BlueIris in VM

Posted on
Mon Apr 29, 2019 5:00 pm
jay (support) offline
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BlueIris in VM

Anyone running BlueIris in a VM on a Mac? Just wondering what that experience is like.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Mon Apr 29, 2019 6:04 pm
roussell offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

I’m running it in a VM, but not a Mac. It runs well but I have a lot of vCPUs dedicated to it and haven’t setup a dedicated GPU for it (yet).

Do the new Minis support Intel Quicksinc? Is there a hypervisor that will run on MacOS and pass through the GPU to a guest even if the mini has quicksync?

Are you thinking of running ESX on the mini? I think it works now, except you won’t have use of the mini’s HD and possibly some of the ports.

If you’re willing to run Indigo unsupported, I’m willing to send you an 8 CPU, 80 core beast HP DL980 with a terabyte of RAM. I have an extra one :-)

Terry


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Posted on
Mon Apr 29, 2019 7:52 pm
GlennNZ offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

Hi


I ran it for many years on a Hyper-V Windows VM where it worked well, did need a bit of vCPU though.

Recent years, concerned about Watts used and justified moving to Dell Optiplex 7050 Micro i7 - at one of their 50% off new model due sales.
Added a TB 2.5 inch drive for local storage. OS runs off the m2.ssd

Only runs BlueIris with ?16 cameras, with CPU 20% or so and 7-12 Watts Power!


Glenn

Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 6:02 am
roussell offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

If I didn’t have all of this hardware and if power wasn’t so cheap in Alabama I’d definitely run it on a low power, newer generation NUC or similar Like Glenn. I’ve thought about switching to one of those anyway, just to keep BI isolated.

Terry


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Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 9:16 am
jay (support) offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

I'm running an early 2009 Mac Pro with 20GB of memory, a 640GB SATA mechanical drive. I'm just looking at no more than 4-5 cameras, just 2 in the near-term.

I have to say that the whole camera thing is still frustrating as heck (been half-heartedly trying it for many years). I've got a license for SecuritySpy, and trying to find decent/reliable but inexpensive cameras that will connect to it has been a big challenge. I bought 3 cheap Wansview cameras, which worked fine with SecuritySpy, but they were cheap and often failed in odd and unreliable ways (including one that just started flooding the network with garbage, bringing everything to a grinding halt at a very inconvenient time).

I then tried another camera that didn't connect to anything outside it's own ecosystem despite multiple claims that it did (this seems to be the trend with the less expensive camera makers).

My latest attempt is a Foscam R2C, which also claims ONVIF support but which SS would just not connect reliably. I also couldn't connect directly to the camera's embedded website (kept getting timeouts and other odd issues on Mac browsers, a total refusal to load on iOS Safari, and I even tried it on an old windows laptop which also ended up just timing out). These same cameras specifically mention Blue Iris in their sales pitches, so that's why I'm asking here. I suppose I'd be open to buying a NUC specifically for Blue Iris (my spouse does Windows support so at least I wouldn't have to deal with problems myself), but again now the cost of entry has gone up to the point I'm not sure it's worth it.

Here's what I want: a less expensive WiFi cameras (yeah, I don't want to crawl around my attic trying to get wired PoE connections where I want cameras) that will reliably work with an NVR system of some type that can integrate well with Indigo (motion detection, refreshing static image, PTZ support, etc). Less expensive because, frankly, I'm just not overly sold that I really need cameras, but knowing that cameras will augment my current DSC alarm system in terms of security.

I know there are others wanting this as well because we periodically get these kinds of support inquiries.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 10:05 am
Professor Falken offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

jay (support) wrote:
(yeah, I don't want to crawl around my attic trying to get wired PoE connections where I want cameras)


As you might expect, the wired POE ones certainly increase reliability. One thought for you -- if you have a good electrician that you trust, he might be willing to pull cat 5/6 to your locations at a relatively cheap hourly rate, especially if you let him schedule it at some time that he's not usually busy.

That's what I did, and it took them less time to pull wires for about 10 cameras (some of these I haven't even used yet) than it did for me to do it for 1 (the first one I installed). Then they can just leave the wires for you bundled away at the needed spots, and you can go back around at your leisure and install the actual cameras.

You might be surprised how inexpensively they're willing to do wire pulling for.

Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 11:09 am
autolog offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

jay (support) wrote:
Anyone running BlueIris in a VM on a Mac? Just wondering what that experience is like.

Yes - I am. :)

My production Indigo system is a 27" 2017 4.2Ghz i7 with 48 GB of memory.
I am running Blue Iris on the same machine in a Windows 10 VM using VMWare Fusion configured with 12GB of ram (probably overkill :wink: ) and 4 processor cores..

I have 4 Foscam cameras attached via ethernet (a couple are POE). The network is all UniFi.

CPU tends to tick over at about 20% as shown in Windows but goes up to 50% every now and again.

Seems to run fairly well and I like the Blue Iris software. :)

Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 3:19 pm
GlennNZ offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

Hi

I would agree with a Professor Falken that POE wired is the way to go, saving many many many hours of future hassle/pain. Frozen image, Wi-Fi dropouts, Wi-Fi bandwidth impact, plus general ugliness of wifi cameras.

From a camera standpoint can’t recommend cheap Dahua brand enough. They are fantastic fully featured cameras at a great price, with great low light optics.

Andy - from AliExpress:
http://s.aliexpress.com/veQjiy2M

and ipcamtalk forum also has a amazon store here:

https://www.amazon.com/s?i=merchant-ite ... YQ83EBQGJF



Glenn



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Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 4:06 pm
roussell offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

All my cams are Reolink POE 4 and 5 mp, a mix of domes and bullets. I like them a lot, and they’re a bargain at ~55-65 each. POE is the way to go, it’s a pain running wires, but once it’s done, you don’t have to worry about them anymore.

Terry


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Posted on
Tue Apr 30, 2019 6:33 pm
chase offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

I am running Blue Iris in a win10 pro VM (and have for years).

It is loafing long at 23% win10 CPU utilization, running 14 cams, 7 1080p, 6 4MP and 1 4K all at 15 fps.

The iOS app is great. Blue Iris does all I need (although I am told it peters out at about 64 cameras).

This setup is very very good.

I have tried Security Spy, and sadly, it is garbage (very expensive garbage).

Blue Iris 5.0 will be released shortly and promises to be a solid upgrade.

Needless to say, I am a fan!

Posted on
Tue May 07, 2019 6:17 am
autolog offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

Just switched on continuous recording for my cameras and CPU was up to around 30%.

However, setting the camera to Direct-To-Disc recording has reduced the CPU to 15%. :)

I don't think this is available in BlueIris demo mode.

Posted on
Mon Jul 01, 2019 2:53 pm
FlyingDiver offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

chase wrote:
I am running Blue Iris in a win10 pro VM (and have for years).


What virtualization application? Fusion? Parallels? Something else?

I'm considering switching from Security Spy to Blue Iris, as buying BI plus a VM would be cheaper than upgrading SS.

joe (aka FlyingDiver)
my plugins: http://forums.indigodomo.com/viewforum.php?f=177

Posted on
Mon Jul 01, 2019 3:28 pm
chase offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

What virtualization application? Fusion? Parallels? Something else?

I'm considering switching from Security Spy to Blue Iris, as buying BI plus a VM would be cheaper than upgrading SS.


I am currently using Parallels (works great) but up til a year ago used Fusion (also works great). I flip flop between the two every once in a while when I read that one or the other is more efficient... They are very very close.

I worry a little as parallels comes from Russia but it is their main product and focus, while Fusion is really just crumbs for VMware and sometimes us Mac users feel it.

Posted on
Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:28 am
autolog offline
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Re: BlueIris in VM

I use VMWare Fusion for Blue Iris. :)

The big advantage I see with using VMWare Fusion is that it has a license that enables you to run it on multiple Macs.
AFAIK Parallels is licensed per Mac and is therefore more expensive if you want to (or need to) run it on multiple Macs.

Posted on
Tue Jul 02, 2019 9:41 am
FlyingDiver offline
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What a pain

So I figured I'd try it out. Tried to install both Parallels and Fusion on my Mac Pro server that's currently running Security Spy. Can't do it.

Both VMs require kernel extensions, which require permission in System Preferences to install. But that button is blocked from working when using any kind of remote access. I tried both Screen Sharing and TeamViewer. Nothing.

So I'll need to pull the Mac Pro out of the server closet, hook up a monitor, keyboard, and mouse, and then I can install them. Not sure when I'll get around to doing that.

joe (aka FlyingDiver)
my plugins: http://forums.indigodomo.com/viewforum.php?f=177

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