DW Spectrum - Event Rules to Receive Camera Snapshots via Email

Emailing Snapshots Upon Event Rule Trigger

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Affected Roles: Owner, Administrator

Related Digital Watchdog VMS Apps: DW Spectrum IPVMS

Last Edit: September 11, 2024

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Using Snapshots

With certain rule triggers (such as motion detection or analytics events), DW Spectrum will automatically provide a snapshot of the device for email notifications.

DW Spectrum IPVMS also provides the option to receive HTTP generic events. This is a standard HTTP request that can be sent to the DW Spectrum media server from any third-party software solution and/or DW Spectrum itself.

With the DW Spectrum Server API, it is possible to send DW Spectrum events using a standard API call in the form of an HTTP string, also known as a “Generic Event” (i.e. the CreateEvent API call).

This means that you can enable integration with any application that is able to send the HTTP event to trigger any action in DW Spectrum. Using this method, it is also possible to create snapshots of any specified event.

This article will outline how you can add a snapshot of an event to an email as an action.

Create Event Rules to Receive Snapshots from Cameras via Email

An example scenario where this setup would prove useful might be a situation where a sensor is triggered whenever a person walks into a confidential bank vault, causing a signal input to be sent to an I/O device. Upon this occurrence, an email with a snapshot from the camera featuring the person in question will be sent to specific recipients.

This can be accomplished by creating two Event Rules in DW Spectrum. If everything is configured correctly, the Email Notification that will be received will resemble something like the image below.

Part 1: Create the HTTP Request Event Rule

To create the first Event Rule, which will generate an HTTP request:

Log in to DW Spectrum as the Owner or as a user with the Administrator role.
Open the System Administration (CTRL+ALT+A) menu then navigate to the Event Rules menu.
Within the Event Rules menu, right-click on the target camera and select “Camera Rules”.
Click the Add button to create a new rule and configure the following:
1. Event
  1. When – select the desired triggering event for when to send the HTTP request (e. Input Signal on Device, Detect Motion, etc.)
  2. At – select the cameras that will be associated with this Event Rule.
  3. Configure any remaining details for the Event; settings will vary, depending on the event trigger that is selected for the “When” setting.
2. Action
  1. Do – select “Do HTTP request” as the resulting action.
  2. HTTP URL – enter the DW Spectrum Generic Event API call with the specific parameters of Source, Caption, and/or Description, as well as metadata to add the relevant Camera ID to the API call. This can contain multiple Camera IDs. You can find the Camera ID of a camera in Camera Settings > Advanced menu. The HTTP URL format may look like:

http://<Server IP Address>:<Port Number>/api/createEvent?source=

<something>&metadata={“cameraRefs”:[“<Camera ID>”,”<Camera ID>”]}

1. 1. HTTP Content – leave blank.
  2. Content Type – set to “Auto”.
  3. Authentication Type – set to “Auto”.
  4. Request Type – set to “GET”.
  5. Login – enter “admin” (Owner role account).
  6. Password – enter the password to the Owner role account.
Click the Apply button to save the Event Rule.

Part 2: Creating the Generic Event

To create the Event Rule that will send the email notification:

Click the Add button to create a new Event Rule and configure the following:
1. Event
  1. When – select “Generic Event”.
  2. Source Contains – enter the source keyword that was used when creating the previous “Do HTTP Request” Event Rule.
  3. Caption Contains – enter the caption keywords that was used when creating the previous “Do HTTP Request” Event Rule.
  4. Description Contains – enter the description keywords that was used when creating the previous “Do HTTP Request” Event Rule.
2. Action
  1. Do – select “Send email”.
  2. To – select the desired recipient(s) of the email notification.
  3. Interval – you can choose to either have the system send email notifications every time that the event triggers or set a limit to the interval of action.
Click the Apply button to save the Event Rule.

Part 2: GET Device Thumbnail

Using Spectrum's API, you can also use a GET call to provide a thumbnail image.

6.0 (REST v3) API Tool: https://127.0.0.1:7001/#/api-tool/rest-v3-devices-id-image-get?type=1

5.1 (REST v2) API Tool: https://127.0.0.1:7001/#/api-tool/rest-v3-devices-id-image-get?type=2

Here you will find a large number of parameters to apply for your specific needs. The tool will explain each parameter properties.

After applying your desired configurations, you can select the "execute" button to test the call. The tool will provide a response code. The tool will provide curl and HTTP options to copy/paste and apply as needed.

For More Information or Technical Support

DW Technical Support: 866.446.3595 (option 4)

https://www.digital-watchdog.com/contact-tech-support/

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DW Sales: 866.446.3595 [email protected] www.digital-watchdog.com

Using Snapshots

Create Event Rules to Receive Snapshots from Cameras via Email

Part 1: Create the HTTP Request Event Rule

Part 2: Creating the Generic Event

Part 2: GET Device Thumbnail

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