Slow frames and constant network camera offline

[dawn]

Icam monitor has everything I want.  When I first bought it, the only cameras I had were the web cams on my macbook pro and 2 iphone 5s that had iCam Source apps on them.  I was able to monitor all three camera and see the recorded motion events from my iphone 6+.  Perfect for what I want out of a surveillance system.

Then my Wansview wireless lan cameras were added to the mix (the iphones didn't have enough battery power for permanent use and wanted night vision.)  It has been very difficult for me to get them to work with the icam monitor system.  I had to have help from someone who had already had success with his system.  He showed me how to use a Windows computer to set them up and find the necessary IP addresses and MAC addresses to set it up.  After several hours of trying, I can now see the cameras on the computer ( Macbook Pro running Snow Leopard) and my iphone 6+, but here are the problems:

1. The live video is very delayed and slow.  It is only a frame per 3-8 seconds.  If someone walks briskly across the room they are not even detected.  The same problem with the recorded events.  They are very spread out and are 8-15 seconds apart.  Not like it was before the Wansview cameras were added.  Note:  I have another app running on my phone that came with the cameras.  It is called iSmartViewPro.  It was free and has a great quality live feed video.  It doesn't have the recorded motion events options that I can access quickly from my phone.  Instead, it has an alarm feature that can be set up to send video files to email, or just saved on a hard drive to be viewed later.   I don't have time for all that.  I like being able to access the motion detected and able to turn it on and off via the app on my phone.  But.... the iSmartViewPro app has almost perfect live feed with only a very little delay and I estimate it to show 4 or more frames per second in real time.

2. The icam app continually has the error screen, Network Camera Offline.  One of the cameras has this screen recorded every hour.  When looking at the recorded motion events, there was this screen every hour at the :28 minute.  Like 4:28, 5:28, 6:28...  With the recorded time showing, the camera is off line anywhere from 2-15 minutes.  This camera is in my husbands shop, far from any other wifi airport access other than the one in the shop.  The house camera goes off line much more with no trend.  It stays off for 5-30 minutes.  It goes off line 4-6 times an hour.    The webcam on the macbook pro that is running the icam program doesn't ever give the network camera offine screen, but many times will not show because the program give the error box that no icam sources are detected even though the other app shows the live feed with no lag.

I really want to use icam because with my friend's success and what I saw of the program before I got the wifi cameras, the program is perfect for the reasons stated before.. But the problems listed make it very hard to use this app and program. 

Any suggestions will be appreciated.  I have looked for hours on your topics and the web to find something to help this.

Dawn

Some information about my network: I have Comcast internet and have had no problems with speed.  I have an Airport Tower as the first of 5 airport wifi access points.  I have this many because the shape of our 3500 square ft house and also for our pool area and my husband's shop located beyond the pool area.  I kept adding Airport expresses when a certain area had low connection.  2 of the Airport expresses are connected to speakers for Airplay.  I have been told that the number of wifi access points may cause connection confusion with wifi cameras, but not sure about a solution that will still allow seamless transfer for mobile devices.  I do have the Airport Extreme connected with ethernet to the Airport Tower(bridged.) T

[OUAnthony]

One possibility (and the easiest to test) is that your computer is struggling to keep up with all of your cameras. To test it, first check the processor usage percentage for icamsource. My computer monitors 4 cameras and uses around 20% of the processing power (on average). If it's a much higher percentage, icamsource is having a hard time processing all of the video streams. There is a way to modify the camera feed links so that icamsource only pulls a few frames per second per camera (instead of the 30fps offered up by the camera). I changed mine to pull only 2-5fps per camera...so now icamsource is only analyzing/resizing/transmitting 2-5 pictures per camera per second instead of 30 pictures per camera per second...MUCH easier task! Try using the search box in this forum to find out how to limit the fps (frames per second) by changing the camera feed URL/link.

It could also be related to your network configuration, as it sounds complex. Have you tried either checking or unchecking the auto config router box in icamsource? If so, is there any change in behavior while your viewing device is connected to your home WiFi? Any change in behavior when your viewing device is using cellular data (disconnected from WiFi)?

Personally, I've had rock-solid stability with my setup by assigning all cameras and the computer running icamsource a static IP address in the devices' settings page...and I also enabled manual port forwarding in icamsource and set up port forwarding rules in the router. And, as mentioned before, I modified the camera feed links to limit the frames per second. The only time I ever have issues is when I run other processor-intensive software (video editing software, games, etc) that prevent icamsource from doing its job. Beyond those rare self-caused problems, I have 99.99% uptime.

[SKJM Support]

dawn is also receiving support via email.

[dawn]

Thank you for your suggestions.  I will check my computer's processor this evening.  I am also switching icam source on my MacBook pro to JPEG to see if that helps with the camera going off line to icam per a suggestion from skjm support.  I will keep you posted.  And I just got another Wansview camera, this one is a PTZ so I hope I can get that one set up.

Do you know if all the other IP addresses start with 10.#.##... If this new camera must start with the same?  It starts with 192.#. I think I remember changing the other cameras to match the 10.# wig the different last number of course.

Yes I do have the cameras with static IP addresses but my computers may not so I will check into that.

[OUAnthony]

Yes, the first 3 sets of numbers need to be the same for all devices on your network (cameras, computers, etc)...so if it came with a static IP address already assigned (192.#.#.#), you will need to change it.

[dawn]

Thank you.  I am just about to check my macbook pro's processor speed.  When I changed the icam source preferences to jpeg from mjpeg, it seemed to help but I am still getting the screen on my motion detection recordings that the cameras are going offline at least 4 times an hour and sometimes staying off 15 minutes.  After monitoring the computer processor usage percentage for iCamSource for a few minutes, I saw the percentage go from 38% up to over 80%.  This is just with 2 Wansview outdoor cameras and the macbook pro's web cam.  So from what you explained, I will need to change the fps on the cameras.   I will look into the cameras' preferences to check how to do that.

Do you have different access points in your home for your wifi network?  I have been told that I should change the name on each of these access points so the camera can be connected to one and not jump over to another one that may overlap that area near the wifi camera.  I am confused about if this means changing the wireless network name.  That means I will have different networks for each zone in my home network.  Won't that cause interruptions to mobile devices traveling around my wifi area?  I have Apple Airports and I have them set up with excellent -good quality on most everything that connects through them.  I have heard that too many can cause confusion so maybe that is my issue.    I connected my house Wansview camera via ethernet to my airport extreme, but it was still disconnecting continuously throughout the day.  I wonder if I should have turned off the wifi in the camera's preferences.   

[OUAnthony]

Dealing with multiple routers/access points can be a real pain. There are multiple configurations possible, and I'm not personally familiar with Apple networking. My guess (and it is only a guess) is that your network is configured properly because everything is working (with the exception of icamsource, which I believe is likely a processing power issue...not a network issue). Once you modify the camera feed URLs (in icamsource) for the network cameras so that they are pulling between 2 and 5 frames per second (icamsource won't record more than 2-3 per second, so it's kinda pointless to exceed this), you should notice your processor usage drop significantly. With that being said, it might still be relatively high because you are also using the built-in webcam. You can't limit the frame rate of webcams...and if it's a HD-camera, icamsource is having to do a ton of work to resize each of the images (30/second) to 640x480 so that it's compatible with iCam. icamsource is constantly resizing images, comparing the current image to the previous one to see if there's a significant change (i.e. motion), etc. The more pictures/frames it has to analyze and the bigger the picture from the camera, the more it has to work. I used to use a webcam, but monitoring it alone was using 20%+ of my processor. I now monitor 4 network cameras and it uses 20% total for all of them. If I can find the post that explains how to modify the camera feed URL, I will post it.

A side benefit of lowering the FPS from the network cameras is that your network might feel a bit faster and it might be more stable. Some routers choke under the constant stream of wireless data from the cameras...but it sounds like yours are performing well, which is great.

[OUAnthony]

SKJM posted the following in regards to a FOSCAM camera. Wansview looks like a FOSCAM knockoff, so this should work for them as well. If this doesn't work, you can likely change the frame rate in the camera's settings.





You can adjust the frame rate of a Foscam camera by adding a parameter to the URL (in icamsource).

http://x.x.x.x/video.cgi?rate=<PARAM>

<PARAM> can be a value between 0 and 23, and each value corresponds to:

0:maximum
1:20 fps
3:15 fps
6:10 fps
1:5 fps
12:4 fps
13:3 fps
14:2 fps
15:1 fps
17:1 fp/2s
19:1 fp/3s
21:1 fp/4s
23:1 fp/5s

So to connect to the camera at 2 fps, you would use http://x.x.x.x/video.cgi?rate=14 … or to connect at 5 fps, you would use http://x.x.x.x/video.cgi?rate=11

The framerate should be between 1 and 5 fps.

[dawn]

Thank you for the information.  I was able to adjust the fps in the camera by going to the IP address on line.  On the first page next to the camera view was the adjustment and just as you said, it was set to 30.  I moved it down to 5, but iCamSource's processor percentage was still at around 39 most the time with all 3 cameras set to 5fps.  It is probably the webcam on the macbookpro.  It is not a great picture anyway without really good light, so I will delete it as an iCamsource. 

I do think the multiple access points are an issue for this reason:  Sometimes iCam app on my iPhone shows 2-3 thumbnail videos from the same camera.  Don't you agree, this may be the multiple access points that the camera is reaching sending the same video-motion detection snapshots to iCam. 

Oh and thanks for the info about the IP address.  When I changed the new Wansview PZT camera's IP address to match my network's first 3 numbers, it connects easily(although a blurry picture was disappointing.)

One other thing I noticed, but not sure what it proves: Both the inside Wansview cameras (in the same room while I problem solve) went off line at exactly the same time and for 4 hours this morning; they went off at 20 minutes past the hour.  For example, I had the Offline Screen recorded at 8:40, 9:40, 10:40, and 11:40.  It's like what ever is causing it runs in an hour cycle.

[OUAnthony]

Hmmm, your MacBook Pro isn't going to sleep is it???

[dawn]

That could be but wouldn't the webcam camera have stopped too?  I mean, I didn't ever see the webcam motion recorded shots stop connecting with the camera disconnected screen.

[OUAnthony]

It could be that the energy saving feature is switching off the wireless network card (WiFi), which would cause you to lose connection to the network cameras, but not the USB camera...at least in terms of recording motion events. Are you unable to connect to iCam (on your phone/iPad) and view all of the cameras during these times when the network cameras are offline? If so, that would confirm that your computer is turning off WiFi to save energy.

[dawn]

I have been able to access the working cameras with the iSmartViewPro app after checking to see the iCam app has a camera down.  One of the cameras is down more than the other.  Occasionally, the iSmartViewPro app will not be able to connect to one or the other camera, but not as much as the iCam app.  Also today, the new camera went off the same minute in the hour for 5 hours again.  The other camera in the living room was off line from both apps most of the day.  I am going to move that camera outside and reset it because it has been having troubles more than any of them.  It may be the placement.

Tomorrow, I hope to rename each of my wifi access points and assign the cameras to a specific one.

What do you think about 2-3 views coming up on the icam app.  It's like double or triple vision.

[OUAnthony]

When I had double-vision, it was because I lost Internet connection (when rebooting modem or router)...and it only lasted for a few minutes. iCam uses a broker server to assist in making the network connection between your phone and your computer running icamsource...so when a connection is lost/re-established, it seems as if it takes a few minutes before it purges the older connection data or something...resulting in the double-vision. At least that's my theory.

Now that you say that the other app is also unable to view the cameras (occasionally), I'm guessing that some/all of your problems are caused by your complex network setup and/or the strength of wireless connection between the access points and the cameras. Most network cameras (especially the cheaper ones) have relatively poor wireless range. If I remember correctly, I read some reviews of some cheaper network cameras and some people were saying that they had WiFi connection problems even with the camera sitting within feet of the wireless router/access point. Combine a poor connection with a constant stream of data, and you're going to notice interruptions frequently. I hard-wired all of my cameras so I wouldn't have to worry about wireless performance. Also, the constant stream of data over wireless generates more heat than a hard-wired connection does...which could make cameras more prone to freezing up and requiring a reboot. And as I said before, the same can happen to the wireless router (some are much more prone to overheating than others).

If I were you, I would consider running a test with a much more simple setup...one router connected directly to the Internet...your computer (running icamsource) connected to that router, and one network camera connected (wired) to that router. See if it works. If no issues, add another camera to the router (preferably the one that tends to lose connection the most often)...wireless connection for this one, approximately the same distance it would be from an access point when installed. Test the system again and look for problems. If all is good, add an access point and connect another network camera to the access point (wireless) and test the system. If issues arise at this point, then it's likely the configuration of your network (router and/or access point) that needs work. If the issue presented before the access point and 3rd camera were added, then your issue is likely the crappy wireless networking capabilities of your cameras. If all is good after adding the access point and 3rd camera, add a 2nd access point and connect a 4th camera to it. If possible, you do probably want to make sure that the cameras are connecting to one specific access point and not bouncing between two.

[dawn]

That sounds like a good plan of problem-solving action!!!!  I may have to wait a while to try this until I have a couple of hours to take my time to observe the results. 

Today, I saw less of the offline screen, which I think may be because I lowered the FPS on each of them and I deleted the webcam as a camera. 

Through the night, all 3 cameras went off every hour at the same minute.  1:08, 2:08...  I think that is peculiar and must mean something.  I will check again to see if it may be the macbook pro, but I remember setting the preferences of the computer to NEVER go to sleep.

I will keep you updated as I try the suggestions you have provided.  I appreciate you time and expertise.