I created a monitoring system in my Proxmox home lab

by
url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url

NVRs or network video recorders are typically used alongside CCTV and IP cameras and allow you to fine-tune every aspect of your surveillance setup. But not every consumer would be willing to spend hundreds of dollars on a separate NVR device.




Thanks to NVR tools, it is possible to manage your surveillance cameras from a PC. You can even use ZoneMinder to build a robust monitoring system in your Proxmox home lab!

Before you begin

Since Proxmox is the core of this project, we assume that you have already set up this virtualization platform on a PC. And by that I mean an x86/x64 machine, not a Raspberry Pi. You need an IP camera, preferably one that connects over the internet. However, you can use Proxmox's USB passthrough feature to add a USB webcam to the ZoneMinder monitoring setup.


Speaking of ZoneMinder, you may have noticed that I often use the Proxmox VE helper scripts to simplify the creation and deployment of containers. But since the ZoneMinder container script cannot be executed in any case, it's time to change tactics by installing a turnkey container and using it to initialize a virtual machine.

Creating the ZoneMinder container

Since the ZoneMinder template is not pre-downloaded with Proxmox, you must download it from the CT Templates tab.

  1. In yours Proxmox nodego to the CT templates Tab below Local (node ​​name) storage and choose Templates.
    Additional templates are downloaded via the Proxmox web interface

  2. Find them turnkey zoneminder package under the lxc Container group and hits Download.
    Selecting the turnkey ZoneMinder container in the Proxmox web interface

  3. Wait for that Task Manager to display the Task OK News.


Once you download the ZoneMinder template, you can use it to create a container for your NVR setup.

  1. Click on Create CT button. in the top right corner of the Proxmox web interface.
    Creating a new container in Proxmox

  2. Enter a hostname for your ZoneMinder container before assigning it password.
    Choosing a hostname and password for the ZoneMinder container in the Proxmox web interface

    Be sure to click “Next” after each step.

  3. Click the drop-down arrow next to that Template field and select that turnkey zoneminder Template you downloaded previously.
    Choosing a template for the ZoneMinder container in the Proxmox web UI

  4. Set that Hard drive size, CPU coresAnd Memory according to your requirements in the next tabs.
  5. In the network You can assign one on the tab static IP to the container by adding a IPv4 address with a CIDR valuefollowed by the Goal Address.
    Setting a static IP for the ZoneMinder container in Proxmox web UI

  6. Feel free to leave that DNS settings the same as the host's.
  7. Tap Finish Click the button and wait for Proxmox to create the container.
    Selecting the “Finish” option in the Proxmox web interface


Setting up the ZoneMinder container

After Proxmox has finished creating the turnkey ZoneMinder container, you will need to configure a few settings before you can access the web UI for the NVR system.

  1. Tap start Press and press the button console to access the container via a noVNC server.
    Launching a ZoneMinder container in the Proxmox web UI

  2. type root than that user name and enter it password You specify at the beginning of the container creation.
  3. Create Passwords for the MySQL admirer And ZoneMinder Accounts when prompted by the setup wizard.
    Set a password for ZoneMinder

    You can set the same password for both accounts, but it's better to keep them separate if you value security.

  4. If you have one API key For Hub Services, tap Apply after you paste it under that Initialize hub services Tab.
    Entering an API key into the ZoneMinder container

    Otherwise, strike Skip and continue with the remaining steps.

  5. Enter yours E-mail address and hit Apply if you want to receive important system messages, or press Skip and proceed to the last step.
    Entering an email address into the ZoneMinder container

  6. Agree Install the security updates and wait for the ZoneMinder container to restart.
    Install the security updates in the ZoneMinder container

  7. When the container restarts, enter the following user name And password a second time.


Configure the ZoneMinder web interface

After setting up the ZoneMinder container, you can access the app's web interface and connect your IP cameras to the NVR home lab.

  1. While still accessing the ZoneMinder container from the noVNC console, enter the following confconsole Command.
    Enter the confconsole command in the ZoneMinder container

  2. Open that URL for the web menu in another tab and select that ZoneMinder option under the Control panel.
    Access the ZoneMinder web interface

  3. Knock Login after entering Administrator than that user name followed by the password You have previously decided when setting up the ZoneMinder account.
  4. Deny Ask ZoneMinder to access your telemetry data and press Apply to go to the ZoneMinder dashboard.
    Denial of request to access telemetry data in ZoneMinder web UI


Finally, it's time to add your cameras to the ZoneMinder surveillance setup.

  1. Click on Add Button.
    Click the Add button in the ZoneMinder web interface

  2. Inside source On the tab, enter the camera IP address inside source Path, select that resolutionand press that Save Button.
    Adding a new camera in the ZoneMinder web UI

Monitor your home with a Proxmox-based security device

A camera connected to ZoneMinder


Assuming you followed all the steps correctly, your security cameras should be accessible from the ZoneMinder dashboard. If you have allocated enough space to the ZoneMinder container, Mocord mode should be suitable for you. For those who find that they are running out of space in their containers, you may want to reduce the resolution of your cameras or switch to modect mode, which only records video when changes are detected in the video frames.

Leave a Comment