CCTV is all about Storage.
Footage is of essential importance for Video Forensics or Evidence. This is the one reason that has driven CCTV Technology forward. People wanted more in terms of quality of pictures. People wanted better forensics. People wanted durable storage medium's and eventually people now want to access these pictures or videos on the fly.
To understand this technology one needs to look at the evolution so to speak of Storage.
Let’s look at Evolution of Storage Technology.
To begin with CCTV Cameras were recorded on VHS Tapes based on Video Recorders. These Recorders were Time lapsed so that many hours of footage could be stored on a single 3 hour tape. However, VHS Tapes had issues not just resolution but also with storage and quantity. The quality reduced when it was played back a number of times plus the tapes itself were prone to due to fungus accumulation etc.. Finally managing a large number of tapes became a nightmare to a security manager.
The next evolution came about when Digital Video Recorders were introduced and CD /DVD Disc’s were used to store evidence. The quality was better and also durability was better but again management was an issue in terms of number of disc's to be stored. Even today crucial evidence is exported to CD / DVD disc.
The next natural progression came with increased capacity in terms of Hard Drive Storage being available and thus today almost of recordings are stored on SAN/NAS based Storage devices. With larger pixel density cameras being available storage sizes have risen dramatically over the years. A decade ago Security Managers looked at 8GB storage as being massive, while today most system would need around 30 for 40 GB of Storage to begin with.
In terms of Technology earlier in what was the Digital Video Recorder days All Management in terms of Recording Resolution, Frame was done locally on the DVR and number of days were restricted by size of the Hard Drive. Event back up’s were taken on CD / DVD Drives and in some cases you could export the event to a remote computer for back up over the Network.
IP CCTV evolved in the same manner but instead of the DVR came a server which got connected and all management was done at the server level and as technology evolved Storage Size became only limited by financial constraints of cost of the storage and typically these days people even prefer archiving the important events onto a remote Cloud.
Today Cloud based Storage for Archiving is becoming popular with a number of Small Business (SOHO) and Distributed Small Businesses looking to store data on the Cloud. Video Surveillance Companies are offering Cloud Storage and Video on Demand or Video as a Service based on Cloud Storage. Residences are turning to Cloud Computing for Remote access and view of their homes.
Let's face it Cloud Based Storage does have some real strong advantages.
It allows you to
- Reduce your IT Infrastructure footprint.
- Allows you access to highly scable IT infrastructure on the go or on demand.
- Extends the functionality of your on premise Security system
- Reduces the indirect costs of managing your IT infrastructure ( Servers, Cooling, Power etc.. )
Finally as far as a Security Manager is concerned -- REDUCES THE RELIANCE ON CORPORATE IT TEAMS.
Now let me not give you the feel that I am all for Cloud Storage..
Cloud Storage has serious problems which most vendors will not admit on record.
Most VMS platforms have still not evolved to handle multiple site cloud based server storage streaming... ( I can hear hundred's of voices already protesting ) and most will not admit this.. Secondly due to the huge bandwidth requirements involved if we have a large system it would become quite an expensive affair in the end not just from the size of storage but also managing the streams and the uplinks etc couple that with High Megapixel Camera streams and it can become a huge problem.
Finally with all the security concerns which exist today Cloud Storage is still a major problem. Most IT companies will never admit this as a problem but the problem exists and its only after a breach has occurred that people say a breach has occurred.. Only a couple of days ago did we hear of the data leak at Zomato.. The number may have been reduced but the fact is the breach occurred. Similarly if the network fails due to various issues down the line you would lose a lot of data (and if your luck is bad) of critical importance.
So what is the answer?
Well in my experience there is no real straight forward answer.. The answer lies in the Honesty of all people involved in the organization to the various questions asked by the Security Audit teams and the ability of people to rise and raise their hands up when required.
Can you accept a data breach?
How many days / hours of data can you afford to lose in a day?
In large systems I recommend a Hybrid approach. Store on premise and archive important footage on the cloud.
I guess as of today I would say from my personal opinion that Cloud Storage is strictly for non serious storage / redundancy.
All comments / brickbats welcome..
