The CAIN II access-control system

A description is given of the access-control system that is being built at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Called the Controlled Access by Individual Number, Phase II (CAIN II) project, it is part of the Safeguards and Security Enhancements-Phase I (SSE-1) line item. Under normal circumstances, the CAIN II system operates without human intervention. The CAIN II system consists of three major subsystems: (1) the CAIN II main computer (CMC) subsystem-four DEC model 8250 VAX computers, connected in a cluster; (2) the front-end processor (FEP) subsystem-Micro VAX II computers driving communications servers; and (3) the entry control device (ECD) subsystem-the actual equipment that controls personnel access. There are four types of entry-control devices: booths, single-door portals, staffed badge-readers, and sally ports. Several hundred entry-control devices can be connected to the access-control system. Each entry-control device contains the entire list of persons permitted to enter its controlled area and can make the go/no-go decision about passage on its own