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FAQs

FAQs
We are constantly adding the most common questions from our customers to BluINFO. These questions and their answers can assist in a wide array of issues. Please feel free to explore on your own or use the search feature to quickly find articles likely to help.

 Overview 

Have more Questions? You can request an article through our Suggest an Article page. If you provide an email we will reach out to you once it is ready. 

A potential customer is quoting all sorts of terminology and technical data that I'm not familiar with. Can you help me out?

(Original Article  

Yes, BluB0X can assist you with understanding all the terminology and technical information needed to understand a "Security 4.0" cloud based security system. Please start by going to our Knowledge base and type in your specific questions.  We also have a dictionary of terms and our BluCARE and Training site.  

A prospect is interested in BluSKY, but they do not have local references, can you help?

(Original Article  

BluB0X Professional Services can assist with getting references.  We can also help with system design and answer any technical or logistical questions you or your customer might have. Please send email to professionalservices@blub0x.com with your contact information and details on how we can assist you.

Can I have special codes for my vendors, such as our cleaning/maintenance personnel?

(Original Article  

BluSKY offers several options when providing access to contractors.

Responsibility for adding and removing access for contractors must be assigned to the building management company, the tenant/occupant or the vendor. Decision making is also required for specific access locations and times.  For example, "Does the contractor require access to certain floors or areas, only on certain days at certain hours?"

BluSKY has the ability to enable Card only, PIN only, or Card and Pin.  Administrators can easily customize access for each individual situation.

BluSKY can also restrict access to contractors whereby doors or portals are remotely released or secured by security or the administrator.

Please contact your integrator, BluB0X Professional Service (professionalservices@blub0x.com), or BluB0X Support (support@blub0x.com) to design the best configuration for your facility's contractor access requirements.

How to handle adding/deleting contractors
  • Contractors can be set up as a Person in BluSKY if there are only a few contractors that do not change frequently.  Setting up a contractor as a normal employee is also appropriate if there is very high turnover and you do not want to continuously update BluSKY.  
    • Ex: Internal auditors are scheduled to be onsite quarterly.  An "Auditor" employee can be established and the auditor will use this card each visit.
    • Ex: IT is outsourced, but one person is assigned to be on site in your building or occupancy for an extended period of time.  This person would use their access card daily.  
  • You can also setup a contractor as a Vendor.  This is a good idea when you have multiple people that might change frequently or you might change vendors.  An example would be a cleaning crew.  These people can be set up as a Vendor for the building or the occupancy.  This would enable you to give administration responsibility to whomever is most involved with the Vendor.  
    •  The Building Management manages the access if the vendor is used by all occupancies, such as a cleaning service
    •  The Occupancy manages the access if the vendor is only used by certain occupancies. 
    •  The Vendor manages the access if the vendor is large, has a high employee turnover, and you trust them.This would reduce day to day maintenance.  It would also make is very easy to switch vendors since you know each person who belongs to the vendor.
How to handle access
  • You can setup multiple schedules and access levels to get the exact level of security you need.
    • Ex: You have a cleaning crew.  They clean certain areas on certain days and between certain hours.
      • Create the following schedules
        • Cleaning Monday: 00:00 - 08:00, Monday
        • Cleaning Tuesday: 00:00 - 08:00, Tuesday
        • VIP Cleaning: 00:00 - 03:00 M-F
      • Create the following access levels
        • Cleaning Monday: Lobby, 1st and 2nd floor occupancies. Use "Cleaning Monday" schedule.
        • Cleaning Tuesday: Lobby, 3rd and 4th floor occupancies. Use "Cleaning Tuesday" schedule.
        • White Glove Cleaning: Penthouse and CEO offices. Use "VIP Cleaning" schedule.
      • Assign Access Levels to Cleaning crew
        • All Cleaning crew get "Cleaning Monday" and "Cleaning Tuesday"
        • Only the best trained and trusted cleaning crew get "White Glove Cleaning"

Can I remotely control BluSKY on my smartphone or PC?

(Original Article  

The answer is a resounding, Yes!  "Any Device, Anytime, Anywhere" accurately describes the BluB0X Mobile philosophy and practice.  BluB0X developed BluSKY - the first cloud based system-  to enable seamless and easy administration and remote access from anywhere on any device.  Please go to blub0x.com for more detail on BluB0X revolutionary and unparalleled BluSKY offerings in the security industry.

Can I track who is arming or disarming the system?

(Original Article  

Yes, there are several ways to track who is arming or disarming a system.  One is by looking at the Control Events screen, the other is to setup a Rule to notify you when this happens.

Reviewing the Control Events screen:

In the screen shot below you can see that Shaun Peterson "Armed Away" several IPS Groups.

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Setting Up a Rule:

This is straight forward. Please review the document Create a Simple Rule to under stand the basics.  You can see an example below of setting up a simple rule to email when alarm is "Arm Instantly".  You will see other "Event Types" for "Disarmed Alarm", "Arm Stay", and "Arm Away"

 

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How can I keep up to date with new product releases and other product information?

(Original Article  

Thank you for your interest in BluB0X!  Currently new product releases and other product information is proactively sent to Integrators with every BluSKY update - approximately twice a month. Please let your Integrator know you are interested in learning more about BluB0X updates. You can also go the BluB0X knowledge base to read the latest release notes.

How do I add a holiday to my system or occupancy?

(Original Article  

Read Holidays to get a high level understanding of how BluSKY handles holidays.  

Two simple changes are required when you want to add a holiday to your system or occupancy.

  1. Add the Holiday to the list of Holidays to be observed. This will let BluSKY know that on a certain day your system will be following the holiday schedule.  Read Create a Holiday to add a new holiday.
  2. Create a schedule for the Holiday.  Read Holiday Schedule to create a schedule for holidays.

 

How do I limit access within my system or occupancy

(Original Article  

Limiting access to your system or occupancy is simply giving people access to only the doors and floors required, usually through Access Levels.  This can be done several ways:

How do I obtain installation manuals for BluBØX controllers and card readers?

(Original Article  

You can find the data sheets and manuals for the devices BluB0X supports in our Knowledge Base under the BluCHIP section.  You can traverse the directory to find what you are looking for or enter a search string ex. EP1502

How do I report an issue?

(Original Article  

It is always best for end-users to report an issue to the building manager first, they will engage the Integrator for your building. If there is a need to engage directly with BluB0X on an issue there are two options depending on your needs and the urgency for a quick response.

  1. Send email to support@blub0x.com for general support issues. Professionalservices@BluB0X.com for Professional services.  Both will generate a support ticket with BluB0X and an automatic response with the tracking number will be sent back.
  2. Call BluB0X Support line (844) 425-8209 ext.2.  During normal business hours you will get a live response from BluB0X Support.  After hours please leave voice mail.
  3. If you want to let us know about a documentation issue please send email to documentation@blub0x.com

 

 

How do I schedule a demo?

(Original Article  

To schedule a demo please got to Contact Us and fill out the form at the bottom of the page or contact your regional sales manager.

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How experienced is BluBØX in the security industry?

(Original Article  

BluB0X's fifteen years of experience are without parallel in the security industry, headed by a senior management team that introduced and marketed the industry's first successful cloud-based security system- OneFacility by Touchcom - in 2000. The company's Cloud- domain experience is also unmatched in the industry. BluB0X follows Touchcom's strategy but with the latest technology and features, extending its product reach from small systems to the largest enterprise security systems. The teams' experience as both a manufacturer and integrator ensures a deep understanding of the practical needs of Integrators, Consultants and End Users.  To augment this rich heritage, BluBØX attracted the best research and engineering team that is tasked with developing advanced detection, classification, and recognition systems for our Person Reader - a disruptive biometric solution that is an integral piece of the total BluB0X spectrum of offerings.  

Please read About BluB0X for detailed information about the company's industry experience.

How many times can I take BluSKY training?

(Original Article  

BluB0X training is online and free to everyone, this included both Integrator and end-users, so you can take, re-take or refresh your BluB0X skills as many times as you desire.  Please go to our BluCARE and Training site.  You can also schedule instructor led training as a paid service by sending email to professionalservices@bluB0X.com

 

 

How often should my customer upgrade their software?

(Original Article  

This is a trick question, customers do not need to upgrade their software.  Part of moving to a hosted cloud solution is that when there are updates to the currently released software, BluB0X will upgrade our hosted site and all customers will get the improvement.  End-users might notice a slight slow down if they are running a large search at the time of the upgrade.  Access to the building will not be impacted by the update.

From time to time our hardware vendors will have firmware updates that BluB0X would recommend upgrading.  This is done remotely by an integrator as part of the services they provide.  End-users will be only aware of these changes when the integrator schedules the 5-10 minutes for the firmware update.

I would like a quote for a BB system as well as monitoring? Can you assist with that?

(Original Article  

Absolutely, BluB0X Sales and Professional Service can work with an Integrator to generate quotes for any system configuration. Please send your inquiries to sales@blub0x.com

My customer does not want to run his security system from his company network. What are the options?

(Original Article  

BluSKY was designed from the ground up to work from Any Device, Any Time, Any Where.  This means that your customer can run their security system from their Tablet, Phone, or home PC on any Wi-FI or cell network.  If it has a browser you are good to go.  The customer logs into BluSKY using the same login and password they would from the office.  Welcome to Security 4.0.

What features do you offer for employees with disabilities?

(Original Article  

BluSKY has ADA features built into our portals which can be activated when assigning a card to a person.  All access devices (Card readers, Person Reader) have audio to let the user know if access has been granted or denied.

There are two setting in Portals that enable a person to have additional time to enter or exit a portal without setting off door held alarms and to release the door for a longer period of time.

Enable ADA Setting in Portal
  • Edit Portal
  • Select "Advanced Settings"
  • Go to "Anti-Passback and ADA Settings"
  • Change "ADA Output Time (sec)" to change the number of seconds the door is released to give a person additional time to enter the portal.
  • Change "ADA DC Held (sec)" to change the number fo seconds the door can be held open before the "Door Open" event is triggered.
Enable Persons Card to Use ADA Settings

What preliminary information should be provided to resolve an issue or question faster?

(Original Article  

In order to quickly resolve issues or questions the more details provided to your integrator on initial contact is critical.  It is very important to contact your integrator first. They will work with BluBØX if they need any assistance. The integrator is most intimately knowledgeable about how your system was configured and what training as already been provided. 

Key details to provide:

  • Provide your Name, email address, and the name of your company.
  • Provide the location where the problem is occurring.
  • Provide the System, Facility, and Occupancy that is experiencing an issue or has a question.
  • Which BluSKY user is having this issue or question, their name and email address in BluSKY is very helpful.
  • What is the time and date of the issue being submitted.
  • Any details on how to reproduce the issue.

What training is available for BB administrators?

(Original Article  

BluBØX offers self-paced and instructor-led training for both integrators and end users. Please begin at our training section of the knowledge base to view online options.  If you need additional assistance or to schedule instructor led training, please email professionalservices@blub0x.com.  Include contact information and details about how we can accommodate your training needs.

Is the BluBØX system UL certified?

Question 

Is BluBØX Supported Hardware UL Listed?

Answer

Yes, Both the Mercury and LifeSafety Power boards are UL certified.

Please read Mercury UL Certification statement for details.

Please read LifeSafety Power's UL Certification statement.

"We also have a fully Underwriters Laboratories listed (U.S. and Canada) system, with industry-leading Authentic Mercury Security controllers, as well as the award-winning iSCAN™ Rack Mount Series that solves small footprint concerns and installs seamlessly in data center environments or IT closets." Source: http://www.lifesafetypower.com/docs/pr_lsp_ms_ul.pdf