avigilon Control Center Server User Guide

: June 13, 2024
: aVIGILON

Table of Contents

avigilon Control Center Server
Product Information
Product Usage Instructions
What Is the ACC Server Software
- System Requirements
Getting Started
- Windows Service
- Admin Tool Window
System Settings
Using the Admin Tool
Appendix
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Download This Manual (PDF format)

avigilon Control Center Server

avigilon-Control-Center-Server-product

Product Information

What Is the ACC Server Software?
The Avigilon Control Center (ACC) Server software is a video management system that allows users to manage and monitor their surveillance cameras. It consists of two parts: the Windows service and the Admin Tool.

System Requirements
The system requirements for the ACC Server software are as follows:

Operating System (OS): Windows Server 2012 R2/2016 / 2019, Windows 8.1 (64-bit), or Windows 10 (64-bit)
Processor: 64-bit (dual-core, 1.9 GHz)
Memory: Recommended: 8 GB DDR4, Minimum: 4 GB DDR3
Storage: Recommended: SATA-III 7200 RPM, Minimum: SATA-II 7200 RPM Enterprise Class

Avigilon Certified Solution
The Avigilon Certified Solution is a recommended option for full server performance. It includes HD Video Appliances or NVR Workstations that come preloaded and configured with ACC video management software. These workstations have high-performance recording capacity and support high- resolution monitors. They also offer a throughput of up to 400 Mbps and include Avigilon warranty and support. Additionally, they provide access to Avigilon SDT (Storage Design Tool) for calculating storage requirements.

ACCTM Server Software Requirements
When installing the ACC software, it is important not to install it on servers running Active Directory or DNS services, as these services can severely impair ACC functionality.

Getting Help
If you need assistance with a feature or task, you can visit help.avigilon.com/acc or access the in-product help by clicking “Help” in the bottom-left corner of the Admin Tool.

For More Information
For additional product documentation, software, and firmware upgrades, you can visit support.avigilon.com. If you require technical support, you can contact Avigilon Technical Support at support.avigilon.com/s/contactsupport.

Product Usage Instructions

Getting Started
The Avigilon Control Center Server software consists of two parts: the Windows service and the Admin Tool. Follow the instructions below to get started:

Windows Service

The Windows service runs automatically when your computer starts.
If required, you can configure the service properties in the Services window.

Using the Admin Tool
The Admin Tool is used to configure the Windows service and manage the Avigilon Control Center System. Follow the instructions below to use the Admin Tool:

Starting Up and Shutting Down

To start the server software, follow the startup procedure specified in the user manual.
To shut down the server software, follow the shutdown procedure specified in the user manual.

Starting the ACC Client Software

To start the ACC Client Software, follow the startup procedure specified in the user manual.
You can now view live and recorded images locally using the ACC Client Software.

Viewing Application Logs
To view application logs, follow the procedure specified in the user manual.

Resetting the Administrator Password
If you need to reset the administrator password, follow the password reset procedure specified in the user manual.

© 2006 – 2023, Avigilon Corporation. All rights reserved. AVIGILON, the AVIGILON logo,
AVIGILON CONTROL CENTER, ACC, and HDSM are trademarks of Avigilon Corporation. Intel is a trademark of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other names or logos mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. The absence of the symbols ™ and ® in proximity to each trademark in this document or at all is not a disclaimer of ownership of the related trademark. Covered by one or more claims of the patents listed at patentlist.hevcadvance.com.

This document has been compiled and published using product descriptions and specifications available at the time of publication. The contents of this document and the specifications of the products discussed herein are subject to change without notice. Avigilon Corporation reserves the right to make any such changes without notice. Neither Avigilon Corporation nor any of its affiliated companies: (1) guarantees the completeness or accuracy of the information contained in this document; or (2) is responsible for your use of, or reliance on, the information. Avigilon Corporation shall not be responsible for any losses or damages (including consequential damages) caused by reliance on the information presented herein.

Avigilon Corporation

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Revision: 6 – EN
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What Is the ACC Server Software

The ACC Server software is the application that captures and records surveillance data from Windows-based network cameras and encoders. The captured data is then sent to the ACC Client software for you to review. For Avigilon Hardened OS appliances, the ACC Server software is built-in. Refer to your video infrastructure documentation for details. The ACC Server software contains two key parts — the Windows service and the Admin Tool. The Windows service directs video to where it needs to be stored or streamed in the network. The Admin Tool allows you to configure the system administrative settings.

There are three editions of the Server software available: Core, Standard and Enterprise. The edition of the Server software determines how many cameras can be connected to the system and the number of simultaneous client connections. The edition of the Server software also determines what features are available in the ACC Client software.

System Requirements

Note:
Network video recording and retention times vary according to the number of cameras, camera resolution, estimated percent of motion, continuous recording settings and predefined retention period. For full server performance, use the Avigilon certified solution options.

Avigilon Certified Solution

Servers — NVR Premium, Standard, or Value
- Optimized for video surveillance applications in a 24/7/365 environment.
- ACC software is preinstalled, configured and enhanced for optimal system compatibility.
- Certified for the Avigilon surveillance environment — ACC software, LPR, Web Endpoint, Analytics, HDSM™ and 1-30 MP cameras.
- High throughput of up to 1800 Mbps.
- Documented network architecture for a wide-variety of applications.
- Avigilon warranty and support included.
- Access to Avigilon System Design Tool (SDT) to calculate storage requirements.
Workstations — HD Video Appliance or NVR Workstation
- Preloaded and configured with ACC video management software.
- High-performance recording capacity.
- Supports high resolution monitors.
- Throughput of up to 400 Mbps.
- Avigilon warranty and support included.
- Access to Avigilon SDT to calculate storage requirements.

ACC™ Server Software Requirements

Important:
Do not install the ACC software on servers running Active Directory or DNS services. These services can severely impair ACC functionality.

ACC Server Software

System Requirement	Recommended	Minimum
Recording capacity:	256 Mbps up to 120 cameras

*Remote viewing only.

OS*| Windows Server 2016| Windows Server 2012 R2 / 2016 / 2019, Windows 8.1 (64-bit) or

Windows 10 (64-bit)

ACC Server Workstation

System Requirement	Recommended	Minimum
Recording capacity:	80 Mbps up to 60 cameras

*Can view live and recorded images locally

Run Windows Update before launching the ACC software.

Getting Help
If you want to learn more about a feature or how to accomplish a task, visit help.avigilon.com/acc or see our in-product help.

In the bottom-left corner of the Admin Tool, click Help.

For More Information
For additional product documentation and software and firmware upgrades, visit support.avigilon.com.

Technical Support
Contact Avigilon Technical Support at support.avigilon.com/s/contactsupport.

Getting Started

The Avigilon Control Center Server software contains two parts: the Windows service and the Admin Tool. The Windows service runs automatically when your computer starts.
The Admin Tool is used to configure the Windows service. From the Admin Tool you can define the network and configure the backup and storage settings for the Avigilon Control Center System.

Windows Service

The Avigilon Control Center Server software includes a Windows service that runs automatically in the background.
If required, you can configure the service properties in the Services window.

Admin Tool
The Admin Tool is used to configure your Avigilon Control Center Server settings. From the Admin Tool, you can configure the size of the surveillance data storage space, the file backup location, and network ports.

Accessing the Admin Tool
The Admin Tool can be accessed in the following ways:

From the Start menu, select All Programs or All Apps > Avigilon > Avigilon Control Center Server > Admin Tool
Double-click the desktop shortcut icon .

Admin Tool Window

From the Admin Tool, you can start up or shut down the Avigilon Control Center Server at any time. For more information, see Starting Up and Shutting Down on page 17.
The Admin Tool window contains two tabs: the General tab and the Settings tab. The following tables describe what options are available in each tab.

General

Icon	Description
Launch the Avigilon Control Center Client software.
View the Avigilon Control Center Server error logs.

Settings

Icon	Description
Define the amount of server space allocated to surveillance data storage.

For more information, see Configuring the Server Storage Settings on the next page.
| Define the network ports. For more information, see Configuring the Server Network Settings on page 14.
| Define where backup files are stored. For more information, see Enabling Storage Management on page 13.

System Settings

Complete the following procedures to configure the Avigilon Control Center Server to fit your requirements.

Configuring the Server Storage Settings

You must configure the server storage settings so the Avigilon Control Center Server software knows how much space is allocated for storing surveillance data, and where it is located.
If the Admin Tool detects that there is no existing storage configuration, it will launch the Set Up Storage Configuration dialog box.

By default the software will assign most of the available storage to the Primary Data Volume for storing recorded video.

If the recommended configuration is acceptable, click Finish
If you want to change the configuration click Change Storage Configuration. For more information, see Changing the Storage Configuration on the next page.

Erasing Storage Configuration

Note:
If you choose to erase all stored data, be aware that all recorded surveillance data and server settings will be lost.

Open the Storage dialog box. For more information, see Accessing the Server Storage Configuration below.
Click Erase All Data.
Click Yes.
You will need to create a new storage configuration before you can start up the Avigilon Control Center Server again. For more information, see Changing the Storage Configuration on the next page.

Accessing the Server Storage Configuration

In the Admin Tool, click Shut Down.
The Avigilon Control Center Server must be shut down before the storage configuration can be viewed or edited.
In the Settings tab, click .
In the Storage dialog box, you can see the current storage configuration.

Setting Up the Initial Server Storage Configuration
When the Admin Tool detects that there is no existing storage configuration, i t will launch the Set Up Storage Configuration dialog box with the recommended storage configuration.

By default the software will assign most of the available storage to the Primary Data Volume for storing recorded video.

If the recommended configuration is acceptable, click Finish
If you want to change the configuration click Change Storage Configuration. For more information, see Changing the Storage Configuration below.

Changing the Storage Configuration
You may need to change the storage configuration in the following situations:

If you are unsatisfied with the storage configuration suggested by the application, click Change Storage Configuration to define the storage settings to fit your needs.
If you recently chose to Erase All Data, you must reset the Storage configuration before you can continue.

Complete the following procedure in the Storage dialog box:
If the Storage dialog box is not already open, see Accessing the Server Storage Configuration on the previous page.

Note: Place the Config Volume and the Data Volume on separate drives apart from the OS (C:\ by default).

In the Storage dialog box, select the drive for storing the Config Volume and click Set Config Volume. $avigilon-Control-Center-Server-fig- $8$$
Note: Some of the buttons in the figure may not be available if the drive cannot accommodate the setting.
To add a data volume, select the drive and click Add Data Volume…. The button is not available if the drive already has a data volume.
- In the Add Data Volume dialog box, enter the preferred data volume size.
  WARNING
  Adding a Primary Data Volume value that is substantially larger than the Secondary Data Volume value, or adding a Secondary Data Volume value that is substantially larger than the Primary Data Volume value may lead to recordings being deleted earlier than the time specified in your retention policies.
  Note:
  ACC Server will show a warning message if either the Primary Data Volume value or the Secondary Data Volume value is set to a substantially larger value than the other.
- Click OK.
To delete a Secondary Data Volume, select the drive and click Delete Data Volume. Deleting a data volume will erase all recorded data from that drive.
Note:
You cannot delete a Primary Data Volume, you can only erase all data. For more information, see Erasing the Storage Configuration below.
If you are not satisfied with the location of the Primary Data Volume, select the drive you prefer and click Set Primary Data Volume. The Primary Data Volume contains the database that indexes the surveillance data.
Note:
The drive must have a data volume before it can be set as the Primary Data Volume.
When you are satisfied with the storage configuration, click OK.

Erasing the Storage Configuration

Note:
If you choose to erase all stored data, be aware that all recorded surveillance data and server settings will be lost.

Open the Storage dialog box. For more information, see Accessing the Server Storage Configuration on page 10.
Click Erase All Data.
When the confirmation dialog box appears, click Yes.
You will need to create a new storage configuration before you can start up the Avigilon Control Center Server again. For more information, see Changing the Storage Configuration.

Enabling Storage Management

FOR STANDARD AND ENTERPRISE EDITION
To allow users to archive video from the ACC network video management server, you must enable the Storage Management feature in the Admin Tool and assign a location for the archived files.

In the Admin Tool, select Settings > .
In the Storage Management dialog box, select the Enable Storage Management checkbox to allow the server to archive video files.
Enter a location for the Archive Folder:. Click […] to navigate to the preferred folder location.
Tip: The archive folder can be on any Windows file system that is accessible by the server. A common file system can be referenced by multiple servers to create a centralized video archive.
Click OK.

Tip:
If ACC is running as a specific user account, allow the Modify, Read & execute, and Write permissions for that user account on the archive folder location.

Once Storage Management is enabled, you can archive video on demand. If you have an Enterprise Edition system, you can also set up the Storage Management Continuous Archive feature.

For more information about archiving video, see the Avigilon Control Center Client User Guide.

Configuring the Server Network Settings

The server communicates with the Avigilon Control Center Client software through a range of UDP and TCP ports. The port ranges only need to be changed if the Client software is trying to access two or more servers that are behind the same NAT device (e.g. router), or if there is a port conflict with other software running on the same computer as the Avigilon Control Center Server software.

In the Admin Tool, select Settings > .
In the Network dialog box, enter a new base port then click OK.
- The service ports used by the Server software are updated as the base port changes.
- The RTP port range must be accessible by the Client computer and can be forwarded on any router or network address translation point between the Client and Server.

Note:
Time differences between Avigilon Cloud Services and your ACC Service can cause unexpected behavior. To prevent differences in Avigilon Cloud Services time and ACC Server time, configure your server or appliance to synchronize with a network time protocol (NTP) time server.

Managing Certificates on the ACC Server

By default, the ACC server uses a self-signed certificate for verifying client communications. Avigilon recommends using a trusted CA-signed certificate or other intermediate certificate, such as a Windows CA or custom CA certificate. You must be a Windows Administrator to make these changes.
If you are using a CA-signed certificate, you will need to disable trust of the default Avigilon certificates after setting up your CA-signed certificates to ensure the default certificate can no longer be used.

Important:
When logging into the server from a client after setting up your certificate, you will need to use the full hostname, including the domain.

Generating the Certificate

On the Windows machine running the ACC server, open the Certificate Manager. Select Run in the Start menu and enter certlm.msc.
Navigate to the Personal > Certificates folder.
Right-click in the folder contents area and select All Tasks > Request New Certificate….
Click Next.
In the Select Certificate Enrollment Policy window, select the Active Directory Enrollment Policy and click Next.
In the Request Certificates window, select the Avigilon Computer checkbox, then expand the Details drop-down arrow and click Properties.
On the General tab, enter the Friendly Name as AccServerCert.
Important:
Make sure to enter the correct Friendly Name, AccServerCert, or the ACC server and clients will not recognize the certificate and will fail to connect.
On the Private Key tab, in the Key options area, fill the Make private key exportable check box.
If ACC is running as a specific user account, configure permissions on the private key:
- On the Private Key tab, in the Key permissions area, fill the Use custom permissions check box.
- Click Set permissions… and add the corresponding user account to the group or user list.
Click OK.
On the Request Certificates window, click Enroll. Click Finish when the operation is complete.

Exporting the Certificate and Private Key

Using the certlm.msc tool, right-click the new certificate and select All Tasks > Export….
Click Next.
Select Yes, export the private key and click Next.
Leave the Export File Format settings as default and click Next.
On the Security window:
- Select the Group or user names (recommended) check box and select the Active Directory group or user to which you want to assign access to the certificate and private key.
- Click Add.
- Click Next.
Enter the name and location for the exported certificate, or click Browse to navigate to the location where you want to save the exported certificate. Click Next.
Click Finish to export the certificate and private key.

Importing the Private Key

Using the certlm.msc tool, right-click in the Personal > Certificates folder contents area and select All Tasks > Import….
Click Next.
On the File to Import window, enter the certificate name and path in the File name field or click Browse to navigate to the certificate you want to import. Click Next.
Select the Import option to Mark the key as exportable and Include all extended properties, then click Next.
Leave the settings as default and click Next.
Click Finish.

Managing Private Key Permissions on Existing or Imported Certificates

On the Windows machine running the ACC server, open the Certificate Manager. Select Run in the Start menu and enter certlm.msc.
Navigate to the Personal > Certificates folder.
Locate and right-click on the AccServerCert certificate and select All Tasks > Manage Private Keys.
In the Permissions for AccServerCert private keys window, add the Network Service account to the group or user list.
Click OK.

Using the Admin Tool

In addition to configuring the server, the Admin Tool can also be used to start up and shut down the Avigilon Control Center Server software, launch the Client software, and display the Application Logs.

Starting Up and Shutting Down
The Avigilon Control Center Server software automatically starts when Windows starts, but it can be manually started and shut down through the Admin Tool.

Starting Up the Server Software

In the Admin Tool, click Start Up.

When the Avigilon Control Center Server has started properly, the Admin Tool displays this message:

The ACC Server is Running.

Shutting Down the Server Software
When the Avigilon Control Center Server is shut down, all video recording is stopped until the Avigilon Control Center Server is started again.

In the Admin Tool, click Shut Down.

When the Avigilon Control Center Server has shut down properly, the Admin Tool displays this message:

The ACC Server is Not Running.

Starting the ACC Client Software
The Avigilon Control Center Client software can be launched from the Admin Tool.

In the Admin Tool, select General > .

If the ACC Client software is not installed, the Admin Tool will prompt you to install it.

Viewing Application Logs
You can view the Avigilon Control Center application error logs through the Admin Tool. This can assist in diagnosing problems with your system.

In the Admin Tool, select General > .
In the Application Logs dialog box, double-click an error to view the details.
Click OK to close the dialog box.

Appendix

Resetting the Administrator Password
To reset the administrator password for the Avigilon Control Center Client software, you must delete all existing user and group account information from the server Config Volume.

Tip:
You can avoid this procedure if you have a user account that has all the same permissions as an administrator. You can use this user account to reset the administrator password in the Avigilon Control Center Client software.

In the Admin Tool, click Shut Down. If you have multiple servers in your site, you need to shut down all the servers in your site.
Select Settings > .
In the Storage dialog box, make note of the drive that holds the Config Volume.
Access the Config Volume drive and navigate to the AvigilonConfig\Db\DirectoryShared\Users folder.
For example, D: \AvigilonConfig\Db\DirectoryShared\Users.
Delete all the files in this folder. If you have multiple servers in your site, you need to delete this folder from every server in your site before you do the last step. The server automatically resets all the user and group settings back to the factory default.
In the Admin Tool, click Start Up. Repeat for each server in your site.