Basic steps to perform when bringing a Lenel NVR or Lenel HVR recorder online

Pre-Install

If this is part of a major version upgrade and not just a hot fix upgrade, it is recommended to do a clean uninstall. Refer to article "How to Uninstall an Lenel NVR Server from a Windows System "for Lenel NVR and article "How to perform a clean uninstall of Microsoft SQL Server "for versions of Lenel NVR with SQL installed.

   On the Recorder:

1. Install a version of the Lenel NVR suite compatible with the installed version of OnGuard (compatibility chart available on lenel.com).
2. UAC should be set to 'never notify' or unchecked (depending on the operating system).
3. Logged in as an Administrator.
4. If running an Lenel NVR version 6.4.500 (including any hot fixes) and earlier, SQL must be installed. Run the SQL installer using the batch file as highlighted in KB 1582 (written for older versions but applies to any SQL installed coupled with Lenel NVR firmware).
5. Run the installer from the disc, or from the C: drive the installer was downloaded.
6. When the installer completes, run the security utility with the firewall ON.
   
   Note: If you are installing Lenel NVR using RDP, Windows Firewall does allow exceptions for RDP by default. You must create this exception in the firewall configuration prior to turning the firewall on. Failure to do so will render the recorder unreachable via RDP.
   
   
7. When the security utility completes, turn off the firewall.
8. Confirm that all drives are configured to store recorded video in the Admin Tool are healthy and accessible. One failing drive can prevent the services from running properly.
9. Also in the Admin Tool, in the Leave Free Space setting, ensure that 10% of your individual drives is set to be left free (assuming all drives are equal in size; if there are different size drives in this configuration, set this value to 10% of the largest drive).
   
   

   Note: This value is in MB. For a 1 TB volume, leave 100,000 MB free.
   

Once the install is complete, reboot the recorder. Before you do so, the following configuration checks will require reboots as well. The best practice is to make the adjustments at this point (if not done already).

1. In the network card properties, disable IPv6.
2. Configure DCOM according to article "How to configure DCOM settings for digital video"

Post Install

After the recorder comes back online after rebooting, check to see if it is online in Alarm Monitoring. If it shows a red X, ensure you have the following in place:

1. From the recorder to the comm server, you can ping by hostname.
2. From the recorder to the comm server, you can telnet across port 135.
3. From the comm server to the recorder, you can ping by hostname.
4. From the comm server to the recorder, you can telnet across port 135.
5. No user/password in the System Administration configuration (except in cases where LNVUsers Group is being utilized).
6. If you see software connection error, refer to article "How to troubleshoot Software Connection Error on an LNVR"  for troubleshooting tips.
7. Once recorder is online in Alarm Monitoring, go to System Administration > Recorder tab of the newly installed recorder, click [Update capabilities].
8. Make sure that all camera firmware is compatible with the version of the Lenel NVR suite being used. The compatibility chart for checking this is available in the download location on the Lenel website. Download the proper firmware from the camera manufacturer web site as needed.
9. Right-click on the newly installed recorder on the Recorder tab under Digital Video in System Administration, and then select Download. Make sure the download completes in Alarm Monitoring.