Severe limitations of "Generic Camera"

Configuration
1

Hi,

there is a severe limitation with the “Generic Camera” automation. Although you can specify a URL for a still image, and one for a live video, there seems no way to create discrete entities for each kind, for a given IP address.

How on earth do I create a card that only takes a still snapshot? All attempts so far only provide “live” or “auto” (=live)

I tried running the integration wizard twice, but there is no way to separate and rename the entities.

Perhaps the deprecation of yaml definition was precipitate?

Any help gratefully received!

B.

2

So the config flow for the integration complains that the URL already exists (I’m not in a position to test at the moment)?

3

I’m not really familiar with generic camera but I gather by this comment you are. And I’m guessing you’ve encountered a difference in behavior for this integration from when you entered “still image url” and “stream source” in YAML vs now when you are entering it in the UI.

I wouldn’t expect a difference in behavior there personally so that sounds like a regression. Please create an issue describing the behavior before when you configured the camera in YAML vs. now when you entered the same information in the UI.

4

I just tried it, once you create a camera, you can go in via the integrations page and access the entity id. You can change it if you want.

If you want separate control of entity ids for both still and stream, perhaps you could create two cameras.

If you leave stream or still url blank, it creates the camera using only the other url.

The YAML → UI change was just a new way to create the entities, it should not have changed how they work underneath. One exception is that the automatic entity id is generated from the url.

5

@dave_t_uk @tom_l
I may have been hasty. I think the problem is that I cannot specify a frame rate of 0 Hz for a still camera (the default is 2) So I may have confused the still image being refreshed with a video source.

Am I correct thinking this ? Is there any way to create a card which grabs a still image without refreshing it? Or specify a zero frame rate?

@CentralCommand
I have never configured a camera with yaml. I was assuming you could create discrete devices with the same ip addresses, which by the sound of it is probably wrong.

I will do some more testing. Thanks for all your help and advice!

B.

6

Probably you need a picture entity card and I suggest don’t type anything in the stream url box when you set up the camera.

You can ignore the refresh rate, 0Hz might be an invalid value, not sure.

7

Thanks, I will try it.

B.