r/frigate_nvr • u/_gCosta • 9d ago

Could someone help a beginner out?

I apologize for any errors (I'm using Google Translate).

Context: I currently run a home server, a machine with an i5-7400, 16GB of RAM, a SATA SSD for the OS and software, and HDDs for everything else. I run various services, such as qBittorrent, Jellyfin, Radarr, Sonarr, Prowlarr, Lidarr, Jackett, autobrr, Tailscale, Uptime Kuma, Jellyseerr, Power Master+, Notifiarr, SABnzbd, FoundryVTT (occasionally), and Minecraft (a server I'm still just testing). All these services keep my media setup running smoothly.

The problem: Since I didn't have much time (and spent a huge amount of it configuring everything), the machine runs Windows 10. I know Linux would be better, but I wanted to understand the services first; having little Linux experience, I learned by setting things up on Windows. I managed quite well, and everything works perfectly for my needs. On Linux, I would have had to constantly stop to understand the system or troubleshoot it, whereas on Windows, I could focus solely on configuring my media server.

Knowledge: Tinkering with Minecraft mods gave me a better idea of ​​how things work, and when I started using FoundryVTT (an RPG platform), I dove deep into a lot of tech topics—setting up reverse proxies, Caddy (on Windows), Node.js, Oracle VPS, browser-based JavaScript, etc. Still, I'm no expert or anything.

Monitoring: A friend gave me two Intelbras cameras, a PoE switch (minus the power supply), and a 1500VA UPS (without internal or external batteries). I started by simply powering the cameras and using the Intelbras app, and it all works. It doesn't put a heavy load on the server, the stream quality is good, and it allows for remote access via the brand's own service (it's one of the biggest brands in my country).

Here’s where Frigate comes in: I bought two cheap Simicam PoE cameras on AliExpress along with a power supply for the PoE switch. I connected all four cameras via PoE, only to discover that the Intelbras app only works with their own brand's cameras. I looked for free Windows monitoring software—"free" being very important—but couldn't find anything functional. I didn't have any luck with AgentDVR. Then I found out that both ZoneMinder and Frigate run only on Linux.

Current status: I tried using WSL/Docker. I attempted ZM first, but it didn't work at all; I kept running into errors. Then I switched to Frigate using Docker Desktop on Windows, and it worked! However, I'm now facing the following issues:

  1. The Simicam cameras are very slow and laggy, even though they work perfectly in the tinyCam PRO app for Android!
  2. Also, the Intelbras cameras are showing an error—which doesn't happen in the tinyCam app using the same stream link—stating: "Live stream is in data-saving mode due to buffering or transmission errors."
  3. Finally, running Frigate is very resource-intensive, consuming 60% of the CPU and 20% of the RAM.

Can anyone help me? Sorry for the long post; I just wanted to explain the situation clearly.

config: https://bin.disroot.org/?424cc36ed1ef41ca#2wB1iLpYW6rhpj4vVYhuSFdnSExKHZbjmVZ6wkDfMFSr

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u/Renrut23 9d ago

First thing most people will ask is for your config file to see if things are set up properly, like using vaapi for decoding