Version history
AXIS Camera Application Platform (ACAP) was introduced already in 2009 and is the world’s first camera-based video analytics platform. Over the years, the ACAP concept has gradually expanded allowing more types of applications, introducing new APIs and exposing more of the device hardware for analytics.
ACAP versions
| Version | Release year | Support | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 2021 | Actively developed | For detailed release information, see the release notes. Additionally, AXIS OS mapping is available in the ACAP version comparison page. |
| 3 | 2020 | Actively maintained | AXIS OS mapping is available in the Compatibility page. |
| 2 | 2014 | End of support: Q4 2021 | No maintenance |
| 1 | 2009 | Deprecated | No maintenance |
What's new in ACAP version 4?
- A new SDK tailored to computer vision applications.
- The descendant of ACAP SDK, called ACAP Native SDK, replaces many of the older APIs.
- Introduction of native ACAP applications with containers.
What are the differences between ACAP version 3 SDK and ACAP version 4 Native SDK?
At the time of the ACAP version 4 launch, the two SDKs are very similar, but we'll actively develop the ACAP version 4 Native SDK while keeping the ACAP version 3 SDK in maintenance mode.
APIs
ACAP version 4 Native SDK does not include all APIs from ACAP version 3. Instead, it aims to replace many of the APIs from ACAP version 3.
| API | Future in ACAP version 4? |
|---|---|
| axHTTP | Replaced by the web-server and web-server-using-fastcgi examples which describe how to achieve the same functionality. |
| axSerialPort | Added to ACAP Native SDK in 1.11 release as Serial Port API. |
| axStorage | Added to ACAP Native SDK in 1.11 release as Edge Storage API. |
| axParameter | Added to ACAP Native SDK in 1.13 release as Parameter API. |
| axAudio | Will get a new API in a later release. |
| axPTZ | Not yet decided, i.e. may be replaced or moved as is to Native SDK. |
| Old Capture API (Media capture) | Will not be moved to Native SDK. |
The complete list of APIs included in the Native SDK is found here.
Container ACAP applications
In ACAP version 4 the possibility to build native ACAP applications (.eap-files) that
make use of containers inside has been added. This way, a container application
can be installed the same way as any other ACAP version 3 application. See the
container
example
on GitHub.
Which products are supported for applications built with ACAP version 4?
Compatibility depends on many things but one minimum requirement for ACAP version 4 is AXIS OS firmware 10.7. The web page Axis devices and compatibility explains compatibility in more depth.