Adding Axis video units

After your client accounts have been created, you can add Axis video units to these accounts so that your clients can monitor their premises.

1. Power on the new video unit, connect it to your network, and wait until it is online.
2. Click Clients, and then select a client account from the Number of devices column.
3. On the client's Devices page, click Enroll a device and then click Add a video unit ().
4. In the Video unit information section, enter the following and then click Next:

   Name

   The name of your device, as identified on the customer’s Devices page. If there are many devices, enter a name that is easy to recognize and find.

   Time zone

   The time zone that the video unit is installed in.

   Manufacturer

   The device manufacturer.

5. In the Video unit identification section, enter the video unit’s serial number and owner authentication key (OAK), and then click Next.
   A dialog box opens notifying you that the video unit connection is in progress. In the background, Waiting for connection is displayed in the State column.

   Important: If the video unit’s serial number or OAK is not valid, an error message is displayed and the video unit is placed in the Error state. Video units that are in the Error state can only be deleted. It is important to make sure to keep the OAK confidential because it is the password to your video unit’s web page.
6. Press the video unit’s One-click camera connection button.
   If you cannot access this button because the video unit’s location is inaccessible, then configure the AVHS service through the video unit's web page.

   When the One-click camera connection button is pressed, the video unit continuously tries to connect to Stratocast™ for the next 24 hours. After the video unit connects, the Video configuration section is displayed and the State column changes to Connected. This process can take up to 10 minutes. If your Axis video unit is not connected after 10 minutes, begin troubleshooting your video unit connection to Stratocast™.

   Tip: If you want to add multiple video units that are not accessible or not physically connected to a network, you can get all of your video units to the Waiting for connection state before installing them at your client’s site. When you have access to the video units, press the One-click camera connection button on each video unit and complete the procedure for adding video units in Stratocast™.

   Also, if you are on-site and want to physically install your video units first, you can install your video units, press the One-click video unit connection button on each video unit, and then complete the adding video units procedure in Stratocast™ within 24 hours of pressing the One-click camera connection button. If you exceed 24 hours, you must press this button on each video unit again.

7. In the Subscription section, set the following, and then click Next.

   Plan

   The camera plan for your video recordings. For information about camera plans, see www.genetec.com/solutions/all-products/stratocast/overview#Plans. Camera plans apply to cameras, not video encoders. Each camera that is connected to a video encoder can have its own individual plan. As a result, video encoders are billed according to the number of channel inputs that it has. For example, if you add a video encoder that has four channel inputs, you are charged for all four, regardless of whether you are using all four.

   Retention period

   The retention period is the number of days that video recordings are stored in the cloud. When the retention period expires, recordings are deleted. The default period is 7 days. This does not apply to Edge plans, which store video on a NAS or SD card.

8. In the Video and audio configuration section, set the following, and then click Next.

   Recording type

   The storage medium (cloud, video unit, or NAS volume) and recording mode (continuous or on motion) for your video recordings. If you choose a recording type for video unit storage (for example, Camera continuous), make sure that your video unit has an SD memory card.

   Note: If the Cloud on motion recording type is used and Dual recording is enabled, the following occurs:

   • Video recordings that are triggered when movement occurs are stored in the cloud.
   • Continuous recording is stored on the SD card.

   For sites with limited bandwidth, users can select the Edge Recording plan, so that they can record video from any camera to a Network Attached Storage (NAS) device, or directly onto the camera’s SD card storage. As video is stored to devices on the local network, no bandwidth is used to record video in the cloud. This plan requires cameras that support NAS devices or Edge Recording.

   On average, a 64GB SD card can typically store more than a month of video. Stratocast™ cannot see the SD card's storage usage, and no defined retention period can be chosen. The camera will record until the card is full and then overwrite the oldest footage.

   Resolution

   The image resolution of your video recordings. The available choices depend on your camera model and your plan.

   Average bit rate

   The average amount of data that is transferred per unit of time (Kilobits per second). Higher configuration presets (resolution, frame rate, and so on) require a higher bitrate to stream video, so it requires more bandwidth. You can refer to this field when planning the Internet connection speed and bandwidth requirements of your recordings.

   Frame rate

   The number of frames per second (fps) that you can obtain when recording video. A high frame rate (10 fps or more) produces fluid video and is essential for accurate motion detection.

   Audio

   The audio mode (Disabled, Enabled for live stream, Enabled for live stream and recordings) for your video recordings.

   • The Enabled for livestream audio option is only available for Axis cameras that support audio when used with the Cloud continuous, Camera continuous, or NAS Continuous recording type.
   • The Enabled for livestream audio and recording option is only available for Axis cameras that support audio when used with the Cloud continuous recording type.

   The sound quality and bandwidth usage vary depending on the camera specification and settings. The audio format is AAC by default.

   Important: You must federate the Stratocast™ client account to a Security Center system to ensure that you can listen to live or playback audio through the Security Desk Monitoring page or from Archive search results.

   For information about monitoring cameras with live or playback audio using the Security Desk Monitoring page, see Camera widget in the Security Center User Guide.

   Dual recording

   The dual recording mode (Enabled or Disabled) for your video recordings.

   • The Enabled option specifies that recordings are stored in the cloud and on the camera's SD card.
   • The Disabled option specifies that recordings are only stored in the cloud.

   Important: Dual recording is enabled by default (and cannot be turned off) for all end user accounts when new Axis cameras are enrolled that have SD cards in the ready state.

   The dual recording option is not available on the Edge plan. Recorded video on the SD card can only be accessed from the camera manufacturer's configuration web page or physically from the SD card.

   Note: If you do not want dual recording, contact Stratocast™ support to disable this function for your account.

9. If you chose a NAS volume recording type, such as NAS continuous, click Next and do the following:
   1. In the Network attached storage volume (NAS volume), select the NAS volume that you want to use to store your video.
      Note: Because there is a maximum of one video unit record on a NAS volume, you cannot select a NAS volume that is already assigned to another video unit.
   2. In the Retention period field, set the number of days that you want the video recordings to remain stored on the NAS volume. You can set the retention period in the following ways:
      • Move the slider (A) in the desired direction. As you move the slider, the number of days change in the value box (C).
      • Click the slider arrows (B) to add or remove seven days of retention time with each click.
      • In the value box (C), type the value, or click the arrows to add or remove one day of retention time with each click.

      

   As you set the retention period, the Estimated storage usage field automatically estimates the hard disk space that is required to store the camera's recordings. The estimated usage is based on the values that you enter for the camera's configuration and resolution, as well as the retention period of the video recordings.

10. Click Enroll.