Milestone Systems

Quick guide: Search and export video

evidence

XProtect® Smart Client 2017 R3

Searching and exporting video in
XProtect Smart Client
After an incident occurs, it is important that you can investigate the video to determine what
happened, and when it happened. Searching for an exact moment in hours of recorded video can
be time consuming. However, the investigation tools available in XProtect Smart Client can help
speed up the process, so that you can quickly and accurately find and export the relevant video.
This document describes how to use XProtect Smart Client to investigate recorded video to find an
incident, and how to export the recorded video.

Advanced and simplified modes

XProtect Smart Client comes in two modes: A simplified and an advanced mode. In the simplified
mode, you can perform only the most basic tasks. To do the tasks described in this quick guide,
you need to work in the advanced mode. Click the Toggle Mode button to switch modes

Investigate recordings
To investigate recordings, use the features on the Playback tab. The illustration shows the
Playback tab.

The Playback tab provides the following tools to search recorded video:

• A timeline that you can drag to browse the video recordings.

 • A go to feature where you can enter a specific moment in time.

• Smart Search that lets you search for motion in selected areas of a recording.

• Sequence Explorer that lets you investigate sequences from selected cameras.

Video timeline
You can use the video timeline in simplified or advanced mode. The timeline mode follows the
mode of XProtect Smart Client. For example, if you view XProtect Smart Client in simplified mode,
the timeline also appears in simplified mode. The graphic below illustrates the timeline in advanced
mode.

Use the timeline

The timeline displays an overview of periods with recordings from the cameras that your current
camera view includes. XProtect Smart Client displays the following timelines:

• The upper timeline shows the selected camera’s recording periods.

• The lower timeline is the timeline for all cameras in the view, including the selected camera.

Click here to select a Click and drag the timeline Red color in the timeline shows
specific go-to time and date left or right to go forward or recordings based on motion
backward in the recordings -
or use the scroll wheel on
your mouse

The timeline displays in the following colors:

• Light red indicates recordings

• Red indicates motion

• Light green indicates incoming audio

• Green indicates outgoing audio

Adjust the scope of your search
To make your search easier, you can adjust the scope of your search by using the Time Span slider
to change the span of time you are viewing. The scope can be from five minutes to up to four
weeks. The illustration shows the Time Span slider.

Smart Search
Smart Search is an ideal tool for searching video for motion in selected areas. For example, Smart
Search is useful when you want to identify when a specific package was removed from a shelf, or
when a person entered through the back door.

Run a smart search

The Smart Search workspace is available on the Sequence Explorer tab. To set up and run a
search, follow these steps:

1. Click Smart Search and select a camera.

2. Under Period, set a time-frame for the search.

3. To specify where to search, in the masked image, click and drag to unmask one or more
areas.

4. To select a starting point for your search, drag the timeline, or click the blue time indication
to go to a specific moment in the video. The thumbnails display the sequences, where
motion was detected, for the time-frame you specified.
 5. Select a video sequence to play back the video.

The system searches for motion in the selected areas. The green color in the view indicates motion
found by Smart Search.
Export the video
After you locate the video evidence, you can export it. The following illustration shows the steps to
perform an export in the advanced layout.

Step 1: Step 2: Step 3: Step 4:

Click to turn on Use the square brackets to Select the cameras Click Export, and
time selection select a start and end time for you want to include then select Export
mode the export in the export
After you click Export, the Export dialog box appears:

Step 1: Step 2: Step 3: Step 4: Step 5:

Enter a name Click Add item to Specify the Select a format Click Start
for the export add the cameras export for the export Export to start
file destination the export

Note: You can also export video in simplified mode. To do this, you must switch to simplified
mode, go to the Playback tab, and click the Export button.

Export formats
Format Description
XProtect Export video from multiple cameras at the same
time, and with digital zoom capability.
This option requires the following:

• You must use the XProtect Smart Client -

Player to view the video.

• You must be running Windows on your

computer to view the video.
By default, XProtect Smart Client - Player is
included when you export in the XProtect
format. It does not require any setup.
Media player Export video from multiple cameras as separate
video clips that you can view by using a
standard media player. For example, Windows
Media Player.
Still image Export still images.

DID YOU KNOW?

• You can hide areas of the video content by adding privacy masks on areas in the image.
For example, privacy masks are useful when you do not want viewers to see sensitive
content.

• You can display important instructions or guidelines by adding comments to your export
file.

Sequence Explorer
The Sequence Explorer tab lets you slice recorded video into sequences of video clips. You can
specify the length of the video in each clip. This makes it easier to find particular video clips. For
example, this is useful when you want to find an event, such as the moment someone left an
object behind. The system displays video clips as thumbnails. You can compare the thumbnails
side-by-side, and move forward and backward in the sequence. When you want to view a video
clip, click the thumbnail for instant playback.
Investigate and export sequences of video
The following illustration shows the Sequence Explorer tab. Note that the video clips in the
thumbnails can come from more than one camera.

Select one or Use the time slicer to specify Click Export to If you want to
more cameras the length of the video to export the event investigate the event
to run the include in thumbnails. For on the Playback tab,
sequence example, that each click here to
search on thumbnail contains 30 synchronize the time
seconds of video on the Playback tab
with the time in the
video viewer

To view video associated with a particular thumbnail, click the thumbnail. The selected thumbnail is
highlighted, and the video clip plays back in the upper right corner.
About Milestone Systems
Milestone Systems is a leading provider of
open platform video management software;
technology that helps the world see how to
ensure safety, protect assets and increase
business efficiency. Milestone enables an open
platform community that drives collaboration
and innovation in the development and use of
network video technology, with reliable and
scalable solutions that are proven in more than
150,000 sites worldwide. Founded in 1998,
Milestone is a stand-alone company in the
Canon Group. For more information, visit:
http://www.milestonesys.com.