Wireless Networking, Wireless Bridges, Wireless How-Tos and more

When the Swedish national railway began major construction of the Malmo CityTunnel Project in 2005, workplace security was of utmost concern. Now the tracks are almost ready, and it is IP video surveillance management software from Milestone Systems that helps make sure everything goes smoothly.

COPENHAGEN, March 4th, 2010. When construction is complete in December 2010, 17 kilometers of new high-tech, double-track electric rails will connect Malmo Central Station in Sweden with the Oresund Bridge to Denmark. Six kilometers of that will run underground in two parallel tunnels through the center of Malmo. The goal of the CityTunnel connection between Malmo and Copenhagen is to greatly reduce the travel time between the two cities – and not least to transform Malmo Central Station into a transit hub that powers the pan-Scandinavian network.

Several thousand people have been involved in this construction, and today around 100 men are working with the last preparations. It is precisely this reduction in personnel that has made the managers of the CityTunnel project sharpen security for the workers with IP video surveillance from Milestone Systems.

“In conjunction with reducing the workforce in this phase, we have increased the security because even though the project will soon be finished, we have to continue to ensure that the work goes smoothly and problem-free and that our employees have safe work conditions. We have therefore chosen IP network video surveillance, and it has already solved a number of issues for us,” says Mikael Lundquist, Manager for Personnel & Work Environment, CityTunnel.

In collaboration with Insupport, a Certified Milestone Partner, the CityTunnel project identified weak points in their security and it was clear that network video surveillance was necessary. The choice was Milestone XProtect™ Enterprise, an IP software solution designed as an open platform that supports the largest options for cameras and integrations with other systems – both existing and future. The video surveillance is installed in three train stations, as well as the tunnels, with about 30 Sony IP cameras, including the rugged stationary dome model SNC DF80 and the panorama model SNC RZ25 with Pan/Tilt/Zoom and day/night functionality.

Strong Nordic Partner

“The decision to use Milestone was easy. We know Milestone really well, and they offer a very strong platform that allows integration with all kinds of software and hardware. Among other things, we can archive the surveillance video in very high quality and quickly export images to other locations, which has huge value for the CityTunnel,” states Pontus Pettersson, VP at Insupport Natverksvideo.

Three security guards patrol the underground stations where the surveillance is installed. When they walk their normal rounds they can also have their colleagues follow with the video monitors at any time. The system has been used primarily for documentation which has already been a big help, for example in the case of two inebriated Danes who got lost in the tunnel in January. With the video images, there was incontrovertible evidence that was immediately given to the police.

“We have been very pleased with the Milestone software, not least because it is easy to use by our security personnel, but of course because it makes our work much safer,” concludes Mikael Lundquist.”

Ruckus wireless has broken the wireless bridge price/performance barrier with the release of the new Ruckus 7731 Outdoor 802.11n wireless bridge.  Each end has Ruckus’s integrated smart antenna array which which offers a 14 dbi gain with 30 degree beam width.  While not the strongest antenna in its class and has a bit too wide of a beam width for most (Ruckus says they are working on this) the 7731 does get some pretty good distance.  Here are some “real world” numbers that ruckus is boasting.

• Up to 190 Mbps at 1.5 km/1 mi
• Up to 165 Mbps at 3 km/2 mi
• Up to 100 Mbps at 5 km/3 mi
• Up to 50 Mbps at 10 km/6 mi
• 15km maximum range

Aside from the speed the 7731 also has some other cool & handy features to help ease installation like the ability to find its peer automatically, LED based aiming technology, IP65 rating, lightweight design (1.93lbs) and easy 802.3af POE support.

I didn’t find any mention of latency in the 7731 documentation which is an important number when dealing with voice & video.  So,  while on a conference call with Ruckus yesterday discussing how to effectively use their platform for 3G offload (different post) and asked about the 7731’s latency.  The engineer on the call was not sure but this morning I got a detailed explanation and was impressed!  Here is the email from the Ruckus engineer…

Right now I am pinging over a 10km setup, I see rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.663/0.986/1.557/0.271 ms

The packet transmission time on the link depends on the link condition, traffic patterns (sizes of packets, and burstiness of packets). A typical full size packet takes about 200us on highest rate to a couple of ms on lowest rate. If consider aggregation, the per aggregate time varies even more depending on the aggregation size, link speed…

We passed voice testing with 20km setup in China, as GSM backhaul, achieving good MOS score with an actual voice call.

Notice those latency stats.  You are looking at under ~2ms for a 10Km link.  These are the numbers we normally see on Motorola PTP 500/600s.  I really love the fact that Ruckus is so into their product that they will actually ping across a production link to get you the information you need.

OK, so finally on to the barrier breaking price…The Ruckus 7731 is $2398 for the pair (yes for both!).  Assuming their numbers are correct and you are looking at a short hop that is ~$13 per Mbps!

I do concede that this is a wifi based product and you will not see any of the special NLOS features you get from Motorola PTP series point to points but for relatively short LOS hops this bridge rocks!

Milestone XProtect Device Pack 4.7 has been released with:

• Support for the following new devices on XProtect Enterprise, Professional & Basis+ :
  - ACTi ACM-8211
  - ACTi ACM-8511
  - ACTi TCD-2500
  - Axis P5534
  - Axis Q1910
  - Hikvision DS-2DF-401E
  - Hikvision DS-2DF-402E
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-601X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-602X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-603X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-604X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-605X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-607X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-611X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-612X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-613X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-614X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-615X
  - Hikvision DS-2DF1-617X
  - Hunt HLC-7RI
  - Hunt HLC-15M
  - Hunt HLC-15V
  - Hunt HLC-79G
  - Hunt HLC-79M
  - Hunt HLC-84M
  - Hunt HLC-84V
  - Hunt HLV-1CAD
  - Hunt HWS-01AD
  - Messoa NCB-855
  - Messoa NCR-875
  - Messoa NDR-895
  - Mobotix D24
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-20
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-22
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-26
  - Optelecom Siqura MD-20
  - Optelecom Siqura MD-22
  - Pelco IDE20DN
  - Pelco IMS0C10
  - PSIA Conformant Device with 16 channels
  - Samsung SNC-B2331
  - Samsung SNC-B2335
  - Samsung SNC-B5368
  - Samsung SNC-B5399
  - Sanyo VCC-HD4600
  - Sony SNC-CH140
  - Sony SNC-DH140
  - Sony SNC-DH180
  - Sony SNT-EX101E
  - Vivotek IP7361

• Support for the following new devices on XProtect Corporate:
  - ACTi ACM-8211
  - ACTi ACM-8511
  - ACTi TCD-2500
  - Axis P5534
  - Axis Q1910
  - Messoa NCB-855
  - Messoa NCR-875
  - Messoa NDR-895
  - Mobotix D24
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-20
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-22
  - Optelecom Siqura HD-26
  - Optelecom Siqura MD-20
  - Optelecom Siqura MD-22
  - Pelco IDE20DN
  - Pelco IMS0C10
  - PSIA Conformant Device with 16 channels
  - Samsung SNC-B2331
  - Samsung SNC-B2335
  - Samsung SNC-B5368
  - Samsung SNC-B5399
  - Sanyo VCC-HD4600
  - Sony SNC-CH140
  - Sony SNC-DH140
  - Sony SNC-DH180
  - Sony SNT-EX101E
  - Vivotek IP7361

• Support for new firmware on different devices. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added support for JPEG, I/O, VMD Events and Two-way Audio for ACTi devices running Streaming mode V2.0. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added support for multiple Microphones and Speakers on ACTi devices with multiple Audio In and Audio Out. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added support for the new Bosch I/O API from Firmware 4.0. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added support for more Inputs and Outputs on the Barix Barionet when chaining devices. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added TCP support for Panasonic WV-NF302, WV-NP304, WV-NS950, WV-NS954, WV-NW960 and WV-NW964. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added H.264, Absolute PTZ and PTZ Preset Type 3 functionality to ONVIF driver. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Added Digest authentication for PSIA driver. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Solved different issues related to Device Pack 4.6. Please see the Release Notes for further information.

• Device Pack 4.7 is valid for the following systems:
  - XProtect Basis 4.0 version
  - XProtect Basis+ 4.0 – 6.5 versions
  - XProtect Professional 4.0 – 6.5 versions
  - XProtect Enterprise 5.0 – 7.0 versions
  - XProtect Matrix 2.1 – 2.3 versions
  - XProtect Corporate 1.5 – 3.1 versions

The Device Pack Release Notes contain an exhaustive list of devices and supported firmware, changes, and issues solved, as well as an upgrade guide for the different XProtect Systems.

The Milestone XProtect Device Pack 4.7 and the Device Pack Release Notes are all available for download from the Downloads section

In Q4 of 2009 Motorola announced the release of the AP-7181 dual radio, dual band, 802.11n wireless mesh access point. This AP is built specifically with video surveillance in mind as it bumps up the effective throughput dramatically. Using a datarate of 300Mbps and true 3×3 mimo you can expect the AP-7181 to achieve 100 to 125 Mbps of throughput (guessimate) between nodes. This is 5x more than their previous generation mesh AP the MotoMesh Duo. Along with speed Motorola added some other very cool features that also extend the range of the mesh AP dramatically.

Motorola’s exclusive intelligent ADEPT (ADvanced Element Panel Technology) antenna system was developed specifically for the AP 7181. The ADEPT system allows the AP 7181 to achieve maximum data rates by enabling dual data stream communication via integrated dual polarization antennas. Leveraging multiple transmit and receive RF chains, dual polarized antennas and software configurable down tilt, the AP 7181 achieves excellent coverage without the self-shadowing caused by multiple dipole antennas. This is great news for operators of mesh networks because better range mean fewer APs and more importantly fewer hops between them. Less hops means the less you must rely on backhaul networks to inject throughput back into the mesh.

Management of the entire Motorola Wireless Broadband portfolio including the AP-7181 happens via the one point wireless management suite. Some features of the one point wireless suite are:

• Device discovery
• Inventory management
• Alarm/event management
• Google Maps network view
• Over-the-air upgrades
• Fault, Configuration, Administration, Performance and Security (FCAPS)

The AP-7181 is available for order today for pre order and units should be shipping in March.

The winner of our second free Wi-Spy giveaway is Aaron with EOMA. Aaron chose the 2.4 GHz 2400×2v Wifi Spectrum Analyzer from MetaGeek. Congratulations Aaron!

When asked what he was going to do with the Wi-Spy he replied:

“Wow, thanks for the great contest! I run the IT for a medical clinic. All of our doctors use laptops for their appointments, so having the wireless working as efficiently as possible is a major part of my job. Our medical records software is server based, so our providers are working off of the server constantly. I can’t afford to have a slow wireless network, so this new tool should help me keep my providers up and running so that they can provide excellent care for their patients. Thanks!”

The Motorola PMP 430 builds on the success of the original PMP 400 Canopy OFDM platform released last year. The PMP 430 uses the same OFDM radio as the 400 but allows for a total per access point aggregate throughput of 45Mbps instead of 21 Mbps. This jump in throughput is achieved by doubling the channel bandwidth from 10Mhz (PMP 400) to 20 Mhz. However for those who are not keen on using up all that airspace the PMP 430 is rather agile and allows the operator to drop back to a 10MHz channel where needed. Like it’s predecessors, the PMP 430 is deployed in clusters of four access points using 90 degree sector antennas and GPS Synchronization to mitigate self interference, allow for a organic growth of the broadband network and increase cluster capacity to 180 Mbps.

The PMP 430 also comes with a variety of subscriber module choices allowing operators to “pay as they grow”. This allows them to scale the platform to meet the specific needs of their project requirements and budgetary restrictions. The SMs come in the following throughput 10, 20, 40 Mbps. The 10 and 20 Mbps SMs can be upgraded to 40 Mbps in one or two steps by simply purchasing a new license pack (no need to replace hardware!).

The PMP 430 is ideal for high throughput video surveillance applications.

Canopy PMP 430 Access Point:

• 5780APUS: PMP 430 OFDM Access Point, Integrated Antenna
• 5781APUS: PMP 430 OFDM Access Point, Integrated Antenna with AES

PMP 430 Subscriber Modules

• 5790SM10: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna – 10Mbps
• 5790SM20: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna – 20Mbps
• 5790SM40: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna – 40Mbps
• 5791SM10: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna, AES – 10Mbps
• 5791SM20: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna, AES – 20Mbps
• 5791SM40: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber, Integrated Antenna, AES – 40Mbps

Canopy PMP 430 Subscriber Bulk Packs

• HK1867A: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber Module – 10Mbps – 25 Pack
• HK1868A: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber Module – 20Mbps – 25 Pack
• HK1869A: PMP 430 OFDM Subscriber Module – 40Mbps – 25 Pack

Canopy PMP 430 SM Upgrades

• SG00PL3023AA: PMP 430 Subscriber Module Upgrade 10 to 20 Mbps
• SG00PL3024AA: PMP 430 Subscriber Module Upgrade 10 to 40 Mbps
• SG00PL3025AA: PMP 430 Subscriber Module Upgrade 20 to 40 Mbps

PMP 400/430 Accessories

• SGPN4063A: PMP 400/430 56 VDC SM power supply (Req. Line Cord)
• SGKN4427A: US power supply line cord for SGPN4063A
• ACPSSW-13B: Motorola Canopy AP and SM (US)

Note: Keep in mind of course that when using the 10MHz channel the PMP 430 access point has a maximum aggregate throughput of 21 Mbps not 45.

RGnets has introduced a new hotspot/hotzone gateway appliance based on Intel QuadCore technology that has allowed them to not only lower the entry cost of the appliances but also increase performance.

Along with the new hardware and price point RGnets has revamped their licensing to a pay as you grow model. Small venues can now purchase a base A4 II (read A4 mark II) for just under $3000 with a 50 simultaneous user license and scale to 250 as needed.  Larger venues can opt for the A8 with a 500 simultaneous user license and scale to over 1000!

The A4 II and A8 both come with a full suite of software including the following:

• Forced web browser redirection (Support for unlimited individual captive portal pages in the same box)
• Multi-tier self-provisioning billing system (Includes integration with40 credit card processors)
• Role based AAA policy enforcement
• Per user traffic shaping
• Integrated advertising distribution system (Can’t get this anywhere else!)
• Advanced link control & routing (WAN failover, premium upsell)
• Integrated web cache for added performance and better WAN usage
• Fully integrated unified threat management system
• Integrated IPsec VPN
• Core networking services
• Full spectrum graphical instrumentation
• Comprehensive auditing package

Compare this to the Nomadix hotspot gateway (here) and you will find that the RXG is more powerful, more flexible and with the advertising mechanism built in provides quick ROI.

Sanyo’s line of HD IP Cameras are high quality, well thought out cameras that make financial sense.  Sanyo is building upon the expertise of their consumer high definition camcorders, taking the optics and optimizing the technology for IP security applications.  What a great combo.  The best part is that they because of this Sanyo is able to create quality cameras at 1/2 the cost of the competitors.

Some features of the Sanyo HD cameras:

• Auto Back Focus
• 1080p HD video streams
• 4MP stream if using MJPEG
• True Day/Night (mid and high end models)

HD Mini Network Vandal Domes:

• VDC-HD3100: HD 1080p H.264 Color Dome, Vandal Resistant, IP66, PoE
• VDC-HD3300: HD 1080p H.264 Day/Night Dome, Vandal Resistant, IP66, PoE
• VDC-HD3500: HD 1080p H.264 Day/Night Dome, Vandal, IP66, Quad Stream, Analytics, PoE

HD Box Network Security Cameras

• VCC-HD2100: HD 1080p H.264 Color Network Camera, PoE
• VCC-HD2300: HD 1080p H.264 Day/Night Network Camera, 4 MP MJPEG, PoE
• VCC-HD2500: HD 1080p H.264 Day/Night Network Camera, Quad Stream, Analytics, PoE

HD PTZ Network Security Cameras

• VCC-HD5400: HD 1080p 10x Day/Night PTZ, Quad Stream, Analytics
• VCC-HD5600: HD 1080p 10x Day/Night PTZ Speed Dome, Quad Stream, Analytics

This is an excerpt from my blog post at securityinfowatch. For the entire post please click here.

Wireless Mesh seems to still be misunderstood so I though I would put down a couple of pointers explaining how it works at a high level and focusing on throughput of course, we are talking about video here…  Wireless mesh networks require a good amount of planning and unfortunately are not as easy to deploy properly as most vendors would like you to think, but can be useful for specific applications.  Here is a top down diagram of the different parts of a wireless mesh network.

A wireless mesh network normally spans a large area of land and therefore requires a distributed architecture in order to make it work.  The diagram above attempts to break down the typical components of a wireless mesh network.  You may notice that I used Motorola Canopy Visio stencils to make this diagram but I only did that because those were the only stencils I had and Moto has a nice representation on their website that helped me put this together.  I am not endorsing a specific manufacturer in this blog and recommend that you look through the many manufacturers and find the one that is right for your application.

For the entire post please click here…

WLANmall has recently added Samsung to our growing list of IP camera manufacturers.  We added the two cameras below because they are outdoor ready, have 10x optical zoom, endless pan rotation and image stabilization at a very reasonably priced!

Samsung SNC-C6225

• MPEG-4 & MJPEG Dual Encoding
• Rotating Speed : MAX. 360°/sec
• Digital Image Stabilization
• Day/Night Function (ICR)
• Smooth Manual speed : MIN. 0.05 °/sec
• Bi-directional Audio Support
• Endless 360° Pan Rotation
• Micro SD Memory Card Slot for Alarm Recording
• Vandal Proof/ Weather Proof
• $999

Samsung SNC-C7225

The SNC-C7225 has the same great features as the SNC-C6225 expect that it also has a built in heater and fan for extreme outdoor installations. $1165

With the proliferation of outdoor wireless broadband the unlicensed bands 900 Mhz, 2.4 Ghz, 5.8 Ghz are getting so crowded that in some places they are completely unusable. So in 2006 the FCC opened up the once restricted 5.4Ghz band giving 250 MHz of open air to the public. The problem with the new air space is that it came with a lot of restrictions, namely low EIRP and radar avoidance rules that can bring down your wireless automatically for 30 min. This meant that the legal use of the 5.4 GHz band was limited to short distances in areas far away from military installations.

Now people have been using licensed microwave bands (6Ghz, 11 Ghz, 14 Ghz, 18 Ghz & 23 Ghz) for what seesms forever however the radios that use those frequencies have historically been big, heavy and expensive.  With the release of the Motorola PTP 800 licensed microwave radio the cost of entry has been reduced significantly.  The Motorola PTP 800 currently operated in the 11 GHz, 18 Ghz and 23 Ghz bands and allows users to grow their throughput as needed.  For instance the base radio comes with a 10Mbps throughput CAP which can grow in  steps to 368 Mbps of full duplex throughput and if you need more Motorola has come up with a super slick coupler that allows the combination of 2 PTP 800 radios to be used in either redundant or additive scenarios.  That is 736 Mbps of full duplex data throughput or in marketing terms 1.472 Gbps (half duplex).

The Motorola PTP 800 is created of several parts.

1)  The CMU (Compact Modem Unit) or IDU (Indoor Unit):  The PTP 800 CMU is the brains of the operation and and comes in a 1/2 RU form factor so that you can easily fit 2 units (for redundancy or for more throughput) on a single RU with the optional rack-mount kit.  Two CMUs are required to create a link (one on each end).

2) The ODU (Outdoor Unit): This is the unit that coverts the signal coming from the CMU into RF of a particular frequency.  Currently the PTP 800 support 11 GHz, 18 Ghz and 23 GHz.   Like the CMU it takes 2 ODUs to create a link and becuase the PTP 800 is an FDD radio each ODU operates on a slightly different frequency.  So you will need to purchase a Hi and Lo version of each ODU.  For example if you want a 11 GHz link you will need 1 x 11 GHz Low B5 ODU and 1 x 11 GHz Hi B5 ODU.

3) PTP 800 Antennas:  You can either attach the ODU directly to the back of an antenna that has a special flange built for the Motorola PTP 800 ODU or you can use an antenna that has a standard wave guide connector (PBR220 & PDR100).  If using a standard antenna flange then this is called remote mounting the ODU and will require a remote mounting kit and some accessories to make sure all is connected properly.

Direct Attached ODU	Remote Mount ODU

The Engenius EOC-2610 is a great little device combining access point, client bridge, client router and WDS functionality in one low cost package.

Some highlights:

• High 600mW Wireless Power
  • Ensures robust signal to overcome long distances
  • Offers superior WiFi coverage than leading brands
• Signal Strength LED Indicator: Allows network installer for easy deployment
• Dual Antenna Design
  • Embedded 10dBi panel antenna with external connector for optional omni antenna
  • Perfect for both Point-to-Point and Point-to-MultiPoint applications
• Power-over-Ethernet (24V PoE) Capable
  • Less heat dissipation to ensure reliable performance
  • Capable of 300 feet PoE cable length
  • Power Injector Included
• SuperG 108Mbps Support
  • Enables high transfer speed ideal for multimedia applications (with SuperG Client)

The Engenius EOC-2610 is perfect for small outdoor point to multi-point deployments and IP Video surveillance applications.

My colleague, Ariel Jalali, an expert in open source application development, and I have collaborated to bring together 7 ideas for reducing capital expeditures in a slow economy by making smart use of the right technologies.

In the paper we discuss in detail the following points:

1. Replacing dark fiber with point to point wireless or metro Ethernet
2. Unwiring your office to save big
3. Transitioning from Proprietary network equipment
4. Implementing Virtualization
5. Look into refurbished or used/pre-owned equipment
6. Explore cloud computing
7. Use open source software

Download the free white paper today.

Features include:

• Full Power Dual Radio 802.11n Access Point
• Radio 1: 2.4 GHz 3×3:2 MIMO
• Radio 2: 5.4-5.8 GHz 2×2:2 MIMO
• 802.11 a/b/g/n (draft 2.0)
• 20 MHz and 40 MHz channels
• 802.11s (WiFi Mesh) ready at launch
• Meets All European DFS Standards
• ADEPT Antenna System
• System capacity of up to 300 Mbps
• WPA-2 Client and Intra-mesh Security
• Robust IP67 with NEMA 4x enclosure
• Powers Local Devices (PoE 802.3af)
• One Point Wireless Manager/Broadband Planner
• Seamless indoor/outdoor networks with AP 7131

To get a sneak peak at the AP-7181 technology click here.

WLANmall has teamed with RGnets, a leader in jumbo scale hotzone gateways, to bring hotel wifi, hotzone and WISP managers an all in one solution that will increase ROI and reduce operator headache.

The RXG is a Revenue eXtraction Gateway that includes the following integrated key systems:

• Forced web browser redirection
• Multi-tier self-provisioning billing system
• Role based AAA policy enforcement
• Per user traffic shaping
• Integrated advertising distribution system (Can’t get this anywhere else!)
• Advanced link control & routing (WAN failover, premium upsell)
• Integrated web cache for added performance and better WAN usage
• Fully integrated unified threat management system
• Integrated IPsec VPN
• Core networking services
• Full spectrum graphical instrumentation
• Comprehensive auditing package

For more information on the RXG please give us a call or click here.

Well how does this stack up to my Nomadix? We knew you would ask so we created a little chart for you to look at.

Click here for a comparison between RXG and Nomadix.

This isn’t your father’s old hotspot gateway…This is a full blown Revenue eXtraction Gateway!

I have been saying this for a little over a year now but someone finally started testing the theory that wireless beamforming (if done correctly) is really cool. Tom’s Hardware has produced a great and seriously in depth article about beamforming and how it effects wireless propagation, speed and connectivity. It features Ruckus Wireless, Cisco and Aruba access points.



Traditionally omni directional onmi antennas were made of a simple material that when radiated at a certain frequency produced “signal amplification” which made your wireless signal travel farther. This worked really well but came with certain downfalls.



Wasted energy: Traditional omni-directional antennas “amplify” the wireless signal in a 360 degree horizontal pattern at all times even though most of the users may be concentrated in a smaller 90 degree quadrant. Wasted energy means less propagation.

Read the rest of the blog at my blog on www.securityinfowatch.com/The+Command+Line/

BriefCam is a developer and provider of video synopsis solutions for CCTV surveillance systems. BriefCam technology summarizes hours of events into a “brief” that takes just a few minutes to watch – with an index to the original source video – whether real-time feed online or archival footage offline.

I found this technology at ASIS 2009 here in Anaheim and it blew me away.  Instead of searching for an even through hours and hours and non eventful video you can see it all in a very intelligent manner in less than a minute!

But words do not do this technology justice.  You have to see this live.  Click on one of the items below to see video expamples and an interactive demo.

• VS Online – 8 Camera License
• VS Online – 4 Camera License
• VS Appliance – 8 Camera License and Server

Israel chose the Wi-Spy 2.4x, 2.4Ghz wi-fi spectrum analyzer.

Products:

Wi-Spy 2.4x
Sensitive 2.4GHz spectrum analyzer
Works for 802.11b/g/n, VoWifi
Troubleshoot Enterprise WLAN








Wi-Spy 900x
862 MHz – 928MHz
Perfect for Moto Canopy 900Mhz
Know if it will work before you deploy









Click on the links above for more pictures and videos about the MetaGeek Wi-Spy and find out how to make your job easier!

The Motorola wireless broadband Point-to-Multipoint (PMP) 320 is a low-cost fixed licensed outdoor distribution and access solution that delivers fast, affordable connectivity in a variety of environments and applications.

Around the world, service providers and enterprises that hold licensed spectrum in the 3 GHz band are investigating deploying 802.16e WiMAX to provide reliable, cost-effective data, voice and video connectivity for business and residential customers. There is a significant investment required for equipment and installation of a full mobile WiMAX network, with many providers finding it difficult to build a business case for reaching subscribers in low-density locations at the edge of their networks or for building a new network in a low-density greenfield environment that only requires reliable fixed connectivity. The Motorola PMP 320 changes all that. The PMP 320 offers a fixed, outdoor solution that is easy to deploy and does not require the significant investment in core network equipment associated with mobile connectivity.

This is perfect for WISPs, Local Government entities who want to use a licensed spectrum for surveillance deployments and more.

Licensed Spectrum. The fixed outdoor PMP 320 solution is designed to allow service providers around the globe to combine the reliability of licensed bands and standards based equipment with an overall low total cost of ownership. The PMP 320 delivers low-cost, high-performance solutions for operators holding licenses in three different frequency ranges: 3.3-3.4 GHz, 3.4-3.6 GHz and 3.6-3.8 GHz. The PMP 320 supports standard WiMAX QoS profiles.

Standards Based. The PMP 320 is interoperable with WiMAX 802.16e CPEs, supports all of the WiMAX QoS profiles, and uses standard AAA/RADIUS servers for authentication.

Performance. With 2×2 MIMO, 10 MHz channels, and 802.16e coding/error correction the PMP 320 delivers high throughput with excellent coverage and link budgets.

To learn more about the Motorola PMP320 3.65Ghz fixed Wimax product have a look through these two documents.

• PMP 320 Brochure
• PMP 320 Case Study

The PMP 320 is set to be released Q1 of 2010!

The Wi-Spy family of wifi and 900Mhz spectrum analyzers allow integrators, IT professionals and do it yourselfers to troubleshoot poorly performing networks by allowing them to see the air around them. Normal spectrum analyzers run into the 1000s of dollars but MetaGeek has managed to create a powerful yet cost effective device that makes high performance more attainable!

The MetaGeek Wi-Spy comes in 3 different Flavors, 900Mhz, 2.4 Ghz Only and 2.4/5Ghz dual band.

The software behind the device.

The MetaGeek Wi-Spy devices come free with a very powerful software called Channelyzer which uses the data collected Wi-Spy sensor to plot the information in an intuitive visual manner which is conducive to quick troubleshooting.  Using the powerful Channelyzer software is a breeze.  Here is a little video taken from the MetaGeek team.  You can find more of these tutorials on MetaGeeks Vimeo Stream.

How To: Get the most out of Chanalyzer from trent on Vimeo.

The Metageek Wi-Spy might be one of the most powerful tools in your wireless toolbox.  Imagine going on a site survey and having a clear vision of the RF terrain which surrounds you.  Leave the Wi-Spy on for a bit and have it record the changes in the “air” as the day goes by.  Then play back the recording and find out exactly why you have been having trouble with your wifi network at 4pm on Fridays (just an example)!

The Wi-Spy comes in 3 different flavors 0900×1v, 2400×2v & the 2450×1v.

The 0900×1v is a cost effective yet powerful 900Mhz spectrum analyzer perfect for WISPs deploying 900 Mhz BWA networks and SCADA professionals.

The 2400×2v works in the 2.4 Ghz unlicensed wi-fi space where the rising levels of interference are causing good wireless networks to fail.  The 2400×2v will allow you to pin-point the interfering sources and take action.

Lastly the 2450×1v offers the same power features of the other models but also allows you to monitor the 5Ghz band.  This is an extremely versatile spectrum analyzer that will allow you to accurately measure the noise floor when engineering point to point wireless bridge links (no more guessing), better plan wireless mesh and WISP BWA networks.

Wlanmall has achieved distribution status with Vivotek.  Vivotek makes high performing cost effective IP cameras for every application including outdoor bullet cameras, speed domes, mini domes for mobile surveillance, indoor fixed cameras and a complete line of megapixel IP cameras.

Vivotek FD7132 Day/Night IR Fixed Dome Camera

This indoor camera is perfect for warehouses, studios, office environments and retail applications.  It has a crisp 640 x 480 VGA image produced by a Sony CCD imager.

The Vivotek FD7132 also has a varifocal lens, 15m IR the ability to stream both MPEG4 and MJPEG video.  Oh and lets not forget the two way audio support!

The Vivotek IP7361 2 Megapixel Outdoor Bullet IP Camera

The IP7361 is a rugged all weather IP camera with a 2MP imager, built in IR w/ removable IR cut filter, Varifocal lens, 2 way audio support and mouch more.

The best part about the IP7361 is that it is all POE!

The Vivotek FD7160 2MP mobile surveillance mini-dome

The FD7160 is a IP66 rated indoor / outdoor 2 megapixel mini dome camera with wide angle lens, rugged metal case & vandal resistant dome.

The FD7160 is also fully EN50155 compliant, the camera can withstand shock, vibration, humidity, and dust while maintaining stable and reliable video when a vehicle is in movement.

This little camera is also perfect for fixes indoor applications!

To see the full line of Vivotek IP cameras and video encoders click here.

Ruckus Wireless has released a full blown mesh technology for their ZoneFlex series of access points and controllers. Ruckus‘ “SMART Mesh” technology is controlled by the Zone director and with this new upgrade you can now manage all ZoneFlex APs whether wired in to the network or connected wireless via mesh. This is a HUGE improvement over the Ruckus Light Mesh Gateway which would simply act as a repeater and not acquire BSSID, security, user information, etc. The new SMART Mesh technology simplifies the installation of the ZoneFlex WLAN even further! Ruckus SMART Mesh is only available for clients with a Premium contract which will give you access to the new 6.0 firmware.

Here is some nice marketing info for you guys…

Ruckus Wireless SmartMesh is a unique, new approach to building high-performance wireless LANs (WLANs). It reduces cumbersome RF planning and costly cable backhaul by lowering the need to run Ethernet wiring to individual ZoneFlex Smart Wi-Fi access points.

SmartMesh dramatically simplifies, speeds and reduces the cost of WLAN deployment. With SmartMesh, enterprises now simply plug ZoneFlex access points into any convenient power source, and walk away. No extensive RF site surveys, cable runs, configuration, or optimization adjustments are required.

SmartMesh delivers three key ingredients that have previously hindered the use of indoor meshing:

• high performance by combining 802.11n with Smart Wi-Fi technology
• reliable connectivity between mesh nodes, using best path selection and interference avoidance techniques
• ultra-simple deployment through the automation of AP and mesh provisioning

SmartMesh extends Ruckus-patented Smart Wi- Fi technology to create a new class of reliable and high-performance wireless LANs that are selforganizing, self-optimizing and self-healing. It is the first Wi-Fi meshing approach that combines high-gain smart antenna arrays, sophisticated RF routing and centralized management with a single WLAN system.

Learn more about Ruckus SMART Mesh here.

It has been brought to my attention that I forgot to mention how to fix the problem of weak client side transmission, which I discussed back on August 18th. So I figured I would quickly fill in that void.

There are several ways to increase the range of your wireless client and each has its own benefits and drawbacks. Now, while you read this entry please remember that, like a standard wireless access point or bridge, there are always two parts to a wireless client, the “radio” and the “antenna“. The radio is the device creating the RF signal and the antenna amplifies that signal.

So that being said I am sure you can guess that the first way to increase the range of yourwireless client is…Add an antenna!

1) Add an antenna to your client device. In mobile applications you would want anomnidirectional antenna (signal is radiated in a 360 degree pattern) and for fixed environment you would be better served by a directional panel antenna or grid antenna (signal is more focused in a certain direction). Of course you need to have a client device (PC card or laptop card) that has an external antenna connector built in. The major issue is that most (99%) of laptops have integrated wireless cards and antennas that can not be upgraded in which case you might better be served by number 2 below.

2) The next step is to add a wireless card into your laptop or desktop that has the necessary external antenna connector and then add a high gain external antenna to really boost the signal. This is a pretty easy way to increase wireless transmission and is great for laptops however not so great for desktops. If you want to use this method to increase your wireless signal on your desktop you will normally be required to run a good amount of coaxial cable from the PC up and out to the external antenna. This is definitely the method of choice for laptops but I find it a little cumbersome for desktop machines. Below you can find a picture of cards with external antenna connectors.
The one of the left is made by Ubiquiti Networks and goes in the PCMCIA card slot on the side of your laptop. The one on the right is a PCI card for your PC. You can remove the rubber duck antenna that comes with the card and install coax cable that runs to the antenna you installed on your roof.

3) The third option is great for fixed environments like homes, RVs, boats, etc. Purchase anexternal wireless client that sits on the roof of whatever structure you are in. This client can be an all in one device with both the radio and the antenna built in to one unit or you can purchase one with an external connector for higher gain antennas. Here is what they look like…
Here is how you would use them…

Option 1: Install the external wireless client on your roof, point it at your ISP, run an Ethernet cable from the client to the power over Ethernet injector and then plug it in directly to you PC.

Option 2: Install the wireless client just like in option one but instead of plugging directly into your PC plug it into a wireless router! This will allow you to rebroadcast the signal from outside wireless INSIDE your house, giving you the best of both worlds!

Hope this helps!

1. Decide the number of cameras you need for your installation
2. Choose the codec or combination of codecs, frame rate, resolution and the estimated recording time for each camera.
   • Codecs: MJPEG, MPEG4, MXPEG, H.264
   • Frame rate: Up to 30 fps. From experience you will see that 4-6 frames per second will be sufficient in most security applications.
   • Resolution: CIF (320×280), 4CIF (640×480), 1.3MP (1280×1024), 2MP (1600×1200), 3.1MP (2048×1536), 5MP (2560×1920)
3. Use calculators to estimate amount of storage and server requirements.
   • MJPEG Storage Calculator
   • MPEG4 Storage Calculator
   • Server estimator
   • Lens Calculator
4. Order your server and configure the server according to calculated specifications. Below you will find some best practices. Please refer to the image below while reading this section.
   • Live database should be written to fast reliable SCSI or SAS hard drives.
   • Create a RAID1 logical drive using 2 physical SCSI or SAS disks. Then…
     • Carve out a 20GB or so partition for the operating system (C: drive) and then partition the rest for the live database (D: drive).
     • Depending on the number of cameras in your system you may not have enough capacity for the entire live database on the D: drive so extra disks will be required. These extra disks should be configured as individual RAID0 virtual disks in your RAID controller.
       • The RAID0 is important because it speeds up the write time which is critical in IP video where data is constantly being written to the media.



5. Setup physical archive storage. Your archive storage should be protected from loss so a RAID5 configuration is a good choice. In a small system you can use internal disks but in larger systems you will need either an external disk array, a NAS or a SAN. (see the figure above)
6. Install Milestone on C: drive
7. Through the Admin, install the DLKs provided to you by your Milestone Certified Partnerand add all the cameras to XProtect.
8. Set up camera parameters. With the recording server stopped go through each and every cameras configuration and recording, event and motion attributes. Be sure to set each camera’s live database directory to the appropriate disk. Please refer to step 4 and the image below.



9. Set up camera archive parameters. Go through and set up each cameras archive schedule and directory.



10. In the Image Server Administrator, set up users (basic or active directory) and give them access to view specific cameras on the Milestone XProtect system.

That’s it!

PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE

You will notice that I did not specify any gains on the antenna as every installation is different but in the 2.4 GHz range I find that the 9 dbi omni antenna with 7 degrees on downtilt works great.

OK so I know your next question. How much area will this cover??? Well in the world of wi-fi the two most used words are “It Depends“. You’ll hate to hear’em but you better get used to them as there is never a clear answer. RF signal propagation depends on many factors such as interference, environment, line of site and the most overlooked factor CLIENT TYPE!

Most people understand interference and line of sight but if not you can feel free to read more about it in our growing wireless FAQ, here. However, the one most people do not understand and sometime refuse to understand is that client type can make or break your wireless network. How so? Well…lets take an RV park for instance.

An RV park wants to set up a simple access point in the middle of the grounds to serve its 70 RV users. The client then spends time reviewing access point specs, finds a perfect bridge with a great mix of price and performance. Buys the highest gain antenna he can find and makes sure that there is no excessive loss in the RF cabling. The items arrive via UPS, he sets them up perfectly, similar to the setup shown above and starts walking around with his laptop runningnetstumbler BUT, he is only going a 3rd of the distance he was expecting. This can’t be right he thinks and starts troubleshooting his new hardware. However, what he doesn’t realize is that it has nothing to do with the new access point set up he purchased and everything to do with the low powered wifi card in his laptop.

Communication should always be looked at as a 2 way street. The base station (access point) can be uber powerful and transmit for miles but if the device receiving the signal a mile away can only transmits 300ft the base station will never hear the interesting things the client is saying and communication breaks down. I tried to illustrate this concept and hopefully succeeded but let me know if I blew it.

PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Bottom line is know your application and build accordingly. Do not focus on one part alone as you will never get the results you are after. Look at your wireless network as a system of components working together to create cohesive communication.

t’s FAAAAAST…80-150Mbps of wireless throughput

The Ruckus ZoneFlex 7942 is the first centrally managed, multimedia Wi-Fi access point that unleashes the promise of 802.11n, delivering unparalleled throughput.

Together with the Ruckus ZoneDirector central WLAN controller, Ruckus ZoneFlex APs plug-and-play with minimum operational overhead. Ideal for hotels, schools, airports and medium-sized businesses with little or no IT staff and a limited budget, the Ruckus ZoneFlex 7942 is also perfect for hot spot operators that want to deliver business class hot spot services – such as voice over Wi-Fi, IP-based video or secure enterprise access.

802.11n carries the promise of high data rates and througput. The Ruckus ZoneFlex 7942 delivers on this promise by ensuring that the advanced techniques used in 802.11n, such as spatial multiplexing, channel bonding and frame aggregation are optimized.

Motorola is continuously changing their PTP line up to meet new customer demands. The PTP 500 was the first and its little brother the PTP 300 is next. The PTP 500 (105Mbps) edges itself in between the high performance PTP 600 (150 – 300Mbps) and the PTP 400 (45Mbps), while the PTP 300 (25Mbps) replaces the widely deployed PTP 400 Lite.

The new series of radios come with the same great MIMO NLOS technology, reliability and ease of deployment as its siblings but also includes integrated lightning suppression inside the radio and new lower cost!

Milestone has released their new version of their flagship XProtect Corprate NVR software. XProtect™ Corporate is an IP video management system designed for large enterprises and alarm centers. Featuring a distributed server architecture, innovative centralized management and support for a wide range of IP cameras, it scales to fit any type of video surveillance installation.

New Features for 2.0

• New lower cost and simpler licenseing. You no longer need to buy additional recording server licenses!
• New server failover capabilities
• Support for multicast
• Support for multi-stream cameras. View in one CODEC and record in another!
• Support for H.264 CODEC
• Greater device support

Milestone has made licensing so easy it makes me smile. Here is how it works:

1. Purchase a Xprotect Corporate 2.0 Base Server license. This includes one management server, an unlimited number of recording servers and 4 device licenses.
2. Buy the appropriate number of device licenses. (don’t forget you get 4 when you buy the base version!)
3. Buy a PMA contract on the software. This give you features releases and support for at least a year.

That’s it! it is as easy as 1-2-3 but if you have any questions or want to understand if Corporate is the right platform for you give us a call or email us.

COPENHAGEN – 17 June 2008. Milestone Systems, a leading developer of open platform IP video management software, announces the availability of XProtect Corporate version 2.0. Designed for large-scale applications, it supports unlimited numbers of cameras, servers and users, with central control and intuitive access clients that make big installations very easy to manage.

A decade of technological refinement in developing true open platform IP video management software is culminated in Milestone XProtect Corporate, architected to meet the tough demands of the largest implementations. Distributed server architecture allows flexible management of unlimited sites, servers, devices, cameras and users – no matter how large or geographically spread the installations may be.

Surveillance system administrators get wizards, flexible rules system, automatic network scanning and camera model detection, with tight integration to IT environments for maintaining a very high level of system integrity. Integration with Microsoft Active Directory® provides strict user authorization and management; all configurations, activity logs and alerts are conveniently stored in a Microsoft SQL database. Managing cameras in groups and assigning users to role-based security groups saves valuable time.

The Milestone XProtect Smart Client is the elegant Graphical User Interface, or GUI, for security staff to access live and recorded video data at all times. Vital evidence material – encrypted and password-protected – is easily created in a single operation for fast sharing. Multi-casting and multi-streaming allow multiple operators to easily view live and recorded video without straining network resources unnecessarily.

The unique, cost-effective archiving model reduces the high cost of storage by using fast, local disks for short-term recordings and affordable network storage for long-term archiving. Failover for system integrity & data security ensures the high level of security and reliability required by true enterprise-class IT environments for maximum uptime.

“XProtect Corporate is a stellar model for high-end scalability. As customers expand their installations, they only have to pay licenses for the cameras added – there’s no extra cost for adding recording servers, storage, clients or users, and no license cost for failover servers,” says Eric Fullerton, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Milestone Systems. “Feedback from our customers supports that they appreciate the simplicity in our licensing structure and that Product Maintenance Agreements give a cost-effective way to keep up to date with future developments, adding industry innovations as they become available.”

The Milestone XProtect IP video open platform is a hallmark of optimal integration capabilities. The rich Application Programming Interface (API) offers seamless interoperability with other systems and devices to video-enable business most comprehensively. Return on investment is thereby further enhanced.

Milestone XProtect Corporate version 2.0 is available through Certified Milestone Partners internationally, among whom over 450 have already completed professional training in this solution. Learn more about XProtect Corporate.

Milestone Systems is a global developer of open platform IP video management software. XProtect™ gives users a powerful surveillance solution that is easy to manage, reliable and proven in more than 35,000 customer installations. With support for the industry’s widest choice in network hardware and integration with other systems, XProtect provides best-of-breed solutions to “video enable” organizations – reducing costs, optimizing processes, and protecting assets. Milestone software is sold through authorized partners in 90 countries.

Found on Milestone News Here

Calabasas-based wireless mesh networking hardware provider Strix Systems has signed a deal to provide its hardware for a use in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, the firm said earlier this week. Financial impact of the win was not announced, but Strix said that its outdoor wireless networking system has been integrated into emergency response vehicles and other personal mobile communications for public safety. Strix said the win was a part of a design by Silicon-Star Science & Technology Development Co. Ltd and Beijing Aerospace Changfeng Co., Ltd, which will be used in the Olympic Stadium and downtown Beijing during the Olympic Games.

Original article found here

Axis Communications, Bosch Security Systems and Sony Corporation announce that they will be cooperating to create an open forum aimed at developing a standard for the interface of network video products. Currently, there is no global standard defining how network video products such as cameras, video encoders and video management systems should communicate with each other. The new standard is expected to comprise interfaces for specifications such as video streaming, device discovery, intelligence metadata, etc. The framework of the standard, incorporating the key elements of network video product interoperability, will be released in October 2008 at the Security show in Essen, Germany.

The main goal of this new standard is to facilitate the integration of various brands of network video equipment and to help manufacturers, software developers and independent software vendors ensure product interoperability. A unified open standard will also offer end-users greater flexibility of choice, enabling them to select products from different vendors in order to develop systems that fully meet their needs. This standardization initiative demonstrates the strong commitment of Axis, Bosch and Sony to supporting the ongoing shift from analog to digital surveillance in the security market.

A forum set up by the said three companies will be open for all companies and interest groups who would like to participate in the standardization work. The forum will be established in the fourth quarter of 2008, and will work on further development of the standard and on reaching agreement on how the new technology should be implemented.

“We are very pleased to announce this cooperation between our companies,” says Ray Mauritsson, President of Axis Communications. “An open standard will make it even easier for integrators and end-users to benefit from the many possibilities offered by IP-based video surveillance technology.”

“This cooperation represents a great leap forward in establishing an international open forum focusing on network video surveillance,” says Gert van Iperen, Executive Vice President at Bosch. “For manufacturers of network video hardware and software, the forum and its standard will be an efficient way to ensure product interoperability.”

“We entered this discussion based on our common belief that an open standard will provide great benefits for users and everyone involved in the security industry,” says Yoshinori Onoue, SVP, Corporate Executive, Sony Corporation. “Representatives from Axis, Bosch and Sony are now working intensively to develop a framework for the standard and to establish the guidelines for the standardization forum.”

See the entire press release here.

Commentary:
This is a good step for the IP industry as a whole. Standardization makes for a more complete set of tools to further mature the IP Video Surveillance marketplace. However there is no mention on how long it might take to develop this standard and currently most IP Video software or NVR software from major manufacturers only operate with the firmware on loaded their specific cameras. The solution is and will continue to be NVR Software by Milestone Systems. Milestonealready inter operates with over 40+ different brands of cameras and over 400+ different physical cameras from Axis, Bosch, Sony, Toshiba, IQeye, Panasonic, and many many more. So while the standardization legitimizes the marketplace it really does not affect the current product landscape for NVR software.

I have been speaking to many many clients lately about IP video surveillance and each time we go through the pros and cons of using traditional Pan Tilt Zoom (PTZ) cameras vs. the latest multi-megapixel IP cameras and in most cases we end up deciding that the multi-megapixel cameras are the way to go. So I have decided to share these ideas to hopefully help others in accessing their own IP security needs, and the solutions to these needs.

So PTZ. What is it? PTZ or pan tilt zoom cameras have been around for years in the analog world of CCTV and have made the obvious transition to IP Video security as well. These cameras are normally enclosed in a dome and have a VGA quality sensor that sits on a multi-axis thimble so that the user/operator can move the camera up, down, side to side and zoom in on a subject to get a closer look at what is happening in a specific location. That should be pretty self explanatory but if you would like to see a PTZ camera I have included a pic for you.

As in other parts of life, there are always advancements that are not necessarily meant to contend with previous methods of doing something but after they are developed they do, and in my opinion multi-megapixel IP cameras are one of these advancements. Multi-megapixel IP video cameras allow you to see double, triple, even quadruple the amount of pixels as a standard “high-resolution” VGA camera. What this means in plain English is that you can see more of a particular view and in greater detail. If that still doesn’t make sense, read on as there is a good picture below.

OK, “so what,” right? That is great you say, but what does that have to do with contending with traditional PTZ cameras? Well here is how I see it. PTZ cameras are used because an operator wants to see activity in different locations around his or her property. Well, a standard high-resolution VGA camera has a limited 640×480 field of view so it needs to be moved around to see the “BIGGER PICTURE”. Ok, well what happens when you move the camera from area A to see what is happening in area B? Area A is now vulnerable. So why not use 2 fixed cameras one focused on Area A and one on Area B? Well this is a great idea but quickly becomes expensive since you then need to monitor two cameras, you have to buy an extra camera license and of course you need to buy another camera!

So a good solution is to get one camera that has enough resolution or sees a big enough picture to monitor both area A, area B and everything in between all at the same time. This is precisely what multi-megapixel cameras allow you to do. IQeye has a series of cameras that reach up to 5 megapixels, which translates into 2560 x 1920 pixels. That is 16 times the resolution of a high-resolution VGA camera which means the field of view is 16 times as large and therefore the operator can view the “BIGGER PICTURE” without leaving certain parts of the property vulnerable to attack, theft, etc… The nice thing about having all those pixels is that you can then digitally zoom in after the fact and get a closer look without the image becoming overly “blocky” or pixilated. Milestone Systems Xprotect and other NVR packages have this feature already built in.

As promised, here is a picture to try and explain all this. I’m a visual person too so here is an image I’ve made to try and explain this a little more clearly…

I took a picture of a standard University courtyard, that I found on Google Images, with the proper aspect ratio and scaled it down properly so that I could easily demonstrate my point. The green border represents a 5 Megapixel image (2560×1920) and the red rectangles represent standard high-resolution VGA cameras. You can see that exactly 16 red boxes fit inside the one green one, which means that the single 5MP IP surveillance camera can take the place of 16 standard cameras or a PTZ that is constantly patrolling but without missing a thing! In this day of University tragedies can you imagine if a crucial piece of evidence is missed because the crime happened in area A on the left but the camera operator was focused on area B to the right? I say why not see it all?

WLANmall is now a certified Milestone Open IP Video Surveillance partner. That means that we have the ability to listen to your needs, design and solution and build it for you from A to Z. All you will have to do is have a certified electrician run the cable and install your cameras. We will build the server platform, install the software and bench test the system before it leaves our warehouse.

Milestone and WLANmall offers solutions for both small to medium businesses as well as large unlimited camera installations. Here are the different flavors:

XProtect Basis+: perfect for getting started
The Basis+ license is for smaller or trial deployments that will be limited to a single server up to 25 cameras. Features include:

• Support for up to 25 cameras or video servers
• Live view speed at 30+ FPS per device
• Support for MegaPixel IP Video Cameras
• Built In Video Motion Detection
• Daily Archiving to Local Storage
• Recordings up to 40GB per device per day
• Intelligent PTZ control
• Support for 1 Remote Client accessing recordings
• Smart Client and Web Client
• Motion/sequence search and Export to AVI/JPEG/WAV

XProtect Professional: perfect for single location deployments
Professional is still a single server license but builds on the Basis+ package and adds features that you would need/want in a production environment. Features such as:

• Archiving to a network drive, SAN or NAS
• Simultaneous live view and playback
• PTZ Patrolling and Scanning
• Virtual Matrix
• Support for 5 simultaneous remote clients
• PDA or Mobile client for Windows enabled devices
• Region Search during playback (find what happened in a certain portion of the screen)
• Ability to export, password protect and encrypt multiple camera recordings at once.
• Ability to include a standalone player in the export so that the authorities can have full video control when viewing your recordings back at the station

XProtect Enterprise: unlimited Cameras, unlimited Locations
The Enterprise license is a unique because the the base server recording license can actually be deployed on an UNLIMITED number of servers without having to relicense! All you pay after deploying the server is for the camera licenses. This allows you to record and monitor an unlimited number of cameras in an unlimited number of locations all from one or more locations. New features in Enterprise include:

• All the features included in Professional
• Multi-Server, Multi-location License
• Unlimited camera/device support
• Hourly Archiving for a total of 960 GB of recordings per device per day
• Support for an Unlimited number of Remote Clients

XProtect Corporate: the ultimate in surveillance management
Corporate has all the same features as Enterprise but with a greater focus on central management. It was created for extremely large deployments where control of the network starts to become difficult. Corporate enables a single user from a single location manage an unlimited number of recording servers, cameras and devices all from one location. Built on Microsoft’s robust SQL Server it is developed from the ground up for performance and reliability.

A surveillance system can pay for itself in ONE incident.

• 4 Camera Milestone Xprotect Basis+ Bundle
• 4 Camera Wireless Megapixel Xprotect Basis+
• Bundle!6 Camera Milestone Xprotect Basis+
• Bundle9 Camera Milestone Xprotect Basis+ Bundle w/ PTZ!

• BeamFlex High gain (7 dbi) Antenna array
• Dynamic PSK Integrated, easy 802.1X
• Integrated guest access with captive portal

Who should be using Ruckus ZoneFlex??
Anyone who is looking for easy, secure, reliable wi-fi and that doesn’t have big money to spend IT staff and hardware really… but, there are great advantages to those in the following industries:

• Small to Medium Businesses
• Hotels/Motels/Resorts with limited IT Staff
• Restaurants/Coffee Shops
• Hot spot Operators
• Retail stores and distribution facilities

TDM over IP (TDMoIP) is the emulation of time-division multiplexing (TDM) over a packet switched network (PSN). What does this mean in english? Well this basically means that TDM circuits such as T1, E1, T3 or E3 will be coded into IP in order to send those packets over a regular IP, MPLS or Ethernet network. This is ideal for Government, Education or enterprise clients who have a PBX or broadcast radio in multiple locations that need to be connected. TDMoIP is ideal for these situations because it eliminates the need for the costly recurring local loop fees. When combining wireless with TDMoIP you realize even greater savings becuase there is no need to trench and lay down new fiber to connect the locations via IP. With wireless bridges TDM circuits can be connected campus wide in days even hours, not months!

An easy to understand illustrated guide to the basic principles of wireless bridging and what you need to get up and running.  Find out what your buddies mean when they say they are saving money or sharing internet access by using point to point or point to multipoint wireless bridging between two or more locations. Its easy, just take a look!

Whole article here…