Troubleshooting doors

When a door misbehaves, start with what FitManager recorded. Every scan, granted or denied, is written to the access log with a reason, so most problems can be diagnosed from the dashboard before anyone touches the hardware.

Where to look first#

• Activity feed shows scans as they happen, with the member and the result. See Activity feed.
• Access points: open the door to see its status, when it was Last seen by FitManager Control, and Recent Access Logs with the Deny Reason for the last 50 scans.
• Logs in FitManager Control on the reception PC. The Errors tab lists only problems, and logs\error.log next to the program is the file to send to support.

If the scan is in the log with a deny reason, the hardware worked and FitManager said no: go to A member is denied. If there is no scan at all, the problem is between the reader and FitManager: go to The door is offline or A card is not recognised.

The door is offline#

The access point page shows Offline when FitManager Control has not checked in for longer than the time set in Access rules under Report a door offline after (minutes) (5 minutes by default). Staff who can manage access points also get a notification and an email, Door controller offline, once per outage.

Check, in this order:

1. Is the reception PC on and online? Open a website on it.
2. Is FitManager Control running? Look for it in the taskbar. If it keeps closing, run install-windows-service.ps1 again as administrator so Windows restarts it automatically. See Set up FitManager Control.
3. Does the API pill in Control say API online? If it says API not configured, the Remote open URL or the token is missing in Settings.
4. Is the API key still active? In Settings, Integrations, API integration, the key must show Active. A revoked key, or a rolled key past its grace time, stops every device at once. Create a new key and paste it into Control.
5. Does the door's Code in Control match the QR Token in FitManager? Each door is only marked as seen when Control asks about its exact token. A door that shows No controller yet has never been polled with the right token.
6. Is the subscription paid? When your FitManager invoice is overdue past the grace period, devices stop until it is paid. Control's log shows HTTP 402.

When the internet drops, Control applies its If server unreachable setting: by default it keeps the door closed. Offline scans are queued and sent once the connection is back.

A card is not recognised#

The log shows Member not found, or nothing at all.

• The card number is not on the member. Open the member and check RFID Tag on their profile. Set it under Edit, field RFID Tag. The number must be exactly what the reader sends. See Codes, cards and QR.
• The format differs. Many readers send a facility code followed by the number. Tick Card format on the door in Control so it converts to the 10 digit number, or use Card converter in Control to see the same card in every format and compare it with the member's number.
• The member is at a different location. Cards are checked against the members of the door's facility only.
• It is a staff card. Staff cards are set per employee as Staff card number and open every door of the facilities that person works at, without a membership. See Invite an employee.
• Nothing appears in Control's log when the card is tapped. The reader is not reaching the PC. See The reader stops responding.

A member is denied#

The Deny Reason tells you exactly which check failed. FitManager checks in this order and stops at the first failure:

The door was granted but did not open#

The log shows Granted, yet the door stayed shut.

• The relay is not set on the door in Control. Edit the door and pick a port in Relay (output).
• The relay does not click when you press Pulse in Control. The board is not responding: check the USB cable, install the CH340 driver if the board uses that chip, and pick the port again under Edit. A red "not plugged in" means Control cannot find the board.
• The relay clicks but the lock does not move. The problem is in the lock wiring or its power supply, not in FitManager. Check the strike or maglock with an electrician.
• A QR scan from a phone opened nothing. A granted QR scan is held for about 30 seconds. If Control does not poll in that time, for example because it is offline, the scan expires and the member has to scan again.
• Relay open time is too short. Increase it on the door in Control so members have time to push the door.

The reader stops responding#

Control shows an error such as error 121 or "semaphore timeout" on the reader port. Press Reset reader on the door in Control. If it keeps happening:

• Power the reader from its own 12 V supply, not from the converter's USB power.
• Plug the converter into a rear USB port on the PC, not a front panel socket or an unpowered hub.
• Fit a flyback diode across the lock coil, so the lock does not send spikes into the reader's supply.
• If two copies of Control are open, close one. Two copies fighting over one port show as "Access is denied".

Still stuck#

Open a support ticket with the door's name, the time of a failed scan and logs\error.log from the Control folder.