IP video surveillance is more accessible and easier with the SimpleIP hardware network video recorder.
It seems that large foreign brands are secretly investing in this kind of PR.
The probability of truly innovative solutions appearing in large corporations that carefully calculate risks and save every cent cannot be higher than in mobile companies that quickly adapt to market conditions.
Below we will talk about an original Russian development, which has already been implemented in hardware and has gone on sale.
The market fate of the new product is quite predictable: by spring, Asian manufacturers will have come up with “the same thing”.
And they will start shipping “very similar solutions” by the carload. However, by spring, Navikom’s NVR will already have time to beat them by half a carload.
Including due to the fact that sales of the device have already begun, and with them the countdown of operating experience, improvement of technical support and firmware updates has begun. However, let's take things in order…
At the dawn of the «IP revolution», industry experts went a bit overboard with their forecasts: they say that analog cameras will soon become a thing of the past.
And video recorders will cease to exist altogether, dissolving in the «computing cloud» of anonymous network servers.
with all these «Vasyuki» ordinary consumers, but having interested large brands of manufacturers of security video systems, the idea of NVR — network video recorder — was embodied in a number of frankly expensive hardware and software solutions for relatively large objects.
Several years passed. The activity of eastern manufacturers of IP equipment led to a drop in prices for network video cameras.
There was also a steady demand for recording devices.
And after it, a lot of low-end solutions — a variety of software, often cobbled together «on the knee».
IT specialists spat on the clumsy interfaces and integration difficulties, but this is not what slowed down the implementation process. The «human factor» came into play.
By the time the «network revolution» was announced, the security industry had already managed to form and acquire its own traditions.
Put a computer monitor and a mouse pad in front of an experienced old-generation security guard.
Are you sure you can explain to him that these newfangled toys are better and more useful than the usual panels, joysticks and DVR control buttons?
As a result, mutual irritation between security services and IT departments grew. And instead of the fashionable convergence of physical and logical security, there was a whiff of serious conflict.
Transitional period model.
Developers of IP security equipment were faced with a choice: who to rely on — installers of traditional systems or network integrators?
The majority chose IT.
Since the press, through the mouths of experts, continued to promise a quick and inevitable «virtualization» of physical security. Network video recorders were no exception.
All models of hardware NVRs without exception — from super-expensive branded ones to the most modest ones — were approximately the same.
A typical model was a metal box with connectors for connecting network devices, local storage devices and power supply. There were practically no controls on the box.
It was assumed that there was at least one client PC in the same network as the device, from which monitoring could be performed, archives could be accessed, and the system could be managed.
Connecting a monitor to the NVR to ensure local viewing was also not envisaged.
«For many, the transition to network technologies was and remains something incomprehensible,» says Roman Streltsov, CEO of the Moscow company Navikom. «Yes, IP video surveillance has become fashionable — or rather, talk about it. However, as soon as a client finds out that an IP video recorder is a piece of hardware for five thousand euros that should be somewhere in a closet, and there is no way to connect a monitor to it, he begins to feel a certain discomfort. Which very often results in a decision not in favor of IP technologies. We set ourselves the goal of creating a network video recorder that would be functionally and externally indistinguishable from a regular DVR.»
Indeed, Navikom has chosen an alternative path, targeting its product, on the one hand, at installers of the security market, and on the other, at the segment of medium-sized video surveillance systems.
Exactly the one in which hardware NVRs prevail: in small and large systems, according to industry experts, it is more profitable to use PC-based network recorders.
The idea of its own network video recorder in 2007 resulted in the emergence of a research and development department on the company's staff.
Two years of intensive work have resulted in the emergence of a product line under the expressive name SimpleIP.
Is SimpleIP really that simple?
The meaning of the brand name of the video recorder is to make the transition of users to IP technologies as simple as possible.
Navikom is a multi-profile company that has concentrated under one roof the supply of equipment and software for IP video surveillance from leading global manufacturers, but at the same time has its own production and development.
Eight years of business activity in the network systems sector allowed us to consider the process of transition to IP from all possible angles.
The company is well aware not only of the technological subtleties, but also of the attitude of consumers to the «IP revolution».
This allowed us to accurately identify the missing link in the market offer — and to be the first in the industry to create an NVR with the ability to locally control in the DVR form factor.
The main features of all models in the line are a fixed set of functions, placement in a traditional «desktop» case, the ability to connect a monitor to the built-in VGA port.
Structurally, the devices are based on standard motherboards, and a semiconductor DOM drive is used as a system disk.
The real-time OS (one of the varieties of Linux), on which the control software operates, eliminates «glitches» and the likelihood of the device being damaged by viruses and malware.
Currently, the functionality of the devices allows local recording to built-in and USB-connected drives.
Remote storage is supported at the hardware level, and this feature is planned to be made available to users of SimpleIP devices in the next firmware versions, which will follow in the spring/summer of this year.
This and a number of other additional features are currently being tested.
Following the motto «Only proven solutions» is not always easy. However, Navikom does not intend to deviate from this principle.
Does not fly into space, does not open bottles.
The brand slogan of the line is: «Nothing superfluous!»
Professional equipment, unlike household equipment, is usually purchased for specific tasks.
And therefore, in order to interest a potential buyer, it is not customary to artificially inflate the capabilities and expand the boundaries of application.
SimpleIP does everything that is stated in the summary of technical characteristics.
Therefore, the price/capabilities ratio here is determined quite simply.
In particular, in comparison with traditional DVRs, which SimpleIP network recorders are positioned to replace.
The focus on maximum simplicity of such a replacement should ensure a smooth transition of client systems to IP.
According to Roman Streltsov, everything should happen like this: “The user unpacks the device, installs it in a convenient place, connects the power supply, network and monitor.
And then simply presses the “Power” button.
The device boots itself, automatically configures itself and displays images from IP cameras on the monitor.
After such a procedure, it becomes clear to any user that there is nothing complicated about IP video surveillance.»
«We are trying to attract the attention of potential customers to the line with three main arguments,» continues the CEO of Navikom. «This is the price category that our NVRs fall into, the traditional form factor in which they are made, and the user interface of the recorder, transferred from the now common hardware video recorders. Implementation and operation of the device do not require special knowledge and contact with «eternally busy» system administrators.»
We would like to note separately that a number of functions of SimpleIP devices still go beyond the usual set typical for analog-digital DVRs.
For example, the devices are equipped with an automatic camera search system on the network, allowing you to connect and display images from all available cameras on the monitor.
However, this procedure does not «burden» the user at all.
SimpleIP: questions on the merits.
SN: Your NVR is made from components created by contractors and suppliers of ready-made solutions. Is this how it was intended?
Navikom: SimpleIP is basically an idea embodied in technical form. We did not produce the motherboard and case ourselves. The idea is to combine the necessary resources and components into a single whole and get the desired result. And the production itself consists of concentrating the components, assembling the finished products and testing them.
SN: What did you base your work on when developing the technical specifications for creating the software?
Navikom: We took the most attractive functions from the DVR and PC-based interfaces, incorporated them into the system and documented them. Plus additional requirements — the software must run under a real-time OS and be located on a solid-state drive.
SN: What is the most critical element in SimpleIP in terms of device performance?
Navikom: First of all, the bandwidth of the network in which it operates.
SN: And in the device itself?
Navikom: The processor. This is typical and expected for IP recorders, so we used a processor with some power reserve. To view video streams, they need to be unpacked, which requires additional computing resources.
SN: So, the ability to view and control locally is the weak point of the device?
Navikom: Rather the opposite. This is a unique feature of SimpleIP. And we optimized the processor strictly for the declared performance. There is no way to fit a powerful quad-core processor into the form factor of a regular DVR. This path leads to an expensive server in a 19-inch rack.
SN: So, your recorder is obtained by transforming a network video recorder based on a PC?
Navikom: Yes, it is a kind of hybrid, but it is no longer classified as PC-based.
SN: Imagine the situation: a well-trained intruder breaks into a guarded facility and does his dirty work. And then looks for a thing that looks like a video recorder in order to seize it and thereby destroy the evidence. If it is a standard NVR, which does not look like a video recorder, the probability that the device will be detected will be much lower?
Navikom: Perhaps so. However, the total cost of ownership and maintenance of standard NVRs is much higher. Customers have learned to consider more than just the initial costs. And many provide security with administrative measures — for example, to get to the recording device, an intruder would have to neutralize a dozen security guards. The device is a network device, and therefore it can be placed anywhere in the institution's local network. Why not choose the most physically secure location?
SN: In what direction will the line develop in the future?
Navikom: We will increase the number of channels. The form factor allows working with 32. In the spring, we will introduce the possibility of remote and distributed data storage.
SN: And what about integration?
Navikom: We are currently working on integration with a number of popular POS terminal models.
SN: How secure is the software on the DOM disk? You understand that we have “craftsmen”
Navikom: We took this into account: the software is tightly tied to the hardware — in particular, to the unique identifier of the DOM disk. And in order to illegally copy the image of the boot disk, the attacker will have to spend a lot of money. About the same as it would cost to develop new software.
A view from above with a screwdriver in hand.
SN: Motherboard, hard drive, flash drive… Judging by the components, the products have an open architecture?
Navikom: No, this is a closed solution. Ready to work, tested and with certain performance characteristics. If desired, of course, you can experiment… The heart of the device is a solid-state boot disk, which contains the real-time OS kernel and control software. And everything else is standard components, selected for optimization reasons.
SN: A Russian product, but the filling is completely imported?
Navikom: This is the reality. In domestic DVRs, the components are approximately the same and of the same origin. Only instead of a motherboard, there is an extended video input board with a not very fast processor. In SimpleIP, the presence of video output requires a more powerful processor; accordingly, a mini-ATX motherboard is used. Such components are not produced in our country.
SN: So, the motherboard for your NVR can be freely purchased from a standard components supplier?
Navikom: In theory, yes, although the boards we use are not very common. But if you want to find them, it’s not a problem, since the manufacturers are well-known — for example, ASUS. The question is that the board should be compatible with the DOM drive. But this problem is much easier to solve than to repair a regular DVR. Which, if the motherboard fails, flies into the trash bin entirely.
SN: So you don't keep the list of compatible boards a secret from the user?
Navikom: It's enough to open the device to understand from the markings what board it is on. If suddenly after the warranty period the board «flies out», an average-skilled system engineer will be able to bring the NVR back to life in half an hour, without straining himself too much. And all our technological secrets are in the software, which is on the boot DOM disk.
SN: So, in fact, this video recorder is partly PC-based?
Navikom: It turns out so. Functionally and in appearance, it is a purely hardware solution. But the design uses elements typical for PC-based.
Strategy and passion.
SimpleIP: access opens in February.
An eight-channel sample of the video recorder has already arrived at the Security News test lab.
Scheduled testing of the device is currently underway, and public access to the NVR over the network is planned to open in mid-February.
We remind you that users connect to the device via a KVM IP converter, which allows you to operate the built-in menus using a mouse and display the image on your monitor screen.
It is also possible to connect to the recorder via client software (under Windows).
Registered users of the test page will be able to «have a blast» with the device settings and connect their own network cameras to SimpleIP.
The rest will have to be content with street webcams from European capitals. There are no restrictions on testing time or traffic volumes.
The address of our booth for online testing is on the Internet.
We will be glad to see you!
The fate of the SimpleIP solution is quite indicative.
Unlike our neighbors from the Celestial Empire, who are trailing behind in progress (it's funny to read in 2024 — editor's digression..), and who constantly keep their noses in the wind, our compatriots played a classic game — almost by the book.
We analyzed our own and industry sales experience, looked closely at the market, found a niche, formed product requirements, optimized costs, ordered components, or the product, and brought it to market.
And as of today, we are ahead of everyone.
Nothing out of the ordinary.
Everything is simple and mundane.
The idea develops, finds its own direction.
Copying from a neighbor is not interesting, it is a game for weaklings.
«Navikom» is a strong, passionate player, and, despite its somewhat sly slogans, is far from as simple as it seems.
And the big game, apparently, has already begun.
And the NVR line taken separately is just a tank corps in the global theater of operations.
«In February-March, the «eastern comrades» will rush into this niche.
On a massive scale, since this is a clear breakthrough on the IP front. We at Navikom saw this prospect a little earlier than others, — predicts Roman Streltsov. — And, believing in the potential of the product, we are not trying to make money on it as quickly as possible today. We will calmly and fully earn tomorrow. In parallel, studying what will be in demand the day after tomorrow. The company has been adhering to this strategy since its inception.»
We have provided our material with a headline similar to an advertisement. However, it seems that we failed to maintain the classic advertising intrigue.
Emotions got in the way.
A rare, exciting moment: our team is leading the score.
Support from the stands would not hurt.
Please applaud, colleagues.