Subscriber Discussion

Is Anyone Using SSD Storage For VMS/NVR?

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 22, 2016
IPVMU Certified

If so, which ones, what sizes etc?

When does it make sense?

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Ari Erenthal
Nov 22, 2016

I can't think of any reason to use SSDs for storage (as opposed to the OS). Speed isn't really an advantage, density is.

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Michael Archer
Nov 22, 2016

Unless your recording on a mobile device!

Almost all NVRs I've seen don't cater for other HDD mounting screw positions except the normal 3.5inch drives.

SSD density has overtaken HDD, except for price!

There is a natural smallest cost for any HDD regardless of capacity, which is quite low, but compared to just PCB and silicon it at some point SSD will become the viable option.

Why we see WD buy out Sandisk earlier this year, a very good strategy.

A Quick look on Amazon lowest cost HDD $17.95 for 320gb, and a 32gb SSD for $19.99

Still some way to go, the future we shall all see.

(1)
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Armando Perez
Nov 22, 2016
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

Same here. We used to upgrade the OS drive on our old pc based systems we built in house, but that is no longer the preferred route. Boot would be extremely fast which was ideal for minimizing downtime. For storage, I see no benefit.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #2
Nov 22, 2016

I have considered it with the Samsung SM863 drives.

Let me explain the thought process:

- 5.6TB of SSD storage for 100 cameras over three or four days
- Every two days, the data would be moved to an archive server (hard disk based) without the main server breaking a sweat
- Ultra fast NVR and the SSDs would have a life expectancy of 7 years with H.264 compression

The reason we did not do it - cost. Each 960GB SSD is around $600-$700 and it was just easier to use mechanical drives for bulk storage. The SM863's have a 6,160TB lifetime write and are among the few SSDs that can handle a surveillance application long-term.

Ask this question again in 3-4 years and I am almost certain that SSDs will narrow the gap for $/GB and will be used for higher-end systems.

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Armando Perez
Nov 22, 2016
Hoosier Security and Security Owners Group • IPVMU Certified

I would agree with that.

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John Bazyk
Nov 22, 2016
Command Corporation • IPVMU Certified

I recently "built" our own NVR that has 4 ports of POE on board plus a dual nic. with Ubuntu and running Spectrum. We use this for small systems 4-8 cameras and use an SSD in it. Typically these systems are in homes, and the clients want ultra fast/smooth playback and that's what you get with an SSD. When you scrub video on your iPhone or the Client remotely, it flys. We use 250GB SSD's for 4 camera installs and 480GB for 8 cameras and get about 3 weeks of storage using 4MP cameras and H.264+ recording 24/7, low res on no motion, high res on motion activation. Another reason we use SSD's is that a standard HDD won't fit lol.

On our servers for larger systems we use SSD for OS drive.

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U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 22, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Typically these systems are in homes, and the clients want ultra fast/smooth playback and that's what you get with an SSD....

Yes, this is what I'm seeing too, and why I asked.

I'm worried about the write-cycles though.

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Michael Archer
Nov 23, 2016

Checking online, there is a nice test, I won't put the link but if you google. The SSD Endurance Experiment: you'll find an interesting article, an 18month trial.

Looks like most SSDs will perform past their original manufacturer date. Some lasted writing up to 700TB others up to 3Peta Bytes before a failure!

Calculation one 16mb/s device (that's a high bitrate) constant recording, one drive would last about from 11 - 47.5years. Divide down for more devices!

I would say like other the MTFB will only get better over time.

You can see why Samsung who with their 3d NAND technology can give 5year warranty on devices.

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 23, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Also, it looks like SSD's are now out in front of Hard Drives in the density race as well, check out this 16TB 2.5 in SSD from Samsung... (Also, Seagate has a 60TB drive on the way).

Still a boatload of money ($5,000), but if they can be smaller, more reliable and smaller, it may be worth paying a bit more for.

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Mike Dotson
Dec 12, 2016
Formerly of Seneca • IPVMU Certified

You are wise to be thinking of the write cycles with SSDs. We have tested them in our lab and with certain customers and saw the wear out mechanism first hand.

The drive simply no longer responds and you can not get any data off of it.

Like many others here.... they are OK for the OS and rugged/mobile apps (assuming lower write cycles)...but not for storage of any significant quantity of data.

The VMSs will tend to write new data to the 'storage' and either keep it or throw it away depending on the 'record on motion' setting. The writing part is what wears them out.

(4)
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Kevin Bennett
Dec 12, 2016

My experience would parallel this. SSD is great for OS (dedicated, not part of a storage RAID array) and may last for many years, but for long-term write/re-write intensive applications such as video surveillance storage, they are not yet the optimal solution. Even the "enterprise" class SSDs still have some vulnerability in a heavy write/re-write environment.

SSD prices have dropped dramatically over the past few years, so on a price-per-GB point they are starting to rival HDDs. If you're building a web server or a light duty file server, SSDs may be the ideal fit. If you're a heavy database user with lots of writes/rewrites, I would recommend waiting until the SSD technology evolves to provide a much longer life cycle in that type environment.

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MM
Michael Miller
Nov 23, 2016

So Spectrum needs SSD storage for smooth video playback? What form factor SSDs are you using?

U
Undisclosed #1
Nov 23, 2016
IPVMU Certified

for ultra-smooth playback...

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Jon Dillabaugh
Dec 14, 2016
Pro Focus LLC

I would say no. I am using WD Purple drives and haven't yet had playback lag.

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Daniel S-T
May 15, 2018

Off topic question, or at least off topic from the original purpose of the thread.

Where are you getting the 4 port POE NIC cards, and for how much? I had looked at building my own NVR for the odd time I get a friend, family member or family friend asking for cameras, but the costs seemed pretty high, like $400-$600 CAD for a 4 port POE NIC. At that price didn't' seem worth it to me, for little side jobs anyway.

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #6
May 15, 2018

We used to use these 4 port cards and it appears they still have them online.

PoE-i211/PoE-i214

<no affiliation...simply a past customer>

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #3
Nov 22, 2016

Except for mobile applications, no. Our OS drive is almost always SSD. I think this will flip in the next few years.

UE
Undisclosed End User #4
Dec 28, 2016

Write cycles on enterprise grade SSD drives are high enough now for video recording. The cost is high, so I wouldn't want to use it for long term archives.

I was going to use SSD for the realtime video storage on a busy Milestone Corporate server but after Milestones latest release added a feature to use RAM for that storage there's no longer a need.

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Matthew Netardus
Dec 29, 2016
IPVMU Certified

I would stick with WD Purple drives or something similar to that; though I have started using SSD for the cache, I am sure it lowers the lifespan but it help minimize errors on the larger systems

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #5
May 15, 2018

Anybody tried out the new Intel Enterprise SSD drives for short term video storage?

 Intel SSD P4600  3.2TB

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Jon Dillabaugh
May 15, 2018
Pro Focus LLC

We had a near 100% failure rate (seriously) with Intel Pro 2500 SSDs, so I wouldn’t touch them with a 10’ pole. I will stick with Samsung Pro SSDs from now on. 

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BS
Brian Soulard
May 15, 2018

SSD non-volatile state works better for certain jobs. They pay more, but in places like open warehouses and shops where it gets dusty and lots of air issues, its worth it. Especially if space is limited

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