School emergency alert recommendations

[yjgygyufgvfghfh]

Hi, I'm trying to find a lightweight, simple to use and reliable emergency alert system for a school. I've tested NetSupport Notify (far too limited) and SnapComms (amazing but way too expensive).

 

 

 

Got a budget of about £2,000 per year and all we're after is a way a group of users can login (ideally with 365 to speed it up), choose from a handful few shared/pre-made templates and have an unskippable message appear on all 130 or so staff computers (all screens if they have multiple).

It's one of those things we may never actually use, hence why the heads reluctant to pay the 16k or so SnapComms would have cost.

 

 

Any recomendations?

 

 

I was toying with doing something clever with PowerShell but I'd prefer an off the shelf to make sure it will work if it's ever needed.

[enjay]

I came on here to post exactly this question!

[yjgygyufgvfghfh]

Well if you've got the cash, go for SnapComms - I was really impressed with it but we'd be looking at 6.5k PA for our staff workstations which is just far too much for something we'll (hopefully) only ever use for drills.

[enjay]

Yeah, that's a lot of money for a fire alarm or lockdown alert, but could possibly fit in with some other things which happening here regarding staff comms. I'll revisit SnapComms when the new HR Manager starts, but keep looking for a lockdown alert in the meantime.

[PotNoodleTech]

Yeh I've got this pain in my neck too. Got netsupport notify but it doesn't really do what we need and it's not super easy to use.

 

Doesn't it to integrate with Paxton Net2 either which wasn't a requirement when be bought it but is now.

 

Any further comments about computer lock down systems particularly if they integrate with gate/door management would be darn useful!

 

Cheers.

[DGardiner]

Weve been messing around with 3cx using a Call Flow App, i can tap a button on my phone and it plays a tone out of every handset in the school - seems to work in the test school!

[yjgygyufgvfghfh]

We've got 3CX and could do this but classrooms don't have phones so it wouldn't really work. It needs to literally interrupt the lesson if possible.

 

- - - Updated - - -

 

Weve been messing around with 3cx using a Call Flow App, i can tap a button on my phone and it plays a tone out of every handset in the school - seems to work in the test school!

We've got 3CX and could do this but classrooms don't have phones so it wouldn't really work. It needs to literally interrupt the lesson if possible.

[yjgygyufgvfghfh]

Yeh I've got this pain in my neck too. Got netsupport notify but it doesn't really do what we need and it's not super easy to use.

 

Doesn't it to integrate with Paxton Net2 either which wasn't a requirement when be bought it but is now.

 

Any further comments about computer lock down systems particularly if they integrate with gate/door management would be darn useful!

 

Cheers.

 

We've got Net 2 as well, I was hoping to do something with workflows where a button could trigger a script to send a powershell to all workstations but I couldn't figure a way to do that securely.

[enjay]

Weve been messing around with 3cx using a Call Flow App, i can tap a button on my phone and it plays a tone out of every handset in the school - seems to work in the test school!

 

Ooh, now that's interesting because we already have 3CX, but mostly soft phone client rather than physical handsets. At very quick glance, you can make a specific sound file play, meaning we could record "Intruder on site - lock your doors and hide" and then send that to everyone's laptops.

[PotNoodleTech]

We've got Net 2 as well, I was hoping to do something with workflows where a button could trigger a script to send a powershell to all workstations but I couldn't figure a way to do that securely.

 

Indeed - we have a lockdown physical button and a software button on Net2 but just need some way when that is triggered to pas to netsupport to send out a message. Doesnt appear to be supported.

[DGardiner]

Ooh, now that's interesting because we already have 3CX, but mostly soft phone client rather than physical handsets. At very quick glance, you can make a specific sound file play, meaning we could record "Intruder on site - lock your doors and hide" and then send that to everyone's laptops.

 

its pretty jank, but i can pass the basic CFA over if you want to play with it.

 

not being too familiar with the 3cx CFA, i cant remember which project i used but i had a few, I created a paging group with the target phones in then made a DR and inserted my tone as the prompt message with a 30s timout and then made a CFA to make the DR call the paging group. Dial the CFA number and This results in the DR message being played to the paging group then it hangs up.

 

We even wanted to go as far as paying someone to develop the idea further and make sure its done right for our needs but struggled to find any 3cx people who would

[JOrdan01070]

We had Alertus which can display a message on the computer display and they have a free version for education.

[enjay]

We had Alertus which can display a message on the computer display and they have a free version for education.

 

Looks promising, thanks.

[enjay]

its pretty jank, but i can pass the basic CFA over if you want to play with it.

 

not being too familiar with the 3cx CFA, i cant remember which project i used but i had a few, I created a paging group with the target phones in then made a DR and inserted my tone as the prompt message with a 30s timout and then made a CFA to make the DR call the paging group. Dial the CFA number and This results in the DR message being played to the paging group then it hangs up.

 

We even wanted to go as far as paying someone to develop the idea further and make sure its done right for our needs but struggled to find any 3cx people who would

 

Yes please send me what you've got. I'll PM you.

[CTIDTech]

I've not used it but have heard of others that do but may be worth asking what https://teamsos.co.uk/ charge?

[Tefters]

Not cheap however the best solution I could find on the market and killed 2 birds with 1 stone, Bodet speakers.

 

Our school bells were on a very old electrical circuit which had been extended 2 or 3 times with extensions but on our last 2 extensions/makeovers we needed an easier solution so brought some and they worked great.

 

They are a network speaker so was win win as a bell system, tanoy and emergency broadcast system.

 

Ok yes its a lot of money upfront but will pay for itself over 10 to 20 years and ensures full box ticking on all fronts.

 

Simple 4 button network box which sits in the head teachers office as it would be her or the deputy head to make the call as to whether the alarm should be sounded.

 

Also, can't wait to play Christmas music down them come holiday time [emoji6]

 

We did have NetSupport Notify but it was crap, clunky, no one wanted to learn how to use it so it would have been up to us to send a message based on the head or deputy calling us by which time 3/4 of the school would of been whats apping each other and what about people in public areas like halls, corridors, toilets etc...

 

Like I said at the start, best solution to fit scenarios and tick all boxes + the more aggressive bell sound for lesson change, we have some nice beeps which took people 2 weeks to get used to (myself included) but are a lot more relaxing then a tinny bell.

Edited September 19, 2023 by Tefters

[E_G_R2]

+1 for BODET, just upgraded our old bell system.

 

At my previous school which had had actual bomb events and people climbing in we used the bell system to do alerts as there were plenty of people who weren't in offices etc..

[bigstan48]

I would recommend EMCO and it can shutdown machines. And less than £1k for a single enterprise licence.

[PotNoodleTech]

I would recommend EMCO and it can shutdown machines. And less than £1k for a single enterprise licence.

 

Googling EMCO comes up with a million companies which particular EMCO are you referring to? Thanks.

[bigstan48]

https://emcosoftware.com/remote-shutdown

[enjay]

https://emcosoftware.com/remote-shutdown

 

I'm not seeing any messaging functionality in that. Am I missing something?

[bigstan48]

For some reason they don't list that feature.

The software was recommended to us by an external IT consultant.

Maybe download the demo and take a look.

[stumot]

If your after a basic alert system, you could do as we have done and put some batch files on all the school computers that when called via PowerShell or impero bring up a full screen video of either a lockdown or fire message, its a bit cheap and nasty but it does the job and its working for us so far

[enjay]

If your after a basic alert system, you could do as we have done and put some batch files on all the school computers that when called via PowerShell or impero bring up a full screen video of either a lockdown or fire message, its a bit cheap and nasty but it does the job and its working for us so far

 

I don't mind cheap and nasty, as long as it is simple for non-techy people to trigger. This sounds like exactly what @yjgygyufgvfghfh was hoping to do too. Can you share what you've done?

Edited September 20, 2023 by enjay

[enjay]

For some reason they don't list that feature.

 

Not sure I want to buy something specifically for a feature even the manufacturer keep quiet about!