PaperCut NG/MF supports two closely related features:
- Card number: the number read from a swipe or proximity card assigned to a user. Swipe and proximity cards are often used to authenticate users at hardware terminals, copiers, and Print Release Stations.
- ID number: a unique number allocated to a user, for example, a student/employee number or a random number. It can be keyed in at a copier, hardware terminal, or Release Station instead of username/password authentication. Because ID numbers can be guessed or learnt by others, for user authentication we recommend coupling them with a secret PIN.
Because both card numbers and ID numbers function as a unique number that identifies a user, they both share the same field in the User record of the database — the Card/ID number. This means that all administrative functions related to card numbers and ID numbers are the same because they operate on the same database field.
Why have two Card Numbers?
PaperCut NG/MF supports two different Card/ID Numbers for each user: the primary and the secondary Card/ID number. Two numbers are better than one because:
- one number can be for a card, and the other for an ID number in case the user misplaces their card
- different brands of card readers might read different numbers from the same card, so having two numbers allows both types of readers to be supported
- you can issue new cards to users and phase out the old cards with an overlap period in which they both work.
Use of either the primary or secondary Card/ID number field is optional.
Getting Card/ID Numbers into PaperCut NG/MF
There is a range of tools you can use to add Card/ID Numbers into PaperCut NG/MF:
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