Key Fob Entry Systems

The key fob outlived the metal key for one reason: when a fob disappears, you delete it. No locksmith, no rekeying every door, no wondering how many copies were cut at the hardware store. But not all fobs are equal anymore, and the cheap ones can be copied at a mall kiosk in under a minute. We install fob entry systems that hold up, and fix the ones that don't.

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The Cloning Problem Nobody Mentions at the Sales Meeting

The older generation of fobs, the 125 kHz proximity type still on thousands of doors, broadcasts a fixed number with no encryption. Kiosks in malls and hardware stores copy them for a few dollars, and a tenant who "returned" their fob may have three clones on a keychain. Modern encrypted smart-card credentials perform a cryptographic handshake with the reader instead of shouting a static number, which makes casual cloning impractical. If your building still runs on unencrypted fobs, that upgrade matters more than any camera you could add, and it can usually reuse your existing door wiring.

Fob, Card, PIN, or Phone: Picking the Credential

The credential is a policy decision disguised as a hardware decision. What matters is who gets in, how you take that access back, and what it costs to run at scale:

Key Fobs: Cheap, durable, no battery, works for every tenant regardless of phone. Still the workhorse for multi-tenant buildings and staff doors.
Keyless & Mobile: Phone-based credentials that can't be left in a gym bag. Best for offices and managers who already live on their phones.
PIN Codes: Nothing to issue or collect, ideal for vendors and short-term access, weakest for accountability since codes get shared.
Biometric: The credential nobody can lend out. Server rooms, pharmacies, and anywhere accountability is absolute.

Revocation Is the Whole Point

A fob system earns its keep the day someone leaves on bad terms. Access ends from a desk, in seconds, with a log entry proving it, and on a cloud-managed system that works from anywhere, for every building in a portfolio. Every entry attempt is stamped with who, which door, and when, the audit trail that settles disputes about who was in the building. For multi-tenant properties, per-unit credential management is its own discipline; our tenant access management setup handles move-ins and move-outs without a maintenance call.

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Already Have a Fob System? We Take Those Over

Plenty of buildings are stuck with a fob system whose installer vanished, left the software locked behind an installer code, or quotes three weeks for a reader swap. We take over existing systems constantly: crack the admin access legitimately, document the door hardware, replace what is failing through access control repair, and keep what works. Full rip-and-replace is the last resort, not the first quote, because most door access hardware, strikes, maglocks, request-to-exit devices, usually outlives the electronics that drive it.

Where Fob Systems Earn Their Keep

The buildings where we install the most fob entry:

Multi-Tenant Housing: Per-unit fobs, amenity access, and instant cutoff at move-out.
Medical & Care Facilities: Staff-zone control with the audit trail surveys expect.
Storage Facilities: Gate and hallway access tied to each renter's account status.
Schools & Churches: Volunteer and staff access on schedules, doors locked the rest of the week.

Key Fob Entry Questions

How much does a key fob entry system cost?

A single-door fob system typically runs $1,500 to $3,500 installed, depending on the door hardware it needs. Multi-door buildings scale down per door, and fobs themselves cost a few dollars each in bulk. Monthly software for cloud management is modest and usually replaces a server you no longer maintain. A walkthrough gets you a real number.

Can someone copy my building's fobs?

If they're the older unencrypted proximity type, yes, easily and cheaply, and no policy memo fixes that. Encrypted credentials close the loophole. We can tell you which type your building uses from one look at a fob and a reader.

Can you add fob entry to doors that use metal keys today?

Yes. That is the most common project we do: an electric strike or maglock on the door, a reader outside, and credentials issued to everyone who had a key. The metal key stays as mechanical backup. See door access control for the hardware side.

What happens when a tenant loses a fob?

Thirty seconds of work: deactivate the lost fob, issue a new one, done. Compare that to a lost master key, which honestly means rekeying. This single scenario usually justifies the system.

Our fob system's installer is gone and nobody has the software password. Are we stuck?

No. This is a routine takeover for us: we recover or reset administrative access, document what is installed, and get you managing your own doors again. Start with access control repair and we go from there.

Key Fob Entry Systems

The Cloning Problem Nobody Mentions at the Sales Meeting

Fob, Card, PIN, or Phone: Picking the Credential

Revocation Is the Whole Point

Already Have a Fob System? We Take Those Over

Where Fob Systems Earn Their Keep

Key Fob Entry Questions

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