What Is VSaaS?
Cloud video, explained without the jargon.
The short version
VSaaS stands for Video Surveillance as a Service. Instead of footage sitting on a box in a closet at your property, it lives in the cloud — meaning you can pull up live or recorded video from your phone, from anywhere, without needing to physically access the hardware.
How it's different from a traditional camera system
Traditional (NVR/DVR)
- Footage stored on a physical recorder on-site
- Lose the recorder, lose the footage
- Remote access requires extra setup and is often unreliable
- You manage storage space and hardware upkeep
VSaaS (Cloud Video)
- Footage stored securely off-site in the cloud
- Hardware damage or theft doesn't mean lost footage
- Built-in remote access from any device
- Storage, updates, and health monitoring handled for you
What this means practically
- Retention period — how long footage is stored is set per your service agreement, not a fixed universal number. We confirm this in writing before installation.
- If your internet goes down — cameras can typically continue local recording depending on the hardware configuration; cloud access and remote alerts pause until connectivity is restored. We review this with you for your specific setup.
- If a subscription ends — cloud access and remote features end; local recording capability depends on your specific hardware and agreement. We walk through this with you before you sign up, not after.
- Who owns the hardware — this depends on your specific agreement (purchased vs. included in a service plan) and is confirmed in writing per contract, not assumed.
We don't give blanket answers to the questions above because the honest answer depends on your specific system and agreement — a site assessment is how we give you the real, specific answer for your property.