ONVIF and 3rd party device support
3rd Party Camera Model Support
The biggest things we look for in when evaluating a camera’s compatibility with our systems is that they can stream in H.264 codec, and that they’re ONVIF compatible. But what is ONVIF, where did it come from? Why is it so important to OpenEye?
ONVIF’s main purpose is to provide and promote standardized interfaces for effective interoperability of IP-based physical security products. The ultimate goal being that any camera will be able to natively integrate with any NVR, and they’ve been able to make a significant amount of progress in that endeavor. Currently, most of the biggest camera companies (as seen above) adhere to the stipulations set out by ONVIF. Thanks to this, we as a company are able to point to ONVIF as a reliable answer for compatibility.
ONVIF was founded in 2008 by Axis Communications, Bosch Security Systems and Sony Corporation. Today, members span across the entire globe, consisting of some of the biggest names in the game; FLIR, Microsoft, Wesco, Mobotix, Anixter, Avigilon, Lorex, Axis, Bosch, Canon, Dahua, Hikvision, Hanwha, Honeywell, Tyco, and Vivotek, to name a few. Now, this doesn’t mean that all those manufacturers’ cameras will always be compatible. Many started supporting ONVIF at different times or have variations within their product lineup, so it’s not uncommon to come across a camera a manufacturer made that may not be ONVIF compatible.
If you’re wondering if your camera will be supportive with our systems, look into https://www.onvif.org/conformant-products. They have search option which will provide a list of products that are ONVIF compatible broken down by type, manufacturer, down to the model. You can also refer to our Camera Compatibility page for more information https://www.openeye.net/support/ip-compatibility.
If the specific model is listed there with a current ONVIF profile, it should be ONVIF compatible and work with current OpenEye systems.