RFID login for your Windows 7 PC.

Last week I was approached by one of our vendors to help bring a new product to the Modding community. I was asked to give a RFID kit a review and supply my thoughts on the simplicity of installation. I was also asked to comment on how I thought the modding community would take to RFID in modding. The review will be published in a week or so. I wanted to make a post so the community could share their thoughts and opinions on adding RFID to your modders toolbox.

In addition to these request, I was asked if I knew of a modder who was willing to give the RFID kit a test drive and actually mod it into a PC case. So after some deliberation between OvRiDe and myself, we came to the conclusion that SXRguyinMA was the man for the job. So in this thread we will be posting our initial experiences with the kits and we would really like to know your opinions and thoughts on the kit and our uses.

The kit is the RedBee RFID experimenters kit by Trossen Robotics and Roboticsconnection.com. Very soon we should be able to purchase these kits from FrozenCPU.com

The kit comes with a few suggested projects like using RFID to unlock a deadbolt or fire safe, Using RedBee RFID kits + Xbee Wireless modules to create a king of the mountain type RC car race and my project of interest, using the Redbee kit to log you into your PC with just the swipe of a RFID tag, card, or even implant.

http://www.trossenrobotics.com/store...R-REDBEE-c.jpg

I am playing around with it right now and the setup is pretty easy. What I would like to know right now is does being able to log into your PC with the swipe of a card or even hand appeal to you?

Here is a little more info on the kit.

[quote=Trossen Robotics] RFID is an exciting new technology that is finding its way into a variety of different industries; pet identification, keyless entry, hospitals, inventory management and tracking, tollway collections, security, data collection, wildlife tracking, and much more. Now you can experiment on your own with this great starter kit.

This kit includes everything needed to get started:

* RedBee RFID reader
* RFID tag variety pack (13)
* Project CD with 5 Projects
* USB Cable


The RedBee RFID Reader is a ground breaking first in many areas. Capable of being used as a tethered device to a PC or microcontrollers OR as a preprogrammed stand alone device it is the only hobby reader with both. The RedBee comes default with USB and TTL serial with the ability to add Xbee for wireless communitcation.

http://www.trossenrobotics.com/store...P-KT-100-a.jpg

http://www.trossenrobotics.com/store...D-KT-TGKT4.jpg

I forgot to mention that this is not intended for use in applications where security is a necessity. You have to store your password in an unprotected text file so anyone using your PC can grab the data if they know where to look.

Also, from my conversations with Matt at Trossen Robotics, this is only available to be used with Windows 7 based systems. He told me that it was something that MS put into W7 that allowed this project to happen in the first place, and that element is not present in previous versions of Windows.

Another neat feature, this device has the ability to control external hardware (relays, etc), the the potential applications for this are HUGE :D

I'll keep you guys updated with my experiments/findings

Woah, he actually implanted those tags in his hands. Humanity takes one step closer to becoming cyborgs!

SWEET! lol. looks awesome.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Oneslowz28

You have to store your password in an unprotected text file so anyone using your PC can grab the data if they know where to look.

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I'm glad somebody else noticed that. ;)

This looks like a neat board, especially with the built-in Xbee communications. Personally I wouldn't want one for logging into my PC, but it could be neat as a way of adding another layer of authentication for a door or something. Personally I would never replace any authentication system (lock, password, etc) with RFID, but that's just because I'm paranoid and know too much about the vulnerabilities of the systems. :P

There was some dude in Australia that got one put in so he could get rid of his keys....
Would be nice, but what happens when everybody starts doing it, then someone makes a portable scanner and goes around "stealing" ppls "keys"

Bump

Well I've set mine up and it works beautifully :D

You need to modify some .txt files and register some .dll's, but it's simple and the .pdf shows you step-by-step how to do everything.

One thing I noticed is the "save tag" function on the reader and software. This is used for projects other than the Windows 7 logon. I ran into issues with getting it to work, until I deleted the saved tags, then it worked perfectly :D

The only downside I see is related to their security issue. They say it's not very secure because anyone can modify the .txt file(s) once they're in. But there's another issue. When you set everything up, it adds another user to your login screen called RedBee with the RedBee logo. If you click on that user, it logs you right in without a password or needing to swipe!

I've got an email in to see if there is a way to hide that user or what needs to be done to disable that. other than that, it's a neat product.

And the fact that it has outputs to control things like relays make this a product I'm going to play with a lot more

I think it would be cool to set this up so when you walk into range of the wireless it boots your computer up so it is nice and ready when you get to it. just an idea.

man I need a SSD.

well the reader to tag range is only 4-6", but I was planning on using the reader in place of the power button (with a hidden regular button just in case), but that's an upcoming project, I need to do a lot of research to get the info on how to set it all up

I actually have that kinda sorted out. One of our members sent me a PM about it. It can be done fairly easy with a relay, Atmega 168 and the RedBee

you don't even need that atmega. the redbee will control a relay directly, so you ust hook the power button wires to the switched side of the relay, so when it reads teh right tag, it trips the relay and starts the computer :D

well on a positive note, the loophole issue has been fixed. I just wish I could say why :?

I uninstalled everything (registry entries, etc) and did it again fresh, and it works perfectly. It still shows the RedBee user icon (it has to) but now when you click it nothing happens. I was emailing Alex about this issue, and the only thing I can come up with was how I saved the credentials.txt file. So I'm happy to report that it now works flawlessly, and works every single time! No hiccups, no random issues (since the fix).

I think this is a neat product, and the potential uses for it are almost endless. Being that once someone's logged in they can change the credentials, etc. if they know where to look, I see it as being more of a novelty product than an actual security one.

I plan to play with it, and see about using it for the power button on a pc. It'd only require the RedBee to be plugged into a power source constantly, which is no big deal. The outputs can trigger a relay, which you can hook the power wires to (in parallel with a hidden power button just in case). Hopefully I can work this feature into Red Comet, but we'll see how the testing goes. As of now the power button for that project is hooked up normally, but I can just hook it to the reset headers instead. I'll keep that thread updated with the testing!

If this can be configured to require both the hardware (RFID) key and a password then security becomes much easier (at least if the RFID key is installed below the OS layer); intruders would need both, plus they would need physical access to the RFID reader hardware. I don't see any advantage over any other kind of physical key, beyond subtlety and convenience.

I'm not so sure about the implant. I'd rather have thieves steal my keyring than carve something out of my flesh (or cut my hand off or drag my body around). RFID codes can be recorded without complex tech (digital logic is only needed to decode, not to capture "as is") - from great range if you're immoral about blasting people with unsafe transmission wattages - without the authorized user's knowledge or permission.

http://hackaday.com/2010/11/28/rfid-...-instructions/
:whistler:

Just as an update, my unit is still working 100% perfectly, and I use it on a daily basis to log onto my computer. I'm going to work this into an upcoming project, and have been in touch with the guys over at Trossen and hopefully I can mke it work!

Also, customer support from Matt and the guys at Trossen is second to none :bowdown:

I still have mine so if you need help trouble shooting, just let me know.

I love it when tech support actually knows more about their product than the people calling them. I also love it when they're able to speak English, communicate like adults communicating with other adults, and actually man up when they're unable to properly diagnose or correct the issue. These attributes always seem to be lost when a company gets big enough to hire tech support from overseas. [/mini-rant]

+1->konrad