This guide has been written to help you quickly setup and configure the basic functionality of
the Access Control User Station (ACUS) application. It presents the functional capabilities
and basic operational details of the application and contains the procedures that you should
know for performing your business tasks rapidly and efficiently using this element of the
application.
Intended Audience
This guide is primarily intended for the users who will manage the access control system at
any premises.
Prerequisites for Use
The overall awareness of the Risco Access Control (RAC) system and the basic knowledge of
access control systems and security domain are necessary to use this guide.
Organization of the Guide
Information in this guide has been organized as follows:
Chapter Description
Introduction to ACUS
Logon to ACUS
Quick Start in ACUS
Events and Alarms Icons
Glossary
Contacts
Index
This section provides an overview of the product and ACUS
application.
This section describes the process to log on and log off ACUS.
The Quick Start Wizard that appears when you log on to ACUS
for the first time is described in detail.
This list describes the default icons for alarms and events that
appear in the Events List and Alarms List in ACUS.
This section provides the explanation of the terms that are used in
this guide.
This section provides the contact details of Risco Group.
Index of the terms, concepts and the tasks in the quick guide is
provided.
Access Control User Station (ACUS) application is a part of the Risco Access Control (RAC)
System.
1.1 What is ACUS?
The ACUS application serves the customer personal and allows the customer to configure,
monitor and apply routine day to day tasks of the RAC system that are in the customer’s work
scope. The application end-user is referred to as ‘User’. The ACUS application reflects the
three main activities:
• Office – Receptionist
• Security – Guard
• Settings – Security Officer
The account for the client is created in Access Control Operator Station (ACOS). The Main
User (default user for ACUS) is created when an account is created. The installer belonging
to an Installer Company installs registers and configures the firmware devices such as the
Proxy, Controller and Doors.
1.2 Prerequisites (responsibility of the installer)
Before you can log on to ACUS, ensure the following activities are completed:
• All firmware devices (Firmware devices include Proxy, Access Control Controller Board
(ACCB), Doors, Relays, Sensors and Readers) are created, registered and configured
through ACIS before handling over the system to ACUS User for use.
• All required sections are created. (A section is a logical configuration unit into which an
account can be divided. Sections are created by the installer using ACIS).
1.3 Why use ACUS?
After these activities are done, you will use ACUS to configure following entities:
•Persons
system is deployed) and those who visit the building. When you log on to ACUS, add
persons manually or import the person data in the system and assign cards and rules to
the person. Assign ID cards which will serve as identification for each person. For more
details, visit the chapter Managing Persons in the ACUS User Manual.
•Rules
conditions that decide the access provided or revoked for persons or categories. You can
define Person categories to which Access Rules will be assigned. You can create rules for
Persons based on categories, location, zones and doors. Using rules, you will be able to
define the access control pattern across doors and zones. You can assign schedules for
these rules, to decide when and how the access will be provided. For more details, visit the
chapter
: Access is managed for the persons working in the organization (where RAC
: Through ACUS, you manage access control for Persons in the building. Rules are
generated (for example, Door Enabled, Forced Door Events, Door locked-unlocked,
Conditional Sensor turned On and so on) should be configured. While configuring door
settings, you may also assign schedule to the door, fixed and custom rules and authorized
persons who will have access to the door. For more details, visit the chapter Configuring
Doors in the ACUS User Manual.
• Relays and Sensors
• Events and Alarms Configuration
can view events for the situations that you selected. You can configure the events in
ACUS. Events are notifications that ACUS system receives from the firmware whenever
the actions take place. For example, you can configure in ACUS that an event should be
generated every time someone forcibly opens a door. For more details, visit the chapter
Configuring Alarms and Events in the ACUS User Manual.
ACUS allows you to apply filters to access for Doors, Events, Persons, Alarms and Zones.
Tasks which you will perform often, you can set automations in ACUS. The tasks will be
performed automatically based on the schedules.
Apart from managing access for persons, ACUS allows you to manage access for Visitors.
Visitors are persons who are not the part of the company however keep visiting now and then
for various purposes. You may provide permission to Persons to manage their own visits and
visitors. At a broad level, you can manage access for visitors and apply rules for visitor
access.
: The Door Side Settings such as the situations when the event should be
: Configuration of external Relays and Sensors in ACUS.
: After configuring the Persons, Doors, and Rules, you
When an account is created, the Main User ID is created. The Main user has access to
complete application and can perform any tasks in ACUS. The main user creates other user
ID’s and assigns profiles to them. The user’s access to ACUS (the functions that can be
available to the user) is decided by the user profile that the user belongs to.
1.4 Who will use ACUS?
The user profiles in ACUS are of the following types:
•Receptionist
Control system such as handling visitors, setting new appointments, managing existing
appointments and managing persons.
•SecurityGuard
operating on the RAC elements such as closing a door or activating a relay or a command
in the process of handling an alarm.
•SecurityManager
managing persons and rules, managing other system users’ permissions, managing alarms
and events configurations, defining door groups and so on.
: Responsible for handling the office related routine tasks in the Access
: Responsible for monitoring events and handling alarms. This includes
: Responsible for the system configurations and settings including
1.5 What are the dashboards used for?
The ACUS application is also organized based on the user profiles. When you log on as a
Main User, you can view three dashboards, they are:
: The Settings dashboard is used by the Security officer who is in charge of the
access control. The dashboard is used for system configurations and settings including
managing persons and rules, managing other system users’ permissions, managing alarms
and events configurations, defining door groups, defining zones, generating reports and so
on.
•Security
: The Security dashboard is used by the Security personnel, the guard in the
organization. The Security dashboard is used for viewing alarms and events, configuring
doors and zones and view maps of the location (if the appropriate license is available)
•Office
: The Office dashboard is used by the receptionist in the organization for person and
visitor management. You can also manage alarms and events from this dashboard.
If your company supports any third party application other that RAC system, you will be able
to create Third Party Users (for details, refer to chapter Adding Third Party/External Users
in the ACUS User Manual) who will be able to access certain functionalities in ACUS for
various purposes.
You can generate Predefined reports through ACUS. The reports can be for Persons, Events,
Doors, Visitors, Alarms and other configurations made in ACUS. Apart from the predefined
reports, you can customize and generate reports (if the appropriate license is available for the
account) for entities such as Doors and Zones, Persons, Events & Alarms, Configurations,
Locations, Sensors and Relays, Automation and so on.
In ACUS, you can customize certain screens and decide how they should appear in the
application. The default dashboard allows you to view certain activities on the home page.
Like all other RAC system application, ACUS supports localization for languages – English,
French, Italian and Hebrew.
The following sections describe the process to perform tasks in ACUS. For a general
understanding of the application and the user interface, see How to User ACUS in the ACUS
After you have installed ACUS successfully, you can start using the application.
This chapter covers:
• 2.1 Logging on to ACUS
• 2.2 Log off from ACUS
2.1 Logging on to ACUS
Figure 1: ACUS Splash Screen
1. Double-click the ACUS Client
icon/shortcut available on the
desktop. The ACUS splash
screen appears.
• Or
• Click Start → All Programs → Risco
Axes Plus → ACUS → ACUS Client.
The ACUS splash screen appears.
• The login screen appears.
2. Select the preferred language
in which you want to log on to
ACUS from the Language
drop-down list. The available
languages are English, French,
Italian and Hebrew.
Note: If you do not select any language,
ACUS is displayed in the default
Figure 2: ACUS Login Screen
3. Enter the user name and password in the User Name and Password fields. When
an account is created in ACOS, the Main User (default user profile with complete
rights to ACUS) is created. Log on to ACUS using the default logon credentials.
4. Enter the Account Reference Number. The account reference number is the
unique number provided to an account when an account is created in ACOS.
5. Click Get Sections. The list of sections created for the particular account appears
in the Section Name drop-down list. Sections are created in ACIS.
6. Select the section in which you want to perform all the tasks and click Login. The
ACUS dashboard appears.
language of the system as per the
regional settings where it is
installed.
ACUS Quick Start Guide
Note: All configurations that are made will be applicable to this section only. If you have
forgotten your password to log on to ACUS, click Forgot Password link. A new
password will be sent to your e-mail address.
Vertical
collapsible bar
Figure 3: ACUS Home Page
The product logo is displayed on the top-left corner. The Company name and logo appear in
the centre. The name of the logged on user is displayed on the title bar along with the name
of the section to which you have logged on. The links for Home, My Profile, Change
Password and Logout are available on the title bar. The current date and time appear on the
status bar. The hyperlinks for Status and Task List appear.
There is a provision to collapse the tabbed menu and view full screen. Click the collapsible
vertical bar next to the tabs to hide the tabbed function menu and display only the current
function screen.
On the status bar, you can see the status message – “Categories Loaded”. This indicates
that all default categories created for the person are loaded in the application.
The dashboard in ACUS appears according to your user profile. The Main User has access to
the complete application and can perform all tasks in ACUS.
If you are logging in for the first time, you will have to change your password after you first
successful logon. The Change Password dialog box appears after you click Login. The
Login ID and Email Address are displayed in the fields.
1. Enter the old password in the Old Password field.
2. Enter the new password in the
New Password field.
3. Enter the new password again in
the Confirm New Password
field.
4. Click Change. The password is
changed. When you log on as a
main user for the first time to
ACUS, the Login Wizard appears.
Figure 4: Change Password
The Login Wizard is described in
section
3 Login Wizard in ACUS. For all
the other users, the ACUS home
page (as per the user profile)
appears.
Note: Click Cancel to close the Change Password dialog box and return to the ACUS home
page.
2.2 Log off from ACUS
1. Click Logout available on the top-right corner of the ACUS dashboard to log off
from ACUS.
Or
• On the menu bar, click File → click Logout. The Login window appears.
Or
• On the menu bar, click File → click Exit. The ACUS window is closed and you quit the
application.
When you log on to ACUS for the first time, the Logi
n Wizard appears to introduce you to the application and demonstrate the basic tasks that
you have to perform in ACUS. The Login Wizard allows you to define the basic parameters for
the particular section before moving to the main dashboard.
The wizard is displayed only if you are the Main User (default user) and have logged on to
ACUS for the first time.
It is not mandatory to use the Login Wizard, as you can configure all entities demonstrated
here from the Settings dashboard. It is however recommended that you initially walk through
this wizard to get familiar with ACUS. You may click Skip Wizard to move directly on to the
ACUS main dashboard.
To go to the Login Wizard:
• Logon to ACUS as a main user for the first time. The Login Wizard appears.
Or
• On the ACUS home page, click Settings → Tools → Login Wizard. The Login Wizard
appears.
Figure 5: Login Wizard
In the Login Wizard, the important tasks appear in the left-column. You can view and
understand the function of each of the menus that appear on the left. Click Next and Previous to view the information. Click Zoom to zoom in the window. Use the tabs on the left
side of the screen to configure settings.
This guide includes quick start information about the following configuration tasks:
Personel working in the organization as well as those who visit the building are usually
refered to as Persons. You can add persons manually or import the person data into the
system. You can also assign cards and rules to a person. The assigned ID cards serve as
identification for each person in the system. For more details, visit the chapter Managing
Persons in the ACUS User Manual. The Person Additional Information tab allows you to
change and customize the way the Add Person dialog box appears in ACUS. You can add
additional attributes, rename, hide and delete existing attributes.
To customize person layout:
Figure 6: Person Layout Configuration
Table 1: Add Person Additional Information
Field Description/Action
1. On the Login Wizard Welcome page,
click Person Additional Information.
The Person Additional Information
dialog box appears.
2. Select Left Group and right-click and
select Add Additional Attribute. A New Node is created under the Left Group. A
node having default attribute as Text box
gets created.
3. Select the Display Additional Attributes Tab check box if you want to display it as
a new tab on the person screen.
4. Enter the name in the Tab Name field.
5. Enter the following details for the new
node in the Element Details area.
Field Type Select the field type from the drop-down list. You can either create a
check box, option button, text box, list box or drop-down list.
Type You can decide whether you want the field to be optional or mandatory.
Is Numeric Select this check box if you want the user to enter only a numeric value in
the field.
For example, if you select this check box and enter 123 in the particular
field on the Add Person dialog box, then the value will be considered as
one hundred and twenty-three.
Default Value You can enter any value that you want to be considered as default. When
the user enters the default value, ACUS will not accept the value and a
message to change the value will appear.
Include Valid
Character Range
Enable ID Scan
Feature
Enable Signature
Feature
Enable Biometric
Data Feature
Enter a character range for the new node. Enter the relevant data in the
minimum and maximum fields. User will not be able to enter any data
outside the range.
If you have selected the Is Numeric check box, you can specify the
number range for the new node.
Select this check box if you want to display this field on the person screen.
The user can select it to add the ID scan identification option while
creating the person.
This check box appears on the Cards and Authorizations tab in the
Add/Edit/Duplicate Person functionality.
Select this check box if you want to give the option to the user to use the
person’s signature for identification.
This check box appears on the Cards and Authorizations tab in the
Add/Edit/Duplicate Person functionality.
The biometric data such as thumbprint can be included for identification of
the person. If you select this check box, the user can add this as
identification criteria while creating a person.
This check box appears on the Cards and Authorizations tab in the
Add/Edit/Duplicate Person functionality.
6. Click Save. The message appears, “Person Additional Information updated successfully”.
Note: You can only add an attribute under a group parent. For example, if you try to enter an
attribute under the Left group or Right Group, the system displays an error message,
“Additional attribute can be added only under group Parent”.
For more details on how to configure person layout, refer to the section, 5 Managing
Categories in ACUS are defined as groups. Each person in the sytem can be assigned to a
category. For example, there are categories defined for visitors. You need to identify the
category to which the visit that you are arranging belongs to. The Categories tab allows you to
define categories and assign them to persons. You can add, edit, duplicate and delete
categories.
To manage categories:
1. On the Login Wizard Welcome page, click Categories. The Categories window appears.
2. Click Add. The New Category dialog box is
displayed. The Category List and New Category
tabs appear.
3. Enter the following details in the fields.
Figure 7: Define Categories
Table 2: Add Category
Field Name Description/ Procedure
Category Type
Name Enter the name of the category.
General Details
Add
Select Person from the category type drop-down list.
The general details of the category such as the name and
external ID are displayed in this list.
You can search for the categories using the search
criteria such as External ID and Name.
Click Add to add values in the category. If you have
added a new category as Industrial Structural Unit, then
add values in this category.
Enter the value name in the Description field.
Enter an external identification number in the External ID
field.
4. Click Save. The message appears, “Category created successfully”. The
category name appears in the Category List tab.
5. Click the Fixed Rule tab to assign rules to this category.
6. Click Add. The Add Person Fixed Rules dialog box appears. For details on how to
add rules to this category, refer to section 3.8 Rules Management .
7. Click the Persons tab to add persons to this category.
8. Click Add. The Add Person dialog box appears. For details on how to add
persons, refer to section 5 Managing Persons in the ACUS user Manual.