Exporting Video from DW Spectrum

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Affected Roles: All Users with Export Functions Enabled

Related Digital Watchdog VMS Apps: DW Spectrum IPVMS

Software Version: DW Spectrum v5 and higher

Last Edit: August 23, 2024

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What is ‘Video Export’?

DW Spectrum features video export capabilities that allow operators to find and export video from an individual camera or multiple cameras simultaneously in different file formats, variable viewing speeds and with embedded system-generated information like timestamps, custom logos/images, custom text, and operator information.

This article will outline the various ways that a DW Spectrum user can export recorded video from their DW Spectrum System.

**NOTE: Video export is only available for users assigned to user roles with the appropriate permissions. For more information about User Roles, you can refer to the article “Adding New Users and Assigning Roles”.

Supported Video File Formats

DW Spectrum allows export using the following container filetypes:

Matroska (.mkv) – Single-camera export only; a more advanced format that does not restrict visual and audio data. There is no file size limit but tends to be a larger file size; may not work on some devices or services (e.x. home media players).
Audio Video Interleave (.avi) – Single-camera export only; a widely used container type, but the codec remains intact (H264). To view exported .AVI video in other media players, additional codecs may be required; 2 GB limited file size.
MPEG-4 Part 14 (.mp4) – Single-camera export only; a container format for compressed visual and audio data. Does not restrict video and audio content but playback may not work on some devices (e.x. home media players); 4 GB limited file size.
Digital Watchdog Media File (.nov) – Both single-camera or multi-camera export supported; a proprietary DW Spectrum media file type that can only be opened using the DW Spectrum Client desktop application.
Executable Digital Watchdog Media File (.exe) – A platform dependent executable bundle where the DW Spectrum Client application is exported with the video file. Used to distribute videos to users who do not have any codecs or media players installed. Can be opened without DW Spectrum installed on the computer, but video will be viewable only on the Windows architecture with which video was produced. When the executable is opened, the Client launches and plays the exported video. These files can be edited once exported. Motion detection and data processing in the recorded segments is retained in the export; 4 GB limited file size.

Exporting Recorded Video

**NOTE: It is recommended that exports performed directly on a Blackjack server are saved to removeable storage. Large exports saved to the operating system volume can create issues if the volume is full. Exports saved to the media storage volumes will create issues for Spectrum's file management.

To export video from the DW Spectrum Client desktop application:

In the DW Spectrum Client, select the camera from the Device List (left-panel) for video export.

You may select multiple cameras simultaneously for to export footage but keep in mind that this will limit which file types (see above) that you can use. Additionally, the number of cameras and the length of the footage will determine the overall file size of the video export and directly affect the amount of time and success rate of the export process.

**NOTE: You may export larger portions of video (varies), but it is recommended to be selective of what you export. Try to keep the video under one (1) hour if possible. Otherwise, if a greater amount of video is needed, you can export the video in “chunks” or sections that comprise the video to improve the chances of exporting a long duration of the saved video.

Alternatively, you can copy the raw video archive files directly from your DW Spectrum Server media folder (DW Media). This is recommended when needing to export large amounts of data. For more information, you may refer to the following articles:

In the Timeline (bottom-panel), highlight the portion of video footage that you want to export.

Right-click on the highlighted Timeline and select “Export Video”.

The Export Video window will display.

Select either the “Single Camera” or “Multi Video” tab, depending on if you are exporting video for either an individual camera or multiple cameras simultaneously.

The export setting options will vary depending on which option you select. Details are in the sections below.

Click the Export button to begin exporting the video after configuring the export settings.

Single Camera Export Options

If exporting video for a single, individual camera, your options are as follows:

Export Settings – basic export settings.
- Apply Filters – include viewing filters and added overlays such as rotation, fisheye de-warping, image enhancement, etc.; requires additional transcoding).
- Folder – select the folder to which the exported video file will be saved.
- Name – create a file name for the exported video file.
- Filetype – select the container filetype for the exported video. This will determine how the exported video can be viewed.
Add Timestamp – allows the operator to export with a timestamp overlaying the video.
- Long – Day, Month DD, YYYY HDD:MM:SS AM/PM
- Short – MM/DD/YY HH:MM:SS AM/PM
- ISO 8601 – YYYY-MM-DDHH:MM:SS
- RFC 2822 – DD Month YYYY HH:MM:SS UTC Offset
- Font Size – determine the font size of the timestamp overlay.
Add Image – add an image to overlay on the video (for branding/marketing purposes).
Add Text – add custom text that to overlay on the video.
Add Info – include the camera name (as assigned on the DW Spectrum Server) and/or the date that the footage was exported from the Server.
Rapid Review – compress the amount of time of the exported video to grab keyframes and created a shortened video for rapid viewing. The video will appear sped up while viewing.

Multi Video Export Options

If exporting video for multiple cameras, your options are as follows:

Export Settings
- Make read-only – creates a .nov or .exe file which can only be viewed, preventing others from cutting sections of video from the exported video file.
- Protect with password – allows protection of the .nov or .exe file with a user-generated password.

Watermarking

All exported video from DW Spectrum contains a system-generated watermark that can be used to analyze video authenticity. This mitigates the possibility of spoofing or editing video files that malicious agents might intend to use for fraudulent purposes.

Any video exported by DW Spectrum Client can be checked for validity to determine if modifications were ever performed on the native footage.

To check the Watermark and verify validity:

Open the desired exported video on the viewing layout.
Right-click in the viewing window and select “Check File Watermark” (shortcut is Alt+C key) from the context menu.