Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Matts1984
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by Matts1984 »

I have on a couple occasions run into instances where my BI server stopped using the second NIC. Technically speaking my server could reach my cameras using either NIC but I prefer the second NIC as it removes several network hops. I restarted my server to resolve the routing issue. I'm not certain if the issue is down to the BI software or Windows - though I tend to think it's Windows as generally speaking, it's used to only have one interface. The OS isn't designed to be a router so to speak.

I only say this as maybe you do have everything correct and it's just a matter of some sort of buggyness. Have you tried a reboot after everything was set 'right'?

While your tests are certainly valid I'd also add a couple Command Prompt commands to my toolbag.

Trying pinging your camera address. After that, also try 'arp -a'. This should give you a listing of every MAC address matched to an IP address that is local to your server. It could be a long list but if the IP/MAC doesn't show after a ping, something is definitely still wrong. FWIW, I say to do this after a ping attempt as the ARP table will refresh and drop off stale entries after a while.
Blue Iris 5.8.8.x | Server 2022 VM | Xeon X5650 @ 2.67GHz - 12 Cores | 12GB RAM | 7TB RAID | Sophos UTM WAF | 4x SV3C 5MP Bullet A | 1x SV3C 5MP PTZ HX | 1x SV3C 5MP Bullet HX | 1x SV3C 5MP Dome HX | 2x Amcrest 5MP Bullet
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TimG
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by TimG »

Thixotropic !

Any progress, or are you relaxing on a deserted beach somewhere :?:
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Matts1984
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by Matts1984 »

His signature has been updated to say 'Dual NIC' but not sure if thats leaning forward or mission accomplished.
Blue Iris 5.8.8.x | Server 2022 VM | Xeon X5650 @ 2.67GHz - 12 Cores | 12GB RAM | 7TB RAID | Sophos UTM WAF | 4x SV3C 5MP Bullet A | 1x SV3C 5MP PTZ HX | 1x SV3C 5MP Bullet HX | 1x SV3C 5MP Dome HX | 2x Amcrest 5MP Bullet
gbarnas
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by gbarnas »

Coming late to this party, but I have had this configuration working for some time, so posting a simplified network diagram for the benefit of others.

The goal is to have cameras in an isolated network for security - no ability to "phone home". Blue Iris is "dual homed" with a NIC on the main and the camera networks. Cameras can communicate with Blue Iris but not beyond. Blue Iris can be connected to from the main network and potentially through the Internet via port forwarding, preferably via a firewall. You should NOT enable routing in the BI server or you will defeat the purpose of the isolation.

The cameras should be configured with an empty gateway address when possible. I have 2 cameras that refuse to save this configuration, so I have a reserved address on my Camera network with no device assigned. The cameras are given this address as their gateway. Of course, there's no routing, but the camera is happy with it's gateway address being filled in.

Challenges of this design include:
  • Cameras cannot self-update. You either need to download updates from the camera site to the BI server and update from there or move the cameras to the Main network for (semi) annual updating.
  • This requires two independent switches or a switch that supports VLANs to isolate the Main and Camera networks.
  • Blue Iris will need to either provide DHCP, or be configured to provide DHCP Relay services. You could, of course, assign camera addresses statically. The DHCP server is in the Main network and cannot provide addresses to the Camera VLAN. The DHCP server in most consumer firewalls won't support multiple scopes, so static addresses for your cameras are probably best. If you do configure BI to run DHCP for your cameras, you MUST bind the DHCP service to the Camera NIC only or you could have conflicts on your main network.
Here's the diagram of what works:
Image
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TimG
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by TimG »

That looks so much better than the quick drawing I sent to Thixotropic :lol:

But yes, you don't need a router on the second NIC if you use proper static IP addresses. I just chanced it when I tried this, and it just worked.

Poor old Thixotropic is not doing so well, and is likely to torch his second NIC any day now. It should be so simple, but it just isn't working for him :(
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Thixotropic
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by Thixotropic »

Great diagram, gbarnas. That's more or less how our system configured. It must be our NIC/camera settings somewhere.

We're going to try it one last time before we give up. Maybe two more times. I'll let you all know what happens, probably in a post titled "Barely Used NIC For Sale".
Blue Iris 5.x x64 | Windows 10 Pro x64 | 16GB RAM | i7-7700 3.6 GHz | 1TB HDD | 2TB RAID NAS | 9 Cameras | Almost Dual NIC | 2KVA UPS
ldsharp
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by ldsharp »

Thanks for the diagram - Once I gather my cameras and get everything configured I plan to separate my cameras from my main LAN with a dedicated POE router and a second nic on the PC running BI5. My thought was not only security, but all the excess network congestion from the cameras since I already run a media server, Tablo, Fire TV and bunch of other devices on the main network. I've done this in the past digitizing courtroom video and saving through a secondary nic to a server on a totally separate system and never had any problem accessing disparate LANs from a PC with multiple nics so hopefully I won't run into problems this time (though I have certainly had to work my way through lots of frustrating windows issues and 3rd party surprises).

As for the camera updating, the manufacturer I'm trialing now (Amcrest) offers a tool for that purpose that hopefully can be used on the same PC as BI5 to download firmware updates to the PC and then down to the cameras. I guess I'll know in a few weeks when I have all the hardware.

The OP might use the ping command on the PC to make sure there is physical connectivity from BI to the various IP addresses prior to expecting BI to find the cameras. It seems if you can get 1 camera to work, it should be pretty simple to complete your project. And by the way... some of the worst, absolute time-wasting problems I've found in 50 or so years of electronics and computer troubleshooting is ASSUMING that just because you added something new that it actually works. When I contracted for that court system, the first nic I installed did not work and after driving around a little town looking for a simple nic I finally had to order one from Amazon and go back another day (and another 2 hours driving) and then everything worked just fine.

Another tool that may be helpful from the command line is "ipconfig" Run that puppy and make sure that windows agrees with what you think you have setup on the nics. That should also let you know if a windows default IP or a vpn or similar has waylaid your plans.
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TimG
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by TimG »

Idsharp: Good point on Ipconfig. I've sent Thixotropic a screengrab of my working system using "ipconfig /all". There is something simple blocking his system - I have had this working on two different pc's now, and it just worked for me.
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gbarnas
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Re: Trying to get 2nd NIC to work...

Post by gbarnas »

I'm just going to throw something out there.. you CAN do this with one NIC and one switch. This will confirm where the issue is, possibly a bad NIC or cable between BI and the second switch.

You know the primary NIC works because you can get to the BI server from your PC. Let's say this network is 192.168.1.0/24; BI is 192.168.1.12, and your PC is 192.168.1.16. Your router (Gateway), is 192.168.1.1

On the BI server, open the NIC properties for IPv4, click Advanced Settings, and ADD a new network IP address - 10.0.0.12, mask of 255.255.255.0, and NO GATEWAY.

Ping your new IP from the BI server - you should get a response. Ping it from your PC, no reply, because it has no reference to that network. Ping the 192.168.1.12 address from your PC and verify it still works.

Now - manually configure a camera IP address to 10.0.0.16 / 255.255.255.0 and NO GATEWAY and plug it into your main switch (or router). Ping the 10.0.0.16 from the BI server - it should reply. Try connecting from BI - does it work? If this works, either the second NIC is bad, cable to or switch on the second network is bad.

This test places the alternate network addresses onto a set of known-working equipment. This isn't a recommended way to work, but you can certainly have two different logical networks on the same physical network without any interference. This will NOT provide security isolation, as the other devices can be detected from a broadcast, but WILL effectively help troubleshoot the issue.
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