How to set up a recording schedule on EZ Watch Pro 3.X
From EZWatch Wiki
A common mistake after installing the EZ Watch Pro 3.0/3.1 software is to assume it is recording already. The software cannot record unless you tell it when and how to record. If you do not set up a recording schedule your system may very well never start recording and anything the camera sees is 'lost'. This guide will walk you through setting up your version 3 software to record based on a schedule.
To begin setting up your recording schedule, click on 'Camera Configuration' in the bottom left hand corner of the EZ Watch Pro 3.0 screen. This icon looks like a wrench with a handheld camcorder next to it. Inside of the camera Configuration, click on the 'Recording' tab.
Each camera can have its own recording schedule, but for the vast majority of applications all of the cameras will run on the same schedule. If you wish to set up each camera on its own schedule, you can select which camera to set the schedule for using the drop-down box at the top of the page.
Make certain that 'Enable Recording Schedule' is check-marked. If the check box is empty then the camera will not record no matter what schedule is set up. When the box is check-marked, click on 'Set up Schedule'.
This box is separated into 2 sections - the topmost section allows you to enter a new schedule, while the box at the bottom shows you what schedules have already been entered. Whatever is at the top will not affect your recording; only the information in the box at the bottom is used.
- The first selection you will make is 'Sequence Recording / Motion Detection Recording'. Sequence recording will record everything during a scheduled period, whether or not there is motion (or even an image) on the camera. This tends to use more hard drive space but is much more sensitive to small changes. Motion Detection recording will record only when movement is seen in front of the camera. This uses less hard drive space but depending upon your sensitivity it may not record extremely small changes.
- The second selection you will make is which days this schedule will be valid for. Everyday will follow the same schedule every single day. Every Week allows you to select which days the schedule will be active for (Useful for when you have a weekend schedule for the cameras that is not the same as your weekday schedule). Special Period will allow you to set up a special recording schedule for a series of dates, which is ideal for vacations or weeks off. The Start Date/End Date area allows you to select when the special period starts and ends, respectively.
- The last selection you will need to make is the time that the schedule starts and ends. All times entered here must follow 24-hour format. This means that 5:00 AM would be 05:00 and 5:00 PM would be 17:00. Valid times must fall between 00:00 and 23:59 (Midnight in the morning and 11:59 PM respectively).
- A single schedule cannot record overnight. If you wish to record from 8:00 PM to 6:00 AM you will need to split it up into two separate schedules; one will start at 00:00 and end at 06:00 (Midnight to 6 AM), the other schedule will start at 20:00 and end at 23:59 (8 PM to 11:59 PM). There is a 1-minute rollover at 11:59 when it moves to the new day.
After you've entered the schedule you want, click on 'ADD' to move it to the box at the bottom. The information at the top will reset but this is normal. Only the Recording Method and Date/Time present in the box at the bottom will be used. If you have multiple schedules, each schedule will appear here.
Whenever schedules overlap, a sequence schedule will take precedence. If you record Sequence from 2 AM to 4 AM, and record Motion from 3 AM to 6 AM, the camera will record constantly during the 1 hour overlap.
You cannot edit a schedule; if you wish to modify a schedule, highlight it in the box at the bottom and click on 'DELETE' to remove it entirely. Then add a new one containing the correct time period.
When you are finished, click on 'EXIT'.
NOTE : If your camera recording is enabled but no schedule is set, the camera will default to sequence recording 24 hours a day.
If you wish to copy a schedule from one camera to all cameras, simply click on the 'COPY' button at the bottom of the camera Configuration window. Select the camera which you wish to copy the schedule FROM in the drop-down box, and place a check box next to 'ALL'. This will tell the computer to set every single camera to the one you've chosen. If you've followed this guide then th ecamera you're copying is most likely camera 1, in which case it should already be selected.
Last, if you wish to determine whether or not your cameras are recording now that the schedule has been set up, click on 'OK' to close the Camera Configuration page and return to the main viewing screen. On the right-hand side of the screen you will see the camera numbers, counting up from 1. The color of the number indicates the recording status :
- RED - Indicates the camera is CURRENTLY RECORDING. This could indicate your camera is currently on a sequence recording OR That your camera is on Motion Detection recording and has seen motion.
- LIGHT BLUE - Indicates that your recording schedule is turned on, but the camera is not CURRENTLY recording. This has multiple causes :
- This could be because there is no schedule for the current time. If you are between schedules (One ends at 6 AM, one starts at 10 AM, then the icon will be blue from 6:01 to 9:59) it will show up this way.
- This could be because the schedule is turned on, but the camera is disconnected. This will appear if your recording is on but your camera says 'No Video Source'.
- This could be because your camera is on a motion detection schedule, but does not currently see motion. It will stay light blue until motion is seen.
- BLACK - Indicates that the recording schedule is turned off for this camera, and no data will be recording. Clicking on the number should re-enable the schedule.
