NFC VS Beacon, Which Is Right for You?

Thursday, October 19, 2017 TimeTec 0 Comments



Introduction: -
Since early 2017, we offer various types of clocking method in TimeTec TA Mobile Application. The options that users can now choose for attendance clocking in TimeTec TA include:
1. GPS Geolocation 2. Beacon 3. NFC
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Beacon and Near Field Communication (NFC) are two of the leading technologies powering the modern services in our smartphones. Still, they are designed with different user experiences in mind.
In this article, we will look forward to the comparison between the Beacon and NFC Tag.





What is a Beacon and how do they work?
Beacons are basically devices that use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), BLE 4.0 proximity sensing to create a signal region. In simpler terms, imagine that the Beacon is like a Lighthouse.

As such, whenever you position a Beacon, it will send out a signal while being completely unaware of the surrounding mobile devices. Hence, its only purpose is to emit a signal to inform nearby mobile devices of its presence and not connect to other devices or steal its data.

Like a lighthouse, the Beacon operates under the same concept in a sense that it doesn’t notice any nearby mobile devices but instead serves only to announce its presence.

 



What is NFC and how do they work?

NFC stands for Near-Field Communication and it allows for phones, tablets and laptops to share its data with other NFC equipped devices. This technology actually evolved from radio-frequency identification (RFID), whereby RFID technology is most often implemented on security cards which are used to access office rooms or to bypass a toll booth.

Even though NFC is very much like RFID, NFC on the other hand, is limited to communication within the distance of about four centimetres only, which is why you have to hold your phone close to the NFC tag or NFC contactless reader in order to access it. This small radius represents a major security benefit and it’s one of the reasons that NFC is taking off as a secure alternative payment for credit cards.

Unlike Bluetooth, NFC doesn’t require any kind of manual pairing or discovery of any devices in order to transfer data. With NFC, a connection will automatically be established once a NFC device enters into that specific four-inch range. Once in range, the two devices will instantly communicate with one another and soon prompt the user.

To give you a better overview of the comparison between these two indoor location technologies, we have come up with this table:

Beacon
NFC
Technologies
Carried by BLE 4.0 (operating at a frequency of 2.4GHz)
Short-range high-frequency wireless communication (operating at a frequency of 13.56 MHz) through electromagnetic induction coupling.
User Experience
One-To-Many: BLE Beacons continuously transmit a discovery package. When a consumer enables the BLE (Bluetooth 4.0), and their smartphones is within the range of transmission, it will then received the package and measure the signal strength to determine an approximate distance from the beacon. The OS will then extract the Beacon ID from the packet and makes the ID available to the apps.
One-To-One: The consumers observe the NFC Tag which they wish to engage. They will then have to place their NFC-equipped smartphones within four centimetres of the NFC tag. Radio waves from the smartphones will cause the NFC Tag to power-up its internal microprocessor. Once powered up, it will execute a stored program. This program typically transmits the contents of the Tag’s internal memory to the smartphone. The smartphone will then execute an action based upon the received contents.
Popularity
High: Applied in all new and latest models Phone, which support BLE 4.0.
Medium: Applied in high-end smartphones, to be gradually popularized in the future.
Range
Beacons typically have a wireless range of 1m to 70m.
Works at an optimal range of 10 cm or less. Works best within 4 cm.
Power Efficiency
Each Beacon contains a battery that can last up to two years before it will need to be replaced.
No battery needed. It does not require power to function. Each NFC Tag creates its own power when the NFC-enabled Smartphone is placed near to the tag.
Location Services
Measured by signal strength of the Beacon as received by BLE-enabled Smartphone.
Location can be determined if users engage with a unique tag that is affixed to a specified location.
Security
BLE broadcasts outbound signals. There is no inherent security risk embodied within these transmissions.
NFC support both secure and unsecure data communication sessions.
Price
Price is slightly higher when compared with NFC Tag and it also depends on the volume being purchased.
Price is cheaper when compared with the Beacon and it also depends on the volume being purchased.
Source : http://zugara.com/beacon-vs-nfc-infographic

Conclusion:
Both NFC Clocking and Beacon Clocking are suitable for companies that aim to have an affordable hi-tech solution which can cater to large spaces. Note that Time Beacon can be used by both iOS and Android phones while NFC tag is available on Android phones only.
Even though the price for NFC tags is cheaper than Time Beacon, it is recommended that companies with high volume of staffs, install both NFC Tag as well as Time Beacon in order to provide their staffs with more convenience and also to prevent huge influx of staffs from clocking within a single location during rush hours.

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Ingress VMS Installation Guide

Thursday, October 19, 2017 TimeTec 5 Comments



Introduction

Ingress VMS is a Web Based Visitor Management System, which is fully integrated with FingerTec Ingress Door Access System for a more secure visitor management system.

Currently, Ingress VMS only supports FingerTec Ingress with MySQL database. Therefore, if you are using FingerTec Ingress with Microsoft Access Database (MDB), the visitor management aspect will be not available.
Benefits

1.        Ingress VMS helps to manage the In and Out access of visitors.
2.        Ingress VMS supports Ingress Software. Therefore, the management can determine access control permission for each visitor.
3.        The management is able to filter which visitors are allowed into their premise
Process
A)   Add an Inbound Rule for Ingress VMS into Windows Firewall.
1.    Go to Control Panel > Windows Firewall > Advanced Settings

2.    Click on Inbound Rules > click New Rule at the Actions tab.

3.    At Rule Type, please select Port > click Next.

4.    Specify the local ports for TCP and UDP. Set the port value as 80 for both TCP and UDP.

5.    Moving to the next page, please select Allow the connection and click Next.

6.    Please tick on the check-boxes for Domain, Private, and Public. After doing so, click Next

7.    Insert the Name as Ingress VMS and click Finish.


B)   Enable all Internet Information Services (IIS) features.
1.    Go to Control Panel and select Programs and Features.
2.    Click on Turn Windows features on or off.
3.    Look for the folder Internet Information Services and tick on the checkbox. Please make sure that you’ve ticked all the subfolders inside the Internet Information Services option.
4.    Click OK to proceed to installation.

C) Install Ingress VMS
2.    Extract the downloaded file and double click on the installer to prompt the installation.
  
 
 

D)   Set the Application Pool to VMS
1.    Go to Control Panel and select Administrative Tools.

2.    Double click on the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.

3.    At the Connections panel on the left, click Sites > Default Web Site > right click VMS > Manage Application > Advanced Settings.

4.    Please make sure that the Application Pool is labelled VMS.


E)   Enable ASP.Net Impersonation

1.    Go to Control Panel and select Administrative Tools.
2.    Double click on the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
3.    At the Connections panel on the left, click Sites > Default Web Site > double click on Authentications.

4.    Change the ASP.NET Impersonation to Enabled.


F)   Activate Ingress VMS License in Ingress Software
1.    Login to Ingress Software > System Settings > VMS License Information


2.    Note: To obtain VMS license key, you will need to provide us your Hardware ID and inform us if you require the Trial license (1 Month) or wish to purchase the license.

3.    Once you obtain the license, Click Activate License > key in Product Key and Activation Key > Click Activate



4.    If you are using the Trial key, the page will be displayed as shown below:


If you are using a Permanent key, the page will be displayed as shown below:


G) Login to Ingress VMS
1.    Login to Ingress VMS by using the same Ingress login password.



H) For more information on how to configure Ingress VMS Software, you can refer to the Ingress VMS Video guide from this link : http://www.fingertectips.com/2015/09/ingress-vms-video-guide-is-now-available.html
ADDITIONAL: Guide to solve error message during installation of Ingress VMS
1.    HTTP Error 500.19 – Internal Server Error


Reason: This is due to not ticking all of the checkboxes within Internet Information Services (IIS).
How to solve: Proceed to Internet Information Services (IIS) and please ensure that all of the functions under IIS are fully ticked.
To determine whether all of the functions under IIS are fully ticked, you can start by viewing the checkbox as shown below:
Note that if some functions within IIS aren’t ticked, the checkbox will display as shown below:


2.    System ComponentModel.Win32Exception: Access is denied

Reason: Wrong user authentication
How to solve:
1.    Open IIS Manager > Click VMS

2.    Right click Authentication > Select Open Feature


3.    Proceed to Anonymous Authentication, right click it and click Edit


4.    Under Edit Anonymous Authentication Credentials > Tick Application pool identity > Click OK


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