How to Set up Your Network Surveillance System in 1 Hour

Traditional analog surveillance system may seem too mysterious and high to reach for general home and small office users. The wiring is difficult and costly; monitoring and management cannot be done remotely. As IP cameras are prevalent in the security market, remote monitoring has become feasible. However, few systems are available for managing multiple IP cameras at the same time. Now, QNAP introduces NVR-101 network surveillance system to provide a new choice for modern home and small office.

NVR-101 is the new generation modern surveillance system which supports monitoring and management of different IP camera brands and integrates versatile advanced recording modes. It is easy to install and set up. The monitoring, configuration, and playback can all be done remotely by IE browser from any computers connected to the network. The NVR also enables concurrent monitoring of up to four IP cameras on a single web interface. Users can also control the direction of the PTZ camera for convenient monitoring. What's more, time stamp is provided on the recording video. Different advanced alarm notifications are provided. It is a professional surveillance system that home and small office can easily attain.

This article demonstrates a how-to guide to set up an NVR system at home. Simple follow the steps below. You should be able to set up your home surveillance system in an hour!

Our installation strategy is as below:

A. Plan your home network topology
B. Set up IP Camera
C. Set up NVR and the recording modes
D. Configure your NAT router (for remote monitoring over the Internet)

NVR-101 supports versatile IP camera brands. To enable users to set up a surveillance system more conveniently, QNAP has released an NVR-1012 package which includes an NVR-101 and two value-plus IP cameras. The cameras support wireless network connection to simplify wiring and setup, two-way audio recording and audio broadcast, and remote monitoring by 3GPP handset.

The ICS-1013 IP camera is used with NVR-101 in this example. Now, let's start to set up our network surveillance system and see if it's done in an hour.

A. Plan your home network topology

Write down your plan of the home network before starting to set up the surveillance system. Consider the following when doing so:

1. The IP address of NVR
2. The IP address of the cameras
3. The IP address of your router and the wireless SSID

Your computer, NVR, and the IP cameras should be installed to the same router in LAN. Assign fixed IP addresses for the NVR and the IP cameras. In my example,

• The LAN IP of the home router: 192.168.1.100
• Camera 1 IP: 192.168.1.10 (fixed IP)
• Camera 2 IP: 192.168.1.20 (fixed IP)
• NVR IP: 192.168.1.60 (fixed IP)

Let's continue to finish the network settings.

B. Set up IP Camera

Configure the IP address of the two IP cameras by the following steps.

1. Take out the CD-ROM from the camera package and install IPFinder.
   IPFinder is a utility that helps you search the IP address of the ICS-1013 camera. A user manual is included in the package. You can refer to the manual or the Advanced Guide in the CD-ROM for the operation of the camera.
   
2. Configure the IP address of the cameras
   Connect the ICS-1013 IP Camera to your home network with a network cable; run IPFinder. Set the IP address of the cameras so that they are in the same LAN as the computer. You will then be able to login the configuration page of the camera with IE browser. Enter the IP address of the first camera as 192.168.1.10. The default gateway should be set as the LAN IP of the router (192.168.1.100 in our example).
   • The default IP of ICS-1013 Camera: 192.168.0.30
   • The default login name and password of ICS-1013 camera are admin/ admin
   
3. Enter the web configuration page of the IP camera
   The first time you access the configuration page by IE browser, remember to install the ActiveX control. You will then be able to view the monitoring image.
   
   
4. Go to "Network/ Network" and check the IP settings you have just set.
   
   Next, go to "Network/Wireless" and configure the wireless setting of the camera. You can use the Site Survey function to search the wireless SSID at home. Apply the settings and wait for the restart. The camera's settings are done.
   
   Repeat the above steps to set up the second camera.
   To summarize, you have finished the following settings by now:
   • Camera 1 IP: 192.168.1.10 and wireless network settings
   • Camera 2 IP: 192.168.1.20 and wireless network settings

Tip: What if I forget the camera settings?
Press the reset button at the back of the camera for 5 to 10 seconds. The camera settings will be restored to default. You can then set the IP address and login the camera's configuration page by the default login name and password (admin/ admin).

C. Set up NVR-101

Read the Quick Installation Guide carefully to install a hard drive in NVR. Then connect the NVR to the network and run QNAP Finder.

1. Install and configure NVR-101
   Connect NVR-101 to the home network. The first time you run Finder, it will guide you through the installation of NVR-101. You can finish the set up in 6 steps!
   • The default network settings of NVR-101 is DHCP
   • The default login name and password of NVR-101: administrator/ admin
   
   In the configuration process, assign a fixed IP to NVR: 192.168.1.60. The default gateway should be the same as the LAN IP of your router, which is 192.168.1.100 in our example.
   
   Next, enter the IP address of the two IP cameras. Camera 1: 192.168.1.10, Camera 2: 192.168.1.20. After the configuration, wait for the NVR to restart. You can then login NVR.
   
2. Login the configuration page of NVR
   Double click the NVR-101 name on QNAP Finder or enter the IP address http://192.168.1.60/ in the IE browser. You will be able to access the configuration page of the NVR.
   The web-based configuration page of NVR consists of the following components:
   (1) Monitoring page
   (2) System settings page
   (3) Playback page
   The first time you access NVR via IE browser, the monitoring page will be shown. You have to install the ActiveX and NVR-101 will install the playback software for your computer automatically. After that, you will be able to monitor the images of Camera 1 and Camera 2 on the monitoring page.
   
   When you click on the monitoring screen of a camera, the frame will become orange. You can use the buttons on the right panel to control the camera.
   
   For example, you can take a snapshot of the monitoring image, enable or disable manual recording, enable or disable audio function of the camera, use audio broadcast function, or enter the camera's configuration page.
3. Configure the recording mode of the camera
   Enter the system settings page and go to "Camera Settings".
   In my example,
   • The Camera 1 is installed in the sitting room and I select continuous recording.
   • The Camera 2 is installed near the window. I want to enable recording automatically only when moving object is detected. I'd also like to enable alarm recording from Monday to Friday only.
   In "Camera Settings/ Camera Configuration" page, I've enabled recording function for Camera 1. Continuous recording is then enabled.
   
   Next, in "Camera Settings/ Recording Settings", I selected "QVGA" for resolution and 10 frames per second for the frame rate. The audio recording is also enabled.
   
   For Camera 2, go to "Camera Settings/ Camera Configuration" and select the camera. I did not enable recording function. Instead, go to "Camera Settings/ Alarm Settings" page and enable alarm recording. Then select "Weekdays" and "All day" for the recording schedule.
   
   Apply the changes and you've finished the settings of the NVR!

D. Configure your NAT router (for remote monitoring over the Internet)

To view the monitoring video and access the NVR system remotely, you need to change the network settings by forwarding different ports to the corresponding LAN IP on your NAT router.

(1) Change the port settings of NVR and IP cameras

• The default HTTP port of NVR-101 is 80. As this port is being used by the Web Server function of a NAS at home, I changed the port to 8000. Therefore, I've to access NVR via http://NVR IP:8000 after applying the settings.
  
• The audio, image, and control signals of ICS1013 camera all use the same HTTP port, which is 80. I plan to change the port of Camera 1 to 81 and that of Camera 2 to 82. Remember to write down the RTSP port so that you can use a 3G handset to view the monitoring image remotely.

Go to the network settings page of ICS1013 camera. Change the HTTP port of Camera 1 from 80 to 81. Then change the port for Camera 2 from 80 to 82.

Then go the "Camera Settings/ Camera Configuration" page of NVR. Enter the port numbers of Camera 1 and Camera 2 as 192.168.1.10 port 81 and 192.168.1.20 port 82 respectively. Enter the login name and password for both cameras. After finishing the settings, click "Test" to ensure successful connection to the cameras.

Besides, please input the WAN IP address (or your domain address in public network, e.g. MyNVR.dyndns.org) and the port on the WAN side for the connection from Internet.

(2) Port Forwarding
Go to the configuration page of your router and configure the port forwarding as below:

• Forward Port 8000 to NVR's LAN IP: 192.168.1.60
• Forward Port 81 to Camera 1's LAN IP: 192.168.1.10
• Forward Port 82 to Camera 2's LAN IP: 192.168.1.20

Note: When you change the port settings, make sure remote access is allowed. For example, if you office network blocks port 8000, you will not be able to access your home NVR from the office.

Note: If you don't want to change the default HTTP port 80 of the camera, you can also set up by this way.

And the corresponding settings on NVR and port-forwarding settings on NAT router should be:

Please input the WAN IP address (or your domain address in public network, e.g. MyNVR.dyndns.org) and the port on the WAN side for the connection from Internet.

• Forward WAN Port 8000 to NVR's LAN IP: 192.168.1.60 and port 80
• Forward WAN Port 81 to Camera 1's LAN IP: 192.168.1.10 and port 80
• Forward WAN Port 82 to Camera 2's LAN IP: 192.168.1.20 and port 80

For the port forwarding settings of different router brands, please refer to http://portforward.com or the user manuals of the routers.

(3) DDNS
Enter your DDNS account information on the NAT router. You can then access the NVR at home remotely using the DDNS name, e.g. http://My-NVR.dyndns.org:8000.