CCTV CCTV Installation and Maintenance 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A CCTV installer is asked to cover a parking lot with high-contrast lighting conditions. Which camera feature is most important?
- High frame rate (60fps)
- Wide Dynamic Range (WDR) (Correct answer)
- Optical zoom lens
- Fisheye lens design
Correct answer: Wide Dynamic Range (WDR)
Wide Dynamic Range (WDR) allows the camera to simultaneously capture detail in both very bright and very dark areas within the same scene.
Question 2: What is 'camera masking' in the context of CCTV privacy compliance?
- Physically covering a camera lens during maintenance
- Digitally blocking specific areas of the camera's view (Correct answer)
- Encrypting the video stream
- Reducing camera resolution to protect privacy
Correct answer: Digitally blocking specific areas of the camera's view
Privacy masking digitally blacks out specific zones within a camera's field of view to prevent recording of private areas such as neighboring properties.
Question 3: How should a technician test whether a newly installed IP camera is reachable on the network?
- Reboot the NVR
- Ping the camera's IP address from a networked device (Correct answer)
- Check the HDMI output on the camera
- Review the DVR's hard drive health
Correct answer: Ping the camera's IP address from a networked device
Pinging the camera's assigned IP address confirms basic network connectivity before configuring the NVR or VMS.
Question 4: Which factor most directly determines the maximum distance for a PoE camera connection without a PoE extender?
- Camera megapixel count
- Ethernet cable length limit of 100 meters (Correct answer)
- NVR hard drive capacity
- Camera housing material
Correct answer: Ethernet cable length limit of 100 meters
The IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standard limits PoE cable runs to 100 meters (328 feet) before signal and power loss become problematic.
Question 5: A PTZ camera is installed outdoors but keeps losing its preset positions after power cycles. What should the technician check?
- The camera's IP address assignment
- The camera's firmware and preset memory settings (Correct answer)
- The NVR storage capacity
- The coaxial cable continuity
Correct answer: The camera's firmware and preset memory settings
Preset positions may not be saved if the camera firmware has a bug or the preset memory setting requires manual save confirmation after configuration.
Question 6: What does 'ONVIF compliance' mean for a CCTV IP camera?
- The camera is certified for outdoor use
- The camera follows a standard protocol allowing interoperability with other brands' NVRs (Correct answer)
- The camera uses AES video encryption
- The camera supports analog and IP output simultaneously
Correct answer: The camera follows a standard protocol allowing interoperability with other brands' NVRs
ONVIF is an open industry standard that ensures IP cameras from different manufacturers can communicate and integrate with compatible NVRs and VMS platforms.
Question 7: When installing cameras in a stairwell, what camera angle orientation is typically recommended?
- Horizontal facing one wall
- Angled downward to capture faces at entry/exit landings (Correct answer)
- Facing the ceiling to capture the full stairwell
- Horizontal facing the handrail
Correct answer: Angled downward to capture faces at entry/exit landings
Angling cameras downward at entry and exit landings maximizes face capture and ensures usable identification footage from stairwell users.
CCTV CCTV Installation and Maintenance 3
A CCTV installer is asked to cover a parking lot with high-contrast lighting conditions.
Which camera feature is most important?