Blue Iris

I have 12 cameras (All Foscam IP cameras. Most of the outdoor cameras are G4 cameras. There are several cameras that go down every morning at approximately 3:30 AM. All of the cameras on the system are hooked up to a smart plug. The exterior cameras have 2 or more cameras on the same smart plug. In most cases, only 1 camera on the smart plug goes down so I do not think the problem is the smart plugs.I get a timeout error on the camera. I am using an EERO Pro network with 4 units. The cameras that go out are within 20 feet of an EERO module. I am using the standard setup figures when I installed the cameras. Any suggestions where the problem is?

Have you consider the possibility that 12 wifi cameras on the same wifi network is too many, and you might be overloading the wifi system with traffic. Not knowing the camera details, this is just a guess! If the eero system is not wifi, then excuse my assumption.

Thanks for the thoughts. My WIFI network says it can handle over 100 devices and I am in the low 70s. Plus, the cameras are dropped almost at the same time in the middle of the night when traffic should be light. I lose cameras at all times of the day and night, but usually, it is random cameras at random times. Not the same cameras.at the same time of day.

Do the BI logs show the camera dropping out and trying to reconnect? Use the "log to file" and look in the file, perhaps there is some other telltale activity at that time.
FWIIW: I have had bad luck with wireless cameras dropping out from time to time. We don't use wireless for any serious surveillance. Stuff around the house is OK for wireless here, but get disconnect/reconnects.

I get random disconnects at various times. I just set up the logs yesterday and will check disconnects and reconnects tomorrow. I have found that many times I get a disconnect I do not get a reconnect. Thus all the cameras have an Ultra Pro smart plug on them. If a camera disconnects and does not reconnect, I cycle the power using my phone and the smart plug. That way, I do not have to run around to each camera. The outside cameras use a waterproof smart plug that has two outlets. The cameras that give me the trouble are outdoor cameras and only one of the two cameras on most plugs go out. Thus, I assume that the smart plug is not the issue.

Another thing to consider and I mention it as you mention that can accommodate 100 but you only have 70 devices, don't forget that CCTV cams will always stream data regardless of trigger events or triggered recording, so they will always be a load on your wifi network.

Good point about the continuous streaming. I wonder if the smart switches are continuously streaming also? we use smart plugs on many table lamps and in most cases, we have no issues with them. We use Caseta switches and they have a bridge of their own. I like the Ultra Pro switches because they are relatively inexpensive but they do not dim which is great for the cameras and they do not require a bridge.

Smart devices generally use very little wi-fi bandwidth as they operate on a basic on/off or task command basis. Smart lighting is a little different and will use slightly more to convey status info to the controlling system, but the network wi-fi limitations will typically be based on the bandwidth distribution among all active devices on the network, not the literal number of devices.

The number of devices allowed is typically determined by the anticipated load vs. capacity of the router with a certain +/- tolerance in there somewhere for manufacturer wiggle room. 70 devices hanging off a router that specs support for 100 is only 70% of what is spec'd. With a bunch of those devices being smart plugs and switches it is highly unlikely the 'smart home' segment of the network is creating bandwidth issues. Controller issues affecting the perfomance of those devices or actual wi-fi aberrations peculiar to the specific times are much more likely causes of the problem, particulary if the timing is relatively consistent from event to event on a nightly basis.

The affected cameras obviously all have something in common that sets them apart from the others. Shouldn't be that difficult to identify the common denominator.

I’m having the exact same issue as OP with a similar setup.

I’ve been running BI for ~4 years with this setup. 4 Foscam cameras all on WiFi, and I haven’t moved them. I also have an eero network with an eero pro and eero 6+. Within the past 2-3 months all cameras drop around the same time, between 1-1:30AM. Sometimes they come back on their own after a few days otherwise I have to manually reboot, and they come back.

Prior to this, the cameras never dropped unless there was a WiFi/power outage.

Could possibly be some eero thing? But wanted to throw it out there I found this thread when searching my issue and saw our situations were very similar.

Maybe the problem is not with the smart plugs because only 1 camera on the smart plug stopped working. The problem may lie with the network connection or camera settings. You can check your camera's network connection and settings to see if there are any problems.