Axis Camera Station User manual

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AXIS Camera Station
Quick Installation Guide
© Copyright Axis Communications AB April 2005 | Rev. 3.5 | Part Number 23997

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Table of Contents
Regulatory Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
AXIS Camera Station - Minimum System Requirements . . . . . . . 4
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Local Area Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Over the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Install AXIS Camera Station Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Activate the software with your License Key . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Configure AXIS Camera Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
AXIS Camera Station User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
AXIS Camera Station Control Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Pan/Tilt/Zoom and Audio controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
AXIS Camera Station Client software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Install AXIS Camera Station client software . . . . . . . . . . 21
AXIS Camera Station Web application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

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Regulatory Information
About This Document - This manual is intended for administrators and operators of AXIS Camera
Station and is applicable for software version 1.20.
Later versions of the document will be posted to the Axis Web site, as required. Previous experience of
networking will be of use to the reader when installing and using this product.
Legal Considerations - Camera surveillance may be prohibited by laws that vary from country to
country. Check the laws in your local region before using AXIS Camera Station for surveillance purposes.
Liability - Every care has been taken in the preparation of this manual. Please inform your local Axis
office of any inaccuracies or omissions. Axis Communications AB cannot be held responsible for any
technical or typographical errors and reserves the right to make changes to the product and manuals
without prior notice. Axis Communications AB makes no warranty of any kind with regard to the material
contained within this document, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability
and fitness for a particular purpose. Axis Communications AB shall not be liable nor responsible for
incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance or use of this material.
Trademark Acknowledgments - Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Windows, .NET are registered
trademarks.
Axis Support Services - Should you require any technical assistance, please contact your Axis
reseller. If your questions cannot be answered immediately, your reseller will forward your queries through
the appropriate channels to ensure a rapid response.
If you are connected to the Internet, you can:
• Download user documentation and firmware updates.
• Find answers to common problems in the FAQ database. Search by product, category, or phrases.
• Report problems to Axis support staff by logging in to your private support area.
Visit the Axis Support Web: www.axis.com/techsup

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AXIS Camera Station - Minimum System Requirements
• Install AXIS Camera Station on a stand-alone computer dedicated to
mainly run this application
•Useastatic IP address on the dedicated computer
• Intel Pentium 4 with 1 GHz processor (2 GHz or higher recommended)
• 512 MB RAM
• Hard disk: 1 GB for installation and 2 GB or higher per camera as image
database (the storage capacity can be calculated using the bandwidth
calculator available at www.axis.com/techsup/cam_servers/bandwidth/)
• NTFS file system
•CD-drive
• XGA (1024 x 768) or higher resolution monitor
• Graphic card with 32 MB or more memory
• Microsoft mouse or compatible pointing device
• 100 Mbit Ethernet
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2, Windows Server 2003 or Windows
2000 with SP4
• Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 6.0 or later
• Internet Information Server (IIS) installed on the C-drive of your server if
you intend to use the web interface

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Overview
This document will help you install AXIS Camera Station and
configure it for your Axis Network Cameras and Axis Video
Servers. A brief introduction to the functionality of the software is
covered here, see the online Help or the AXIS Camera Station
User’s Manual for a detailed description. The User’s Manual is
available on the CD and on www.axis.com
AXIS Camera Station is a complete monitoring and recording
system for use with Axis Network Cameras and Video Servers.
The application's main window provides quick and easy access to
all connected and configured cameras, to all recordings and to
inputs and outputs used in the system. AXIS Camera Station runs
as a background service in Windows.
Administration
The Administration section of the application allows complete
control and configuration of all aspects of the system. The
Administration section is opened from the File menu in AXIS
Camera Station.
Remote clients
For remote clients you can use “AXIS Camera Station Client
software” described on page 21 or “AXIS Camera Station Web
application” described on page 23.

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Network Configuration
The AXIS Camera Station can record and playback video feed from
cameras that are connected over a local area network or over the
Internet.
Local Area Network
The cameras can be connected directly to the server running AXIS
Camera Station using an Ethernet network.
Over the Internet
To access AXIS Camera Station from the Internet and get live
images from the cameras you must open a set of IP addresses and
port numbers in your firewall configuration.
There must be a port open for each Axis camera/video server and
one port for AXIS Camera Station.

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See the User’s Manual for details, available on the CD and on
www.axis.com

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Install AXIS Camera Station Software
1. Insert the CD in the CD drive. If the installation CD does not
auto-start, click autorun.exe in the CD’s root folder.
2. From the CD’s interface, click Software and then AXIS
Camera Station
3. Click Open to launch the installation.
Note:
4. Next, you will be asked where you wish to install the program.
If nothing is specified the program is normally installed in
C:\Program Files\Axis Communications\AXIS Camera
Station.
Install AXIS Camera Station on the dedicated stand-alone PC from which you
wish to run the main administration of your cameras and video servers.
You may be prompted to install .NET Framework 1.1.Simply follow the
installation Wizard’s instructions and click your way through.
You may be prompted and then automatically redirected to
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com to locate and install these missing
Windows components:
•Windows 2000 Service Pack 4, located here:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/servicepacks/
•Windows Internet Explorer 6, located here:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie
Install the missing components, see your Windows documentation for
instructions. When this is done, reboot your computer and then restart the AXIS
Camera Station installation by clicking AXISCameraStationSetup.exe on the
CD.

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5. Click your way through the Installation Wizard.
6. When you are finished, open AXIS Camera Station from Start
| Program Files or click the program icon on your desktop:
Note:
Activate the software with your License Key
Important!
Registering with a direct Internet connection
1. The first time you start the program you will be asked to
register your license. Click Register.
If running Windows XP, you will need to permit the firewall to accept incoming
requests from AXIS Camera Station Client when prompted.
Before starting AXIS Camera Station, the hard disks where you save images
must be NTFS formatted, which is the default in Windows 2000/XP. See the
User’s Manual for details. The AXIS Camera Station User’s Manual is available
on the CD and on www.axis.com
• The License Key can only be used to install the software on a single com-
puter.
• The License Key is your proof of purchase, keep it in a safe place for future
reference.
When entering licensing information, e.g. the License key and Access code,
remember that they are both case sensitive.

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2. Fill in the requested information, you will find your License
Key on the inside of the AXIS Camera Station CD casing, to
the left. Click Activate.
3. Your license information will be sent to Axis Communications
and your software will be activated automatically.
4. You can now start using AXIS Camera Station.
Registering without a direct Internet connection
If you do not have Internet access from the computer running
AXIS Camera Station, you can choose the 5-day grace period,
where you will have a complete functional program for 5 days.
During this time, you can use another computer with Internet
access to register the program, see below.
1. Click Grace period.
Enter License Key
(found inside CD casing)
The entered characters
are case-sensitive!

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2. Enter the License Key and click Activate Grace Period.
3. You will see your Server ID (a code containing information
about your PC).
4. You can now use AXIS Camera Station for 5 days.
5. During the grace period you can receive the Access Code by
using any computer with Internet access to browse to
http://www.axis.com/techsup/acs and fill in the requested
information. When complete click Submit.
6. When you have received the Access Code, select Yes when
starting up AXIS Camera Station.

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7. Enter your Access Code and click Activate.
8. You can now start using AXIS Camera Station.
Using the demo version
Another option is to install AXIS Camera Station as a 30-day
demo version, which works with 4 cameras.
Entered characters
are case-sensitive!

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Configure AXIS Camera Station
After installing the software, it must be configured for your
cameras and video servers. All camera/video server configuration
is done from the Administration pages.
1. From the AXIS Camera Station, click File | Administration:
Note:
The Administration pages contain all configuration settings. Only a few of the
most essential settings are covered in this guide. See the online Help or User’s
Manual for a full description.
File | Administration

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2. From the Cameras tab, fill in this information:
Notes:
• Click the ”?” button to identify the Axis camera/video server model.
•IntheCamera Type field, specify the connected Axis video server if using an
analog CCTV camera.
• The WAN must be specified if a client or web interface client is run from
another network than AXIS Camera Station. If no WAN address is available,
enter the LAN address.
2.1 Select camera
2.2 Camera
enabled checkbox
must
be checked.
2.3 Name the
camera.
2.5 Click “?” to get
the correct
camera or video
server type.
Enter camera’s
Local IP address
(LAN) or host
2.7 Enter camera’s
User and password
default user = root
default pass = pass
2.9 Check connection to camera by clicking Test Image.
2.4
2.10 Click Apply.
2.6 For video
servers, specify
video port
number in
Camera port
number field.
to configure.
name.
2.8 Open the camera’s web page to set properties by clicking Link to Camera.

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3. Next, under Views, define the camera views as seen from the
main AXIS Camera Station user interface.
4. Under General, make sure that the IP address of the local
dedicated computer is entered in the Server IP address field.
5. If you have cameras outside your local network and a proxy
server is used for external network access, refer to the User’s
Manual for how to configure the proxy settings,
6. From the AXIS Camera Station interface, select a
camera view by clicking one of the View Selection
buttons:
7. The camera will now appear in the main window,
where live images from the cameras are shown.
You have now performed the minimum required setup in the Administration
pages. For instructions on configuring recordings, alarms, motion detection,
scheduling, etc., see the User’s Manual.
3.1 Select view according 3.3 Select camera
3.5 Click OK to save and exit.
Example:
To configure 4
cameras, select
To configure 9
cameras, select
3.2 Select camera position
3.4 Repeat 3.2 and 3.3 for all cameras.
to the number of
cameras you want to
configure.

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AXIS Camera Station User Interface
Click to
expand
view
Red light = background recording
service is not running.
Green light = background recording
service is running.
The frames surrounding the images are color-coded:
Blue frame: Camera connection OK, no motion detected
Red frame: Camera connection OK, motion detected or recording has started
Yellow frame: Camera network connection interrupted

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Notes:
• The background recording service retrieves images from the connected
cameras and stores them to hard disk. From the AXIS Camera Station you
can start or stop the background service, click File | Administration | Start
Server or Stop Server.
• When the service is running there is a flashing green indicator in the upper
right corner of the window. A flashing red indicator means the service has
stopped. When the service is running there is also a green icon in the task
bar, a red icon means the service has stopped and a yellow icon indicates
that the service is starting up or experiencing problems connecting to one
of the cameras.
• Recording is only possible if the background service is running, and will
continue even after logging out from the PC where AXIS Camera Station is
installed.
• The background service will automatically start running upon system
start-up. This auto-start function can be disabled under Windows Control
Panel | Administrative Tools | Services | AXIS Camera Station. Right-click,
select Properties | General | Start-up Type => Manual.

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AXIS Camera Station Control Buttons
View Selection Select a view and you will get a window
showing live images direct from the camera.
It is possible to click in the image from
Pan/Tilt/Zoom cameras to move the camera
or zoom using the mouse scroll wheel.
No Live Images Click the No Live Images button to close the
camera windows. Showing live images in the
main window uses a lot of processor power.
Not displaying live images reduces the
amount of processor power required by the
service, whilst not affecting recordings in
any way. The amount of bandwidth required
is also less when not showing live images. In
the Views section of the Administration
pages it is possible to set up the system so
that it always starts in this mode.
Select Camera Select a camera to be shown in a new
window. Choose this if you want to close the
view windows (and thus save on processor
power) but still want a single camera view
visible on your desktop. Controls for
Pan/Tilt/Zoom, audio and AXIS Image
Enhancer may also be shown in this window.

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Monitoring I/O When clicking this button, the I/O Status of
all units are displayed. Monitoring I/O
defines when events, such as an alarm or
motion detection, should be triggered. Each
I/O is shown on one line, along with a
colored indicator:
• green indicator means the I/O is in its
normal state
• red indicates that the I/O is active,
recording in progress
• yellow means there is no communication
with the I/O
Buttons for starting and stopping an I/O
output are also shown.
Camera sequence Click to open the Camera sequence window.
A camera sequence is a pre-defined "camera
tour" i.e. a configuration that automatically
switches through all of the cameras included
in the tour. Select the camera sequence to
view from the drop-down list.
Recorded Events Here you can search through recorded
events. Select a date, a time and press the
search button and you will get an overview
of all the recorded events. Select one of the
events and you will see the actual images in
the selected event.
4 camera playback Here you can play recorded events from four
cameras simultaneously. Select a date and
time, and then press the search button. All
the events found for the 4 cameras will be
played starting at the specified date and
time up to the present time.

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Pan/Tilt/Zoom and Audio controls
These controls are only visible if the connected camera has PTZ
capability or a connected audio module. Choose a camera from
the drop-down list for the controls to appear.
The recording properties for Axis network cameras and video
servers, e.g. frame rate, image size, are set using the
Administration part of the program. From AXIS Camera Station,
click File | Administration to access the different tabs.
Event Log The event log shows all of the alarms and
other events in the server. Click on an item
to open the event. To view the full event log,
select Playback | Event Log.
Pan/Tilt/Zoom
controls Click on the controls to steer the camera
around. You can also click on the images to
move the camera. (This feature is only
available on some PTZ cameras).
Audio controls If the camera is equipped with audio
capability, the controls are shown here.