For debugging purposes, you can telnet into the camera, and get the error logging of the camera.
This can be very helpful when troubleshooting is needed.
The camera is continuously producing log messages.
These log messages will appear when certain camera parameters are changing, or when there is abnormal behavior.
The log messages are presented on telnet session on port 2300
(Note: Normally, telnet sessions take place on port 23, but for debug logging, we use port 2300, often called the 'debug port'.)
You could telnet into the camera by using a command window in Microsoft Windows, but for debug logging, you usually want to save the output in a file.
There is a free utility, called PuTTY that can be downloaded here: http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html
PuTTY offers the possibility to write the console output into a text file. It also allows storing different connection profiles.
When using PuTTY, there are a few settings that are important.
When selecting 'Connection Type' select 'Raw':
Under Session > Logging specify a log file name, and select 'Printable Output':
In 'Termnal' settings, select 'Implicit CR in every LF' (is not checked per default)
This will make sure the output looks good, even when the cameras sends 'linefeeds', and not 'carriage returns'
When starting a session, the camera will first ask for a password. This is the only interactive moment in the session.
The default password is 'system'.
After an 'Enter' the messages will start streaming in the console.
All these messages are related to normal operation of the camera.
Every action in the camera, like interactions in the user interface, setting parameters programmatically, or automatic adjustments in the camera will be recorded in this log file.
Any problems the camera may run into (resource problems, watchdog timeouts etc.) will also be logged.
This info is essential to understand unexpected behavior of the camera.
You can keep the telnet 2300 session running as long as needed.
You can manually stop the session, and collect the log into in the text file, but also when the camera reboots, the session will be closed.
Typically, you keep it running until the unexpected camera behavior occurs.
Support staff will sometimes ask you to run a telnet 2300 session, and ask for the log info text file for analysis.
PuTTY is a free implementation of Telnet and SSH for Windows and Unix platforms.
It is written and maintained primarily by Simon Tatham.