Setting optional alarm properties

After you create an alarm and configure its basic properties, there are additional properties you can set.

To set optional properties for an alarm:

1. Open the Alarms task, and click the Alarms view.
2. Select the alarm to configure, and click the Advanced tab.
3. Set the following options:
   • Reactivation threshold:

     The minimum time Security Center needs to wait after triggering this alarm before it can be triggered again. This option prevents the system from repeatedly triggering the same alarm before it is resolved.
   • Alarm procedure (URL):

     Enter the URL or the web page address corresponding to the alarm procedure, which provides alarm handling instructions to the operators. The web page is displayed when the user clicks Show alarm procedure () in the alarm widget in Security Desk.
   • Schedule:

     Define when this alarm is in operation. Outside the periods defined by this schedule, triggering this alarm has no effect.

     NOTE: You can add multiple schedules to the alarm. Schedule conflicts that cannot be resolved will be notified.
   • Automatic acknowledgment:

     Turn this option on to let the system automatically acknowledge this alarm if no one acknowledges it before the specified time (in seconds). This option is recommended for low-priority alarms that serve to alert the security operator, but do not require any action. When this option is turned off, the system follows the Auto ack alarms after option configured at the system level in Server Admin.

     NOTE: Automatic acknowledgement does not apply to alarms that have an active condition attached. To acknowledge those alarms, you need to forcibly acknowledge them (which requires the Forcibly acknowledge alarms privilege). For more information on acknowledging alarms, see the Security Center User Guide.
   • Create an incident on acknowledgement:

     Turn this option on to prompt the Security Desk user to report an incident every time they acknowledge an alarm.

     NOTE: Turning this option on turns the automatic acknowledgement option off.
   • Automatic video recording:

     Turn this option off (default=on) if you do not want to start recording video when the alarm is triggered.
   • Protect recorded video:

     Turn this option on (default=off) to protect the video recordings associated to this alarm for the specified number of days.
   • Alarm sound:

     Select the sound bite to play when a new alarm occurs, if alarms are configured to play a sound in Security Desk. By default, the sound bite that is configured in the Security Desk Options dialog box is used.
   • Color:

     Select a color for the alarm. The color is used for the overlay of the alarm video when it is displayed in a tile in the Alarm monitoring or Monitoring task, as well as when the alarm is triggered on a map.
4. Click Apply.