Getting Started

What is DoorFlow?

Quick overview of DoorFlow's purpose and how it works

3 mins
Beginner

DoorFlow is a physical access control system that enables you to programmatically manage who can access which doors, and when.

What Does It Do?

Think of DoorFlow as the digital brain controlling:

  • Door locks and access readers
  • Key cards, PINs, and mobile credentials
  • People and their permissions
  • Complete audit trail of who accessed what

Common Use Cases

HR Integrations

  • Automatically grant building access when employees are hired
  • Revoke access when employees leave
  • Sync with your HR system

Visitor Management

  • Check in visitors at reception
  • Issue temporary PINs via SMS/email
  • Time-limited access that expires automatically

Contractor Management

  • Grant access for specific time periods
  • Restrict to certain areas only
  • Track contractor activity

Security & Compliance

  • Complete audit trail of all access
  • Monitor failed access attempts
  • Emergency lockdown capabilities

Example

•
Jane Doe (Person) has a key card (Credential)
•
Jane belongs to the "Employees" group
•
The "Employees" group has access to the "Front Door"
•
When Jane scans her card, the system checks this chain and grants access

Key Concepts

People - Individuals who need access (employees, visitors, contractors)

Credentials - Physical or digital tokens:

  • Cards (most common)
  • PINs (keypads)
  • Numberplates
  • Mobile passes (phone-based)

Channels - Physical access control hardware (controls locks)

Groups - Collections of people ("Employees", "Visitors", "IT Team")

Roles - Define which groups can access which doors

Reservations - Temporary, time-limited access

Events - Complete audit log of all activity

The API's Purpose

The DoorFlow API lets you:

  • Create and manage people
  • Issue and revoke credentials
  • Grant temporary access (group reservations)
  • Monitor access events (who went where)
  • Integrate with your existing systems

What You Can't Do

Groups and Roles are currently managed via the DoorFlow web interface, not the API. You assign people to existing groups via the API.

Quick Example

Here's how simple it is to grant someone access:

1. Create person and assign to "Employees" group

cURL 
curl -X POST "https://api.doorflow.com/api/3/people" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"first_name":"Jane","last_name":"Doe","group_ids":[1]}'
POST /api/3/people

Create person

Creates a new person record with optional group and role assignments

Required scope: account.person

2. Issue them a credential

cURL 
curl -X POST "https://api.doorflow.com/api/3/people/12345/credentials" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"person_credential":{"credential_type_id":5,"value":"1234567890"}}'
POST /api/3/people/{person_id}/credentials

Create credential

Creates a new credential for a person. For HID Mobile Access and PassFlow credentials, this initiates an invitation process.

Required scope: account.person

That's it! Two API calls and someone has building access.

Next Steps

Now that you understand what DoorFlow does:

Core Resources Reference

Quick reference for People, Credentials, Channels, Groups, and Roles

Core Concepts • 5 min • Beginner

How Access Control Works

Understanding DoorFlow's permission system in 5 minutes

Core Concepts • 5 min • Beginner

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