Access Control Systems
Commercial establishments need to have control over the people who can access their resources. Companies have rules as to who all can have access to their facilities. Some people may be allowed to enter all the rooms in their offices, some others may have access only to specific rooms. There are rules as to who can be allowed to sit in the reception area and who will not at all be allowed. These rules are applicable not only to outsiders but to company employees as well. Sensitive areas like server rooms are out of bounds for most employees. Controlling access as per the access privileges is called access control.
Access control is applicable not only for people or pedestrians but also for vehicles. There may be restrictions on who all are allowed to park their vehicles in the premises and who would be asked to park the vehicle outside the premises.
Various techniques are used for access control. The simplest form of access control is lock and key. Only the people with the key can enter. Another simple and very common form of access control is placing a security guard. Both these options are not efficient when it comes to controlling access in huge facilities employing large number of people.
Several electronic technologies are available for this purpose . A card reader can be installed which can be used to open a locked door, when a card is shown in close proximity to it. Biometric readers read fingerprints and thus avoid the use of a card. Contactless cards and long range cards are also available. The access credentials could be stored on a mobile and read by the readers. There are advanced biometric features like face recognition as well.
Different kinds of barriers are used to prevent both pedestrians and vehicles entering. Access control devices are controlled by Access controllers. The Access Control software is meant for configuration and monitoring. Access management software often also plays many other functions other as well such as Visitor , parking , library and canteen management.