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Getting Started with Visitor Check-In

Your first look at Visitor Check-In.

Visitor Check-In replaces the front-desk sign-in sheet with a QR code, a short form on a visitor's own phone, and an admin dashboard that tracks who's on site in real time.

There's nothing for a visitor to install, and and Admins can configure the interface to their specific security requirements.

Feel free to reach out to [email protected] if you have questions about this, or click the blue message icon in the bottom right or left corner to start a conversation with us now.

Overview

Everyone who touches the system falls into one of three roles.

  • Visitor - Scans the facility's QR code, fills in a short form, gets a badge, and is able to check out when they leave. Visitors are checked out automatically after a 24-hour period if they forget to check-out.
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  • Facility Admin - Signs in with email/password or SSO. Manages one facility: visitors, badges, hosts, NDAs, and settings.
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  • Company Admin - oversees multiple facilities under one company, plus company-wide SSO and security policy.

Checking In as a Visitor

A visitor arrives at the facility, scans the printed QR sign at the entrance (or opens the link directly), and lands on the facility's check-in page.

Tapping Start Check-In opens a short, three-step form:

  1. Personal information

    1. Full name

    2. Company

    3. Email

    4. Phone

    5. Citizenship

  2. Visit details

    1. Visitor type (if the facility uses them).

    2. Host they're visiting (searchable by name).

    3. A photo of their government-issued ID or photo, taken with the phone's camera (if the facility requires it).

  3. Agreement & signature

    1. Shown at facilities that require an NDA.

    2. The visitor reviews the document, checks a box to agree, and signs with their finger.

    3. They can optionally email themselves a signed copy.
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  4. Returning Visitors

    1. If a facility has turned on returning visitor quick check-in, a repeat visitor on the same device sees a "Welcome back" prompt and can check in again with one tap.

    2. This is under the Check-In Settings section, under the Settings panel.

Once submitted, the visitor sees a confirmation screen with their assigned badge number, pickup instructions if the facility uses self-serve badge lockers, Wi-Fi details if the facility has shared them, and a copy of their signed NDA if one was required.

Checking Out

There are three ways to end a visit — whichever is easiest in the moment:

  • Self-checkout from the confirmation screen, right after checking in.

  • Remote checkout from the facility's landing page — tap Check Out, enter the name and email used at check-in, and confirm.

  • Admin checkout — a facility admin checks the visitor out manually from the Visitors dashboard (see Managing Visitors, below).

  • Visitors are automatically checked out at the end of the day to prevent any confusion.

Creating Your Admin Account

  1. Enter an email and password after you receive the sign-up link from GroundControl.

  2. Add the facility's address, phone number, and an optional description.

  3. Choose all the settings required, including whether an ID photo is Required, Optional, or Disabled for check-in. This can be changed later in Settings.

Signing In

Sign in at the link provided in your email, with your email and password.

If logging in with SSO if your organization has it configured, enter your facility code and, optionally, your work email, then select Sign in with SSO.

Forgot your password? Select Forgot your password? on the sign-in screen to receive a reset link by email.

🚨 If your account has an authenticator app enrolled, you'll be asked for a 6-digit code after your password is accepted. Only one authenticator app can be enrolled per account at a time.

The Admin Dashboard

After signing in, you land on Dashboard which is a snapshot of the facility and its current flow of visitors: total visitors, how many are currently checked in, total badges, and how many are available.

Quick Actions direct you out to management options (Visitors, Hosts, Badges, Visitor Types, Badge Rules, NDA Signatures, Settings), and a Recent Check-Ins list shows the five most recent visitors, with the option to view the entire list.

Company admins managing more than one facility see a Facility picker first, plus an Open Company Dashboard option.

Printing your check-in sign

Every facility would have a physical sign at their entrance.

To access the printable, page version - Go to Settings → Visitor Check-In Sign:

Review the live preview of your facility's logo, a QR code linking straight to your check-in page, and fallback contact info in case the code won't scan.

Select Copy check-in link to share the URL directly, or Download Sign to get a print-ready image for your entrance.

Managing Visitors

Visitors lists everyone who has checked in, with tabs for All, Checked In, and Checked Out, plus a search box that matches name, company, email, phone, host, or badge number.

  • Select Check Out next to any checked-in visitor to end their visit manually.

  • Select View Details to see a visitor's ID photo and full details, if one was captured.

  • Select Add Note to attach a note to a visitor's record which is useful for flagging something for the next time they visit.

  • Select Export CSV to download the full visitor log and you can store these in your records.

If sanctions screening is enabled for your facility, each screened visitor shows a status pill (Cleared, N Match(es), or Screening Failed) - select it to see the full result.

🚨 Sanctions screening can't be turned on or off by facility admins — it's configured by the Ground Control team. Contact [email protected] to enable it.

Managing Badges

Badge Types

Define the categories of badge your facility issues — name, description, and a color pair (badge background and text) with a live preview.

Select Create Badge Type to add one.

Individual Badges

The physical badges themselves. Add a badge number and, optionally, assign it a badge type. From here you can:

  • Select Generate Print Asset to download a print-ready badge image (3"×4" at 300 DPI).

  • Add locker details for a badge, if your facility uses self-serve badge lockers.

  • Delete a badge that's damaged or unused.

Managing Hosts

Hosts are the people visitors are on-site to see. Hosts lets you add them one at a time, or all at once.

Adding a Host Manually

Select Add Host and enter a first name, plus any of last name, email, phone, department, or title.

Importing Hosts in Bulk

  1. Select Import CSV. If you don't already have a file ready, select Download Example CSV for a template with the expected columns.

  2. Upload your .csv file - the tool previews your row and column counts and flags anything that looks off.

  3. Map each column in your file to a field (First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone, Department, Title). A single "full name" column can be split automatically.

  4. Confirm the import. You'll get a pass/fail count and a reason for any row that didn't import.

Visitor Types & Badge Rules

Visitor Types defines the categories a visitor can pick from during check-in, e.g. Visitor, Vendor, Contractor.

They can be customized with their own name, description, and badge coloring.

Toggle a type's Active status to show or hide it from the check-in form.

To control which badge type gets assigned automatically, go to Badge Rules and match a visitor type and citizenship (US / Non-US) to a primary badge type, with an optional fallback and a priority order.

NDA Signatures

NDA Signatures lists every signed agreement, filterable by All Signatures, With PDF, or Pending PDF.

Select Download next to any row to get a copy.

Facility Settings

Settings is where a facility is configured end to end. It's a long page — here's what each part controls:

  1. Basic Information - logo, display name, contact details, description, brand colors.
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  2. Check-in Settings - anonymous check-ins, returning-visitor quick check-in, ID photo requirement, whether visitor type selection is required.
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  3. Visitor Type Settings - default visitor type; link through to manage types.

  4. Citizenship Options - the list of countries offered in the check-in form.
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  5. NDA Settings - enable/require an NDA, its title, description, and PDF document.
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  6. Wi-Fi Information - instructions shown to visitors after check-in.
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  7. Self-Serve Badge Lockers - locker mode (by badge type or by individual badge), locker names and combinations.
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  8. Email Settings - sending address, name, timezone, and templates for NDA and host-notification emails.
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  9. Security Policies - whether MFA is required for this facility's admins.
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  10. Single Sign-On - SAML or OIDC configuration, see below.

  11. Admin Users - add, deactivate, or remove admin access.

💡 Do not forget to click SAVE SETTINGS when you want to save your changes.

Setting Up SSO

  1. Go to Settings → Single Sign-On.

  2. Turn on Enable SSO for this facility and choose SAML 2.0 or OIDC.

  3. Fill in your identity provider's details — for SAML, the IdP Entity ID, SSO URL, and certificate; for OIDC, the issuer URL, client ID, and client secret.

  4. Select Save SSO Settings, then share your facility's sign-in link with your team.

Security & Two-Factor Authentication

Enroll an authenticator app under Account. Verify your email first if you haven't already, then select Set Up App, scan the QR code with your authenticator, and enter the current 6-digit code to finish.

We hope this helps you set up and use Visitor Control for all your visitors. Still stuck? Email [email protected] and we'll walk you through it.

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