WiFi security

[Slider]

Hi.

I just moved into a new security complex, the first night we were there we got broken into while we were sleeping. To be expected considering our proximity to a township near by, but scary for me and my family none the less. I then spoke to the body corporate they are alowing me to set up wireless security cameras around the complex in certain spots, the 4 spots are roughly square and about 800 m apart from each other. Security is at the gate about 1km from the furthest camera. The Idea is that residence could then use wifi to have a look if wanted, and security could keep a watch 24 / 7.

I have been looking for a wireless solution that can cover the range. It's about a square kilo. Now I know the legal limit is something like 100mw, d-link says their 100mw out door hotspot can cover 420 m, but I need more than this. The area is highly developed.


I plan on getting a 802.11b router and a omni directional antenna, and was considering a booster. I know I can get anything from a 400 mw booster to a 1 watt booster from over seas, but I would like to localize the interferance caused, and I don't need to cover the whole township.

Any ideas? How can I achieve the range I need while at the same time keep within legal / moral limits?

Thanks

 

[jano]

For starters, DON'T use an omni, but rather directional links with sector/yagi antennas. Implies more radios & costs, but better range due to much lower interference.

Spend some time reading through this section of the forum, there's a lot of info here.

 

[Slider]

Yagi / Directional

I was thinking putting an Omni down, then pointing a yaggi / directional antenna at the omni... would that work?

 

[skydog]

Hi.

I just moved into a new security complex, the first night we were there we got broken into while we were sleeping. To be expected considering our proximity to a township near by, but scary for me and my family none the less. I then spoke to the body corporate they are alowing me to set up wireless security cameras around the complex in certain spots, the 4 spots are roughly square and about 800 m apart from each other. Security is at the gate about 1km from the furthest camera. The Idea is that residence could then use wifi to have a look if wanted, and security could keep a watch 24 / 7.

I have been looking for a wireless solution that can cover the range. It's about a square kilo. Now I know the legal limit is something like 100mw, d-link says their 100mw out door hotspot can cover 420 m, but I need more than this. The area is highly developed.


I plan on getting a 802.11b router and a omni directional antenna, and was considering a booster. I know I can get anything from a 400 mw booster to a 1 watt booster from over seas, but I would like to localize the interferance caused, and I don't need to cover the whole township.

Any ideas? How can I achieve the range I need while at the same time keep within legal / moral limits?

Thanks

Slider - welcome to the forum. If you going to do this properly i would probably suggest you get a company to do it.
I'm not taking anything away from you as i do not know your skills but there are two areas here 1) the cameras and 2) the wireless.

there are other ways of doing it. like linking all the camera to a central spot then everyone connects to that...
legal? dont worry be happy

 

[Slider]

????

Is this really that complex to achieve? I understand there are a lot of "tricks of the trade" that I will be un-aware of. My problem is, I have permission, not funding. This is coming out of my own pocket, the cheaper the better...

I am yet to find the cameras I want to use, they need to be out-door WiFi cameras, not something that is common.

With an Omni in place I understand the residence would most likely not be able to log in without their own high gain antenna, thats fine, as long as the base station / security complex can receive signal.

 

[nomdeplume]

Contact Gary from Visec for the software and ask him to recommend cameras.

http://www.visec.co.za/

It may pay you to get IP cameras, and then link them with wireless, as opposed to buying wireless IP cameras. In my experience wireless cameras are normally pretty lousy. NEVER use an outdoor booster!

 

[mufasa]

or for free O/S use zoneminder with ip/wifi camera's http://www.zoneminder.com

 

[Darth Garth]

I just moved into a new security complex, the first night we were there we got broken into while we were sleeping.

How the heck did they get in if this was a "security" complex ???.
It is an inside job I reckon ... sometimes these criminals actually live inside and not outside.

I would first address that issue than going paranoid and installing cameras all over the place and who is going to monitor them ???.

 

[wiki]

Slider, if ur in the western province, drop me a pm and i'll help you with the setup

 

[wiki]

PS: i'm part of the CTWUG and use to community work

 

[mufasa]

Count me in.... always game for some wifi fun.... and I have played with zoneminder a bit.

 

[Slider]

Paranoia

The security in the complex is clearly in-affective. What gets me is that they knew I would be in there the first night I was there. My aim is to catch those guys in the act ... I believe it's the security staff... but that’s just conjecture currently.

I'm a software engineer and I've managed to tweak some code I found on line, it enables a person to monitor video streams from several sources, record movements, these sources include video feeds, internet streams (from IP cameras) and local USB streams ... anything you can receive on your PC more or less... I plan to allow the security staff to monitor real time, and from my home I'll be watching, recording movements so that when something goes down we can see clearly who did what...

It's happened in our "security complex" four times this year so far... They cleaned up every time… They know how to get in, where to go and what to take… There is one side of the complex they get in through every time, it borders a building site. Every unit along that boundry has beams in the garden except one, they know which one... Paranoid… perhaps… but there is something in me that just can’t let them get away with this one more time… It just feels like we are paying our levy to criminals…

 

[mufasa]

slider where abouts in ZA do you stay ?

 

[Slider]

Location

I stay in Pretoria East, near Mamelodi...

 

[wiki]

ok count me out, all urs mufasa

 

[jdjoubert]

I would have come to help.... but I live in Somerset West and dont even know where Pretoria is.... : )

Sounds very dangerous to me...............

 

[ic]

How the heck did they get in if this was a "security" complex ???.
It is an inside job I reckon ... sometimes these criminals actually live inside and not outside.

I would first address that issue than going paranoid and installing cameras all over the place and who is going to monitor them ???.

Good points, but nowadays the trend [at least] in Gauteng seems to be to specifically target these security complexes - the reason being that once the criminals are inside, there are very few barriers to contend with inside the complex [e.g. no burglar bars, few alarms systems, etc].

As for who would monitor the security cameras...well if every resident had access to the video feeds, then there would be at least a couple watching the feed alongside the infomercials that plague some TV channels [I don't have DSTV so...]

 

[Spotter]

Hi Slider, I have a similar position like you have you managed to find a service provider for wifi in your area and sourced wifi ir camera's
Spotter

 

[shogun]

My 2 cents

Slider... don't let someone tell u that you can't do this yourself. Last weekend we set up a 4 camera system hooked up to an HSDPA module to monitor a remote location (holiday house). I'm not in the security business at all.

What i do recommend is that you chat to a security company that sells equipment (in the western cape, one very good company is sensor http://www.sensorsecurity.net/). They should give you some good advice and recommend some products without having to charge you for consultation and installation etc.

There's a nice unit that i've used a few times before: an AverMedia box (there are a few different types, some network enabled). You can hook up a number of cameras to it (wireless cameras too), and it can do things like record when there is movement, email you a snapshot of when movement starts or if there is video loss etc. You can access the network enabled ones over your LAN or over the net if you hook it up to a router with DynDNS. They have a HDD built in, and it's easy to search for events (triggers).

In terms of cameras... i recommend you get some decent lighting (flood lights hooked up to a motion sensor), as opposed to relying on infra-red cameras for night time shots.

Why?:

1. the LED's in the infra-red cameras die out pretty quickly.
2. The flood lights help trigger the cameras at night.
3. Nothing beats a well lit video / snapshot... you won't get faces on a b&w infra-red image easily (although in the light, they do pick up colour).

Also, i recommend getting a decent camera... the cheap ones don't give you any kind of facial detail. Go check them out in a security shop first... they'll generally be on display hooked up to a monitor.

Best of luck.

 

[acidrain]

You guys did notice the topic was posted over 3 years ago?