**People Alarms** in OPSCOM provide a critical safety and monitoring feature by allowing administrators to flag specific user profiles with alerts. When an event associated with a flagged user occurs, the system triggers a visual alarm, notifying relevant administrators to take appropriate action. This article outlines how to set up alarm permissions, add people alarms to user profiles, and view/clear these alarms.
### Setup & Configuration ##### System Settings There are a number of system settings you can change on the **Alarms** tab. - **People Alarm Append Threshold -** the number of minutes before an alarm will create a new dispatch log entry instead of appending to an existing one. - **People Alarm Dispatch SubID -** You can set the subID for consistency. - **Allowed Alert Emails** - You enter the addresses of the systems that will be populating alerts into OPSCOM. To add recipients of alerts, use the [setting in this wiki article. ](https://opscom.wiki/books/setup-configuration-for-admins/page/email-alert-list-Nbx) Before administrators can effectively use the alarm system, the necessary dispatch permissions must be assigned to their administrative roles. ##### Setting up Alarm Permissions 1. Click **System Configuration, Admin Management** and click **Manage Roles**. 2. Select the administrative role you wish to modify by clicking its **Permissions** button. 3. Within the **Editing Permissions** screen, under the **Dispatch** category, select the permissions related to alarms (e.g., **View Alarms**, **Clear Alarms**, **Add Alarm Comment**). 4. Click **Save Permissions** at the bottom of the page when you are finished. ##### Adding People Alarms to Users People Alarms are configured directly within a user's profile. 1. Click **User Management, User Search** 2. Search for and select the user to whom you wish to add a People Alarm. 3. Click the **Edit** button next to their **Basic Profile Information** section. 4. This will take you to the **Edit User Profile** window. 5. Locate the option to toggle the **People Alarm**. 6. **Toggle this option On**. Once toggled, you will gain the ability to add an **Alarm Comment** in the provided field.Note: The **License Plate Alarm** and **Plate Alarm** messages will both share this same comment.
- - Even if a user's profile does not have alarms explicitly toggled on or an alarm comment associated, the system will still be alerted if an API call for a specific student/staff number triggers an alarm. --- ### Using this Feature ##### Viewing People Alarms Administrators can view active alarms and dispatch logs directly from the top-right panel on the admin side of OPSCOM. [](https://opscom.wiki/uploads/images/gallery/2024-06/cicimage.png) - All alarms associated with a specific user profile or license plate are consolidated into a single **Dispatch Log** entry if the alarm is triggered within 30 minutes of the first alarm related to that profile/plate. This prevents a large number of individual alarms from flooding the system. If more than 30 minutes pass, a new dispatch record will be created. - If an API call for a person alarm is triggered with an **unknown student/staff account number**, it will be routed to the **generic alarms** section. This is typically indicated by a **bell icon** next to the people and plate alarms section. These generic alarms will also continue to be rolled up into the same dispatch log within 30 minutes of the first alarm. ##### Clearing Alarms You can clear an alarm from your view if you no longer need to be notified about it. - To clear an alarm, locate it in the alarms panel and select the clear option.**Important**: Clearing an alarm only removes the alert from the **administrator who cleared it**. The alarm will remain visible for other administrators until they choose to clear it for themselves.
- Even after an alarm is cleared from active view, it can still be accessed and reviewed from the [**Dispatch Log Report**](https://opscom.wiki/books/the-opscom-admin-portal/page/dispatch-logs) for historical reference. --- ### Best Practices & Considerations - **Clear Alarm Comments**: Use concise and actionable alarm comments (e.g., "Student requires escort," "High-risk individual"). This ensures rapid understanding and appropriate response from administrators. - **Role-Based Notifications**: Ensure that administrators who are responsible for responding to people alarms have the correct dispatch permissions configured. - **Timely Clearing**: Encourage administrators to clear alarms once they have been addressed. This helps keep the active alarm panel relevant and reduces notification fatigue. - **Integration with Protocols**: Integrate the use of People Alarms with your organization's emergency or response protocols. Ensure all relevant staff know what actions to take when an alarm is triggered. - **Regular Review of Dispatch Logs**: Periodically review the **Dispatch Log Report** to monitor alarm trends and ensure response effectiveness.