# Wait for Axis autofocus to finish before retrying an optics request > Serialize Axis autofocus work: establish the target window, start one search and wait for completion before another request. Keep the documented non-PTZ scope explicit. - Canonical URL: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/wait-for-axis-autofocus-to-finish-before-retrying-an-optics-request/ - Publisher: Detection Systems & Engineering (DSE Security) - Author: DSE Security Editorial Team - Published: 2026-10-29T17:41:23+00:00 - Modified: 2026-10-29T17:41:38+00:00 - Last reviewed by DSE: 2026-10-29 - Resource type: Guide - DSE priority: Advisory - Topics: Video Surveillance - Reading time: 3 minutes ## What you need to know Serialize Axis autofocus work: establish the target window, start one search and wait for completion before another request. Keep the documented non-PTZ scope explicit. ## Potentially affected Axis products exposing the documented Optics Control interface; confirm actual device, hardware and software applicability before applying the proposed checks. ## DSE recommendation DSE recommends treating autofocus as one pending operation with a recorded outcome before allowing another optics request. ## Article Bottom line: Serialize autofocus work instead of repeatedly issuing requests while a search is pending. Agree the target window and intended field of view first, then retain one search outcome before deciding whether another adjustment is necessary. ## Source fact: documented behavior Axis’s [Optics Control](https://developer.axis.com/vapix/network-video/optics-control/) excludes PTZ cameras from /axis-cgi/opticscontrol.cgi and directs PTZ use to /axis-cgi/com/ptz.cgi instead. The focus-window example warns that the optimal focus position can change after setting a window and recommends a new search afterward. The autofocus example first sets magnification and warns that the requested search can take time and will fail if another request is initiated before completion. ## What the source does not establish Do not infer a completion deadline or automatic retry policy from these examples. Obtain the exact device’s supported optics and operation information. Keep this request-sequencing check separate from acceptance of focus across the operational depth; a processed search alone must not be described as proof of useful recorded detail. ## Applicability questions - Is this a supported non-PTZ optics interface on the actual camera? - Which optics identifier and intended field of view belong to the change? - What target window should the focus search use? - Which client component prevents another request while the search is pending? ## DSE recommendation: controlled next steps The following steps are DSE recommendations based on the cited source. DSE recommends treating autofocus as one pending operation with a recorded outcome before allowing another optics request. - Select an authorized pilot camera and review its available optics and capabilities. Record the existing magnification, focus window and relevant configuration through supported read operations. Agree the intended scene with the operator owner. Set the approved magnification and window through the documented workflow rather than copying example coordinates as if they described the installed view. - Start one autofocus search and have the client retain its request identity and pending state. Prevent repeated button presses or a separate automation from sending another optics request until the search outcome has been handled. Observe the documented response through the supported client workflow; do not substitute an arbitrary elapsed delay for evidence of completion. Escalate an unresolved or failed operation rather than launching an unlimited retry loop. - When the search has completed, review the image and decide whether a further approved adjustment is needed. If the window changes again, plan a new search and preserve the order of operations. For a proposed client test, simulate repeated user input at the interface without sending overlapping production searches. Confirm that the client queues, rejects or otherwise handles that input according to its approved design. ## Verification and evidence Retain the camera/software identity, optics identifier, intended magnification and window, sanitized request timing and each returned outcome. Have a reviewer follow the timeline and confirm that a second operation was not issued while the first was pending. Record unknown completion state explicitly instead of replacing it with an assumed success. Perform the separate approved image-quality acceptance after request sequencing passes. Use the required scene and recorded workflow, and preserve its result separately from the API outcome. This article proposes the sequencing exercise and does not report a camera test, a successful focus result or an application-specific completion guarantee. ## Official references - [Optics Control](https://developer.axis.com/vapix/network-video/optics-control/) — Axis Communications; official VAPIX documentation. Source review completed October 29, 2026. Recheck the official documentation and the deployed device’s capabilities before changing production settings. ## Primary reference - Name: Axis Communications — Optics Control - Authority: Axis Communications - URL: https://developer.axis.com/vapix/network-video/optics-control/ - Source publication date: Not stated by the source ## Citation and use Preferred citation: “Wait for Axis autofocus to finish before retrying an optics request,” DSE Security, https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/wait-for-axis-autofocus-to-finish-before-retrying-an-optics-request/ Publishing principles: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-updates-editorial-methodology/ Usage and citation policy: https://update.dsesecurity.com/usage/ Copyright © 2026 Detection Systems & Engineering. All rights reserved.