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Dahua EVS5136S
320-ch 4U EVS — 36-bay SATA hot-swap, RAID 0/1/5/6/10/50/60, redundant PSU
SPECIFICATIONS · EVS5136S
Full specifications
Specifications sourced from official manufacturer datasheet (link in hero).
About the Dahua EVS5136S
The Dahua EVS5136S is a high-density recorder built for city-scale, campus, and critical-infrastructure deployments where a single unit replaces a stack of smaller NVRs and consolidates licensing into one chassis. Bay count and per-bay capacity scale to multi-petabyte recording arrays, supporting six-month-plus retention windows or sites with very high per-camera bitrates (4K/8K). The chassis is built around storage density rather than channel count. The 3U-plus chassis is built for storage density and serviceability — front-loading hot-swap bays, redundant PSUs on enterprise SKUs, and rear-side network and alarm I/O all reached without sliding the unit out of the cabinet. No PoE ports are built into the recorder, so cameras connect through a separate PoE switch. That is the preferred architecture on professional installs because a dedicated managed switch gives finer VLAN control, larger PoE budgets, and easier replacement than an integrated switch tied to the NVR chassis.
Best use cases for this recorder
Campus, factory, logistics & critical infrastructure
At 320 channels per chassis, the unit consolidates what would otherwise be 2-4 mid-range NVRs into a single rack appliance. Useful where licensing per-chassis matters and where consolidating storage onto one RAID set simplifies forensic retrieval.
4K/8MP camera deployments
Native support for 32 MP per-channel recording matches it to current-generation 4K cameras — useful when the install plan calls for fewer-but-higher-resolution cameras (typical of perimeter, parking, and identification-focused layouts).
Long-retention archive & evidentiary recording
36 HDD bays at up to 20 TB each give the unit petabyte-class storage capacity, supporting 6-12 month retention windows mandated by some banking, retail-loss-prevention, and public-transport contracts.
Rack-cabinet commercial installation
Designed for a 19-inch rack alongside a managed PoE switch, UPS, and network appliances. Front-loading hot-swap bays let the unit be serviced without sliding it out — important on installs where HDD replacement during business hours is unavoidable.
Strengths
- •320-channel headroom absorbs phased expansion without forcing a second chassis
- •36 HDD bays support RAID protection for evidentiary recording
- •RAID 0/1/5/6/10/JBOD support protects archive against single-disk failure
- •Smart H.265+ codec halves storage cost over H.265 at equivalent perceived quality
- •ONVIF compliance lets the unit record from third-party cameras, not just the same-brand catalog
Considerations
- •No built-in PoE — budget for a separate managed PoE switch with appropriate per-port wattage for the planned cameras
- •Average per-channel ingest budget is below typical 4K bitrates — restrict high-MP channels or accept lower bitrate per camera
Storage planning
Running all 320 channels at the industry-typical 4 Mbps/channel H.265 CBR (15 fps, 4 MP scene complexity), the EVS5136S produces roughly 13500 GB of footage per day — about 94500 GB/week, 405000 GB/month, and 1215000 GB across a 90-day retention window. Fully populated with 36× 20 TB drives the unit holds 720 TB raw — enough for roughly 1.8× the one-month archive at full bitrate before RAID overhead. These figures are deterministic — derived from your bitrate assumption, the channel count, and the calendar — not estimated from a marketing data sheet.
Estimates assume 4 Mbps per channel H.265 CBR continuous recording. Motion-only recording typically reduces storage by 40-70%.
Bandwidth headroom
Input (ingest)
Avg 2.5 Mbps per channel — enough for sub-4MP H.265 across all channels at 4 Mbps/channel.
Output (playback)
Sets the ceiling for simultaneous remote playback streams to mobile and web clients.
Installation tips for the EVS5136S
Install in a standard 19-inch rack cabinet on supported rack rails; allow at least 1U of clearance above and below the 4U for airflow and HDD-bay servicing.
Plan storage at roughly 13500 GB/day (≈405000 GB/month) for continuous H.265 recording at 4 Mbps/channel — match HDD capacity to the longest retention window the privacy policy or insurance contract demands.
Use RAID 5 (one-disk parity) for general-purpose archive or RAID 6 (two-disk parity) for evidentiary recording — RAID 10 is fastest but burns half the bays on mirroring, only worth it when write performance is the bottleneck.
Pair with a managed PoE switch sized for the camera plan — choose 802.3at (≤30 W/port) for typical IR-equipped bullets, 802.3bt (≤60-90 W/port) when PTZ or heated housings are in scope.
Power & rack
Power draw sits at roughly 210 W idle and around 210 W under full load (36-bay HDD activity). That dissipates approximately 717 BTU/hour of heat into the rack — size the comms-cabinet ventilation accordingly. Allow 3U of cabinet space for the chassis plus 1U of unobstructed airflow above and below; pair with a UPS sized for at least 15-minute hold-up so the recorder shuts down cleanly on mains failure.
Installer time & cost (rough estimate)
A typical EU integrator quotes 47-49 h of labour to commission the Dahua EVS5136S (approximately €2115-€2205 excluding hardware), broken down as physical install, HDD population and RAID set-up, 320-channel discovery and IP/credential configuration, schedule + retention setup, motion / event rules per camera, mobile-app pairing, and a brief operator handover. Allow extra time for sites with non-standard network topology (multi-VLAN, multi-site bridges) or for migrations from a legacy DVR where camera streams must be re-addressed.
Indicative EU 2024-2025 pricing — actual quotes vary by region, network topology and migration scope. Excludes hardware, HDDs, transport, permits, and VAT.
Frequently asked questions
How many cameras can the Dahua EVS5136S record?
Up to 320 IP camera channels per chassis. Total ingest bandwidth is 800 Mbps, which sets the practical ceiling — running every channel at 4K (typically 8 Mbps each) requires 2560 Mbps, so verify whether your camera plan fits inside the bandwidth budget.
Does the Dahua EVS5136S support third-party (ONVIF) cameras?
Yes — ONVIF Profile S/T support means the unit records from third-party cameras as well as the same-brand catalog. Most cameras supporting ONVIF 16.12 or newer plug-and-play; older firmware may require manual stream URL configuration in the NVR web UI.
How much storage does the Dahua EVS5136S need for 30-day recording?
At the industry-typical 4 Mbps per channel H.265 CBR (15 fps, 4 MP scene), all 320 channels recording continuously for 30 days produces approximately 405000 GB (395.5 TB) of footage. Motion-only or event-triggered recording typically cuts that by 40-70 % depending on scene activity. Plan HDD capacity for the longest retention window your privacy policy or insurance contract demands.
What HDDs are recommended for the Dahua EVS5136S?
Use surveillance-rated HDDs — WD Purple, Seagate SkyHawk, Toshiba S300, or equivalent. Desktop / consumer drives (WD Blue, Seagate Barracuda) are not validated for 24/7 write workloads and typically fail within 12-18 months in CCTV use. Max 20 TB per bay across 36 bays = up to 720 TB raw capacity; populate matched pairs/sets if planning RAID.
Does the Dahua EVS5136S need its own PoE switch?
Yes — the recorder has no built-in PoE, so cameras connect through a separate managed PoE switch. Size the switch's PoE budget for the planned cameras: 802.3at (≤30 W/port) handles typical IR-equipped bullets and domes; 802.3bt (≤60-90 W/port) is needed for PTZ and heated housings.
What power and cooling does the Dahua EVS5136S need?
Plan for 210 W idle and ~210 W under full load, dissipating roughly 717 BTU/hour into the rack or cupboard. Size the UPS for at least 15-minute hold-up so the unit can flush write buffers and shut down cleanly on mains failure — abrupt power loss is the leading cause of NVR file-system corruption in commercial installs.
Is the Dahua EVS5136S suitable for evidentiary recording?
Yes — RAID 0/1/5/6/10/JBOD support protects archive against single-disk (or two-disk on RAID 6) failure, and channel headroom supports the typical 30-90 day retention required by Polish and EU evidentiary policies. Export footage via the web UI or front-USB; native hash signing ties the export to the source archive.
Related Dahua NVRs
Helpful Tools & Resources
Storage Calculator
Match HDD capacity to your retention policy
Bandwidth Calculator
Verify your network can carry the ingest load
Camera Quantity Calculator
Match channel count to your site
UPS Sizing Calculator
Hold-up time for clean NVR shutdown on mains failure
System Budget Estimator
Hardware + install + commissioning cost
CCTV Storage Planning Guide
Bitrate, retention, RAID — the full math
Plan your CCTV layout with Dahua EVS5136S
Use our free CCTV planner to lay out cameras feeding this recorder, match HDD capacity to retention windows, and generate a professional PDF report — no signup required.
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