Overview

This document is intended to highlight some best practices when configuring the network for gige camera streaming.

Configuring Subnet Mask

A best practice for subnet mask configuration is using a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 (or /24 in CIDR).This is a common practice in many network setups and is ideal for our use case for the reasons stated below:

Network Size: A subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 allows for 256 possible IP addresses. This is suitable for small to medium size networks where you need to accommodate less than 256 devices. Our customers are not likely to use more than this number, however if this is ever the case we could resort to subnetting.

IP Address Allocation: You should plan your IP address allocation carefully to ensure efficient use of the available addresses within the subnet.

Performance: Smaller subnets can reduce broadcast traffic and improve network performance, since we don't need a lot of space for 256 cameras we might as well take advantage of this.

Basically, using a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 is an ideal size for the use case of SpinView.

Avoid LLA (169.254.x.x) as NIC's statically assigned IP

Guidelines for Configuring Multi-NIC Systems: When working with a computer that features multiple network interfaces, you must pay closer attention to networking settings to avoid difficult-to-debug connectivity problems. Follow these guidelines to ensure the best operation of your multi-NIC system. This includes any PC or embedded controller running a desktop OS.

Rule 1: Be Careful About Automatic IP Assignment (via DHCP or link-local addressing) Most Operation Systems are configured by default to obtain TCP/IP settings (IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway) automatically using a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server. If no DHCP server is found, then it is common practice for OSs to assign an IP address in the 169.254.x.x range, which is referred to as a link-local IP address.

Make sure that you are familiar with the DHCP server(s) on your network, and what IP address ranges and subnets they make use of. Likewise, make sure that you know if any adapters in your computer use DHCP and no DHCP server is on the network, resulting in the use of a 169.254.x.x address. If you are not familiar with the automatic IP assignment details for your network, then there is a much higher chance that you will break Rule 2 or Rule 3 below.

If possible given your network configuration, it is best to manually specify IP settings for each NIC in your multi-NIC PC. However, if you are on a network with other DHCP clients, using DHCP may be unavoidable.

Rule 2: Avoid Assigning Multiple NICs in the Same Computer to the Same Subnet Using multiple NICs on the same subnet is the #1 cause of connectivity issues on multi-NIC systems. While some OSs may be able to gracefully handle the presence of multiple NICs on one subnet, others may mistakenly attempt to send packets out of the wrong interface. You can remedy this issue by statically assigning one NIC (and the other networked computers attached to that NIC) to the 192.168.x.x range with subnet mask 255.255.0.0, and another NIC on the 10.0.x.x range with subnet mask 255.255.0.0. Note that this is just one possible configuration, any combination of two or more different subnets will work. It is recommended that you use one of the designated private IP address ranges to avoid conflicts with public servers on the internet.

In practice, there is rarely a good reason to use multiple NICs on the same subnet. One advanced configuration that warrants this setup is using multiple adapters to increase bandwidth is called adapter teaming, however this configuration is beyond the scope of this paper.

When configuring a controller with multiple NICs, each NIC should communicate with a different subnet. Configuring two or more NICs on the same subnet may cause communication problems.

One of the most common scenarios resulting in multiple NICs being assigned to the same subnet is when both a wired and wireless interface are used to connect to the same network. Once again, while some OSs may handle this case gracefully, it is a best practice to either configure the wired and wireless networks to exist on different subnets or to disable one network interface when using the other.

For more details reference: https://www.ni.com/en/support/documentation/supplemental/11/best-practices-for-using-multiple-network-interfaces–nics–with.html