in hotels, if you lose your room key card, how are they able to reprogram the new one so it works and the old one doesn’t?

Question

Is there some system that transmits information to your door card reader on what the new key is, or is it something different entirely?

In: 1028

Answer 1

There are two ways to do this:

One way involves reprogramable cards and readers that expect cards in a certain sequence. The hotel programs the card for the next one in that reader’s sequence and when it’s used the old one is deactivated. This is the less expensive option and the one used by most hotels.

The other way – and the one I’m more familiar with from work – uses pre-programed cards and a server with a database of which cards are allowed to open which doors. It’s a simple matter of reading in the new card and deactivating the old one in the database. While this option is more expensive it is also, in theory at least, more secure. Plus preprogrammed cards are less expensive than reprogramable ones, so while the up front cost is more it’s probably less expensive in the long run, especially for a hotel, where they can expect to go through a lot of cards.