your backup file.

Support Files

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STRATUS is able to gather all information regarding system health and performance into the support file. You can download this file and send it to our videoNEXT support portal for troubleshooting purposes.

The Audit Log

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The Audit Log records what happens with each device on the system, who changed which settings (if any), who accessed video streams, who controlled the PTZ, how the health of each camera has changed, etc.

The Audit Log can be accessed from two places. You can access each camera’s audit log in the configuration settings of that camera, or you can view all devices in Maintenance>Audit Log.

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If viewed from the Audit Log page, there are many ways that you can filter the Audit Log:

• filter based on the time interval, setting which Start and End times to search for

• filter based on the Category of the log

• filter based on the User of the log

• filter based on the Device recorded in the log

You can set the Start and End Intervals to filter based on time.

Configuration Report

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The Configuration Report checks the status of all the configurations within STRATUS. When entering this section press the “Create Report” button to generate the report. It will then display the progress of each configuration.

Reports

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The Reports section gives the user detailed reports about each device based on selected criteria. The user files the form in this order: Report Type > Period > Detailed (for more details) > Select Cameras. After making all the desired selections the user presses “Submit to finalize the report.

A report will generate and may be exported to Excel, CSV, or printed.

Software Updates

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In the Software Updates section the user can run system updates by choosing RPM files from their directory.

Email-On-Events

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The system can be configured to send notification emails when events are generated. Each user can have an associated email address where event notifications will be sent to, and each device set can be configured to send events (or not) to all users of a particular Role.

To configure a user to receive email alerts on events:

1. Log into the web interface as an admin user and enter the Control Panel.

2. Choose Settings>Credentials>User Manager, click on "Add," and set an email address for the User.

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You can also set an email interval to define how often the user will receive emails.

3. Under Credentials>Role Manager, find a role that is assigned to the user that is to receive emails. In each device set for which you want emails generated, click the "Email-on-Event" check-box.

All devices in this set will send emails on alerts to all users in this Role.

Setup the SMTP server

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The STRATUS system cannot send emails directly. Instead, it sends emails using an existing email account. This email account must allow for SMTP POP3 access.

1. Go to Settings>Customize system>Email Configuration.

2. Provide the SMTP server (such as smtp.gmx.com).

3. Provide credentials for the email account the STRATUS server should send emails from.

4. Change the "Run Status" to YES.

5. (Optional) Create a test event to verify that the setup is working correctly.

Configuring DNS, NAT, and Firewall

The first step to make your STRATUS system operational in a NAT/Firewall environment is to configure your STRATUS server[s] to work properly with the DNS. If you do so, your nodes’ names will appear by their real host names in the Control Panel “Nodes” list.

Host names will be preserved from the client side when addressing servers, while the domain suffix can change when addressing the server from inside or outside the NAT/Firewall. For example, the host(s) may be addressed from inside as “alpha.local.lan”/”beta.local.lan,” while they may be visible as “alpha.corp.company.net”/“beta.corp.company.net” from the outside. Both external names may be resolved to the same external IP address, but both names should be resolvable by the DNS to their individual servers or video streaming from other non-master nodes will not work.

A firewall should be configured to have port 80 (HTTP) and 10000 (STRATUS messaging) to accept incoming connections from outside the NAT/Firewall. Both of these connections are over TCP.

In addition, each node's Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) port (which can be found in the “Node Info” screen of a particular node) should accept connections from the outside using UDP. In multi-node configurations, STRATUS allocates the RTSP ports for its nodes with a five-port “pitch” starting from port 8554 (e.g. 8554, 8559, etc.) The pitch makes it possible to use one external IP address for multiple nodes, which are accessible through the RTSP from outside the NAT/Firewall. This is specifically done to avoid using Port Address Translation (PAT), which is problematic in some routers.

Users, Roles, and Management

The STRATUS Credentials Management system consists of four layers:

• Resources (cameras, sensors, etc..)

• Sets (resources grouped together)

• Roles (coordinated collections of Sets and Permissions)

• Users

Resources are assigned to Sets, while Users and Sets are assigned to Roles (with privileges). A single resource may exist in multiple Sets, and a single Set may be assigned to multiple Roles (possibly with different permissions per Role). A Role can have multiple Users assigned to it, and a User may also belong to multiple Roles.

To avoid over-complicated configurations as the system grows, STRATUS does not allow individual resources to be assigned directly to Users. Resources will always have to be assigned through Roles and Sets, even if a “flat” configuration is required.

User Access and Permissions

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The illustration below provides a “big view” on how credentials are managed in STRATUS.

Here, in a simplified form, you see the most important concepts behind the Credentials Manager: Resources, Sets, Roles and Users.

Resources are the actual Devices with which Users will interact: Cameras, Sensors, Control Devices, Video Walls, etc. The same approach is taken when using the Operator Matrix or the Control Panel user interfaces.

The Operator Matrix is automatically associated with any Admin-created Role, while the Control Panel is granted only through the system-managed Admin Role. This also provides access to the system maintained standard “All Cameras”/“All Sensors”/etc. Sets, which cannot be edited.

Sets provide an aggregation method for presenting the Resources in uniform pools managed together in the Operator Matrix User Interface. Resources are aggregated into Sets, then proper Permissions are granted for the entire set on the [next] Role level.

One Role may combine one or more Sets, and similarly one Set may be used in multiple Roles. This provides a flexible mechanism of reusing aggregations when creating combinations of Resource Sets and Permissions for a particular Role. Since it is possible that one device may be published via two different Sets, which may be presented to the Role with different Permission levels, the final Operator Matrix User Interface will consolidate and use a superset of granted Permissions for a consistent user Experience.

Users provide an entity to map a real-world person into a virtual object in the software, which has one or more Roles granted to perform manipulation with STRATUS objects in one or more User Interfaces.

If a User is granted more than one Role, he/she will have to select or choose their Active Role, but only one Role can be active at any moment in time. This is needed to guarantee uniformity among multiple Users who share the same Role, and it accommodates for real-life scenarios like a “temporary substitute” or “working in time-shifts.”

Resources and Sets Management

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