Wayne Williams shows you how to set up a home-surveillance system that stores its footage in the cloud
The most sophisticated home-security cameras don’t only alert you when an intruder is detected - they also save the footage they record to the cloud. This means you can view it from any device at any time, and your evidence is safe, even if thieves make off with your security cameras and other hardware.
There are plenty of great security-camera systems to choose from, but you don't have to spend a fortune on the latest setup if you already have an old computer and a camera or two to build your own.
In this article we look at the hardware and software you need to put together your own, modern cloud-based security system.
What you'll need
For a basic security system, a webcam built into a laptop or connected to a PC via a USB cable will suffice. It’s not ideal, because it means everything has to be in plain view at all times and may end up being stolen by the intruder. However, the beauty of a cloud-based system is that any recorded images and video are uploaded to the web. so you’ll still be able to view the evidence, even if you no longer have the hardware that shot the images.
If you don't already have a suitable camera, any webcam will do. Shop around and buy the best you can afford. Alternatively, if you're happy to spend more money to create an advanced security system, see 'Upgrading the system'.
Free monitoring software
Any webcam or security camera you buy or already own should come with their own dedicated software, and some may also provide security tools or a cloud-storage option. If you don't have the software you need - or you have different devices that use different tools - there are plenty of free alternatives to choose from.
ZoneMinder (zoneminder.com) is a state-of-the-art video surveillance tool that works with most popular webcams. It's entirely free, and lets you monitor cameras over the web or by using apps for Android or iOS. However, it’s only available for Linux, so if you don’t already have a PC running a Linux operating system, you’ll need to dedicate a PC to it. Setting up the software can be quite complicated - there's a guide at bit.ly/zmind410 to follow if you fancy giving it a go.
Alternatively, if you’d rather settle for something simpler. ContaCam (bit.ly/con410) runs on all versions of Windows, offering motion detection and 24 hours’ digital video recording. 'Record video from your webcam to the cloud using ContaCam' tells you how to use ContaCam to save your footage to the cloud.
WebcamXP (www.webcamxp.com, which runs on all versions of Windows including Windows 10). lets you monitor up to two video sources. However, it has a couple of restrictions: you can't record continuously or remove the video watermark.
Our personal free favourite is iSpy (www.ispyconnect.com), which works with unlimited cameras and offers motion detection, scheduling, remote access, cloud uploading (including YouTube) and real-time alerts via email (including visual framegrabs), text message and Twitter. You can install add-ons to expand it with extra tools, such as facial and car number-plate recognition.
While the software itself is free. iSpy charges a monthly or annual fee for cloud uploading, alerts and many of the other features you might want, which costs from $7.95 (around £6.50) a month. 'Set up and use iSpy home monitoring software', below, shows you how to get started with iSpy.
Ivideon (www.ivideon.com) is a video-surveillance system that lets you watch live video feeds and video archives over the internet. The free version is limited to two cameras and includes basic recording and event storage in the cloud for the previous 24 hours. You get an unlimited local archive and can export video to a file. It also provides smart notifications when motion or sound is detected. The paid-for version costs from $5 (£4.11) a month and adds full recording of all events to the cloud.
Finally, you could consider Angelcam (www.angelcam.com). which is a simple web-based service that doesn’t need any specific hardware or software. It works with most cameras and lets you watch footage on a smartphone or tablet, or over the web. The free version can store up to three days' worth of footage and there’s no data limit. If you require additional storage for longer captures: easy download of video clips: and status information for your camera, you can upgrade, which costs from $4.99 (£4.10) per month, per camera.
Completely free cloud storage
You can use your existing online storage service to save your footage to the cloud by redirecting saved snapshots or videos to sevices such as Dropbox (www.dropbox.com). Google Drive (drive.google.com) or OneDrive (onedrive.live.com). All these services can be used to create a folder on your hard drive that automatically syncs with the online service. Windows 10 comes with OneDrive by default, and the folder is located at: C:\Users\username\OneDrive (replace username' with your actual username).
If you set your software to save your camera footage to this folder, it will upload to the cloud automatically. You can then view your images and footage from anywhere via the web interface or mobile apps.
Upgrading the system
If you want the easiest route to home security, there are three systems that currently offer free cloud storage with their cameras. Y-Cam (www.y-cam.com) has a range of indoor and outdoor cameras, starting at £129.99 each, which come with seven days of free cloud storage.
Netgear's Arlo range (bit.ly/arlo410) offers a similar service, with indoor and outdoor cameras and seven days of cloud recording included for free. One of the benefits of the Arlo range is that it includes wireless cameras, which don't even need to be mains-powered.
The latest manufacturer to enter the market is Humax. better known for its set-top boxes. Its Humax Eye camera (£129, bit.ly/humax410) also comes with seven days of free cloud recording and the added benefit that you can view the footage on a free app that’s available for Humax's TV devices.
If you’re prepared to use your own cloud storage, you can buy cheaper cameras. D-Link has a great range of affordable home-security cameras (bit.ly/dlink410). The DCS-932L Day/Night Cloud Camera (£36.59 on Amazon, bit.ly/dlnk410) is particularly good value for money.
Set up and use iSpy home monitoring software
1 Launch the iSpy software and click Add. Select the type of device you are using, such as a local camera (webcam) or IP camera (connected via the network). Select the video device in the drop-down box and pick the video resolution to use. Click OK and the camera view will appear in the background.
2 The Edit Camera window opens. Here, you can configure the settings for the video and audio sources; click the Motion Detection tab to set it up; and go to the Alerts tab to choose the type of notifications you want. You’ll need a paid subscription for email, SMS and Twitter alerts.
3 You can move the video window around by clicking and dragging, and resize it by pulling on the corners. The menu lets you switch on or turn off the camera, and start and stop recording. Click the cloud or YouTube buttons to upload recordings (you’ll need a paid-for subscription to do this, though).
Record video from your webcam to the cloud using ContaCam
1 ContaCam doesn’t include the option to save recorded footage to its own cloud service, but you can use a different one. Click Capture and select your camera from the list. You can choose how it should record any detected movement, and how long you want to keep recorded files for.
2 А video window opens. You can access settings; and take a snapshot or record a video; add or remove movement-detection zones; and enable or disable motion detection. Click the Browse Files button to see the captured footage.
3 Everything is stored locally. To make it available in the cloud, close your camera and open ‘Global settings’. Find 'Parent directory of all cameras’, click the three-dot icon and change the default directory to a folder that syncs with a cloud service, such as OneDrive. Click OK and reconnect your camera.