Bad Switch?

[TimG]

That makes me feel like a kid staring through the window of the sweet shop at all the goodies I can't afford

Hey Thixotropic, are you up and running again ?

[Thixotropic]

Hey Thixotropic, are you up and running again ?

I have the new switch but haven't taken the time to swap it. It's a 5-minute job but I have a condition called Incipiente pigritia (incipient laziness) and my doctor says there is no cure. I'll probably get to it later today. Or tomorrow.

Also, I've decided it's about time for me to blow away my current, crufty Windows instance on the BI box and slam a fresh copy of Windows on it. As I understand it, I need to:

1. Save/export the BI registry entries
2. Deactivate BI in the BI interface
3. Nuke the PC
4. Reinstall Windows, run Debloater, etc etc
5. Reinstall BI
6. Reactivate the BI license
7. Import the BI registry entries saved in Step 1

Am I missing anything there? Seems like that should be it, unless I'm forgetting something.

[TimG]

Hey Thixotropic,

Having two POE switches will allow you to sort out the dual NIC without breaking your existing camera network.

Something simple...

[HomeFront]

Make sure your cabling isn't too long to get the 12VDC to the cameras
Make sure the cabling is solid. Although Cat-5e should technically do it, go with some robust Cat-6-Extreme at least.
Make sure your cameras aren't trying to make continuous unsuccessful tunnelling or onvif connections, thus tying up their processing power
Make sure your cameras aren't over-heating.
Make sure you are only Unicasting, not being hacked and getting multicasted.
Make sure to experiment with different protocols (ie: generic ONVIF, Avigilon RSTP, etc..) that aren't trying to make connections you may be overlooking.
Use a set IP on the cameras, your switch or router's DHCP may be messing up with Blue Iris' default method of re-connecting the cameras every 30 minutes. Possibly when you have another pc or device being activated.
Use a 12VDC wall wart directly into the camera to troubleshoot.

[Techie007]

I use a BV-Tech 18 Port PoE Switch and I suspect it's dying, causing some of my cameras to constantly disconnect and reconnect. But I'm not 100% sure.

I have two hard-wired Microseven wide-angle cameras, and they've started to drop in and out. I've moved the cameras to different ports but still see the same thing. The other cameras aren't doing this, and that's what makes me wonder if it's really the switch.

No, I don't have two NICs.* The switch goes directly to the router and the NAS is plugged into the switch. Thank you for catching that. Maybe it's time I retire and just sit on the porch in a rocking chair, grousing about the good ol' days.

I would suggest going with the OOSSXX PoE switches on Amazon. They are inexpensive, are fanless, have two uplink ports instead of one, have an SFP port or two for fiber expansion (comes in useful when adding cameras to outbuildings while retaining network protection against lightning), and in my experience, they have been very reliable.
Also, regarding your diagram above, don't connect your PC to your Router/Internet, connect both it and your router directly to the switch. That way, all your camera traffic doesn't have to flow through two switches.

OOSSXX 8-port PoE switch ($56): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0833JCGTG
OOSSXX 16-port PoE switch ($99): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VKZ8B47

They used to offer 4-port and 24-port PoE switches too, but I believe sales volume was low and they're not currently available. Disclosure, I am not affiliated with this company and am just a happy customer who has purchased many of these for use in camera systems.

[jondwalters]

I probably don't need to say it but in regards to cable, avoid CCA (Copper Clad Aluminum) wire at all costs. It's horrible. Make sure all cable is pure copper.