Wizzard501
12-20-2006, 04:22 PM
I have a couple of G4s that run SecuritySpy
http://www.bensoftware.com/ss/index.html
and at this point 8 cameras. Our historical downtown neighborhood is "improving," but oh so slowly.
One G4 is devoted to running the cameras and storing captured QT files on a West. Dig. 400GB drive and the other, via the server feature on SecuritySpy, was set up to provide an instant look at all of the cameras at whatever location along the LAN setup one cares to plug into or through a wireless access point. All of this basically worked with minor set-up, and manually setting the IP of the "server" so that DHCP would not interfere. The video is streamed through port 8000 by default. One can log-on with almost any browser with the right IP and port number, or set up another SecuritySpy program to receive the video through the network.
This last week-end we got the notion to switch G4's because the one that was the "client' had a faster processor and since we were going to adding additional cameras soon, we felt this was an appropriate adjustment. Both are Giga bumped DAs, 1.3 and 2.0. The 1.3 can handle 8 (it has been for the last couple of years, 24/7), but you can tell there is a load. Other than one having a faster processor the G4's are identical.
It had been several months since updating and the disk was fairly full of "captured" files - none of which were particularly useful at that point. It was running 10.4.5. I decided to just zero the disk and re-install the system in the "new" DA, updateing the device drivers and OS X too. Video is input through two Quad splitters fed into an AlchemyTV card and a Firewire converter that uses an OS X driver. All of these items had updates that had not been installed.
Then came the point at which I should have known better. To save time, I installed the system, OS X updates, updated programs and device drivers all in the same session on both machines. Hooked up the server machine to the Quads and booted up. SecuritySpy appeared to run and function normally on the faster G4. The required adjustments to the program were made, camera settings, server start-up, etc. The LAN set-up was not changed. The client (now a Giga 1.3) had also been updated but under no circumstances could I get an image from the sever. No computer on the LAN could receive and image (there are three others, including a wireless notebook (PC). The PC would just open a blank window and set there going duhhhh. All of the macs would give the this message:
Safari can't open the page "http://192.168.0.5:8000/". The Error was: "lost network connection" (NSURLErrorDomain:-1005) Please choose Report Bug to Apple from the Safari menu, note the error number, and descrie what you did before you saw this message.
After determining that it was not misconnected, I was sitting there with a pile of possibilities, including that I zapped something with static elec. in the change-over. Googled that error and didn't find anything that gave me a clue about what to do except to trash preferences, which didn't work.
After all the dead-end roads, back alleys that lead nowhere, over the past few days, some of which were entertained with the peen-headed assumption that Apple would not screw up port access, I finally blanked the disk installed 10.4, the programs, the original drivers for the devices and - hey, it worked. Then . . . fired by a desire to see the face of my demon, kept installing updates until I determined that the source is this damn update.
http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/securityupdate20060071048clientppc.html
Install that, the SecuritySpy server through port 8000 (or any other port assignment you care to make) won't work. You can get access to Apache, if you fire it up, through port 80, and internet access or any other ports that are in use on this machine, do not appear to be disturbed, but this program gets cut off before the page loads. The port scan on the network utility shows and open port at 8000, but any attempt to access it results in termination of the data.
Don't install that update and it works, regardless of what other updates you install.
Maybe I'm a little too punch drunk, at the moment, to get the lessons out of this that I should, but I'll take a stab. Please feel free to add (or subtract, modify).
1. Don't "update" just to be updating. (Corollary to "don't fix it if it ain't busted).
2. Apple can and will screw up your system with updates.
3. Make required changes in a well functioning system in increments that limit the scope of your search for culprits if something goes wrong.
4. Short-cuts are not favored by the gods.
It always stings a little worse when it's self-inflicted.
I have no clue as to what is in the update that might have caused this.
http://www.bensoftware.com/ss/index.html
and at this point 8 cameras. Our historical downtown neighborhood is "improving," but oh so slowly.
One G4 is devoted to running the cameras and storing captured QT files on a West. Dig. 400GB drive and the other, via the server feature on SecuritySpy, was set up to provide an instant look at all of the cameras at whatever location along the LAN setup one cares to plug into or through a wireless access point. All of this basically worked with minor set-up, and manually setting the IP of the "server" so that DHCP would not interfere. The video is streamed through port 8000 by default. One can log-on with almost any browser with the right IP and port number, or set up another SecuritySpy program to receive the video through the network.
This last week-end we got the notion to switch G4's because the one that was the "client' had a faster processor and since we were going to adding additional cameras soon, we felt this was an appropriate adjustment. Both are Giga bumped DAs, 1.3 and 2.0. The 1.3 can handle 8 (it has been for the last couple of years, 24/7), but you can tell there is a load. Other than one having a faster processor the G4's are identical.
It had been several months since updating and the disk was fairly full of "captured" files - none of which were particularly useful at that point. It was running 10.4.5. I decided to just zero the disk and re-install the system in the "new" DA, updateing the device drivers and OS X too. Video is input through two Quad splitters fed into an AlchemyTV card and a Firewire converter that uses an OS X driver. All of these items had updates that had not been installed.
Then came the point at which I should have known better. To save time, I installed the system, OS X updates, updated programs and device drivers all in the same session on both machines. Hooked up the server machine to the Quads and booted up. SecuritySpy appeared to run and function normally on the faster G4. The required adjustments to the program were made, camera settings, server start-up, etc. The LAN set-up was not changed. The client (now a Giga 1.3) had also been updated but under no circumstances could I get an image from the sever. No computer on the LAN could receive and image (there are three others, including a wireless notebook (PC). The PC would just open a blank window and set there going duhhhh. All of the macs would give the this message:
Safari can't open the page "http://192.168.0.5:8000/". The Error was: "lost network connection" (NSURLErrorDomain:-1005) Please choose Report Bug to Apple from the Safari menu, note the error number, and descrie what you did before you saw this message.
After determining that it was not misconnected, I was sitting there with a pile of possibilities, including that I zapped something with static elec. in the change-over. Googled that error and didn't find anything that gave me a clue about what to do except to trash preferences, which didn't work.
After all the dead-end roads, back alleys that lead nowhere, over the past few days, some of which were entertained with the peen-headed assumption that Apple would not screw up port access, I finally blanked the disk installed 10.4, the programs, the original drivers for the devices and - hey, it worked. Then . . . fired by a desire to see the face of my demon, kept installing updates until I determined that the source is this damn update.
http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/securityupdate20060071048clientppc.html
Install that, the SecuritySpy server through port 8000 (or any other port assignment you care to make) won't work. You can get access to Apache, if you fire it up, through port 80, and internet access or any other ports that are in use on this machine, do not appear to be disturbed, but this program gets cut off before the page loads. The port scan on the network utility shows and open port at 8000, but any attempt to access it results in termination of the data.
Don't install that update and it works, regardless of what other updates you install.
Maybe I'm a little too punch drunk, at the moment, to get the lessons out of this that I should, but I'll take a stab. Please feel free to add (or subtract, modify).
1. Don't "update" just to be updating. (Corollary to "don't fix it if it ain't busted).
2. Apple can and will screw up your system with updates.
3. Make required changes in a well functioning system in increments that limit the scope of your search for culprits if something goes wrong.
4. Short-cuts are not favored by the gods.
It always stings a little worse when it's self-inflicted.
I have no clue as to what is in the update that might have caused this.