What Are The Differences Between Camera Triggered Clips And System Triggered Clips?

Alarm.com cameras are able to record multiple types of clips, each with different triggers and settings. The types of recording rules possible depend on the video camera model and what other devices are associated with the system.

For more information about creating video recording rules, see Recording Video. 

Camera triggered clips

Camera-triggered clips are uploaded based on Video Motion Detection or Video Analytics rules. Recorded clip length is an approximate range. The exact length will be affected by the size of the clip and could be shortened if multiple back-to-back clips are triggered. Clip length varies by camera model ranging from 10 to 50 seconds in length. For more information about adjusting the clip length, see Adjust the camera triggered clip length.

Types of camera triggered clips

• Video Motion Detection (VMD)
  • For more information about configuring VMD settings, see How should I configure Video Motion Detection (VMD) settings for a video device?. 
• Video Analytics 
  • This is only available on specific camera models. For more information about configuring Video Analytics, see Change a camera’s Video Analytics settings. 

System triggered clips

System triggered clips are triggered by system event rules like alarm or sensor activity. The system clip length is fixed at either 50-60 or 20-30 seconds depending on the camera. This is fixed to ensure that the captured video always contains video during the time of the triggering event.

During an alarm, video devices can be configured to upload clips back-to-back for up to 15 minutes. For more information about changing how long a video device uploads those clips, see Adjust how long to request clip uploads during an alarm.

Types of system triggered clips

Note: Some of the following clip types require additional hardware before appearing as an option.

• Alarm 
  • A recording rule for this clip type is created for each camera by default for accounts with a security panel.
• Sensor opened/closed
• System armed/disarmed
• Entry delay 
• Lock activity
• Record Now button