How to set up a Wave-ID SP Plus reader for Windows
NFC Readers
Michael Pichardo
Overview
For this tutorial we are going to show you how you can configure a setup with a windows computer and a Wave-ID SP Plus Reader. While it may seem that this is plug and play, you will see there is a bit of setup and configuration.
Here is the checklist of what you need to get started:
Windows Device (the applications used are only functional on that device)
If the version you have is lower than the versions above you need to contact rfIdeas to get that version or later.
Smartcard manager folder which includes the Smartcard Manager application should appear in your downloads folder.
To access the Configuration Utility application, you have to navigate to Local Disk >> Program Files (x86) >> rfIDEAS Configuration Utility 6.7.0 >> rfIDEASConfigurationUtility.
Save both applications to your taskbar for easy access going forward.
Configuring the RF Ideas Smart Card Manager Software
Once the SmartCard Manager software is installed, go ahead and open it.
First thing you need to do is connect your Wave-ID SP Plus Reader to the USB-port of the Windows machine and click the Connect button on the Smartcard manager. You should see a "Connected to reader" message and the firmware number pop up in green on the bottom of the window.
Here is a screenshot of how it should look like.
Smartcard Manager General Settings
In the general settings tab, in the first dropdown of Current Card Configurations, go ahead and select ECP 2.0. This should generate a new ECP 2.0 Tab.
Now, you need to configure the settings to get it to work for your Apple Pass credentials. Click on ECP 2.0 tab.
Here is what you should insert for each of the fields in the ECP 2.0 section:
VASUP-A: you insert the 02C30200 + the TCI of your organization. For example, if you're TCI is 020000 then you would just append that to the end. The final value should be 02C30200020000,
Privacy AID: Privacy AID: Insert the bytes in a backwards manner i.e. Convert from big-endian to little-endian byte order. Enter Key: Insert the encryption key. (It should be 16 bytes all uppercase). You provided this to AccessGrid, when creating a credential profile. It is going to be the read key in your first credential profile. Key Type: AES-128 Key Reference: 05 Card Key Number: 01
Security/Credential AID: AID: Insert your AID, same as before. File:00 Enter Key: Insert the encryption key. (It should be 16 bytes all uppercase). You provided this to AccessGrid, when creating a credential profile. It is going to be the read key in your first credential profile. Diversification of Key: select None Key Type: AES-128 Key Reference: 05 Card Key Number: 01 Offset in File: 00 Length: 10. This could vary and is based on how it was set up in your organization.
Here is how it could look like for you (we do not show the encryption key) :
Smartcard Manager ECP 2.0 Card Configuration
Lastly, you need to click "Write Card Settings", then click "Write Keys", and then click "Write Everything to Reader".
Issuing an Apple Wallet Pass
In order to test our setup, we need Apple credentials. AccessGrid makes issuing and managing Apple Wallet credentials simple! So go ahead and open an account, go through onboarding, we'll be right here.
Now that you're set up, go ahead and issue an NFC key. Here's a sample using our python library:
from accessgrid import AccessGrid
# get these from your access grid account
account_id = "[placeholder]"
secret_key = "[placeholder]"
card_template_id = "[placeholder]"
client = AccessGrid(account_id, secret_key)
card = client.access_cards.provision(
card_template_id=card_template_id,
employee_id="101010101",
card_number="42069",
site_code="011",
full_name="Jose Casanova",
email="[email protected]",
phone_number="+17867212241",
classification="Employee",
title="CEO",
start_date="2025-04-03T22:46:25.601Z",
expiration_date="2026-04-20T22:46:25.601Z"
)
print(card.id)
print(card.url)
Note: We set the card number and site code to be in range for a 26 bit Wiegand credential
Customizing the RF Ideas Utility Configuration Software
Now it is time to open the RF Ideas Utility Configuration Software. Go ahead and open the software.
First thing is to connect to the Wave-ID SP Plus device by clicking Connect on the left hand side--you should be able to see the model number on the top center. The one we are using is RDR-80Mx1BxU.
Once connected, from the options on the left toolbar, click Format. Next, click Enable Data Format Mode. Then, click the Data Format tab.
Keep the default settings, and inside the advanced settings, ensure "ID extended precision math on" is checked and "Invert Wiegand bits" is checked.
It should look like this:
Configuration Utility Format Mode
Next, click the Extended tab, and below click Enable which is a toggle that is next to the "Define Fields" button.
In here, we need to edit the field 1, also known as F01. In the Display Mode section, click Decimal, and increment the counter next to "Digits to display" 3. The reason it is 3 is because the facility code is 8 bits which translates to 256 possibilities which means the maximum length is 3 digits.
In the Where section towards the bottom, you should edit the start bit to match where your output begins. For AccessGrid credentials, it is 49 for the "'start bit" and the "Number of Bits" is 8.
Should be able to see it here:
Extended Format F01
We now have to edit the second field also known as F02. Click "Enable". In the Display Mode section, click "Decimal", and increment the counter next to "Digits to display" to 5. The reason it is 5 is because the card number is 16 bits which translates to 65,536 possibilities which means the maximum length is 5 digits.
In the Where section towards the bottom, you should edit the "start bit" to match where your output begins. For AccessGrid credentials, it is 57 for the "'start bit" and the "Number of Bits" is 16.
Extended Format F02
Lastly, we need to edit the third field, also known as F03. In here, click the "Insert Keystroke" button on the top right hand side and click the "Enter" button and click "Close". When you exit the virtual keyboard, you should see <ENTER> in the keystroke textbox. It should look like the below.
Extended Format F03
Click the write button in the top left tool bar to write all the settings to the reader.
Next, click on the Test area section in the left tool bar, and make sure your cursor is there. It should look like the below.
Cursor on Test Area
Let's go ahead and tap your Apple Pass onto the Wave-ID SP Plus reader and it should write the Facility Code and the Card number in the Test Area in decimal format.
This is how it should look:
Facility Code and Card Number Displayed
Making it easier with AccessGrid
If you thought that was hard--don't worry. You are not alone. It was hard for us too.
Creating a Reader config with AccessGrid Login to AccessGrid.com, and navigate to Reader config section. Next, on the top right hand side, click Create reader config+which will open the Generate a reader config page.
In this page you are going to type and insert the following options.
Info: Wave-ID
Reader: Wave-ID SP Plus
Card templates: Apple Pass
Below is a screenshot of how it should look like:
AccessGrid Wave-ID Configuration
Don't forget to click Save & download config on the bottom right.
Now in the Reader Config page, go ahead and find the newly created config from the table, and download it to your machine. It should save in your downloads folder as a config.zip folder with the following:
accessgrid.ini
accessgrid.hwg+
Uploading Smartcard Manager Open the RF Ideas Smartcard Manager software and connect your reader. Navigate to File, click "Load Deprecated (Unsecured) Configuration", and then find the Ini file inside the config.zip folder that you downloaded. This should load up all your settings in the Smartcard manager so you don't have to worry about manually doing it and possibly making a mistake.
This is how it looks:
Load Deprecated (Unsecure) Configuration on Smartcard Manager
You need to click "Write Card Settings", then click "Write Keys", and then click "Write Everything to Reader".
Uploading Utility Configuration Next, open the RF Ideas Utility Configuration, click Connect on the top left. Click Format on the toolbar to the left. Go to the bottom right and click the "+" button icon in black. You should be able to select "Open hwg+ file" (the first option), and find the accessgrid.hwg+ file you downloaded.
This is how it looks:
+ button to upload hwg file
This should import all the needed data fields so you can get set up with the software without headaches. Click the "Write" button on the top left.
Let's go ahead and tap your Apple Pass onto the Wave-ID SP Plus reader and it should write the Facility Code and the Card number in the Test Area in decimal format.
Facility code and Card number in Test Area
Testing it
Now that you confirmed the Wave-ID SP Plus is updated with the proper configuration, go ahead and try to scan it. Make sure your cursor is above a text area, it could be a text editor.
Connect your Wave-ID SP Plus to the computer. Let's go ahead and tap your Apple Pass (hopefully you've used accessgrid.com for this) and try to scan it. It should write the Facility Code and the Card number in the Test Area in decimal format.
You should hear a beep. Congrats! 🎉
After reading this guide, you should understand a bit more about how to configure your Wave-ID SP Plus for your Apple Access passes. If you have any trouble at all, please don't hesitate to reach out via the chat in the bottom right or just email [email protected].
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