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NAME

       motion -   Detect motion using a video4linux device

SYNOPSIS

       motion  [  -hns  ]  [  -c  config  file  path  ]  [  -d  level  ]  [ -p
       process_id_file ]

DESCRIPTION

       Motion uses a  video4linux  device  to  detect  motion.  If  motion  is
       detected both normal and motion pictures will be taken. Motion can also
       take actions to notify you if needed. Creation of  automated  snapshots
       is also possible.

OPTIONS

       -c     Full    path    and    filename    of    config    file.    E.g.
              /home/kurt/motion.conf.   Default   is   /usr/local/etc   unless
              specified differently when building Motion. Many RPMs and debian
              packages will most likely use /etc or /etc/motion as default.

       -h     Show help screen.

       -n     Run in non-daemon mode.

       -s     Run in setup mode. Also forces non-daemon mode

       -d level
              Run in debug mode, level 1-9.

       -p     Full path and filename for  process  id  file  (pid  file).  E.g
              /var/run/motion.pid.  Default  is  not defined. Pid file is only
              created when Motion is started in daemon mode.

       CONFIG FILE OPTIONS
              These are the options that can be used in the config file.  They
              are  overridden  by  the  commandline!   All  number  values are
              integer numbers (no decimals allowed).  Boolean options  can  be
              on  or  off  (values  "1", "yes" and "on" all means true and any
              other value means false).

       auto_brightness boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Let motion regulate the  brightness  of  a  video  device.  Only
              recommended for cameras without auto brightness

       brightness integer
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              The brightness level for the video device.

       contrast boolean
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              The contrast level for the video device.

       control_authentication string
              Values: Max 4096 characters / Default: Not defined
              To  protect  HTTP  Control  by  username  and password, use this
              option  for  HTTP  1.1  Basic  authentication.  The  string   is
              specified  as  username:password. Do not specify this option for
              no authentication. This option must be placed in motion.conf and
              not in a thread config file.

       control_html_output boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Enable  HTML  in the answer sent back to a browser connecting to
              the control_port. This option must be placed in motion.conf  and
              not in a thread config file.

       control_localhost boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Limits  the  http  (html)  control to the localhost. This option
              must be placed in motion.conf and not in a thread config file.

       control_port integer
              Values: 0 - 65535 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Sets the port number for the http  (html  using  browser)  based
              remote  control.  This  option must be placed in motion.conf and
              not in a thread config file.

       daemon boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Start in daemon (background) mode  and  release  terminal.  This
              option  must be placed in motion.conf and not in a thread config
              file.

       despeckle string
              Values: EedDl / Default: Not defined
              Despeckle  motion  image  using  combinations  of  (E/e)rode  or
              (D/d)ilate. And ending with optional (l)abeling.

       ffmpeg_bps integer
              Values: 0 - 9999999 / Default: 400000
              Bitrate of mpegs produced by ffmpeg. Bitrate is bits per second.
              Default: 400000 (400kbps). Higher value mans better quality  and
              larger   files.   Option  requires  that  ffmpeg  libraries  are
              installed.

       ffmpeg_cap_motion boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Use ffmpeg libraries to encode motion type mpeg movies where you
              only see the pixels that changes.

       ffmpeg_cap_new boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Use ffmpeg libraries to encode mpeg movies in realtime.

       ffmpeg_deinterlace boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Use  ffmpeg to deinterlace video. Necessary if you use an analog
              camera and see horizontal combing on moving objects in video  or
              pictures.

       ffmpeg_timelapse boolean
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Create  a timelapse movie saving a picture frame at the interval
              in seconds set by this parameter. Set it to 0 if not used.

       ffmpeg_timelapse_mode discrete strings
              Values: hourly, daily,  weekly-sunday,  weekly-monday,  monthly,
              manual / Default: daily
              The file rollover mode of the timelapse video.

       ffmpeg_variable_bitrate integer
              Values: 0, 2 - 31 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Enables  and  defines  variable  bitrate for the ffmpeg encoder.
              ffmpeg_bps is ignored if  variable  bitrate  is  enabled.  Valid
              values:  0  (default)  = fixed bitrate defined by ffmpeg_bps, or
              the range 2 - 31 where 2 means best quality and 31 is worst.

       ffmpeg_video_codec discrete strings
              Values: mpeg1 (ffmpeg-0.4.8 only),  mpeg4,  msmpeg4,  swf,  flv,
              ffv1 / Default: mpeg4
              Codec  to be used by ffmpeg for the video compression. Timelapse
              mpegs are always made in  mpeg1  format  independent  from  this
              option.

       framerate integer
              Values: 2 - 100 / Default: 100 (no limit)
              Maximum  number  of  frames  to  be captured from the camera per
              second.

       frequency boolean
              Values: 0 - 999999 / Default: 0 (Not set)
              The frequency to set the tuner to (kHz). Valid range: per  tuner
              spec, default: 0 (Don't set it)

       gap integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 60
              Gap  is the seconds of no motion detection that triggers the end
              of an event. An event is defined as a series  of  motion  images
              taken within a short timeframe.

       height integer
              Values: Device Dependent / Default: 288
              The height of each frame in pixels.

       hue integer
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              The hue level for the video device.

       input integer
              Values: 0 - 7, 8 = disabled / Default: 8 (disabled)
              Input  channel  to  use  expressed as an integer number starting
              from 0. Should normally be set to 1 for video/TV  cards,  and  8
              for USB cameras.

       jpeg_filename string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %v-%Y%m%d%H%M%S-%q
              File  path for motion triggered images (jpeg or ppm) relative to
              target_dir. Value 'preview' makes a jpeg filename with the  same
              name body as the associated saved mpeg movie file.

       lightswitch integer
              Values: 0 - 100 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Ignore  sudden  massive  light  intensity  changes  given  as  a
              percentage of the picture area that changed intensity.

       locate boolean
              Values: on, off, preview / Default: off
              Locate and draw a box around the moving object. Value  'preview'
              makes  Motion  only draw a box on a saved preview jpeg image and
              not on the saved mpeg movie.

       low_cpu integer
              Values: 0 - 100 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              When this option is not zero motion will be in a  low  cpu  mode
              while  not  detecting motion. In low cpu mode Motion reduces the
              framerate to the value given for this option. Value  zero  means
              disabled.

       mask_file string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              PGM  file  to  use as a sensitivity mask. This picture MUST have
              the same width and height as the frames being captured and be in
              binary format.

       max_mpeg_time integer
              Values: 0 (infinite) - 2147483647 / Default: 3600
              The maximum length of an mpeg movie in seconds. Set this to zero
              for unlimited length.

       minimum_frame_time integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0
              Minimum time in seconds between  the  capturing  picture  frames
              from  the  camera.  Default:  0 = disabled - the capture rate is
              given by the camera framerate.

       minimum_motion_frames boolean
              Values: 1 - 1000s / Default: 1
              Picture frames must contain motion at least the specified number
              of  frames  in a row before they are detected as true motion. At
              the default of 1, all motion is detected. Valid range  is  1  to
              thousands, but it is recommended to keep it within 1-5.

       motion_video_pipe string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The  video4linux  video loopback input device for motion images.
              If a particular pipe is to be used then use the device  filename
              of   this  pipe,  if  a  dash  '-'  is  given  motion  will  use
              /proc/video/vloopback/vloopbacks to locate a free pipe. Default:
              not set

       movie_filename string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %v-%Y%m%d%H%M%S
              File  path for motion triggered ffmpeg movies (mpeg) relative to
              target_dir. This was previously called ffmpeg_filename.

       mysql_db string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Name of the MySQL database.

       mysql_host string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: localhost
              IP address or domain name for the MySQL server. Use  "localhost"
              if motion and MySQL runs on the same server.

       mysql_password string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The MySQL password.

       mysql_user string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The MySQL user name.

       netcam_proxy string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              URL to use for a netcam proxy server, if required. The syntax is
              http://myproxy:portnumber

       netcam_url string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Specify an url to a downloadable jpeg file or raw  mjpeg  stream
              to use as input device. Such as an AXIS 2100 network camera.

       netcam_userpass string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              For network cameras protected by username and password, use this
              option  for  HTTP  1.1  Basic  authentication.  The  string   is
              specified  as  username:password. Do not specify this option for
              no authentication.

       night_compensate boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              When this option is set the noise threshold will be  lowered  if
              the  picture  is dark. This will improve the sensitivity in dark
              places. However it might  also  increase  the  number  of  false
              alarms  since  most cameras also increase light sensitivity with
              their AGC (Automatic Gain Control) and this will increase noise.

       noise_level integer
              Values: 1 - 255 / Default: 32
              The  noise  level  is  used  as  a  threshold for distinguishing
              between noise and motion.

       noise_tune boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Activates the automatic tuning of noise level.

       norm discrete strings
              Values: 0 (PAL), 1 (NTSC), 2 (SECAM), 3 (PAL  NC  no  colour)  /
              Default: 0 (PAL)
              Select  the norm of the video device. Values: 0 (PAL), 1 (NTSC),
              2 (SECAM), 3 (PAL NC no colour). Default: 0 (PAL)

       on_event_end string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command to be executed when an event ends after a period  of  no
              motion.  The  period  of no motion is defined by option gap. You
              can use Conversion Specifiers and spaces as part of the command.

       on_event_start string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command  to be executed when an event starts. An event starts at
              first motion detected after a period of  no  motion  defined  by
              gap.  You can use ConversionSpecifiers and spaces as part of the
              command.

       on_motion_detected string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command to be executed when a motion frame is detected. You  can
              use Conversion Specifiers and spaces as part of the command.

       on_movie_end string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command to be executed when an ffmpeg movie is closed at the end
              of an event. You can use Conversion  Specifiers  and  spaces  as
              part  of  the  command.  Use  %f for passing filename (with full
              path) to the command.

       on_movie_start string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command to be executed when an mpeg movie is  created.  You  can
              use Conversion Specifiers and spaces as part of the command. Use
              %f for passing filename (with full path) to the command.

       on_picture_save string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Command to be executed when an  image  is  saved.  You  can  use
              Conversion  Specifiers and spaces as part of the command. Use %f
              for passing filename (with full path) to the command.

       output_all boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Picture are saved continuously as if motion was detected all the
              time.

       output_motion boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Output  pictures  with  only  the  moving  object.  This feature
              generates the special motion type movies where you only see  the
              pixels that changes as a graytone image. If labelling is enabled
              you see the largest area in blue. Smartmask is shown in red.

       output_normal discrete strings
              Values: on, off, first, best / Default: on
              Normal image is an image that is stored when motion is detected.
              It  is  the  same image that was taken by the camera. I.e. not a
              motion image like defined  by  output_motion.  Default  is  that
              normal images are stored.

       pgsql_db string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Name of the PostgreSQL database.

       pgsql_host string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: localhost
              IP  address  or  domain  name  for  the  PostgreSQL  server. Use
              "localhost" if motion and PostgreSQL runs on the same server.

       pgsql_password string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The PostgreSQL password.

       pgsql_port integer
              Values: 0 - 65535 / Default: 5432
              The PostgreSQL server port number.

       pgsql_user string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The PostgreSQL user name.

       post_capture integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Specifies the number of frames to be captured after  motion  has
              been detected.

       ppm boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Output  ppm images instead of jpeg. This uses less CPU time, but
              causes a LOT of hard disk I/O, and it is generally  slower  than
              jpeg.

       pre_capture integer
              Values: 0 - 100s / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Specifies  the  number  of  previous  frames  to be outputted at
              motion detection. Recommended range: 0 to 5, default=0.  Do  not
              use  large  values! Large values will cause Motion to skip video
              frames and cause unsmooth mpegs.  To  smooth  mpegs  use  larger
              values of post_capture instead.

       process_id_file string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              File  to store the process ID, also called pid file. Recommended
              value when used: /var/run/motion.pid

       quality integer
              Values: 1 - 100 / Default: 75
              The quality for the jpeg images in percent.

       quiet boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Be quiet, don't output beeps when detecting motion.

       rotate discrete strings
              Values: 0, 90, 180, 270 / Default: 0 (not rotated)
              Rotate image the given number of degrees. The  rotation  affects
              all saved images as well as mpeg movies.

       roundrobin_frames integer
              Values: 1 - 2147483647 / Default: 1
              Specifies  the  number  of  frames  to  capture before switching
              inputs, this way also slow  switching  (e.g.  every  second)  is
              possible.

       roundrobin_skip integer
              Values: 1 - 2147483647 / Default: 1
              Specifies the number of frames to skip after a switch. (1 if you
              are feeling lucky, 2 if you want to be safe).

       saturation integer
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              The colour saturation level for the video device.

       setup_mode boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Run Motion in setup mode.

       smart_mask_speed integer
              Values: 0 - 10 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Slugginess of the smart mask. Default is  0  =  DISABLED.  1  is
              slow, 10 is fast.

       snapshot_filename string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %v-%Y%m%d%H%M%S-snapshot
              File path for snapshots (jpeg or ppm) relative to target_dir.

       snapshot_interval integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              Make automated snapshots every 'snapshot_interval' seconds.

       sql_log_image boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Log to the database when creating motion triggered image file.

       sql_log_mpeg boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Log to the database when creating motion triggered mpeg file.

       sql_log_snapshot boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Log to the database when creating a snapshot image file.

       sql_log_timelapse boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Log to the database when creating timelapse mpeg file

       sql_query string
              Values:   Max   4095   characters   /   Default:   insert   into
              security(camera,   filename,   frame,   file_type,   time_stamp,
              text_event) values('%t', '%f', '%q', '%n', '%Y-%m-%d %T', '%C')
              SQL  query  string  that is sent to the database. The values for
              each field are given by using convertion specifiers

       switchfilter boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Turns the switch filter on or off. The  filter  can  distinguish
              between  most switching noise and real motion. With this you can
              even set roundrobin_skip to  1  without  generating  much  false
              detection.

       target_dir string
              Values:  Max  4095  characters  / Default: Not defined = current
              working directory
              Target directory for picture and movie files.

       text_changes boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Turns the text showing changed pixels on/off.

       text_double boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Draw characters at twice normal size on images.

       text_event string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %Y%m%d%H%M%S
              This option defines the value of the  speciel  event  conversion
              specifier  %C.  You  can  use  any  conversion specifier in this
              option except %C. Date and time values are from the timestamp of
              the first image in the current event.

       text_left string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              User  defined  text  overlayed on each in the lower left corner.
              Use A-Z, a-z, 0-9, " / ( ) @ ~ #  <  >  |  ,  .  :  -  +  _  and
              conversion specifiers (codes starting by a %).

       text_right string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %Y-%m-%d8T
              User  defined  text overlayed on each in the lower right corner.
              Use A-Z, a-z, 0-9, " / ( ) @ ~ #  <  >  |  ,  .  :  -  +  _  and
              conversion   specifiers   (codes  starting  by  a  %).  Default:
              %Y-%m-%d8T = date in ISO format and time in 24 hour clock

       thread string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              Specifies full path and filename for a thread config file.  Each
              camera  needs  a  thread config file containing the options that
              are unique to the camera. If you only have one camera you do not
              need  thread  config  files. If you have two or more cameras you
              need one thread config file  for  each  camera  in  addition  to
              motion.conf.  This  option must be placed in motion.conf and not
              in a thread config file.

       threshold integer
              Values: 1 - 2147483647 / Default: 1500
              Threshold for declaring motion. The threshold is the  number  of
              changed   pixels   counted   after   noise  filtering,  masking,
              despeckle, and labelling.

       threshold_tune boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Activates the automatic tuning of threshold level.

       timelapse_filename string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: %v-%Y%m%d-timelapse
              File path for timelapse mpegs  relative  to  target_dir  (ffmpeg
              only).

       track_auto boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              Enable auto tracking

       track_iomojo_id integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0
              Use  this option if you have an iomojo smilecam connected to the
              serial port instead of a general stepper motor controller.

       track_maxx integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0
              The maximum position for servo x.

       track_maxy integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0
              The maximum position for servo y.

       track_motorx integer
              Values: -1 - 2147483647 / Default: -1
              The motor number that is used for controlling the x-axis.

       track_motory integer
              Values: -1 - 2147483647 / Default: -1
              The motor number that is used for controlling the y-axis.

       track_move_wait integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 10
              Delay during which tracking is disabled after auto tracking  has
              moved  the camera. Delay is defined as number of picture frames.

       track_port string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              This is the device name of the serial port to which the  stepper
              motor interface is connected.

       track_speed integer
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 255
              Speed to set the motor to.

       track_step_angle_x integer
              Values: 0-90 / Default: 10
              Angle  in  degrees  the camera moves per step on the X-axis with
              auto tracking. Currently only used with pwc type cameras.

       track_step_angle_y integer
              Values: 0-40 / Default: 10
              Angle in degrees the camera moves per step on  the  Y-axis  with
              auto tracking. Currently only used with pwc type cameras.

       track_stepsize integer
              Values: 0 - 255 / Default: 40
              Number of steps to make.

       track_type discrete strings
              Values: 0 (none), 1 (stepper), 2 (iomojo), 3 (pwc), 4 (generic),
              5 (uvcvideo)  / Default: 0 (None)
              Type of tracker.

       tunerdevice string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: /dev/tuner0
              The tuner device used for controlling the tuner in a tuner card.
              This option is only used when Motion is compiled for FreeBSD.

       video_pipe string
              Values: Max 4095 characters / Default: Not defined
              The  video4linux  video loopback input device for normal images.
              If a particular pipe is to be used then use the device  filename
              of   this  pipe.  If  a  dash  '-'  is  given  motion  will  use
              /proc/video/vloopback/vloopbacks to locate a free pipe.

       videodevice string
              Values: Max 4095 characters  /  Default:  /dev/video0  (FreeBSD:
              /dev/bktr0)
              The  video device to be used for capturing. Default for Linux is
              /dev/video0. for FreeBSD the default is /dev/bktr0.

       webcam_limit integer
              Values: 0 - 2147483647 / Default: 0 (unlimited)
              Limit  the  number   of   frames   to   number   frames.   After
              'webcam_limit' number of frames the connection will be closed by
              motion. The value 0 means unlimited.

       webcam_localhost boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: on
              Limits the access to the webcam to the localhost.

       webcam_maxrate integer
              Values: 1 - 100 / Default: 1
              Limit the framerate of the webcam in frames per second.  Default
              is 1. Set the value to 100 for practically unlimited.

       webcam_motion boolean
              Values: on, off / Default: off
              If  set  to  'on' Motion sends slows down the webcam stream to 1
              picture per second when no motion is detected.  When  motion  is
              detected  the  stream  runs  as  defined by webcam_maxrate. When
              'off'  the   webcam   stream   always   runs   as   defined   by
              webcam_maxrate.

       webcam_port integer
              Values: 0 - 65535 / Default: 0 (disabled)
              TCP  port on which motion will listen for incoming connects with
              its webcam server.

       webcam_quality integer
              Values: 1 - 100 / Default: 50
              Quality  setting  in  percent  for  the  mjpeg  picture   frames
              transferred  over the webcam connection. Keep it low to restrict
              needed bandwidth.

       width integer
              Values: Device Dependent / Default: 352
              The width in  pixels  of  each  frame.  Valid  range  is  camera
              dependent.

SIGNALS

       Motion responds to the following signals:

       SIGHUP The config file will be reread.

       SIGTERM
              If  needed motion will create an mpeg file of the last event and
              exit

       SIGUSR1
              Motion will create an mpeg file of the current event.

NOTES

       Snapshot
              A snapshot is a picture taken at regular intervals independently
              of any movement in the picture.

       Motion image
              A  "motion"  image/mpeg  shows  the  pixels  that  have actually
              changed during the last frames.  These  pictures  are  not  very
              useful  for normal presentation to the public but they are quite
              useful for testing and tuning and making mask files as  you  can
              see  exactly where motion sees something moving. Motion is shown
              in greytones. If labelling is enabled the largest area is marked
              as blue. Smart mask is shown in read.

       Normal image
              A "normal" image is the real image taken by the camera with text
              overlayed.

       Threads and config files
              If Motion was invoked  with  command  line  option  -c  pathname
              Motion  will expect the config file to be as specified. When you
              specify the config file on the command line with -c you can call
              it anything.
              If  you  do  not specify -c or the filename you give Motion does
              not exist, Motion will search for the configuration file  called
              'motion.conf' in the following order:
              1. Current directory from where motion was invoked
              2.  Then  in  a  directory called '.motion' in the current users
              home  directory  (shell  environment   variable   $HOME).   E.g.
              /home/goofy/.motion/motion.conf
              3.  The  directory  defined by the --sysconfdir=DIR when running
              .configure during installation of Motion (If this option was not
              defined the default is /usr/local/etc/)
              If  you  have  write  access  to  /usr/local/etc then the editor
              recommends having only  one  motion.conf  file  in  the  default
              /usr/local/etc/ directory.
              Motion  has  a  configuration  file  in the distribution package
              called motion-dist.conf. When you run 'make install' this  files
              gets copied to the /usr/local/etc directory.
              The configuration file needs to be renamed from motion-dist.conf
              to motion.conf. The original file is called motion-dist.conf  so
              that   your   perfectly   working   motion.conf  file  does  not
              accidentally get overwritten when you re-install or upgrade to a
              newer version of Motion.
              If  you  have more than one camera you should not try and invoke
              Motion more times. Motion is made to work  with  more  than  one
              camera in a very elegant way and the way to do it is to create a
              number of thread config files. Motion will then create an  extra
              tread of itself for each camera. If you only have one camera you
              only need the motion.conf file. The minute you have two or  more
              cameras  you must have one thread config file per camera besides
              the motion.conf file.
              So if you have for example two cameras you need motion.conf  and
              two thread config files. Total of 3 config files.
              An  option  that  is  common  to  all  cameras  can be placed in
              motion.conf. (You can also put  all  parameters  in  the  thread
              files  but  that makes a lot of editing when you change a common
              thing).
              An option that is unique to a camera must  be  defined  in  each
              thread file.
              The first camera is defined in the first thread file called from
              motion.conf. The 2nd camera is defined in the  2nd  thread  file
              called from motion.conf etc.
              Any  option  defined in motion.conf will be used for all cameras
              except for the cameras in which the same option is defined in  a
              thread config file.
              Motion  reads  its  configuration  parameters  in  the following
              sequence. If the same parameter exists more than one  place  the
              last one read wins.
              1.  Motion  reads  the  configuration  file motion.conf from the
              beginning of the file going down line by line.
              2. If the option "thread" is defined in motion.conf, the  thread
              configuration file(s) is/(are) read.
              3.  Motion  continues  reading the rest of the motion.conf file.
              Any options from here will overrule the same  option  previously
              defines in a thread config file.
              4.  Motion  reads  the  command line option again overruling any
              previously defined options.
              So always call the  thread  config  files  in  the  end  of  the
              motion.conf file. If you define options in motion.conf AFTER the
              thread file calls, the same options in  the  thread  files  will
              never  be used. So always put the thread file call at the end of
              motion.conf.
              If motion is built without specific  features  such  as  ffmpeg,
              mysql  etc  it  will  ignore  the  options that belongs to these
              features. You do not have to remove them or comment them out.
              If     you      run      the      http      control      command
              http://host:port/0/config/writeyes,    motion   will   overwrite
              motion.conf and  all  the  thread.conf  files  by  autogenerated
              config  files  neatly  formatted  and  only  with  the  features
              included that Motion was  built  with.  If  you  later  re-build
              Motion  with  more features or upgrade to a new version, you can
              use your old config files, run  the  motion.conf.write  command,
              and you will have new config files with the new options included
              all set to their default values. This makes upgrading very  easy
              to do.

       Conversion Specifiers for Advanced Filename and Text Features
              The  table  below  shows all the supported Conversion Specifiers
              you   can   use   in   the   options   text_left,    text_right,
              snapshot_filename,        jpeg_filename,        ffmpeg_filename,
              timelapse_filename,        on_event_start,         on_event_end,
              on_picture_save,      on_movie_start,      on_movie_end,     and
              on_motion_detected.
              In text_left and text_right you can additionally use '0 for  new
              line.

       %a     The abbreviated weekday name according to the current locale.

       %A     The full weekday name according to the current locale.

       %b     The abbreviated month name according to the current locale.

       %B     The full month name according to the current locale.

       %c     The  preferred  date  and  time  representation  for the current
              locale.

       %C     Text defined by the text_event feature

       %d     The day of the month as a decimal number (range 01 to 31).

       %D     Number of pixels detected as Motion. If labelling is enabled the
              number  is  the  number of pixels in the largest labelled motion
              area.

       %E     Modifier: use alternative format, see below.

       %f     File  name  -  used  in  the  on_picture_save,   on_movie_start,
              on_movie_end, and sql_query features.

       %F     Equivalent to %Y-%m-%d (the ISO 8601 date format).

       %H     The  hour as a decimal number using a 24-hour clock (range 00 to
              23).

       %i     Width  of  the  rectangle  containing  the  motion  pixels  (the
              rectangle that is shown on the image when locate is on).

       %I     The  hour as a decimal number using a 12-hour clock (range 01 to
              12).

       %j     The day of the year as a decimal number (range 001 to 366).

       %J     Height of  the  rectangle  containing  the  motion  pixels  (the
              rectangle that is shown on the image when locate is on).

       %k     The  hour  (24-hour  clock) as a decimal number (range 0 to 23);
              single digits are preceded by a blank. (See also %H.)

       %K     X coordinate in pixels of the center point of motion. Origin  is
              upper left corner.

       %l     The  hour  (12-hour  clock) as a decimal number (range 1 to 12);
              single digits are preceded by a blank. (See also %I.)

       %L     Y coordinate in pixels of the center point of motion. Origin  is
              upper left corner and number is positive moving downwards (I may
              change this soon).

       %m     The month as a decimal number (range 01 to 12).

       %M     The minute as a decimal number (range 00 to 59).

       %n     Filetype  as  used  in  the   on_picture_save,   on_movie_start,
              on_movie_end, and sql_query features.

       %N     Noise level.

       %o     Threshold.  The  number  of  detected pixels required to trigger
              motion. When threshold_tune is 'on' this can be used to show the
              current tuned value of threshold.

       %p     Either  'AM'  or  'PM' according to the given time value, or the
              corresponding strings for the current locale. Noon is treated as
              `pm' and midnight as `am'.

       %P     Like %p but in lowercase: `am' or `pm' or a corresponding string
              for the current locale.

       %q     Picture frame number within current second. For  jpeg  filenames
              this  should always be included in the filename if you save more
              then 1 picture per second to ensure unique filenames. It is  not
              needed in filenames for mpegs.

       %Q     Number of detected labels found by the despeckle feature

       %r     The time in a.m. or p.m. notation.

       %R     The time in 24-hour notation (%H:%M).

       %s     The  number  of  seconds since the Epoch, i.e., since 1970-01-01
              00:00:00 UTC.

       %S     The second as a decimal number (range 00 to 61).

       %t     Thread number (camera number)

       %T     The time in 24-hour notation (%H:%M:%S).

       %u     The day of the week as a decimal, range 1 to 7, Monday being  1.
              See also %w.

       %U     The  week  number of the current year as a decimal number, range
              00 to 53, starting with the first Sunday as  the  first  day  of
              week 01. See also %V and %W.

       %v     Event  number.  An  event  is  a  series  of  motion  detections
              happening with less than 'gap' seconds between them.

       %V     The ISO 8601:1988 week number of the current year as  a  decimal
              number,  range 01 to 53, where week 1 is the first week that has
              at least 4 days in the current year,  and  with  Monday  as  the
              first day of the week. See also %U and %W.

       %w     The  day of the week as a decimal, range 0 to 6, Sunday being 0.
              See also %u.

       %W     The week number of the current year as a decimal  number,  range
              00  to  53,  starting  with the first Monday as the first day of
              week 01.

       %x     The preferred date representation for the current locale without
              the time.

       %X     The preferred time representation for the current locale without
              the date.

       %y     The year as a decimal number without a century (range 00 to 99).

       %Y     The year as a decimal number including the century.

       %z     The time-zone as hour offset from GMT.

       %Z     The time zone or name or abbreviation.

       More information
              Motion homepage: http://motion.sourceforge.net/

              Motion Guide (user and installation guide):

AUTHORS

       Jeroen Vreeken (pe1rxq@amsat.org), Folkert van Heusden, Kenneth Lavrsen
       (kenneth@lavrsen.dk) Juan Angulo Moreno <juan@apuntale.com>