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MacOS Any Mac users happy with iVMS-4200 v2.0.0.10?

macman

macman

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I've just been trying it out and it seems to contain plenty of bugs while also ignoring the Mac GUI.

It won't let me resize windows manually by dragging a corner. On my 5K (5120 x 2880) monitor (27in iMac running High Sierra), I am forced to choose an app window of either 1680 x 1050 or full screen with nothing in between. Unless I'm missing something.

I'm also peering myopically at tiny interactive buttons which all look the same (even when I change my screen resolution to 2560 x 1440) and at dark text on a dark background, which is impossible to read at any resolution.

And if I do choose full screen, I can't get out of it. ESC doesn't terminate full screen. Choosing the smaller 1680 x 1050 will open such a window but it sits on top of the now locked full screen window. The only way I've found to exit full screen is to quit the app. Unless I'm missing something.

Back in 1680 x 1050, I'm watching Live View and suddenly, without provocation from me, all the app windows start cycling in a vicious loop. Live View has gone and I'm forced to watch a slideshow of the other windows until, for some reason, it decides to stop and let me reselect Live View again. Am I missing something?

And even after installing the Hikvision WebVideoPlugin, I can't find a browser which will show me a camera feed. They all report a missing plugin. I've tried Safari 12, Safari 13, Chrome, Firefox and Seamonkey so far and grown weary. Does any browser work?

I also downloaded the Hikvision SADP tool and it installed but fails to open. Is there a trick to it?

I've been testing a HiLook camera before investing in the the main range. Is it possible that iVMS-4200 doesn't work properly with HiLook cameras? I haven't been able to persuade it to record any events yet but I hope that's because I haven't read the manual properly. The camera itself (IPC-B640H-Z) seems pretty good but nothing I have tried gives me an option to view it at full resolution (2560 x 1440). The most I'm offered is 2304 x 1296, even if I drop the frame rate down. Am I missing something?

My dealer kindly remote accessed my screen today and was also flummoxed by the broken functionality of iVMS-4200. He's asking Hikvision for help. He noted that I wasn't using an NVR (just a Ubiquiti PoE switch) but didn't think that should be causing any problems.

But unless there's a good, free third party app for MacOs which will allow me to dispense with iVMS-4200 without losing any functionality, it looks like my main CCTV investment will have to be in a different manufacturer.

Hopefully, there are some happy Mac users here who can tell me some good news about Hikvision apps.
 
Hi,

@Dan is our Mac man; he lives on one; I cannot drive them ;)
He is on holiday this week I will ask him to respond when he gets back.

The problems stem from the manufacturers regarding the Mac as 'not something that businesses use with their CCTV'.
Hence, they invest very little time & effort in their Mac solutions.
I can only agree that this is poor, and that they take too long to make improvements to their Mac solutions.

In this sector, Mac-users have always been the outliers.
For many years we recommended Security Spy software as THE solution for Mac users.

Synology are also a little more forward-thinking and have developed solutions that work well with their NAS boxes and Macs.
 
@macman I am a Mac user and have not found a Mac browser that will now work properly with Hikvision. in its place I use IVMS-4200 which is very buggy. I think that the Hikvision hardware and software development teams never collaborate with each other.

I have been a Hikvision owner (9 cameras 2 NVR's) and user for just over 3 years now and would advise you to speak to @Phil and find a better cctv system.
 
I finally found a web browser that gives me a live feed in High Sierra: an old version of Opera (v25) which can be downloaded at: download opera 25.0.1614.71 free (mac)

The current version (v63) doesn't give a live feed so don't download it since Opera doesn't seem to allow two versions to co-exist on the same startup volume. It is however an excellent, minimalist, Mac-centric browser which, unlike Safari, supports 4K video.
 
David said:
@macman I am a Mac user and have not found a Mac browser that will now work properly with Hikvision. in its place I use IVMS-4200 which is very buggy. I think that the Hikvision hardware and software development teams never collaborate with each other.

I have been a Hikvision owner (9 cameras 2 NVR's) and user for just over 3 years now and would advise you to speak to @Phil and find a better cctv system.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I feared as much. Phil advises me to wait for the return of Machead, @Dan so I'll do that. I belatedly discovered that iVMS-4200 won't allow me to save automatic event recordings to my PC's internal hard drive, insisting that I give it a dedicated drive. Since I'm not prevented from manually saving live video to my internal HD, I assume this is just an artificial barrier to try to force people to buy more kit from Hikvision.
 
macman said:
I finally found a web browser that gives me a live feed in High Sierra: an old version of Opera (v25) which can be downloaded at: download opera 25.0.1614.71 free (mac)

The current version (v63) doesn't give a live feed so don't download it since Opera doesn't seem to allow two versions to co-exist on the same startup volume. It is however an excellent, minimalist, Mac-centric browser which, unlike Safari, supports 4K video.
Click to expand...

@macman do you know if this works with Mojave 10.14.6?
 
macman said:
Thanks, I feared as much. Phil advises me to wait for the return of Machead, @Dan so I'll do that. I belatedly discovered that iVMS-4200 won't allow me to save automatic event recordings to my PC's internal hard drive, insisting that I give it a dedicated drive. Since I'm not prevented from manually saving live video to my internal HD, I assume this is just an artificial barrier to try to force people to buy more kit from Hikvision.
Click to expand...

For its own apps I think Hikvision use a non standard format for hard drives. I used an app called blue iris (not sure) that saved to my internal hd, this may have been windows as I run a virtual machine on my Mac.
 
David said:
For its own apps I think Hikvision use a non standard format for hard drives. I used an app called blue iris (not sure) that saved to my internal hd, this may have been windows as I run a virtual machine on my Mac.
Click to expand...
So why do they allow me to manually save live video to my internal HD?
 
macman said:
So why do they allow me to manually save live video to my internal HD?
Click to expand...
Good point, maybe there is a difference between storing raw video and saving the mp4 video file for playback with VLC.
 
If they were actually supporting the Mac platform, Hikvision would be generating mp4 videos which can be opened with Quicktime Player.
 
macman said:
If they were actually supporting the Mac platform, Hikvision would be generating mp4 videos which can be opened with Quicktime Player.
Click to expand...
Agreed, the Mac market must be too small for Hikvision to invest in. Until if affects the bottom line nothing will change.
 
I have read that under 10% of cctv buyers are running on a Mac but it's cause and effect. Mac users don't want to run sub-standard software crudely ported from Windows and full of bugs. So they end up going to one of the few Mac-friendly brands, Reolink, which takes money out of the trade. Having run a couple of Reolink cameras I know that their Mac software is good - but their cameras leave a little to be desired imho.
 
Hi @macman

As @Phil said I do work with a Mac every day and have been dealing with quite a few Mac-related issues. The Mac access & browser compatibility issue has been a long-running one, Hikvision has recently fixed this issue although only partially as it is now possible on the latest firmware to access Hikvision G1 cameras (2xx3/2xx5) and I-series NVRs using any browser. This is not a perfect fix, there are still improvements needed and it does not look like the 'plug-in free' firmware is coming to any older Hikvision models or the consumer HiLook cameras you have. For you, unfortunately, your only options are iVMS-4200 which is glitchy but is still being improved, Security Spy, Synology NAS, or a HiLook NVR with a directly connected monitor. Some other manufacturers like AXIS do have better software and browser compatibility but this does come at a price as an AXIS camera with a similar spec to the Hikvision camera will likely cost twice as much. As Phil said earlier Mac users will more often than not be at a disadvantage when it comes to using profession surveillance equipment and as you already pointed it is often the cheaper consumer brands like ReoLink, Swann, etc... that have developed custom Mac software.
 
Hi @Dan. Thanks for your disheartening summary. I would settle for the current state of iVMS-4200 on my Mac if it condescended to save live alerts to my internal HD (where it is happy to save manual live recordings). But there may be more to it. I have been playing with SecuritySpy and I haven't yet discovered how to achieve the same thing. I set a camera to record continuously to my HD and nothing happens. So I'm wondering if I have missed an instruction. This is for LAN use only - no internet connection required.

And having discovered that Hikvision's VSPlayer is a pretty good video player (better than VLC imho), I'm less annoyed by Hikvision's proprietary mp4 format.

And, as I reported elsewhere, I have discovered an old Mac browser - Opera v25 - which seems to work with my test camera and was a giant leap forwards (backwards?) for me.

But I need to find a way to save events to my internal HD or I will sadly be forced to settle for some cheap consumer kit.
 
I made some progress. My dealer had pointed me to a firmware update but Hikvision pointed me to a different one and since loading the new firmware SecuritySpy now automatically saves my motion events to my internal HD. Sadly, Hikvision told me that iVMS-4200 can't do likewise unless I set up a net storage server which is a complication too far for me. So SecuritySpy looks like the answer, albeit at £300 for 9 cameras, it comes at a price.
 
My setup:

macOS v10.14.6 (iMAC i7/32gb mem)
NVR: DS-7732NI-I4 v4.22.000 build 190821
iVMS v2.0.0.10 build 20199625

I've had many bugs/Issues since moving to a 64 bit iVMS v2.0.0.10 from the older 32bit.. the primary ones are:


1) Cannot minimize iVMS... can only close it

2) This is a pain... Camera windows freeze (or if they work, are blurry) when expanding one of the camera windows. They usually respond after 30 to 60 seconds. (Note: none of these issues occur if I use windows/IE and connect direct to the NVR).


The positive behavior is that moving to 64 bit, the cpu usage is way down when compared to the 32 bit. The 32 bit iVMS would run close to(and over 90% cpu, the 64 bit runs around 60%).

My guess is they built this 64bit iVMS for mac quickly and without much testing.... I hope they fix these other issues.
 
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