To view a video directly from a unit's memory, the user must safely remove it, ensure the computer can read it, and open its video with a player compatible with the .avi video format.
For HD DVRs, such as the Ranger DVR and some legacy devices, the unit's memory may be a Solid-State Drive, a high-capacity, high-performance flash storage. Pro-Vision offers four SSDs:
| PD-1835: 500 GB SSD | PD-1837: 2 TB SSD |
| PD-1836: 1 TB SSD | PD-1838: 4 TB SSD |
In this Article: View the SSD on a PC, File Structure, Reinstall the SSD into the Unit, Legacy Units
View the SSD on a PC
To view the SSD's data, you'll need a SATA-to-USB cable (such as Pro-Vision's SSD Reader Cable DVR-802).
- Unlock the DVR mounting enclosure with the provided key.
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Verify that the unit's status light is off, indicating the unit is powered off.
- If any of the unit's lights are on, power off the vehicle and wait for the unit to shut down before removing the SSD. Otherwise, its files may become corrupted.
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Remove the SSD from the unit.
- Remove the two mounting screws from the sides of the SSD.
- Gently pull the SSD's handle until it's removed.
- Plug the SSD into the SATA-to-USB reader cable.
- Plug the USB end of the cable into the PC.
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Locate the memory on the computer.
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On a Windows computer, open the File Explorer and navigate to "This PC" to locate the external storage device.
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On a Windows computer, open the File Explorer and navigate to "This PC" to locate the external storage device.
File Structure
If the unit is not configured for automatic transfer, the “Alarm” folder will store event videos that cannot be overwritten by non-event video footage.
Video Folders
The main “Video” folder contains subfolders named after the recorded video’s date (YYYYMMDD) and subdivided into the date and time (YYYYMMDD_HH).
For example, if you’re searching for a non-event video recorded at 09 am on April 13th, 2025, navigate to the folder in Video/20250413/20250413_09
Video Names
Each folder contains several files for the hour of recording, which all follow the same naming structure CAM#_YYYYMMDD-HHMMSSMS_AVFRre_VehcID_username, where:
| CAM # | Camera Num | _ | |
| _ | A | Audio: [0] No, [1] Yes | |
| YYYY | Year | V | Alarm: [0] No, [1] Yes |
| MM | Month | FR | Frame rate |
| DD | Day | r | Resolution: [d] SD, [h] HD |
| - | e | Encoding type: [4] h.264, [5] h.265 | |
| HH | Hour | _ | |
| MM | Minute | VehicID | Vehicle ID (8 Characters) |
| SS | Seconds | _ | |
| MS | Millisecond | Username | Software username; omitted if PV Sync is not used. |
For example, the video file named 2_20250413-09562347_1025h4_ENG9666.avi
| CAM # | 2 | CAM 2 |
| YYYYMMDD | 20250413 | 2025/04/13 |
| HHMMSSMS | 09562347 | 09:56:23.47 |
| AVFRre | 1025h4 | [1] Yes Audio, [0] No Alarm, 25 fps, [h4] h.264 encoding. |
| VehicID | ENG9666 | ENG9666 |
Reinstall the SSD
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Eject the SSD before removing it from the PC.
- Select the external drive from "This PC," then click the [Eject] button.
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Otherwise, its files may become corrupted.
- Unplug the SSD from the PC and the reader cable.
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Verify that the Ranger DVR's status light is off, indicating the unit is powered off.
- Otherwise, the SSD's files may become corrupted.
- Reinsert the SSD into the open slot on the front of the DVR.
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Replace the two mounting screws to secure the SSD in place.
- If the SSD slides out of the unit while it is powered on, the SSD will be corrupted.
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Lock the unit’s cover with the included key.
Legacy Units
Pro-Vision's legacy DVRs compatible with SSDs include the PD-1800 and PD-1900 units.
The PD-1800s purchased after 2016 and PD-1900s units are formatted in the exFAT file system, while older PD-1800s use FAT32. If an SSD ever needs to be reformatted, ensure you are using the correct type, compatible with the unit.
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