Ordering parts for first setup

[LWFVoo]

I'm building my Mum a Christmas present. Yeah', you guessed it - a ZoneMinder box.

Here's my parts so far...

• AMD Athlon XP 2200+ CPU.
• 1GB RAM.
• KD7A Motherboard.
• 80GB SATA HDD.
• 8x Channel 240FPS ZoneMinder compatible BT878a. (Ordered 5/Nov/2011. Received 16/Nov/2011.)
• EVERCOOL 5.25" Front Bay Fan (This will replace the DVD Drive after Ubuntu Server installation.)
• Corsair CMPSU-430CX 430W PSU.
• TITAN TTC-005 System Blower Fan (PCI Slot).

Here's what I plan to order...

• *N/A*

Here's the plan...

I plan to install Ubuntu Server (No Desktop Environment). The box will have a Mains Power cable, an Ethernet cable, and that's it. I will SSH into it - so no need for monitor/keyboard/mouse.

I will continue to edit this post (Post #1) as the days/weeks go by.

Any suggestions or advise appreciated.

Thanks.

[bb99]

By experience flash has limited writes; ZM will decimate it....

[Flasheart]

The way I read it, a conventional sata hdd used to store video - ie, zm's data. But why not put it all on there and not use the cf-flash at all?

Also - 512mb is cutting it fine. I'd bump that to 2gb.

[LWFVoo]

I didn't think that ZoneMinder would need to write much to the system drive (Compact Flash) and may only ever need to write to the SATA HDD. But you're the experts. So I've scrapped the CF and the 'CF to IDE' adaptor idea. Thanks.

The mother-board's 3x memory slots were equiped with 2x DIMMs:

• 1x PC2100 (DDR 266) 256MB
• 1x PC3200 (DDR 400) 256MB

I have removed the above and fitted the below:

• 2x PC3200 (DDR 400) 512MB

So it now has 1GB of RAM.

I've also had a look through the manual and, if 1GB is not enough, I can upgrade the RAM to a maximum of 3GB if I fit 3x PC2100 (DDR 266) DIMMs. But this would mean spending quite a lot of money (£52.50).

Will 1GB be sufficient?

Thanks.

EDIT:

Sorry; I forgot to answer your question Flasheart...

Why not put it all on there and not use the cf-flash at all?

I was going to install it on a CF Flash so that, when updates need installing (ZM, PHP, MySQL, Apache, etc), I could just create a disk image of the CF, then proceed with the updates. If I mess up, I could then just put the image back until I've soaked up some more knowledge.

I also figured it may use less power if the SATA HDD auto-sleeps due to inactivity, and that - in the event of a drive failure - the drives would be easier to replace.

Although thinking further, I can probably just use the whole SATA HDD and create a huge partition for the video area. When it comes to updating, I can just backup the MBR & partitions; but exclude the huge "video" partition.

[LWFVoo]

I'm just burning a CD now (ubuntu-11.10-server-i386.iso). I'm going to try to follow this guy for now and have a play around while I'm waiting for the postman to deliver the BT878a PCI/DVR card...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-nIUgB35OQ

[bb99]

1 Gig mem is going to work just fine.

[LWFVoo]

Ubuntu Server installation went okay. I've left pretty much everything as default. I chose to encrypt the user directory (I don't think this will cause problems). Before I powered the system on to install the OS, I made sure that the Ethernet was connected. So it seems to have automatically grabbed updates etc. During the installation, I was asked if I would like to install packages. Here are the packages I selected:

• OpenSSH
• DNS Server (Reason: Direct LAN-side devices to ZoneMinder using a DynDNS or a No-IP URL.)
• LAMP Server (Reason: I think it has almost everything I need.)

I was prompted to set a MySQL password during the install; so I set one.

I haven't logged in physically. But I have successfully logged in via SSH using WinSCP & PuTTY from Windows XP.

Now I will try to install ZoneMinder via SSH by following the Wiki and YouTube videos.

When I'm successful (not "if" but "when" ) I will create a YouTube video and provide a link in the description to the 8x Channel 240FPS card.

[LWFVoo]

I logged in via SSH, entered these commands, and it appears to be working (without cameras)...

Code: Select all

sudo apt-get install zoneminder ffmpeg

Code: Select all

sudo ln -s /etc/zm/apache.conf /etc/apache2/conf.d/zoneminder.conf

Code: Select all

sudo apache2ctl restart

I connected using...
http://192.168.x.x/zm/index.php

[LWFVoo]

I've just read here that, "Without heatsinks and front case fan cooling the heatsinks, this card might not last long."

This is the Camsecure version.

I forgot to order heatsinks when I ordered the card (5/11/2011 2:19GMT). I emailed Les at Camsecure (5/11/2011 2:37GMT) stating that, "If this card requires Heatsinks, feel free to stick them on and tell me how much. I will send the extra money via PayPal." But he's not replied - so it's possible that he's posted the card before reading the email. I've just been looking at cooling and I think this Antec Exhaust Fan may be worth investing in for the time being.

[aptsys]

It took weeks (5?) for my card to arrive from Camsecure, and I was unable to contact them by phone or e-mail and never had any contact at all from them - the card just suddenly arrived one day.

You might be better off getting the heatsinks from ebay or something. Alternatively, just ensure you have a fan blowing directly onto the card.

[LWFVoo]

I wish I'd have spotted this thread before: WARNING: camsecure-co-uk

I'm stuck now. I can't proceed any further until the card arrives.

Do you live outside the UK, aptsys? Maybe that's why it took so long?

10 days have gone by. Hopefully it will turn up soon.

[aptsys]

Hi,

No I'm in the UK. I reckon he orders these cards from China when he gets an order in, which is why it takes several weeks to arrive. Try calling - you may have more luck than I did.

[LWFVoo]

Postman has just this minute delivered it!

13:56 16/11/11.

[LWFVoo]

I haven't fitted the card yet. I'm going to wait until the heatsinks are on.

I've just ordered these...
**A** 13mm Aluminum Memory Chip Cooler Heatsinks (The 8x small chips.)
**B** 20mm Evercool RHS-2 VGA Chipset and Memory Heatsinks (The 1x big chip.)

These may have been better for the 8x small chips as they cover a wider surface area...
**C** Laptop GPU CPU Heatsinks

[LWFVoo]

For anyone thinking of buying the above heatsinks...

Items A and C

I have labelled the above items A, B and C. I have received all three items. I should also note that the 8x small chips on the card are approximately 14x19mm (slightly over 14mm and slightly over 19mm).

While it is true that item C does cover a wider surface area than item A does, it's only by about 1.5mm! But item C's thermal sticky pads underneath are in fact smaller than the ones attached to item A. So don't buy item C. Instead, buy item A. Item A's thermal pads cover a wider surface area than item C's.

Or just don't forget to order heatsinks when you purchase the card (the 9 Pack for £4).

Item B

The big chip on the card is 27.5x27.5mm. Item B was the closest I could find. They seem sufficient.