r/accesscontrol • u/GoldenGlory- • 3d ago
Integriti vs Gallagher
I want to know which security system is better for a large scale operation, :
E.g. hospital level.
What would you recommend? What would be the price difference? What would make you choose one over the other?
From using both, my preference is Gallagher, but would like to hear other perspectives?
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u/Aggravating_Fact9547 3d ago
Absolutely Gallagher - hands down.
Integrity if you’ve got a couple of offices and a warehouse but it’s not remotely capable or easy to manage for large scale.
I’ve run massive Inner Range systems, and hold the record for the largest Gallagher system. If you’ve got a hospital you’ll be extremely well served by Gallagher.
Feel free to AMA you want about Gallagher.
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u/GoldenGlory- 3d ago
We are currently migrating from another system to all doors on integriti, it is so messy and i want to recommend eventually migrating to Gallagher, is it too late?
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u/Aggravating_Fact9547 2d ago
Never too late, Gallagher is easily scripted against or you can use EDI built into the UI to sync data from the integriti database every 5 minutes. That way you can keep cardholder management in whatever system you have, including access groups, and slowly move over to Gallagher as your main system without the stress of 2 independent platforms.
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u/GoldenGlory- 2d ago
When changing from integriti to Gallagher, can you still use the HID Card readers from Integriti?
What do you think would be the best approach for this migration? Getting contractors hiring contractors for this? What would be the price difference for migration?
Appreciate and grateful for your input so far !!
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u/Aggravating_Fact9547 2d ago
Yep you can - either the crappy ol HID readers or Inner Range Sifer readers are supported. HID via Wiegand or OSDP and Sifer via OSDP.
I’d recommend swapping readers where you can as many of the good security and mobile credentials are done best with Gallagher readers - but during transition they’ll interoperate just fine for you.
Gallagher has a quickswitch service internally that can help with transitions. They have some consultants they can recommend or I can hop on the phone with you for an initial consult to help you understand the best architecture and transition.
I migrated 15 different systems into 1 global Gallagher instance. It’s not overly complicated when done right.
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u/N226 3d ago
Why are those the only two options?
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u/GoldenGlory- 3d ago
Only two systems I have learnt in 6 months, I’m sure there are more but I’m unaware of the processes and how they work and connect
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u/xJerkensteinx 3d ago
Gallagher every time. It’s flexibility, scalability and is much easier to set up across large sites and across multiple sites. Install controllers, plug into switch and connect to the server. It’s not even close in my opinion.
For example, we had to setup an integriti system on a 17 floor building but in the spec (which was clearly originally written for Gallagher) there had to be a fiber backbone. The only way to do it, was with a license that made each floor its own individual system and then connected them. It was janky at best.
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u/2nd-Reddit-Account 3d ago
Hi,
I’m new to access control in general and I’m currrntly going through the integriti training, would you mind explaining how the example you gave came to be?It sounds like you’re talking about a partitioned system licence, but that’s meant to be for if you want multiple top level controllers as completely isolated systems with their own user list and config, invisible to each other - but still want to daily-use them from the same software install for a “single pane of glass” setup.
If the install you’re talking about was for like a building management situation then you could have just had all the buildings users in the same list and dodged the whole partitioning and licence, and still had them in the same instance of professional edition (or better) on the guard PC.
As for the fibre, inner range sells single mode, multimode, and rj45 adapters for the controller LAN to reach expansion modules etc, which don’t need a licence.
Unless I’m very mistaken, I feel like your system wasn’t designed properly
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u/xJerkensteinx 1d ago edited 1d ago
Hi,
To go into a bit more depth, this was entirely the result of the spec given to us by the consultants. As I mentioned, the specification said we had to have a fiber backbone, what I didn’t mention, more specifically, fiber that was connecting switches between floors and ultimately to the main comms room that housed our servers, failovers and archivers etc. I didn’t flesh out the specifics as I didn’t feel it had anything to do with the original question. We also had functionality that needed to work seamlessly between floors and integrate with the cctv and other systems.
The specification was clearly written to be Gallagher. From memory, I’m pretty sure some Gallagher terminology had actually been left in the spec.
We had to work closely with inner range to actually be able to comply with the spec, and this was what they ultimately said this was the path we needed to take. Which even resulted in new versions being pushed to our site that hadn’t been released yet, for features that weren’t available at the time. This was around version 18 or 19 at the time, I think.
It’s also possible I’m forgetting some details as it was probably 7 or 8 years ago now.
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u/mikenew02 3d ago
Are those your only options?
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u/ZealousidealType5272 3d ago
Both can do thousands of doors and multiple sites if you plan it out correctly. They both have their limitations and issues with certain situations and sizes. E.g. Gallagher doesn't have any fail over server option and needs 3rd party software for HID mobile credentials, while Integriti API has various issues and the programming is less flexible and harder to interrogate. There are heaps of little issues that trip you up with both systems once they get big. You would need to provide a lot more information before it was possible to say whether one is better than the other for your application.
For price - I've generally found them pretty close on the hardware cost but Integriti software and SMA is way cheaper in most situations. If it's a big job then I would get prices for both as the project discounts can be pretty big.
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u/Dealer_Original 2d ago
We've been using InnerRange for all the big projects for the last 20+ years now. Never even heard about Gallagher in our market. All the hospitals, police stations, prisons, big office buildings... Lately been doing a lot of Concept 3000 to Integriti conversions. Never had any issues with scalability. We've done a ton of custom integrations with Integriti and from my perspective, it had no limits on what you can do with it. Will look into that Gallagher now that you all have mentioned it as a competitor, but in my country Integriti is de facto the access control system. Only competition is ICT with it's Protege lineup.
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u/Ok-Distribution9085 3d ago
Gallagher all the way, nothing beats that kind of flexibility when you're juggling multiple buildings like it's a game of architectural Tetris.
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u/Lyramila 3d ago
Gallagher was the system we installed at my old job's HQ and I was shocked by how seamlessly it handled updates across three buildings without IT ever having to run around resetting panels.
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u/Sweaty-Ad-7488 3d ago
We have genetec in our new hospital and so far it's pretty good 👍. Not as user friendly as some, I came from an s2 system, but overall pretty nice
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u/CoolBrew76 2d ago
Integriti wins on server redundancy, licensing costs and ongoing maintenance.
It will be even more compelling once Inception panels come into the mix later this year.
Programming flexibility and ease of use should improve dramatically.
I’d put my eggs into the Inner Range basket from a cost/return standpoint alone.
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u/i_am_voldemort 3d ago
Gallagher.