Best practices for setting up Nebula installations Beta

Overview

The way you set up the access plan for your installation can depend on a variety of factors. For example:

• The size of your installation
• The kind of devices you're using
• The types of keys you assign to your users
• Whether your installation contains units or not

This section aims to provide a series of best practices when it comes to setting up your Nebula access plan. Specifically it refers to the order in which you should create the different elements of the system (devices, access rights, users, etc.) to ensure a smooth set up and ongoing management.

Creating and configuring devices

The first and most important part of any installation set up is creating and configuring the devices that belong to the installation.

There are two ways to create and set up devices in Nebula:

1. Create the devices in Nebula web first, then set up and configure them via the app.
2. Use only the app to create, set up and configure the devices.

For larger installations it's generally recommended that you create the devices with their names and properties (for example, connection types, parent devices, opening modes, etc.) using Nebula web, before configuring them using the Nebula app.

A large installation is considered to be one that contains over 100 access points. For these kinds of installations it's assumed that you have a map of all the access points and a clear and coherent naming system worked out prior to installing "locks on the doors".

This means it's easier to envisage a high-level layout of the installation and replicate this plan in Nebula web.

For smaller installations, however, you might find it more "agile" for an installer to directly create and configure the devices at the same time as they're installing them. This kind of set up might be useful for small hotels, or offices that have a small number of doors with Salto locks on them.

Whichever path you choose, remember that you should first create and configure devices before creating the other elements that make up the system's access plan.

Even if you do create, set up and configure devices using only the app, once created, these devices will then display in Nebula web. This means that certain device configurations can subsequently be carried out in the web application.

This guide for system managers generally assumes that the locks are "on the doors". Nevertheless, you can find more information about device configuration in the installer section.

Creating electronic locks

You use access points to manage the behavior of electronic locks in your installation. You might find it useful to consider that while access points enable the composition of the installation's access plan, electronic locks are the actual physical locking devices that allow or deny a user access.

Although not a best practice as such, be aware that when you create an electronic lock in the devices section of either Nebula web or the app, the access point that governs that electronic lock is created at the same time.

See the sections on creating electronic locks and access points for more information.

Creating access rights

Once your locks are on the doors and correctly configured, you can then create the installation's access rights. You should do this before adding any users to the system.

You should consider access rights as groups of permissions that can be given to users to simplify the management of access to and within your installation.

Some examples of access rights could be the following:

• Access to all perimeter access points
• Access to car park and main entrances
• Access to restricted areas
• Access to maintenance areas

Deleting access rights is not considered to be a task that you'll frequently carry out. However, if an access right is actively being used by users, the system will block you from deleting it.

See the section on access rights for more details.

Creating users

Only once you've created access rights should you then create users in your installation.

You should add access rights to users BEFORE you assign any type of key to them.

It is possible for users to have multiple types of keys, but this will depend on the type of subscription you have purchased for Nebula. For example, Apple Wallet keys is a license-dependent feature.

Units

If your installation contains units, ensure you create them after the initial installation set up.

A key best practice when creating units is to separate out access rights into those that relate to communal access points and those that are unit-specific. This will give the unit manager more granular control when it comes to giving access to unit users.

See the section on units for more information on best practices for creating and managing units.

Unlocking

Physical keys

If the users in your installation use physical keys (cards or fobs), you should make sure that they hold their key in front of the lock's reader until it blinks green (access granted) or red (access denied). When unlocking, make sure that they hold their key at the lock long enough so that the lock blinks green, allowing for it to be unlocked. The LED light on the lock may display short yellow blinks initially, before blinking green to indicate access granted.

This is highly important at online access points because the lock will also transfer any new data to the user's key as they unlock it using Salto's SVN-Flex technology. This data could include, for example, new access permissions or an extension of the key's expiry time.

Digital keys

For digital keys like app keys, it's not necessary to hold the key at the lock. Mobile devices can unlock doors at a greater distance, although the length of that distance can depend on a variety of factors such as the device type, whether there are any obstacles between the phone and the lock, or whether the phone uses NFC or Bluetooth Low Energy to unlock.

Also, unlike with physical keys, data is sent over the air to the user's mobile phone. This means that the updating of data like access permissions, for example, takes place any time the user has a working internet connection on their phone.

The situation is similar for Apple Wallet keys.

Summary

The process for creating an access plan in Nebula is broadly as follows: